"Assessment on college campuses has a sordid history, and it is fairly simple to find someone with a traumatic tale to tell. It is wise to respect that that reputation is deserved." "How do you modify the inner workings and culture of a massive institution with minimal resources and even less authority (other than GE course…

Most states are now working in earnest to respond to the U.S. Department of Education's invitation for applications for the $4.35 billion "Race to the Top" fund (RTT), described by Secretary Arne Duncan as a "once in a lifetime chance to change our schools." Although the Department is clear that states must articulate a coherent and comprehensive…

The Rostrum is a quarterly publication of the academic senate for California community colleges. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Establishing a Systemwide California Community College General Education Advanced Placement (CCC GE AP) List by Dave Degroot; (2) Explaining the ASCCC Position on "Transfer Degrees" by…

With contemporary requirements for objective measurement, program evaluation is a certain necessity. Most program evaluation is designed in response to external demands for assessment. Moreover, such evaluation is typically developed only after programs already exist. However, the proliferation of online learning provides new opportunities for…

The turn of the century brought a profound change in the accreditation of teacher preparation programs. This shift--from curriculum-based reviews to standards-based reviews--took place in the context of the accountability movement of the late 20th century. The 21st century ushered in what many refer to as "a culture of evidence." From…

This edition of "Professional Standards" contains the revised unit standards and accreditation decisions approved by National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education's (NCATE's) Executive Board in 2007. All teacher preparation institutions with visits scheduled in fall 2008 and beyond will be reviewed under these standards, and…

Recent years have seen increasing interest in assessing the prestige and productivity of programs in communication. An NCA doctoral reputational study was published in 2004, and a new National Research Council assessment is underway that will for the first time include the communication field. Two systems relying on objective appraisal of faculty…

Context: Neonatal resuscitation is a critical component of perinatal services in all settings. Purpose: To systematically describe preparedness of rural hospitals for neonatal resuscitation, and to determine whether delivery volume and level of perinatal care were associated with overall preparedness or its indicators. Methods: We developed the…

This report is a product of an ENQA (European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education) seminar on the first external evaluations of quality assurance agencies, held in Paris in July 2008. The seminar took stock of the achieved reviews of agencies to learn lessons from these first outcomes and, hence, provided a platform for…

This report evaluates the extent to which Scotland's colleges have developed and embedded a culture of promoting equality and diversity effectively for all learners and staff. It considers how effectively colleges have mainstreamed equality and diversity in all aspects of their operations. The fieldwork for this report has been informed by…

Assessing student attainment in the major field of study is increasingly important to employers and accrediting bodies alike. Construction and manufacturing firms do not like engineers who design faulty bridges and airplanes. Marketing firms want to hire students who understand the difference between a niche market and a global market. School…

In some Dutch elementary schools, the average performance of students over several years is significantly below the level that could be expected of them. This phenomenon is known as "underperformance." The most important identifiable weaknesses that go along with this phenomenon are that (a) learning material offered at school is…

Fostering a culture of assessment is extremely challenging work. In this article, the authors show how Eastern Michigan University (EMU) has approached this challenge and how the authors' experience can help others who are struggling with the same issue. An effective and self-reinforcing assessment culture cannot be established overnight but…

Community colleges in California are grappling with developing and assessing student learning outcomes (SLOs), as the accrediting agency is holding them accountable for providing evidence of student learning as one measure of institutional effectiveness. One means of demonstrating accountability is to use strategic planning to direct the…

The current landscape of higher education requires those in academe to be accountable to an array of constituents. With students, parents, and government seeking proof of a return on their investment and efficient management of fiscal and human resources, it is essential to have access to appropriate and useful data when researching the operation…