Pilot Projects

Research and Innovation in Assessment:  The CTAAR and the Council on Assessment are committed to developing new assessment tools and disseminating our findings.  It is our mission to speak from knowledge and experience when it comes to what works and what does not in learning outcome assessment.  A number of projects are already being pursued.

• University Learning Goals:  CTAAR and the Council are working to refine and review the University’s learning goals. This is especially important as the new School of Arts and Sciences develops a general education curriculum in collaboration with the professional schools in New Brunswick.
• General Education Assessment: Three projects have been begun that will complete assessments of general education learning outcomes in AY 2007-2008.
• SAS:  The School of Arts and Sciences will do a direct longitudinal assessment the Communications learning goal. Student placement essays, and a student work product from a capstone course for 200 to 300 students will be evaluated using a rubric. 
• University Libraries:  Working with SAS, the Library will design and implement rubric for the evaluation of the Information Literacy goal, using the same longitudinal direct learning assessment method as SAS will use in assessing the Communications goal.
• School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS):  SEBS is designing and implementing an indirect assessment, a senior survey to capture information about what things seniors found most useful in their education at SEBS, and to learn if the students felt they learned what the faculty intended.
• Student Learning Portfolios:  The Mason Gross School already uses learning portfolios extensively, as is traditional in the performing arts. But, a number of academic units are implementing portfolios this year using the Online Student Portfolio (OSP) program in the Sakai system.  These include the Graduate School of Education, The School of Communications, Information and Library Studies, the Honors Program, the Edward J. Bloustein School of Policy and Planning, and the Douglass Residential College.
• Comprehensive testing:  The University will pilot the CAAP exam with 200 students to learn if it is useful in general education assessment.
• Student Life Transcript: Since we are well aware that a students learning experience is not restricted to the classroom, but involves a students life in the university, the Office of Student Affairs is developing a student life transcript, to help assess the effect of co-curricular and student life activities on student learning.