Frequently Asked Questions
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Assessment Reports
Curriculum Maps
Assessment Plans
Core Curriculum Course Assessment Reports
Co-Curricular Assessment
Academic Program Review and College Annual Reports
Assessment Reports
1.听听听听听 What is the difference between an assessment report and an assessment plan?
The University Assessment Committee updated the assessment report and plan templates in the summer of 2020 to help better support the academic program review process.
The assessment report is completed annually by each academic and co-curricular program to document students鈥� achievement of the program鈥檚 student learning outcomes. The report addresses any concerns in student performance and identifies the strategies for improvement based on the data collected. They also require programs to follow-up on concerns from the last year鈥檚 report to determine if the intervention strategy was successful. Programs may prioritize specific outcomes and measures to report on in a given year, with the understanding that all student learning outcomes are assessed at regular intervals during the 7-year program review cycle. Not all outcomes or measures need to be addressed each year.
Two variations of reports are used; the short-form, and the long-form. The short-form template requires programs to identify the method and procedure, expectations for student achievement, and the results, for each of the student learning outcomes assessed during the previous academic year for both curricular and co-curricular data collected. It also asks programs to describe how the results are shared with and used by program faculty/staff to make improvements, and to comment on progress from the intervention strategies from the previous year.
The long-form template requires faculty and staff to reflect on multiple years of data, to compare results over time, identifying trends as appropriate. It also asks for specific action items to address programmatic changes (or rationale for no actions taken), student learning outcome changes, and changes to the assessment methods/plan.听 It also asks programs to address how feedback from their respective University Assessment Committee liaison has been considered and acted upon.
The assessment plan is a comprehensive document that lists all of the academic and co-curricular program鈥檚 student learning outcomes, and their alignment with the institutional student learning outcomes. It also describes the process by which program learning outcomes are periodically reviewed by the faculty/staff, and how those outcomes are shared with students, faculty and other stakeholders. The program is also required to demonstrate where in the 7-year program review cycle, the results of the assessment of each program learning outcome will be reported on, and in which specific courses/co-curricular initiatives. The Office of Assessment, Accreditation, and Program Review, in conjunction with the UAC liaison, and in consultation with the program, will identify a multi-year reporting cycle, consisting of a pattern of the use of short and long-form report templates to best provide robust evidence for the program review process, and external accreditation (if applicable).
2.听听听听听 When is my academic program/service unit annual assessment report due?
The deadline to submit your assessment report is determined by your University Assessment Committee (UAC) liaison. This deadline is set to provide the UAC liaison and their respective college-level assessment committee (or its equivalent) time to review reports and provide feedback for revisions before all academic program and service unit annual assessment reports are due to the UAC by October 15th.听 Please check with your respective UAC liaison if you have questions about your specific college/service unit鈥檚 deadline.
3.听听听听听 Who is my college/service unit鈥檚 UAC liaison?听
A current list of the members of the UAC is available online:
听/offices/provost/assessment/committees/membership%20lists%20by%20date.html听
4.听听听听听 Do I have to complete an assessment report every year/is it mandatory?
All academic programs and service units that support student learning are required to submit an annual assessment report to their respective college/service unit via the UAC鈥檚 online assessment tracking tool.听
5.听听听听听 Do I have to complete the assessment report if I am an accredited program?
Yes-all programs are required to submit an assessment report, regardless of affiliation with external accreditation agencies. However, the report template allows programs to upload files of supplemental materials. Accredited programs may submit their respective accreditation report through the assessment tracking tool and refer readers to the uploaded document for their assessment report submission. If programs choose to submit documents from their external accreditation agency only, in lieu of responding to the specific question in the university template, their program may not be included in additional college and institutional-level analysis.听听
The annual updates submitted to and stored in the tracking tool may be used as a repository of evidence for your next external accreditation. Programs that are cited by their external accreditor for concerns related to assessment may be required to complete the university template in addition to the evidence documented for their accreditor.
6.听听听听听 What is the benefit of completing an assessment report for an individually accredited program?
The UAC鈥檚 assessment reporting process is designed to gather evidence of student learning to support both accreditation and program review. Programs accredited by individual agencies may upload reports used for their accreditation and refer readers to the uploaded document.
7.听听听听听 How does the assessment process support program review?
听Program review is a transparent, collaborative, and comprehensive process used for long-term program planning, quality improvement, and resource allocation. Assessment plans and reports are included in the comprehensive analysis of the program, of which results are reported to the Provost.听
8.听听听听听 How does the assessment process support accreditation?听
Although the primary purpose of assessment at the University of Toledo is driven by internal purposes such as informing institutional improvement, program review, and resource allocation decisions, the University of Toledo also uses the assessment process to demonstrate evidence of meeting our accountability requirements as outlined and expected from our regional accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission.听
9.听听听听听 Are we using the same template as last year?
The 2019-2020 assessment reporting cycle is the last year to use the templates that have been in place since 2015. At the conclusion of the 2019-2020 reporting cycle, moving forward, the University Assessment Committee will transition all programs to use new templates for both the assessment plans and annual reports, designed to improve the continuity between reporting cycles to better support the program review process. The target date to begin using the new report and plan templates is Fall 2021. Please contact your respective liaison for more information. 听
Click here to complete your 2019-2020 report.
Curriculum Maps
1.听听 What is the purpose of a program curriculum map?听
The purpose of a curriculum map is:
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- to identify and verify where program-level learning outcomes are covered in a curriculum;
- to identify potential gaps in the curriculum;
- to identify where the program learning outcomes need modification;
- to identify the best opportunities for assessment of student learning; and
- to anchor discussion of potential changes necessary within a curriculum.听
2.听听 When is my program curriculum map due?
The deadline to submit your program鈥檚 curriculum map was September 15th, 2020. This deadline was extended from April 30th, 2020.
After the initial collection during the fall 2020 semester, your program鈥檚 curriculum map should be attached as a supplemental document with both future assessment plans, and annual assessment reports beginning Fall 2021.
3.听听听听听 Where can I download the curriculum mapping template?听
The curriculum map templates are available on the website:听
/aapr/assessment/CurriculumMapping.html听
4.听听听听听 Where do I submit my curriculum map?
The curriculum maps are currently being collected through an online form on the website:
/aapr/webforms/CurriculumMappingForm.html
After the initial collection during the fall 2020 semester, your program鈥檚 curriculum map should be attached as a supplemental document with both future assessment plans, and annual assessment reports beginning Fall 2021.
5.听听听听听 Do I have to complete a curriculum map every year?
All academic programs are required to maintain a current curriculum map on file with the University Assessment Committee. The curriculum map should be attached as a supplemental document with both assessment plans, and annual assessment reports beginning Fall 2021. Revisions to the map should be made at the discretion of the program faculty and be reflected in the program鈥檚 annual report submission.
- If听my program already has a curriculum map, do we have to use the template provided by the University Assessment Committee?
The University Assessment Committee provides a template for use by programs that do not have a current curriculum map format. You may submit your map in an alternative format than the template provided.
7.听听听听听 In the curriculum map template file provided, what do I use the course curriculum map for?
The University Assessment Committee is requiring all academic programs to maintain a program-level curriculum map. The course-level template included in the file available online is a resource for departments to use if they need to collect alignment mapping information from faculty teaching individual courses to best inform the development of their program鈥檚 curriculum map. The course-level map template is a resource to help develop the required program-level curriculum map. Course-level maps are for the department鈥檚 use, and do not need to be submitted with the program-level curriculum map.
Assessment Plans
听1.听 听Do I have to complete an assessment plan every year/is it mandatory?
All academic programs and service units that support co-curricular learning are required to develop and maintain a current assessment plan on file with the University Assessment Committee (UAC). The UAC does not require programs to complete an academic plan each year, but does require revisions either when the institution makes adjustments that necessitate updating their assessment plan, or the program alters their curriculum/assessment strategies. The most recent update, requested by the UAC in 2017, aligned program-level student learning outcomes to the institutional student learning outcomes.
At the conclusion of the 2019-2020 reporting cycle, moving forward, the University Assessment Committee will transition all programs to use new templates for both the assessment plans and annual reports, designed to improve the continuity between reporting cycles to better support the program review process. The target date to begin using the new report and plan templates is Fall 2021. Please contact your respective liaison for more information.听
2.听 听Do I have to complete the assessment plan if I am an accredited program?
Yes-all programs are required to complete a university assessment plan, regardless of affiliation with external accreditation agencies.
3.听 What are the benefits of completing an assessment plan for accredited programs?
The university鈥檚 assessment process includes the alignment of individual program learning outcomes with the institutional student learning outcomes. Participating in the university assessment process ensures that the student learning occurring in accredited programs is also included in our institutional-level analyses of student learning. Program learning outcomes as defined in the assessment plan are also published in the university catalog.
4.听听 Are Program Learning Outcomes the same as our program objectives?
The two terms are often used interchangeably. The distinction between objectives and outcomes relates to the emphasis on who will perform the activity. Objectives may describe what an instructor or program aims to do, whereas, the focus of a learning outcome is centered on the student and their behavior.听
The University of Toledo uses the term 鈥渓earning outcome鈥� to describe, in observable and measurable terms, the knowledge and skills a student should be able to know or do as a result of successfully completing an academic or co-curricular program.
5.听听听听听 What if my program does not have any co-curricular experiences/should I leave Part C. blank?
Programs that do not currently offer co-curricular experiences should leave questions related to co-curricular learning blank in the template.
6.听听听听听 I鈥檝e heard that the assessment plan and report templates are being updated, is this true?
Yes. The University Assessment Committee is in the process of updating both the assessment plan and report templates. We anticipate offering the new templates by Fall 2021. Please contact your respective liaison for more information.听
Core Curriculum Course Assessment Reports
1.听听听听听 Who needs to submit a Core Curriculum course assessment report?听
The Faculty Senate and the University Assessment Committee collect core curriculum course assessment reports from the departments that contribute courses to the core curriculum.听
2.听听听听听 When is my Core Curriculum course assessment report due?
The deadline to submit your 2019-2020 Core Curriculum Course assessment report is December 15th, 2020. This deadline was extended from June 15th, 2020. For the 2020-2021 academic year, reports will be due on June 15th, 2021.听
3.听听听听听 Do I have to complete an assessment report every year/is it mandatory?
All departments that offer courses affiliated with the core curriculum are required to submit one report per course each year to the Faculty Senate via the University Assessment Committee鈥檚 online tracking tool. 听听
Co-Curricular Assessment
1.听听听听听听听听 My University Assessment Committee Liaison keeps telling me that I should report on more than just attendance. Why?
The purpose of the co-curricular assessment is to document the impact of your program on student learning outside the scope of a credit-bearing course. Data related to attendance numbers is not direct evidence that participants learned a new skill, or developed new knowledge.
2.听听听听听 Who is my college/service unit鈥檚 UAC liaison?听
A current list of the members of the UAC is available online:听
/offices/provost/assessment/committees/membership%20lists%20by%20date.html听
3.听听听听听 Does student satisfaction data measure student learning?听
Although asking about participant satisfaction may be good data to evaluate a program鈥檚 relevance and popularity, it is not direct evidence of student learning.听
4.听听听听听 Are the plan and report templates changing for service units?
Yes. The University Assessment Committee developed new templates for both the assessment plans and annual reports, designed to improve the continuity between reporting cycles and to focus explicitly on co-curricular student learning. Data supporting operational and program outcomes will no longer be collected through the University Assessment Committee. The target date to begin using the new report and plan templates is Fall 2021. Please contact your respective liaison for more information.听
Click here to complete your 2019-2020 report.
Academic Program Review and College Annual Reports
1.听听听听听 What is Academic Program Review?听
Academic program review is a data-driven process to help assess the overall quality and operational health of programs. The review process focuses on program quality and program efficiency, and incorporates elements from the Higher Learning Commission () and the Ohio Department of Higher Education (). Academic program review is meant to ensure the University of Toledo is providing distinctive, high quality programs through serious self-reflection on program strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. For more information please visit the following link: /aapr/programreview/听
2.听听听听听 What are college annual reports?听
The college annual reports are data-driven documents designed to assist each college to reflect on its overall quality and operational health. It is guided by and aligned with the institution鈥檚 strategic plan, and also incorporates data required by the Higher Learning Commission and the Ohio Department of Higher Education.听
3.听听听听听 How does the assessment process support program review and the college annual reports?听
The ability of our students to meet our expectations for learning, as defined by our programs鈥� learning outcomes, is at the heart of our mission and purpose as an institution of higher learning. A robust and meaningful assessment process demonstrates our commitment to student learning, and also illustrates, through data, our strengths and shortcomings in meeting students鈥� needs in our academic and co-curricular programs. Both the academic program review and college annual report processes are mechanisms to evaluate the overall quality of a program and college respectively. The assessment process provides evidence of the work by faculty and staff to support strengths and to address challenges, both at the program and college level. This evidence is used, in conjunction with other relevant information, to evaluate the needs of individual programs and colleges, for the purpose of budget and resource allocation decisions informed by data.
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