was developed.
This
survey provides the first comprehensive research on the patterns of student
assessment and institutional support for it in postsecondary institutions.
Variables from seven conceptual domains of external influences on, institutional
approaches to, institutional support for, assessment management policies
& practices for, institutional context of, and the uses and impacts
of student assessment information are included. In 1998, the ISSA
was sent to chief academic officers at 2,524 nonproprietary two-year and
four-year institutions in the U.S. Completed surveys were received
from 1,393 institutions for an overall response rate of 55%.
Findings for All Institutions
)
The research yielded the following, more specific, observations:
Institutional Approach
to Student Assessment
Institution's approaches to student
assessment emphasize the use of entry measures and easily quantifiable
indicators of student performance and give less attention to more complex
measures of student performance (e.g., higher order cognitive skills, affective
development). Institutions make limited use of less traditional,
student-centered assessment methods (e.g., portfolios, capstone projects).
Few institutions conduct studies of the relationship between students'
performance and various aspects of their experiences within the institution.
Organizational
and Administrative Support for Student Assessment
Institutions report engaging in student
assessment primarily to prepare for accreditation self studies, to improve
student achievement, and to improve academic programs. Governance
for student assessment is generally shared across functional areas and
between administration and faculty, while academic affairs typically has
primary responsibility for directing student assessment activities.
Assessment Management
Policies and Practices
Many institutions incorporate student
assessment information into academic planning and review processes; however,
institutions are less likely to provide professional development on student
assessment or to use faculty evaluation and reward policies to promote
involvement in student assessment.
External Influences
on Student Assessment
Institutions perceive regional accreditation
requirements, and to a lesser extent, state requirements, as important
and positive influences on their initiation of student assessment efforts.
Perceptions of the influence of accreditation and state requirements on
assessment efforts vary significantly by institutional type and control.
Uses and Impacts
of Student Assessment
Student assessment information is most
often used to modify student assessment processes, design or reorganize
academic programs or majors, and modify student academic support services.
It is seldom used to make decisions concerning faculty promotion or rewards.
Most institutions have not monitored the effects of student assessment
on institutional performance or on their relationships with external constituents.
Influences on Institutional
Approaches to Student Assessment
Student assessment
data has only a marginal influence on academic decision making. Our
data show there is slightly more influence on educationally-related decisions
than on faculty-related decisions, but in neither case is student assessment
data very influential. Nonetheless, we did find several significant
predictor variables in our model. For example:
- The number of institutional studies relating studentsí performance to their interactions with the institution was an important predictor since understanding what factors influence student performance should be useful in making educational decisions.
- Conducting student assessment to improve internal institutional performance affects the extent to which student assessment data is used to make educational decisions. If institutions intend to improve their performance by using the data, it is probably more likely they will do so and consider the use of this information important.
- Involving student affairs personnel in student assessment was a strong predictor of use in educational decisions. Perhaps this is an indication that an institution is committed to student assessment and has involved constituents outside of academic affairs in the process.
- The extent of student assessment conducted and the amount of professional development related to student assessment that is offered to faculty, staff, and administrators were both predictors of the extent student assessment data is used in making educational and faculty decisions.
- An important negative predictor emerged related to educational decision making: conducting student assessment for accreditation purposes. Apparently, the more important the accreditation mandate is to the institution, the less likely it is to use student assessment data to make educational decisions. Perhaps institutions are either threatened by or resent the external requirement and are therefore less likely to commit to their student assessment process beyond what is necessary to achieve accreditation.
