Honest reports of student outcomes are needed, so that the faculty can find where problems exist and fix them. The current process for program assessment was discussed in further detail. Brutten reported that she had ordered a tape of an address on the subject of assessment given at the NCA Conference by Cecilia Lopez and will share it with interested parties. Brutten said that she too came to the same realization that NCA will put a lot of emphasis on assessment. She said that NCA will be looking for evidence of implementation of a systematic, ongoing, assessment measuring student learning.
Direct measures are most important.
The assessment program should have a feed-back loop, focus on student learning outcomes, clearly stated goals, multiple measures, documentation of changes in curriculum, and evidence that assessment is being evaluated periodically. Assessment should be faculty owned, driven, and implemented and faculty efforts need to be recognized and rewarded. Assessment should be administered and overseen as an institutional priority. The Self-study should report changes resulting from the assessment process and it must be evaluative. It s better for the institution to disclose weaknesses and take action than for the site team to uncover the weaknesses.