Northern Illinois University

NCATE/ISBE Accreditation

Standard 2  Assessment System and Unit Evaluation

 

1. Description of unit's assessment system

     See Unit Annual Reports for 2008-2009, 2007-2008, and 2006-2007

     Also see Unit Assessment System diagram

2. Data from key assessments used at entry to programs

3. Procedures for ensuring that key assessments and unit operations are fair, accurate, consistent and free of bias

4. Policies and procedures that ensure that data are regularly colllected, compiled, aggregated, summarized and used to make improvements

     See Unit Annual Reports above

5. Sample of candidate assessment data disaggregated by off-campus programs

     See SPA reports

6. Policies for handling student complaints

7. File of student complaints and the unit's response

8. Examples of changes made to courses, programs, and the unit in response to data gathered from the assessment system

     See the Unit Annual Reports above

 

Assessment Message

During the 2008-2009 academic year, Campus Assessment Network (a group of faculty, staff and administrators from accross campus who are interested in assessment) developed a series of related assessment messages with images to target four audiences about the value of assessment. Posters geared toward students, faculty and staff, administrators, and community partners were developed for use by anyone who wanted to participate in promoting awareness about assessment.

 

Campus Assessment Network

"The Campus Assessment Network, established in July 2006, is a group of individuals across campus involved in assessment as part of their professional role at NIU....The Campus Assessment Network was established for the purpose of bringing together assessment professionals and other interested parties across NIU to better enable these individuals to:

  • Communicate and network with one another on assessment issues.
  • Share information and assessment tools with one another to increase effectiveness in our assessment practices.
  • Develop a shared culture of assessment and common messages of assessment to better engage and support the broader NIU community in their assessment needs. "

The Campus Assessment Network started a book group in Fall 2009 to collaborate on growing the scholarship of assessment. Members meet every couple of weeks to discuss Trudy Banta's book "Building a Scholarship of Assessment" and to discuss collaborating on an assessment research-related project.

 

Assessment Expo

Two teacher certification programs were invited and participated in the university's second annual Assessment Expo in March 2009. Special Education (Learning Behavior Specialist 1) and English presented their assessments to collegues. See their posters below:

Special Education

English