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As indicated in the Compliance Report submitted March 11, 2006, Craven has identified a plan for establishing and assessing general education outcomes, and has made steady progress towards full compliance by April 30, 2007 as indicated by the following:
December 2005 / January 2006:
A full-time faculty member was selected to lead the process of creating general education outcomes. Six credit hours of her load were reassigned for Spring 2006 to identify and articulate general education outcomes with broad input from faculty.
As a first step, all course syllabi were collected and outcomes/objectives reviewed to determine commonalities in core competencies expected. No patterns or commonality emerged from this review. It was determined that the majority of course outcomes listed on syllabi addressed specific, rather than general outcomes, so were of limited use in providing a foundation for outcome development.
February 2006:
For broad based input, the faculty leader and Chief Academic Officer scheduled four sessions an hour and a half each in March 2006 (March 7, 8, 13, and 20), and invited all fulltime faculty to participate in a facilitated conversation to identify the overall "general education" competencies Craven students should have upon completion of the general education core.
March 2006
Sixty-nine (69) percent of Craven's full-time faculty participated in one of four sessions using the attached agenda.
Each session began with an overview of the League for Innovation's Learning Outcomes for the 21st Century (2000), including the eight categories of core skills (communication, computation, community, critical thinking and problem solving, information management, interpersonal, personal, technology). Other colleges' outcomes were briefly shared as examples. Using an affinity process, the faculty leader divided each large group into smaller groups to identify their notions of the core competencies students should achieve through completion of the general education core.
April 2006
Craven's Associate Vice President for Intitutional Advancement, who serves as planning officer, and a faculty member attended the Undergraduate Assessment Symposium at North Carolina State April 6-8, 2006. Assessment information from the conference was shared with the Chief Academic Officer.
The faculty leader summarized results of meetings, identified commonalities, and organized outcomes into categories. A second faculty member verified the categories and groupings as follows: community awareness, communication skills, computational skills, critical thinking, information literacy, lifelong learning, personal and interpersonal skills, technology skills.
Through further invited input, the outcomes were narrowed to the contents of this table and again shared with all fulltime faculty:
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Learning Outcome
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CCC students should be able to
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Community Awareness
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Demonstrate an understanding of societal or global issues that fosters a cultural sensitivity and understanding of diverse people.
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Communication Skills
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Incorporate oral, written, and visual communication through reading, writing, speaking, and listening to a variety of audiences.
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Computational Skills
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Understand and apply mathematical concepts and reason; analyze and use numerical data.
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Critical Thinking
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Problem solve by analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information and apply to different situations.
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Personal Skills and
Interpersonal Skills
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Demonstrate an ability to process actions and decisions by utilizing a personal ethical framework through personal responsibility and accountability.
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Technology Skills
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Use computers, current program specific applications, and other technologies.
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May 2006
Craven contracted with Dr. Peter Felten of Elon University's Advancement of Teaching and Learning to provide a workshop on Assessing Student Learning. Of the 34 invited fulltime faculty members teaching in the general education core, 31 attended, along with faculty/staff from other areas of the college. Dr. Felten provided an overview of student learning, specifically addressing the list of outcomes Craven's faculty had articulated, along with sample direct and indirect measures.
Summer 2006
Craven created a halftime position of Assessment Coordinator reporting directly to the Chief Academic Officer to support the development and assessment of general education and program outcomes. A full-time faculty member was selected to serve in this role through reassigned time.
All department chairs, program directors, and deans received the text Assessment, Clear and Simple, A Practical Guide for Institutions, Departments, and General Education (Walvoord). Their roles related to outcomes and assessment were explained in July and August meetings.
August 2006
General education outcomes will be refined and finalized at a fulltime faculty working session "Program and General Education Outcomes and Assessment" on Opening Day for the college facilitated by the Chief Academic Officer and Assessment Coordinator.
For general education faculty, the language of the general education outcomes will be refined. Next, the General Education Outcomes & Assessment Audit will be explained and assigned. This Audit provides a framework for discipline discussions to be facilitated by the Assessment Coordinator, Dean, or Chief Academic Officer. These discussions will occur in two phases: 1) Identification of where and how faculty significantly assess any/all of the general education outcomes in all the courses they teach. 2) Focus on selection of which direct measure(s) will be used to assess the first outcome in Spring 2007. This part should be finalized by Friday, November 17, 2006.
September-October 2006
Faculty complete the General Education Outcomes and Assessment Audit, Part One, which provides identification of where and how faculty significantly assess any/all of the general education outcomes in all the courses they teach through meeting(s) facilitated by Assessment Coordinator, Dean, or Chief Academic Officer. The audit is due to the Chief Academic Officer by Friday, October 13, 2006.
October 2006
The Chief Academic Officer recommends the general education outcome to first be assessed to the Institutional Effectiveness Committee (IEC). The IEC then identifies additional indirect measures to assess each of the General Education outcomes. Current measures include noncompleter and graduate surveys and the University of North Carolina student progress reports.
November 2006
Faculty complete the General Education Outcomes and Assessment Audit, Part Two, which focuses on selection of which direct measure(s) will be used to assess the first outcome in Spring 2007. Final audit forms are due to Chief Academic Officer November 17, 2006.
December 2006
The assessment plan for Spring 2007 is finalized by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.
January 2007
General Education outcomes will be published on the college website and on course syllabi. Outcomes will be published in 2007-08 General Catalog catalog and other publications as they are printed.
Spring 2007
The selected outcome is assessed directly and indirectly by all program areas of the college. The college is anticipating five to six final general education outcomes, which will be assessed on a rotating basis (one a year for five or six years; begin again with first outcome chosen for assessment). Results will be shared with the Institutional Effectiveness Committee as well as all faculty, program directors, department chairs, and division deans. These results will inform college and department goals and budget allocations (for example, professional development, equipment, supplies, support, etc.) for fiscal year 2007-2008.
General education and program outcomes will be incorporated into the College's 2007-2009 Strategic Plan and critical action steps. Budget will be assigned to critical action steps to ensure that student learning is improving based on a plan-do-check-act cycle.
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