Assessment grant reports
Nancy W. Colborn
November 12, 2004
My attendance at the Association of College and Research Libraries Institute
for Information Literacy "Immersion 2004" was funded in part
by a grant from the IU South Bend Assessment Committee.
The Information Literacy Immersion experience brings together librarians
from across the country (actually, three were international this year)
to "immerse" themselves in information literacy concepts, skills
and practices for five days. Acceptance is juried, and participants are
divided into two tracks: managers and teachers. As Coordinator of Library
Instruction for the Schurz Library, I attended in the Manager track.
Before attending the Institute, participants are subscribed to a WebCT
learning site and assigned readings and preparatory writing work. Each
participant is assigned to a cohort group that works together before,
during and after Immersion to critique ideas and writing and share knowledge
and experiences about Information Literacy.
My goals in applying to the Institute were to:
- Focus on the Schurz Library's instruction program as we move toward
teaching the General Education Introduction to Information Literacy course,
including course coordination, leadership and management of the program,
and assessment of student learning.
- Learn more about assessment about the college level, especially with
regard to our new general education curriculum.
My learning in relation to the Library instruction program specifically
was invigorating and inspiring, and I'll be working on integrating those
ideas into our practices in the coming years.
In relation to assessment of student learning, both in relation to the
library course and the general education curriculum, the Institute gave
me numerous insights and further directions to follow. Here are the top
ten things I now see more clearly:
1. There is no one way to do assessment.
The simplest form of classroom assessment - a show of hands, can now
be implemented using the latest technology - audience response systems
like those used in the studio of Who wants to be a millionaire? Appropriate
assessment depends on what the student is learning - no one method is
right for every classroom or every discipline, which makes it very difficult
to find one method that will work for an entire college.
2. Colleges need to develop a "culture of assessment."
Campuses should be interested in student learning and begin to see how
their daily work can effect change, depending on the impact of their work
as measured in those terms. The student experience is more than gaining
course credits. Everything from clean restrooms to conversations in the
hallway impacts a student's education, and it is important that it be
viewed with a critical eye toward continuous improvement.
3. It's not all about data.
Sometimes student success is a story. Part of the evidence may be numerical
proof, but there are also qualitative measures that determine good teaching
and learning.
4. Each student is different.
See #1 above. The theory of multiple intelligences holds true. Each of
our students responds differently to a type of teaching style. If student
learning is a paramount concern, we will aim to find ways to deliver information
and services to match a student's learning needs.
5. Nothing is perfect.
There is no perfect assessment plan. There is no perfect formula for
assessment. There is no perfect college for us to look to as an example.
Some are have good examples, granted, but because each institution is
different, each assessment plan must also be different. It's important
to just try, try again. By their very nature, assessment plans are iterative.
See also #1 and #4 above.
6. It helps to start out Backwards.
Alongside content, think container. The surrounding pedagogy and learning
activities are crucial in student learning.
What do you want the students to be able to do?
What does the student need to know in order to do this well?
What activity will facilitate the learning?
How will the student demonstrate the learning?
How will I know the student has done this well?
7. We can't assess everything.
Start by prioritizing what is most important and assessing that.
"Institutional assessment efforts should not be concerned about valuing
what can be measured, but instead about measuring what is valued."
A. W. Astin
8. "To sit down beside". The word "assessment" comes
from the Latin "ad sedere", meaning "to sit down beside."
10. Debra Gilchrist, faculty member at Immersion, summed it up best:
Assessment is:
- Knowing what you are doing
- Knowing why you are doing it
- Knowing what students are learning as a result
- Changing because of the information.
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