Assessment: Who Should Take the Lead? Who Wants to Take the Lead?
There are surely some things set in stone at a college, be it a two or four-year environment. Assessment is one of the foundational stones upon which a college is built. We can all agree with this, with few exceptions. Regardless of the department or area in a college that you may work, chances are that there are both internal and external expectations and standards that likely apply to you. Thus, you are assessed. Likewise, most areas of the college work for and with students, faculty, other staff and administration. You likely assess those you work with, whether you do so formally or informally.
Okay… we’ve reached agreement that assessment is important, and that we assess and are assessed. If assessment is truly important, and we do it, we need someone to lead the charge on assessment?
And now, the question of the ages… who should lead the charge on assessment? Should assessment be driven from the top down? The bottom up? Are there advantages either way? Any disadvantages?
Let’s look briefly at both scenarios. Assessment can be driven from the top down. Administration can dictate assessment; indeed they do dictate assessment. We are mandated to assess by our college. Assessment programs of one type or another are completed by all academic programs, and this trend is beginning to move into non-academic areas as well. The question? Is this the best method? Does this method work? Some buy into assessment, thoughtfully and diligently working to create the best process possible, and others do it because they have to do it. And some choose not to do it.
We’ll flip it now. Assessment can be faculty-driven. The faculty choose to take a leadership role in assessment college-wide. Assessment is still mandated, given its nature as one of the cornerstones of education. What would the end result be? Some will buy into assessment, thoughtfully and diligently working to create the best process possible, and others do it because they have to do it. And some will choose not to do it. A devilish conundrum indeed!
We need to drive a change from faculty reluctance to faculty engagement. The issue is how to do this. In the online journal Academic Leadership, Don Haviland writes that, “Assessment of student learning seems to have stalled as a vehicle for transforming higher education.” He made this statement because assessment is not tied to our planning and budget processes, it is not a performance expectation of faculty, and overall, there is no true culture of assessment.
Some suggestions offered include leading assessment proactively. This means that assessment is more than just another activity to be undertaken. It should lead to a paradigm change within the organization, leading to a true culture of assessment.
Another suggestion is to articulate a relevant vision. This vision should be a clear vision, and one that is not driven by external accreditation. This may be a good place to start, but we as a college need to build upon it and own it both individually and as a collective.
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Have a great month!
Wayne Whitmore, Student Learning Coordinator
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