final version of the self-study document - Keuka College's Middle ...

with the expectation that this feedback will lead to stronger analysis and use of
assessment results.
Future Gen Ed Assessment Plans: With the addition of our newly hired Director of
Institutional Assessment, we will be working more closely with all Gen Ed faculty to
improve overall assessment of student learning. There is concern that we simply have
too many Gen Ed goals; condensing or reducing these goals may enhance our assessment
efficiency, increase student learning, and make the system work better. However, this
will necessitate considerable faculty work and involvement, and the goals have already
been reworked as recently as 2008. In the meantime, the Curriculum Committee will
continue to implement the assessment plan and cycle for the general education outcomes.
Program Assessment of Student Learning
Much work has been devoted to better articulation of each academic program’s goals.
The professional programs (i.e., Social Work, Occupational Therapy, Education,
Business, and Nursing) have long had in place well-articulated program goals,
performance indicators, and assessment processes, whereas programs in the nonprofessional
divisions (e.g., Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Humanities and Fine
Arts, Basic and Applied Social Sciences) have more variation in their programs’ goals
and assessment. As depicted in assessment plan diagram (Appendix 4.17 Assessment of
Student Learning Plan Diagram), Program Goals are integrated with both the Gen Ed and
E-LEAP goals. Appendix 4.23 Program & Gen Ed Course Alignment Examples shows
examples of how Program courses are aligned and sequenced with Gen Ed courses, and
Program and E-LEAP alignment is discussed below in the E-LEAP Assessment section
(See Appendix 4.35 E-LEAP and Programs Goals Alignment for examples of Program
and E-LEAP goals alignment).
Although program level assessment of student learning has been ongoing since the late
1990s, its effectiveness has varied by program over this time. Building upon a number of
assessment templates that had been updated in 2008 but which were used inconsistently,
the AVPAP and the GO Team in 2011 created a joint-purpose assessment kit for use by
all academic programs to reduce this variation in program assessment and better align E-
LEAP and program-specific learning goals. The set of documents called, “E-LEAP and
Program Assessment” (Appendix 4.36 E-LEAP & Program Assessment with Learning
Opportunities Packet v4.2) was distributed to all Division Chairs and Program Directors
at the beginning of the 2011 spring academic semester. The set of documents included
the assessment plan diagram, an “Essentials of Assessment” packet, and a set of learning
assessment tools intended to help programs conduct meaningful learning assessment.
The Essentials packet was composed of four parts: (1) an E-LEAP and Program goals
alignment matrix that linked institutional learning outcomes and program outcomes, (2) a
learning opportunities matrix template (curriculum mapping), (3) an assessment cycle
matrix, and (4) an assessment report template. This packet was designed to ensure each
program had well-articulated learning goals that were aligned to the E-LEAP goals, a
curriculum map and time-based plan of their learning goals associated with their courses
and/or activities, and a common template to report their assessment findings. While these
Page 17 of 31 Chapter 4: Inst. Effectiveness & Assessment