Assessment@DU – Office of Teaching & Learning

What is Assessment?

Assessment is the ongoing systematic process of understanding and improving student learning, which is sometimes described as a reinforcing cycle. The 2023 Provost Conference key note session on, “Capturing Moments of Hope in Your Work as Teacher-Scholar,” highlights one way assessment feeds into faculty thriving. By engaging in assessment work, faculty gain insights about their vocation. When activated, those insights lead to better opportunities for faculty practice and student learning. The cycle repeats itself as part of a culture of continuous reflection.

This page covers:

Assessment Cycle
3 Components of Work
Assessment Publications
Stay Up to Date
Assessment Support

Click to learn more about phase 1.

Click to learn more about phase 2.

Click to learn more about phase 3.

Click to learn more about phase 4.

Click to learn more about phase 5.

Click to learn more about phase 6.

ASSESSMENT CYCLE | STEP 1: SUBMIT

During the past two years, the Office of Teaching and Learning has requested that reports be submitted through the Qualtrics survey platform. In their reports, assessment leaders share evidence and narratives regarding program work for the previous year. Reports are submitted with a cover letter from an academic supervisor, usually a department chair or associate dean.
* To learn more on how to submit your annual report, check out the Annual Assessment Report webpage.

ASSESSMENT CYCLE | STEP 2: COMMENT

Following submission, the Director of Academic Assessment and appropriate academic leaders offer constructive feedback for directions program leaders may take going forward. One way the Director of Academic Assessment offers feedback is by using a rubric to score each report on assessment qualities.

ASSESSMENT CYCLE | STEP 3: COLLABORATE

Through various formalized meetings and consultations, faculty work with academic leaders, including the Director of Academic Assessment, to interpret the feedback and data from the assessment report to discern the future of the program. This phase helps participants interpret and consider the various data points helpful to improving the program.

ASSESSMENT CYCLE | STEP 4: DISCERN

The discernment phase invites faculty and staff to devote time and effort to deciding how to proceed with findings from the collaboration stage. In this phase, participants make data-informed decisions about next steps for the program. For example, one program may decide to share narratives of student success in promotional materials. Another program may make curricular changes based on their findings. Curricular changes range from updating an assignment, changing a learning outcome, or rearranging course offerings. Each of these might require new processes or resources. In all cases, the significant work of assessment must take place for programs to decide how best to proceed.

ASSESSMENT CYCLE | STEP 5: IMPLEMENT

After discerning the best next steps, each program should develop an implementation plan. For some, this will require working through university-related committees and councils. Others will need financial resources or assistance from departments to enact their goals. Whatever decisions are made, implementation is critical to track. “Closing the loop” is the process of tracking how assessment results are employed to improve student learning. Even as plans change, having an initial vision of how the discernment will be put into action is important for meaningful assessment growth.

ASSESSMENT CYCLE | STEP 6: REVIEW

Finally, as the next assessment report comes due, each program should review the previous report to check how their implementation has occurred. The review phase allows participants the opportunity to reflect on how decisions have affected student learning and the program’s future.

Assessment Cycle

Explore our interactive graphic to discover the six essential steps of the assessment cycle:

Submit
Comment
Collaborate
Discern
Implement
Review

Each stage is interconnected, creating a dynamic cycle that fosters growth and development. Click through to explore each stage in detail and see how they contribute to a robust assessment strategy or visit our Assessment Cycle web page.

3 Components of Work

Part of each faculty member’s critical work, assessment generally entails three key components:

Articulating Measurable Outcomes

Faculty members articulate what they believe student success looks like in their program. This includes specific, measurable, and attainable outcomes for courses and programs that directly relate to student learning and quality pedagogy.

RESOURCES:

Developing Rubrics
Writing Learning Outcomes

Gathering Artifacts

Faculty members gather quality artifacts and data from the curriculum that provide evidence of student learning. Artifacts should be gathered from direct sources of engagement that show student progress toward mastery of learning outcomes.

RESOURCES:

Assessment Evidence

Reflecting & Reporting

Faculty members analyze, reflect upon, and report on the gathered evidence. In return, assessment officers and administrators respond with helpful feedback and changes for how best to highlight successes for accreditation, budget allocation, marketing, and recruiting. (Suskie)

RESOURCES:

The Assessment Cycle
Assessment Glossary

These three components are equally valuable in the cycle of ongoing assessment, whether they are applied at the course or program level. Though program-level assessment is the primary focus of this report, course-level work always informs program goals.

This video recaps the 2023 Spring Assessment Conversation. Click here to access the Spring Assessment Conversation slides deck.

2023 Assessment Annual Reporting

To learn more about why and how to submit an annual report, visit our Annual Reporting webpage. To submit your Annual Report, use the button below to complete the assessment Qualtrics form.

Assessment Publications

Assessment Annual Report

To go in depth on Assessment data, view the Assessment Annual Report prepared by the OTL Director of Assessment, Stephen Riley

View Assessment Annual Reports

Office of Teaching & Learning Annual Report

To learn about Office of Teaching & Learning assessment efforts, view the Office of Teaching & Learning Annual Report.

View OTL Annual Report

Stay Up to Date on Assessment

Contact Stephen riley, Director of assessment

For answers to questions about assessment, email Stephen Riley at stephen.riley@du.edu

To go in depth on assessment, schedule a 1:1 appointment.