The assessment of student learning in general education courses is of critical importance in higher education. This study examines the utility of a writing assignment (application essays) in a basic communication course as an effective assessment tool. The authors conducted a content analysis of student portfolios to determine the extent to which…

This article relates the efforts of faculty at one community college to define standards for achievement of two SLOs (critical thinking and effective communication) and to gather and analyze evidence of how well students meet those standards. Faculty from 13 disciplines assessed writing samples from 265 students. We found that, in general,…

This paper describes a case study of the impact of the introductory psychology course on students' understanding of their life experiences and course-related ideas. Student responses to a final essay assignment were analyzed to construct composites for areas of applied and transformed understanding. Results are important for psychology teachers…