Educators continually strive for better ways to engage students in course content and reflect on learning. Process maps originate from the business field while concept maps are used across disciplines. We adapted the process map to demonstrate its use as an effective assessment tool. This article describes the process of implementing Group Process…

The University of Louisville recently developed a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) to improve undergraduate instruction across all disciplines as part of its ongoing accreditation requirements. Central elements of the plan are emphasis on critical thinking; integration of critical thinking throughout the curriculum; service learning for…

Love it or hate it, assessment has become the new reality on college and university campuses. Although measuring student achievement of course outcomes is not an easy task, assessment does not need to be a complex or painful experience. This paper describes the methods used to assess student achievement of the stated course outcomes in…

An investigation on whether a course designed strategically so that assessment methods are aligned with course objectives promotes the students' capacity for higher-order cognitive thinking is presented. Students' view of their own learning process in this course is examined.

Despite a growing recognition of the need for learning-centered curricula in undergraduate education, very little has been documented about course design in a graduate studies context. This article provides a flexible framework and practical strategies for developing a learning-centered graduate course in Epidemiology. Concepts, principles and…

Assesses an evaluation model, employing an objectives rating system and a two-dimensional matrix to display the ratings, which was applied to 145 behavioral course objectives for a general chemistry course at Northern Virginia Community College to judge the appropriateness and adequacy of the course objectives. (AYC)

Discussion of media education focuses on a study conducted in Western Australian schools that assessed the level of understanding of the media among 15 year olds who had studied a formal media education syllabus. Highlights include gender differences, language differences, and correlation between television viewing hours and academic performance.…

Analyzes the relationship between learning objectives and assessment items for Technical Education Council physics courses. Suggests improvements. (SK)

Evaluation of an elementary level science curriculum unit (MATAL) illustrates intensive evaluation. This method involves classroom observation by trained observers, formulation of course objectives, student interviews (ability tests), and lesson planning. It stresses the identification of learning difficulties which hinder attainment of course…

Describes the process of seeking accreditation of nursing education programs by the National League for Nursing, from the self-evaluation by administration and faculty of a school of nursing to collect information, assess their program against established criteria, and write a substantiating report to the accreditation visit itself. (MF)

In response to criticism regarding unimaginative, didactic education in pharmacy education one faculty was evaluated by an outside consultant and, as a result, developed a comprehensive course in pharmacotherapeutics to help students integrate information from several disciplines and to become better problem solvers. In order to evaluate the…

The British Columbia Social Studies Assessment program gathered information about: (1) students' knowledge, skills, and opinions of society and social studies; (2) the reaction of various publics to student performance; (3) the relationship of school and non-school factors to student performance; (4) professional and non-professional views of the…

To investigate the effectiveness of the Area Health Education Center Pharmacy Training Program at the University of Texas, a study was undertaken to determine the amount of time pharmacy externs spend in predefined work categories and to compare them to program objectives. (JMD)

This article explores how teachers, students, and other stakeholders collaboratively develop classroom-based assessment procedures for the evaluation of oral skills. By considering crucial issues in assessment such as validity, teacher-learner collaboration, and contextual factors, the authors provide a checklist that will help ESL/EFL teachers…

The evaluation of urban foreign language programs by the teacher, supervisor, and school district, county, or other agency is discussed. Evaluation of the program by the teacher is largely a self-evaluation process to reexamine the course objectives and student achievement based on specific criteria. Criteria may include teacher-produced tests,…