In the early stages of program assessment, departments develop their mission statement and student learning goals. Then, program-level student learning outcomes that are tied to the mission and goals are written. Once these initial steps have been completed, the next endeavor is to determine when students encounter each learning outcome and how students’ progress is assessed toward achieving those outcomes.
Important: Documentation Requirement
During Step 3 of the VTSU program assessment process, a template is used to develop the Curriculum and Learning Outcomes Crosswalk document.
What is a curriculum and learning outcomes crosswalk?
A curriculum and learning outcomes crosswalk is a document, organized in a table format, that depicts the alignment between the program’s curriculum and its student learning outcomes. Once developed, it allows faculty members to easily understand at what points in the program the previously determined knowledge, skills, and values are going to be addressed.
The curriculum and learning outcomes crosswalk lists the program’s student learning outcomes on the vertical axis of the table and the courses in the program on the horizontal axis. Then, letters are entered into the resulting cells to establish whether a learning outcome is being introduced (I), applied (A), or mastered (M) during a given course.
What are the benefits of crosswalking the curriculum?
Planning
A curriculum crosswalk can be used as a planning tool when the curriculum is initially developed to determine where within the curriculum the student learning outcomes will be taught and assessed.
Visualization
A curriculum crosswalk can assist faculty and other university stakeholders to visualize and understand how course-level outcomes align with and support program-level outcomes.
Evaluation and Analysis
A curriculum crosswalk can be very useful when considering some important questions that should be addressed as part of a program assessment process. Examples include:
- Are all outcomes covered?
- Are all outcomes addressed in a logical order?
- Are all outcomes first introduced and then reinforced?
- Are there redundancies, overlaps, and gaps in the curriculum?
How is evidence for program assessment selected?
This process involves determining what will be collected from students to demonstrate that student learning outcomes are being achieved. It is important to note that this step should be influenced by the student learning outcome’s action word and learning statement. For example, collecting exams would be a good choice if the outcome relates to retention of knowledge whereas collecting a written paper would be a viable option if the outcome is designed to assess written communication.
In terms of best practices, it is recommended that evidence be collected from the most advanced course in which a given outcome is addressed as it provides students with opportunities to reach a mastery-level of the outcome through prior course work. In addition, evidence should come in the form of embedded assessments that are submitted by students for course credit rather than nongraded program assessment activities.
What are signature assignments?
One type of evidence that is recommended for program assessment is the signature assignment. Although the term is described in various ways across educational institutions, the definition below speaks to the intent of this type of course assessment.
“A ‘signature assignment’ is that assignment or exam that best displays the knowledge or skills essential to the objectives of a course. Other coursework should build toward the completion of the course ‘signature’ assignment. Think of a signature assignment as a milestone in the student’s progress toward fulfilling the program objectives. Ideally, signature assignments are the types of works that students and professors would most like to present to others as evidence of accomplishment (i.e., work they would like to sign and have signed)” (California Lutheran University, nd).
What are some specific attributes of a signature assignment?
- It is tied to course-level as well as program-level student learning outcomes.
- It can be used in the program assessment process to demonstrate that program-level student learning outcomes are being addressed and the degree to which they are being met.
- It captures authentic and meaningful learning experiences.
- It usually includes a self-reflection component.
- There is only one signature assignment per course.
It is worth noting that faculty at some institutions develop a signature assignment template and rubric at the program-level, which are then modified to suit the needs of a specific course. Although it isn’t a VTSU requirement, the practice can make it easier to aggregate results across sections and identify gaps in the curriculum. Suggested elements to include in a template are:
- Task and purpose
- Program-level student learning outcomes addressed
- Directions for students with formatting and content requirements
- A rubric