Running head: ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

Assessment Project Reflection

Jesus Romero
Western Michigan University

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

Assessment Project Reflection

When most student affairs professionals hear the word assessment they usually come up
with an excuse of why they do not engage in it. Some will claim that they have no knowledge of
how to conduct assessment while others will mention that they have no time to dedicate to
assessment. This is especially true at institutions where assessment is not a priority. However,
assessment is becoming vital for institutions, as there is more demand from accreditation
agencies for accountability. It is important that as new student affairs professionals we are
trained on how to do assessment from planning to implementation. One of the best ways for
student learning to occur is through experiential learning, which is why I really valued this
assessment project. This project gave me the opportunity for hands on experience in both
developing and using a rubric, which I know will be a valuable skill.
Assessment project
The assessment project that I worked on was with the Office of Assessment and
Undergraduate Studies. Because the office is focused on student success, they wanted a way to
facilitate the assessment of student learning. One approach is to have instructors develop student
learning outcomes for each of their classes. However, the office does not currently have any
resources available for instructors to use when writing student learning outcomes. Our project
goal was to identify resources for writing student learning outcomes. We chose to use a rubric to
assess the current resources in order to ensure that the resources were being assessed using the
same criteria.
First, we had to develop the criteria for the rubric using research we did on best practices.
Some of our criteria required that resources be clear and concise, provide easy to follow
examples, and references to its sources of information. We also wanted resources to provide

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

current and correct information, definitions of student learning outcomes, and to be free of
spelling or technological errors. These criteria were the six areas that we looked at when
assessing the resources. After compiling a list of current resources, we placed a total of 19
resources on the rubric. Most of the resources scored high on the rubric but only five received a
perfect score, which are the ones we recommended that the office provide to instructors.
Our project was simply a starting point for the Office of Assessment and Undergraduate
Studies to provide resources to instructors on writing student learning outcomes. It is a short term
solution so that the office has resources for instructors who may not know how to write student
learning outcomes or may just need a little more direction. According to Schuh & Upcraft
(2001): "Simply reporting the data without discussing the implications for policy and practice
will almost certainly weaken the impact of the study" (p. 23). While we offered several
recommendations for the office to consider, including developing video tutorials or worksheets,
we recognized the greater implications of our project. Student learning outcomes help support
the institution's mission of education. Not only must the learning outcomes connect to what the
student is expected to learn in their major and department but this must also align with what the
institution lists as learning outcomes for all of its students. It is becoming increasingly important
for institutions to provide evidence of student learning and one way to do this is by creating a
strategic plan to facilitate the gathering of this evidence.
For the purposes of our project, we were specifically focused on finding resources for
instructors to be able to write effective learning outcomes. It is important to note though that
learning happens outside of the classroom as well as in co-curricular programs and services that
student affairs professionals offer to students. This can be a hard fought battle since it requires
faculty and even some administrators to recognize and value all of the educational experiences

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

that students engage in on campus. There must be buy-in from all parts of the institution in order
to integrate assessment into the very fabric of the institution. It also requires balancing both
internal and external concerns (Keeling, Wall, Underhile, & Dungy, 2008). Internal concerns are
those that address the needs, wants, and desires of faculty, staff, and administrators. Meanwhile,
the external concerns include groups who provide financial or other resources such as donors,
legislators, and employers. Institutions are more successful in their assessment efforts when they
have one person dedicated to leading the assessment practices at the institution. It is therefore
important for institutions to put both financial and human resources into assessment so that
assessment processes are more likely to become institutionalized.
Although the project was a success, there are a few areas for improvement. The way that
we did the project was that only one of us assessed the resources using the rubric. We did this
because we wanted there to be consistency in the assessment of the resources. However, I think it
would have been better if we both looked at all of the resources. When we developed the rubric,
we broke down the six criteria into more specific areas. This should have taken care of any
inconsistency and we could have taken the average of the scores we gave to each resource
instead of relying on one person's interpretation. It would have helped get a more accurate score
for each resource. Another area of improvement for the project would have been getting more
feedback on the rubric from those with experience in writing student learning outcomes. This
would have allowed us to create a much more effective tool for assessing the resources. Our
rubric worked well for what we were trying to accomplish through this project. We chose to rate
the resources in each category on a scale from one to three on the rubric but provided no context
for what would constitute each score in the respective categories. Because of this it might be
difficult for someone to use the rubric again and have the same results, or what is referred to as

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

validity. One of the good things we did include in our rubric was a column for comments to
justify why the resource received the score that it did or anything important to note about the
resource.
During class, we talked a lot about closing the assessment cycle and that is exactly what
we did with the poster presentation. Schuh (2013) argues that "formal events are used to
celebrate and discuss assessment results" in order to create a culture of assessment. The poster
presentation was a way to celebrate all of the work we had done all semester with our assessment
projects but also to share what we learned. It was very important that we had staff and
administrators present during this session. Not only did we receive great feedback on our
assessment projects, but we were able to have meaningful discussions about what we learned and
what we recommend. As students, there is no guarantee that we will be able to see the project to
its completion because we are due to graduate soon. However, the staff and administrators will
be here longer and more importantly they have much more influence over implementation
because of their roles on campus.
Lessons learned
Before beginning the project, I had limited experience with assessment. Through my
graduate assistantship I had learned how to compile data from program evaluations and create a
report of the results. Our office had also just finished a program review but my role was limited
to working with my supervisor to interpret the results. I had also used rubrics before to measure
student growth in their development of leadership skills. However, I did not have experience
creating a rubric. As Bresciani (2011) mentioned: "the focus of assessment is not on 'assessment
for assessment's sake' but, rather, on exploring what students are learning and how they are
developing in a manner producing evidence that can lead to decisions to improve learning" (p.

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

2). While I was doing assessment on some level, I lacked the formal training or knowledge of
why it is important. The class has given me not only context for doing assessment but I have also
learned about the different assessment processes and how it all ties in together.
By completing the project, I was able to experience growth in the professional
competency area of Assessment, Evaluation, and Research. One of the skills under the basic
competency area is to "differentiate among assessment, program review, evaluation, planning,
and research" (ACPA & NASPA, 2012, p. 8). Our project was most closely tied to assessment
but we did do research and also some evaluation. It was assessment since we used a rubric to
gather data and finding the best practices to create the rubric would be considered research. The
results of our assessment were used to make recommendations on how to change what is
currently being offered, which makes it also evaluation. This ties into another one of the basic
skills of "effectively articulating, interpreting, and using the results of assessment, evaluation,
and research reports and studies" (ACPA & NASPA, 2012, p.8). Through our assessment poster,
we were able to present and describe the results of our project and also interpret what they tell
us. The results of our project will be used to provide some resources to instructors on how to
write student learning outcomes. It was a project that provided professional growth in several
areas.
Conclusion
My experience with this project has been very beneficial in terms of professional growth.
I have learned how to conduct formal assessment that was well-planned and executed but most
importantly the results of the project were shared. Because of the project and the course, I am
much more confident in my ability to conduct assessment, evaluation, and research efforts as
required by the ACPA & NASPA Professional Competencies. Also, I now know the importance

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

of assessment both in student affairs and for the institution. This is the beginning of my journey
into the world of assessment and I know that it will only prove more challenging but I hope to
develop as a competent student affairs professional, which includes having the knowledge, skills,
and abilities to conduct assessment, evaluation, and research.

ASSESSMENT PROJECT REFLECTION

8
References

American College Personnel Association (ACPA) & National Association of Student Personnel
Administrators (NASPA), (2012). ACPA/NASPA professional competency areas for
student affairs practitioners. Washington, DC: American College Personnel Association.
Bresciani, M. J. (2011). Making assessment meaningful: What new student affairs professionals
and those new to assessment need to know. National Institute for Learning Outcomes
Assessment. Retrieved from learningoutcomesassessment.org/assessmentbriefs.htm
Keeling, R. P, Wall, A. F., Underhile, R., & Dungy, G. J. (2008). Assessment reconsidered:
Institutional effectiveness for student success. United States: International Center for
Student Success & Institutional Accountability.
Schuh, J. H. (2013). Selected contemporary assessment issues. San Francisco, CA: Wiley
Periodicals.
Schuh, J. H. & Upcraft, M. L. (2001) Assessment practice in student affairs: An applications
manual. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.