In which areas do students tend to succeed when doing senior capstone projects and in which areas do they struggle? How can we support their preparation for senior level coursework? These are some of the questions faculty in the School of Molecular Biosciences (SMB) sought to answer with a program assessment project over the last […]
The ultimate goal of program assessment is to use assessment results to inform effective teaching and learning. In order to do that, faculty collectively consider assessment and the curriculum. Many approaches exist to do this. Some programs set aside a regular time during faculty meetings to discuss assessment, while other programs have an annual retreat […]
Solving real-world problems in an industry setting is critical for professionals in the field of Food Science, so faculty in the School of Food Science want to know how well their students meet this goal before they graduate. The School, a joint program between Washington State University and the University of Idaho, recently selected four […]
Curriculum mapping is an activity that visually aligns the program’s courses with its student learning outcomes, allowing faculty to identify strengths, gaps, redundancies, and places in the program to assess student learning. An important aspect of curriculum mapping is the faculty discussion which occurs in the process of creating and refining the map – a […]
On a cold day in January 2014, before classes had begun for spring semester, the faculty of Apparel, Merchandising, Design and Textiles (AMDT) assembled in a large classroom. Joining them were three guests, industry representatives who had flown in from Seattle for the day. The meeting’s objective was to share perspectives about what industry-readiness means […]
WSU faculty who are involved with the development, implementation, or use of undergraduate program student learning outcomes assessment are welcome to apply for ATL’s assessment mini-grants. Up to six mini-grants will be awarded in Spring 2016 for up to $500 each.
ATL recently presented Co-Provost Erica Austin and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Mary Wack with the 2015 summary of program assessment reports from all WSU undergraduate degrees.
The Office of Assessment of Teaching and Learning is very pleased to announce that assessment mini-grant funding will be awarded to 10 undergraduate degree programs. ATL received many well deserving applications in response to its new assessment mini-grants, intended to help degree programs working to improve assessment of student learning.
Robust senior-level assessment is an essential component of degree program assessment. For many programs, senior-level direct measures connect with a capstone course. Capstone courses for majors can provide valuable holistic information about students’ learning before they graduate. Faculty in WSU’s undergraduate program in Civil Engineering (CE) have a regular and reliable source of information on […]
At WSU, Spring is the time of year for rain and tulips–and also for student focus groups. A number of academic programs conduct focus groups with their graduating seniors during the last weeks of spring semester every year or every other year to get feedback about students’ experiences in their major.