Designing and aligning: synchronizing goals and assessment for a 3-D view of general education

Valerie Hanson, Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Writing and Program Director, Hallmarks CoreTom Schrand, Associate Dean for General Education

AAC&U: 2018 General Education and AssessmentFebruary 17th, 2018

Defining new, shared learning goals for general education

2 years of collaborative workshops and design thinking “charrettes”

Developed learning goals relevant for the majors and for general education

Curiosity Collaboration

Confidence Empathy

Contextual Understanding Initiative

Global Perspectives Ethical Reflection

The Hallmarks Program: shared learning goals for general education

Aligning the majors

Curriculum maps for each undergraduate major

Where will the general education goals be addressed?

Evidence collected in student ePortfolios

Subdividing and aligning learning goals in the core curriculum

Core curriculum: reorganized

8 broad learning goals: subdivided into 32

32 sub-goals distributed across the core curriculum requirements

Two assessment points: at basic and advanced levels

Subdividing and aligning in Hallmarks Core

Subdividing and aligning in the Hallmarks Core

Subdividing and aligning in the Hallmarks Core

Assessing in parallel

Assessing in parallel: Overlaps

• Program Director of Core and Assoc Dean of Program each participate in both processes

• Core curriculum artifacts assessed at granular and more panoramic levels

Parallax for curricular depth perception

Two simultaneous perspectives = stereopsis

Wider field of vision and sharper resolution

Diagnosis of curricular problems becomes more precise

Interventions are better targeted

Case study: 3-D insights on collaboration

Parallax assessment: perspectives from assignment level and the artifact level

Core assessment planning: how do we document collaboration in assignments?

Eportfolio review:• Few insights from artifacts• Reflective essays showed prevalence

of “divide and conquer” default

Case study: closing the loop on Collaboration

3D perspective revealed shared issues across campus

Faculty-led workshop on pedagogy of collaboration

Heightened awareness of shared learning goal AND existing expertise within our faculty

Building shared standards and practices around collaboration

Next steps

Cross-campus workshop model proved effective

Annual cycle of cross-campus faculty development events in response to eportfolio and core assessment

Thank you!

Tom Schrand schrandt@philau.edu

Valerie Hanson hansonv@philau.edu