Resources & Rubrics
OAS Resources
Videotaped assessment interviews
Additional Assessment Resources
Rubrics
Accrediting Bodies
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools: Commission on Higher Education (MSA-CHE)
New England Association of Schools and Colleges: Commission on Institutions of Higher Education (NEASC-CIHE)
North Central Association of Colleges and Schools: Higher Learning Commission (NCA-HLC)
Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges: Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU)
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools: Commission on Colleges: (SACS/COC)
Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)
Curriculum Mapping
The University of North Florida has a short peice about mapping along with a sample map template.
Ohio State University's Katherine Kelley has information about curriculum mapping for pharmacy programs.
The University of West Florida has guidelines for including Student Learning Outcomes in syllabi.
A description of how course-embedded assessments can be mapped to both formative and summative assessments can be found here.
Discipline-Specific Resources
The Association of American Colleges and Universities has compiled some applied examples of best practice campus assessments for the Biology, Business, Mathematics, & Nursing 1 & 2
Allied Health and Communicative Disorders
The School of Allied Health and Communicative Disorders (AHCD) Assessment Committee Guidebook. The School of AHCD at NIU has its own assessment committee and they have put together this guidebook that describes assessment at the individual and program level. A good example for any discipline. View the guidebook.
Sociology
A July 2009 article (pdf version) by Inside Higher Ed reviewed the American Sociological Association's (ASA) Department Survey results; suggesting that assessment is becoming more common within Sociology Departments.
General Education
James Madison University requires incoming freshmen to take two computer literacy tests, one concerning information-seeking skills and the other regarding technology competencies. See more about these general education assessments.
Glossaries
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Beyond Confusion: An Assessment Glossary by Andrea Leskes
Ozarka College Assessment Glossary
System for Adult Basic Education Support (SABES)
This list is not inclusive. Many more glossaries are available on assessment.
North Carolina State Universities has a list of many assessment glossaries (scroll down the page to find the glossary list)
Handbooks
U Mass - course based assessment handbook
Institutional Effectiveness Practitioner’s Manual. Texas A&M International University
Western Carolina University: Handbook for Program Assessment
This list is not inclusive. Many more assessment handbooks are available.
North Carolina State University has compiled a list of many assessment handbooks.
Publications
AAC&U Board of Directors. (2008). Our Students’ Best Work: A Framework for Accountability Worthy of Our Mission. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.
Angelo, T., & Cross, P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Banta, T. W., Jones, E. A., & Black, K. E. (2009). Designing effective assessment: Principles and profiles of good practice. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass.
Barr, R. B., & Tagg, J. (1995). From teaching to learning: A new paradigm for undergraduate education. Change, 27 (6), 12-25.
Boyer, E. L. (1990). Scholarship reconsidered: Priorities of the professoriate. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass.
Greater Expectations Project on Accreditation and Assessment. (2004). Taking Responsibility for the Quality of the Baccalaureate Degree. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Huba, M. E. & Freed, J. (2000). Learner-centered assessment on college campuses: Shifting the focus from teaching to learning. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Leamnson, R. (1999). Thinking about teaching and learning: Developing habits of learning with first year college and university students. Sterling, VA: Stylus
Leskes, A., & Miller, R. (2006). Purposeful Pathways: Helping Students Achieve Key Learning Outcomes. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.
Leskes, A., & Wright, B. (2005). The Art and Science of Assessing General Education Outcomes: A Practical Guide. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
National Leadership Council for Liberal Education and America’s Promise. (2007). College Learning for the New Global Century. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.
O'Banion, T. (1997). A learning college for the 21st Century. Phoenix: ACE/Oryx Press.
Pellegrino, J. W., Chudowsky, N., & Glaser, R. (2001). Knowing what Students Know: The Science and Design of Educational Assessment. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Spurlin, J. E., Rajala, S. A., & Jerome P. Lavelle. (2008). Designing Better Engineering Education through Assessment: A Practical Resource for Faculty and Department Chairs on Using Assessment and ABET Criteria to Improve Student Learning. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.
Weimer, M. G. (2002). Learner-centered teaching: Five key changes to practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
This list is not inclusive. Many more publications are available on assessment.
Rubrics
NIU’s Toolkit “What is a Rubric” article
An extensive list of Rubrics by Departments compiled by the University of North Carolina Greensboro
An informative guide of the purpose of rubrics as well as tips on creation can be found here.
- Anthropology Homework Assignment Rubric (DaGrossa)
- Biology Lab Report Rubric (Hoese, Pelaez, & Wan)
- Capstone Research and Report Rubric (NIU Dept. of Chemistry)
- College of Business - Marketing Rubrics (Illinois State)
- Comprehensive Senior Projects 400-level (NIU Dept. of Sociology)
- Evaluation Rubric for Academic Programs (NIU University Assessment Panel)
- First Year Final Memorandum Rubric (NIU College of Law)
- Generalized Writing Rubric
- Lesson Plan Rubric (NIU Dept. of Special and Early Elementary Education)
- Oral Communication and Project Presentation (NIU Dept. of Management)
- Quantitative Dissertation Evaluation Rubric
- Written Communitcaton Rubric (NIU Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures)
- Written Comprehensive Exam Rubric
AAC&U's VALUE Rubrics
The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) developed a set of rubrics for institutional-level use in evaluating and discussing student learning through a project called VALUE: Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education. (Reprinted with permission from Assessing Outcomes and Improving Achievement: Tips and tools for Using Rubrics, edited by Terrel L. Rhodes. Copyright 2010 by the Association of American Colleges and Universities)
Intellectual and Practical Skills
- Inquiry and analysis
- Critical thinking
- Creative thinking
- Written communication
- Oral communication
- Reading
- Quantitative literacy
- Information literacy
- Teamwork
- Problem solving
Personal and Social Responsibility
- Civic knowledge and engagement—local and global
- Intercultural knowledge and competence
- Ethical reasoning
- Foundations and skills for lifelong learning
Integrative and Applied Learning
Rubric Resources at Other Universities
- Bowling Green State University has additional links to assessment rubric information.
- Bridgewater State College provides several examples of Rubrics used at their College.
- State University of New York rubrics for campus-based general education assessment.
- ** University of North Carolina Greensboro has compiled a very extensive database of Rubrics by Department.
- The University of Virginia has a very helpful graphic for rubric design (click on the picture).
- ** Winona State University has an extensive list of rubrics for various disciplines, skills, and college-level assignments includes examples from many campuses.
This list is not inclusive. Many more assessment rubric resources are available.
Websites and Resources
Latrobe University's Tom Angelo has an overview of Efficient Feedback for Efficient Learning with commiserate sample rubrics.
The University of North Carolina Greensboro assessment website is very extensive and has sample rubrics, assessment plans, and other assessment resources.
North Carolina State University has compiled an extensive list of Internet Resources for Higher Education Outcomes Assessment.
Also at North Carolina State University, Dr. Michael Carter, has created several Assessment Plans and Rubrics for Graduate Programs, as well as ‘how to’ materials for program evaluation.
Winona State University has an extensive list of assessment resources, as well as sample assessment rubrics for various disciplines.
The University of Connecticut Assessment Website provides a helpful introduction to assessment.
Taxonomies
Bloom (Original and Revised) Taxonomy Links can be found at NIU's Faculty Design and Instruction Center here.
Marzano's New Taxonomy information is available here.
Assessment Videos
This list of informative assessment videos was compiled by Dr. Rosemary R. Sundet, Director of Institutional Assessment and Dr. Cathy S. Kemper, Dean of Institutional Effectiveness and Accreditation at Blinn College for their faculty development workshops Assessment 101 and Assessment 102
Using Assessment to Improve Instruction - Bill Moore, Coordinator for Outcomes Assessment, Washington State Board for Technical & Community Colleges
How Assessment can Support or Undermine Learning - Graham Gibbs, University of Oford