Module 1: What: Assessment questions

Overview: 

For assessment to bring about effective change at an institution, divisions of student affairs often need to develop a culture of engaging in assessment practice. This means everyone involved in the assessment process knows and understands its importance and is well prepared and willing to do his or her part to ensure the assessment process is of the highest quality. Good assessment starts with clearly identifying why one is engaging assessment. What do you want/need to learn about the effectiveness of your programs and services, and about their impact on student learning and development? Who needs to be included in the assessment process? How will you collect assessment data and use findings? When is the best time to collect assessment information?

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What: Assessment questions

  • Identify changes in programs and participants hoped for as a result of programming.
  • Identify activities that will occur to bring about change
  • Ensure that theory, standards and best practices underlie the development and implementation of programming.

Assessment questions need to address the outcomes intended with programs and services. Learning outcomes are changes in students’ knowledge, skills, attitudes, and habits of mind that result from involvement in a program or activity. It describes what you want the student to know and do. Outcomes are statements of what you will assess. Once outcomes are determined, staff determines the activities participants will engage in for outcomes to be realized. For example, consider using Bloom’s Taxonomy to write outcome statements. This taxonomy offers a hierarchy of action verbs that reflect progressively higher levels of learning.

Underlying each program is a theoretical and/or best practices foundation that anchors the program to a strong foundation. There are many theories in higher education that relate to how students engage, learn and develop. The Theory of Identity Development examines identity through seven vectors of development stages which the student experiences: Developing Competence, Managing Emotions, Moving from Autonomy toward Interdependence, Developing Mature Interpersonal Relationships, Establishing Identity, Developing Purpose, and Developing Integrity. As students develop in multiple vectors, they learn to function with greater stability and intellectual complexity (Chickering, 1993).

The Theory of Student Involvement posits that student involvement is essential for student success. Students must be engaged both academically and socially on campus, and particularly through involvement in co-curricular activities such as student organizations, connecting with students and faculty on campus outside the classroom, and spending time on campus outside of classes (Astin, 1984). 

The Theory of Student Departure explains why students leave higher education and informs efforts of programs and services to retain students (Tinto, 1993). There are also a number of Social Change and Leaderships theories relevant to student affairs Social Change Model (Astin and Astin, 1996) and Leadership Identity Model (Komives et al, 2006). 

Best practices can be gleaned though the Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) in Higher Education (2015). CAS has developed 45 sets of functional area standards for higher education programs and services. The Standards can be used for assessment of current programs, as in program review and self-studies, and for program design.