RESEARCH
Phase Two: National Survey
This phase involved a national survey of all institutions offering an associate's or bachelor's degree. It had two primary purposes: to provide a descriptive profile of institutional assessment based on the conceptual framework (except culture & climate), and to examine the relationship among these domains. Based on the literature review from Phase One (Peterson, Einarson, Trice, & Nichols, 1997), a survey entitled the Institutional Support for Student Assessment (ISSA)was developed.
This survey provides the first comprehensive research on the patterns of student assessment and institutional support for it in postsecondary institutions. Variables from seven conceptual domains of external influences on, institutional approaches to, institutional support for, assessment management policies & practices for, institutional context of, and the uses and impacts of student assessment information are included. In 1998, the ISSA was sent to chief academic officers at 2,524 nonproprietary two-year and four-year institutions in the U.S. Completed surveys were received from 1,393 institutions for an overall response rate of 55%.
Summary of Findings The national survey of institutions demonstrated that most institutions are engaged in some form of student assessment. Many are engaged in institution-wide attempts to support it. Fewer have assessment management policies and practices to promote its use. Most do not use student assessment data in academic decision making, and very few monitor its impact on institutional performance. (Those interested in seeing detailed findings should consult the Technical Report.Findings for All Institutions
) The research yielded the following, more specific, observations:
Institutional Approach to Student Assessment
Institution's approaches to student assessment emphasize the use of entry measures and easily quantifiable indicators of student performance and give less attention to more complex measures of student performance (e.g., higher order cognitive skills, affective development). Institutions make limited use of less traditional, student-centered assessment methods (e.g., portfolios, capstone projects). Few institutions conduct studies of the relationship between students' performance and various aspects of their experiences within the institution.Organizational and Administrative Support for Student Assessment
Institutions report engaging in student assessment primarily to prepare for accreditation self studies, to improve student achievement, and to improve academic programs. Governance for student assessment is generally shared across functional areas and between administration and faculty, while academic affairs typically has primary responsibility for directing student assessment activities.Assessment Management Policies and Practices
Many institutions incorporate student assessment information into academic planning and review processes; however, institutions are less likely to provide professional development on student assessment or to use faculty evaluation and reward policies to promote involvement in student assessment.External Influences on Student Assessment
Institutions perceive regional accreditation requirements, and to a lesser extent, state requirements, as important and positive influences on their initiation of student assessment efforts. Perceptions of the influence of accreditation and state requirements on assessment efforts vary significantly by institutional type and control.Uses and Impacts of Student Assessment
Student assessment information is most often used to modify student assessment processes, design or reorganize academic programs or majors, and modify student academic support services. It is seldom used to make decisions concerning faculty promotion or rewards. Most institutions have not monitored the effects of student assessment on institutional performance or on their relationships with external constituents.Influences on Institutional Approaches to Student Assessment
Student assessment data has only a marginal influence on academic decision making. Our data show there is slightly more influence on educationally-related decisions than on faculty-related decisions, but in neither case is student assessment data very influential. Nonetheless, we did find several significant predictor variables in our model. For example:These findings vary by institutional type except for the number of institutional studies relating students� performance to their interactions with the institution and the extent to which the institutions hold internal improvement as an important purpose for conducting student assessment. These remained strong predictors of the use of student assessment data in making educational decisions regardless of type.
- The number of institutional studies relating students� performance to their interactions with the institution was an important predictor since understanding what factors influence student performance should be useful in making educational decisions.
- Conducting student assessment to improve internal institutional performance affects the extent to which student assessment data is used to make educational decisions. If institutions intend to improve their performance by using the data, it is probably more likely they will do so and consider the use of this information important.
- Involving student affairs personnel in student assessment was a strong predictor of use in educational decisions. Perhaps this is an indication that an institution is committed to student assessment and has involved constituents outside of academic affairs in the process.
- The extent of student assessment conducted and the amount of professional development related to student assessment that is offered to faculty, staff, and administrators were both predictors of the extent student assessment data is used in making educational and faculty decisions.
- An important negative predictor emerged related to educational decision making: conducting student assessment for accreditation purposes. Apparently, the more important the accreditation mandate is to the institution, the less likely it is to use student assessment data to make educational decisions. Perhaps institutions are either threatened by or resent the external requirement and are therefore less likely to commit to their student assessment process beyond what is necessary to achieve accreditation.
Published Reports on the Results from the National Survey Technical Report
You can also purchase copies of these reports from the Stanford NCPI Publications Page.
- Marvin Peterson, Marne Einarson, Catherine H. Augustine, and Derek S. Vaughan., (1999.) "Institutional Support for Student Assessment: Methodology and Results of a National Survey."
- Click here to download the Table of Contents & the Lists of Appendices and Figures & Tables.
- Click here to download the full text of the report.
- Click here to download the accompanying tables.
Findings by Institutional Type Institution-specific findings associated with additional analyses are provided in the four individual institutional reports. Each of the four reports presents unique findings and recommendations dependent on institutional type, some guidelines for conducting an institutional inventory, and an agenda for planning for improved student assessment.
Marvin Peterson, Catherine H. Augustine, Marne Einarson, and Derek S. Vaughan, (1999.) "Designing Student Assessment to Strengthen Institutional Performance in
Associate of Arts Institutions."Marvin Peterson, Catherine H. Augustine, Marne Einarson, and Derek S. Vaughan, (1999.) "Designing Student Assessment to Strengthen Institutional Performance in
Baccalaureate Institutions."Marvin Peterson, Marne Einarson, Catherine H. Augustine, and Derek S. Vaughan, (1999.) "Designing Student Assessment to Strengthen Institutional Performance in
Comprehensive Institutions."Marvin Peterson, Marne Einarson, Catherine H. Augustine, and Derek S. Vaughan, (1999.) "Designing Student Assessment to Strengthen Institutional Performance in
Doctoral and Research Institutions."You can also purchase copies of these reports from the Stanford NCPI Publications Page.
Survey Instruments Developed by Project 5.2 Institutional Support for Student Assessment (ISSA)
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Institutional Climate for Student Assessment (ICSA)
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Other Publications
List of All Related Publications & Presentations of NCPI Project 5.2 The documents on this page are in PDF format (noted as
); if you cannot read PDF files, click here:
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