A study was conducted at Evergreen Valley College (EVC) and San Jose City College (SJCC) to determine persistence rates over 4 academic years for students with no previous college experience who entered arithmetic (Math 310), beginning algebra (Math 12), and intermediate algebra (Math 13) courses in fall 1988. The study sought to determine persistence through transfer level Math by the end of spring 1992. Study results included the following: (1) at EVC, 7% of the Math 310, 10% of the Math 12,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Persistence, Asian Americans, Black Students, College Mathematics, College...
The competition for jobs in the 21st century is increasingly being driven by defining postsecondary learning in light of new and complex environments. To succeed, students must be prepared with knowledge to compete in these environments. Historically, higher education has defined these requirements in their own terms, often through learning outcomes specific to a course, degree or discipline. Given the recent attention toward the accountability of postsecondary education in the United States, a...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Degrees, Degree Requirements, Academic Standards, Postsecondary Education,...
The evolution of community colleges from their origins as junior colleges to institutions with dual missions to provide both academic and workforce preparation raises questions about the impact of a college's mission focus on its students' labor market success. We examine this question using data from the 58 colleges in the North Carolina Community College System. We find that students from community colleges that focus on career or workforce preparation had higher labor market earnings than...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Community Colleges, Institutional Mission, Labor Force Development, Labor Market,...
Articles on student learning outcomes assessment often treat faculty as one homogenous body. Yet the exponential growth of contingent faculty in universities and colleges has created two distinct faculty groups with varied concerns and thoughts on everything from the future of higher education to shared governance to student learning outcomes. When considering faculty thoughts and concerns regarding the assessment of student learning outcomes, it is inappropriate to assume the concerns of...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Nontenured Faculty, College Faculty, College Outcomes Assessment, Teacher Attitudes,...
This annual report for the New Hampshire Technical Colleges and Institute System (NHTC&IS) includes information for 1995 on enrollments, outcomes, job placement, average salaries, transfer institutions, work force training, the Police Academy, finances, and governance. The following accomplishments are highlighted: (1) in 1995, the NHTC&IS graduated 1,640 students and served over 30,000 traditional aged students and adult learners; (2) day divisions had 5,018 full-time equivalent (FTE)...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Accountability, Budgets, College Graduates, College Outcomes Assessment, College...
Some suggest there is a dilemma in post-secondary education between the tidal pulls of career- or disciplinary-oriented education and liberal education. A survey of University of Lethbridge alumni indicated that they found their liberal education important for developing skills that are valuable in life and work after graduation. Specific skills the Conference Board of Canada (2000) identified as important for employment success were indeed skills which alumni say they developed during their...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Employment Potential, Skill Development, General Education, Relevance (Education),...
This instructional booklet presents an overview of the Developmental Education Student Retention Tracking System (DESRTS), developed by the South Carolina State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education to make information available on the retention and graduation of developmental students in the state's technical colleges. Following an overview of the purposes of DESRTS, the elements of the tracking system are described, indicating that it contains data related to student identification,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Achievement, College Outcomes Assessment, Data Collection, Developmental...
Background information is provided on the development and activities of Project Cooperation, a demonstration project to help institutions improve educational effectiveness by employing outcomes measures and assessment strategies. After highlighting the various activities of the project (e.g., a national survey, research on different plans and models at demonstration sites, summer workshops, and institutional effectiveness workshops), the report outlines the process by which selected...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Achievement, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, Cooperative...
Since 1994, New Jersey's higher education system has been under a new governance system created by the Higher Education Restructuring Act. The act declares that eliminating unnecessary state oversight will spur institutional creativity and innovation and that placing greater decision making and accountability at the institutional level will better enable New Jersey colleges and universities to fulfill their missions and serve statewide goals. The restructuring act requires the commission and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Outcomes Assessment, Educational Assessment, Educational Policy, Governance,...
This paper reports on progress to date with a project underway in New Zealand involving the extraction of data from multiple government agencies that is then combined into one comprehensive longitudinal integrated dataset and made available to trial participants in a way never previously thought possible. The dataset includes school leaver achievement data, enrolments and completions data from the tertiary education sector, with earnings data in the years after graduation from the Inland...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Data Collection, Data Analysis, Data Processing, Academic...
The development and implementation of undergraduate second language programs at the University of Pennsylvania are analyzed in terms of several models of language planning. First, the stated foreign language proficiency goals of the four undergraduate colleges (arts and sciences, nursing, economics, and engineering and applied science), the Penn Language Center, the Office of International Programs, and the various foreign language departments are outlined. Strategies used for implementing...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Articulation (Education), Case Studies, College Outcomes Assessment, College Second...
Most students who enter higher education through a community college fail to earn a postsecondary credential. One reason for this that has not received enough attention is that many students do not enter a college-level program of study. Many new students arrive at community colleges without clear goals for college and careers. Community colleges offer a wide array of programs but typically provide little guidance to help students choose and successfully enter a program of study. Community...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Students, Community Colleges, Articulation (Education), School Holding Power,...
Providing data for Year 2 of a state-approved accountability plan developed by Florida's Pensacola Junior College (PJC), this report provides baseline data on outcomes for 1994-95. Data tables are provided for the following outcome measures: enrollment of prior year high school graduates enrolled the following year; retention and success rates for Associate in Arts (AA), Associate in Science (AS), and vocational certificate recipients; performance of AA transfers by ethnicity; state licensure...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Associate Degrees, College Graduates, College Outcomes Assessment, College Planning,...
Postsecondary institutions are under increasing scrutiny to provide evidence of student learning. Despite efforts to increase the number and frequency of assessments of student learning, many colleges and universities need help to make good use of assessment results for the improvement of teaching and learning. To address this need, in February 2012, the Council of Independent Colleges selected 40 independent colleges and universities to participate in a new project named the Engaging Evidence...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Private Colleges, Data, Information Utilization, College Outcomes Assessment,...
This report contains the results of a pilot survey of employer satisfaction with Connecticut's public college graduates from the class of 2003 conducted by the Department of Higher Education (DHE) in the spring of 2005. The project was part of a four-state project entitled, "Defining Best Practices for Responsible Accountability Models in Higher Education," funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE). The study found that a...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Higher Education, Public Colleges, College Graduates, Job Skills, Educational...
New York's North Country Community College's model of general education specifies the particular competencies that should be achieved in the college's liberal arts courses. In 1991, a study was undertaken to assess the general education competencies attained by students enrolled in Introductory Psychology. Using a pre-test/post-test design, 111 students were assessed in terms of gains in objective and subjective knowledge of psychology, critical thinking, and writing skills. A 36-item objective...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Basic Skills, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, General Education,...
This study, part of the National Study of Student Learning, investigated the influence of differential exposure to postsecondary education, particularly the impact of type of institution, number of credit hours, and other factors on gains in critical thinking skills. the sample was 2,092 first-year students attending 13 four-year and 4 two-year institutions from around the nation. The findings from the four-year college sample suggest that amount of exposure to postsecondary education,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Credits, College Freshmen, College Outcomes Assessment, College Students,...
In spring 1995, Florida's Pensacola Junior College (PJC) undertook the third assessment of institutional effectiveness using an assessment plan developed between 1990 and 1993. Outcomes were examined for the 1994-95 academic year with respect to the 51 goals, 147 objectives, and 253 indicators of effectiveness identified by the assessment plan in 16 functional areas. Area supervisors were requested to report on at least one objective and one indicator for each of the goals. Results of the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Curriculum, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, Evaluation...
In response to a statewide call for a review of general education in Virginia community colleges, the Student Assessment Committee (SAC) was formed at John Tyler Community College (Virginia) to evaluate student outcomes for the college's general education component. After concluding that standardized tests did not provide an adequate measure, the SAC decided to focus on the evaluation of students' critical thinking skills as a measure of college success. A flow chart for interviewing students...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Associate Degrees, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, Critical...
This report describes and compares the demographic and academic characteristics of Fiscal Year (FY)92, FY93, FY94, FY95, and FY96 graduates of Howard Community College (HCC) in Maryland, and the respondents to graduate surveys. The purposes of these surveys were to collect data about the employment and educational experiences of alumni one year after graduating and to use this information to evaluate the effectiveness of college programs in preparing students for employment and transfer. This...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Graduates, College Outcomes Assessment, College Transfer Students, Community...
Designed to assist faculty, staff, and administrators in understanding the strategic planning process at Florida's Santa Fe Community College (SFCC) and to help them develop guidelines to measure the effectiveness of their unit, department, or administrative area, this report outlines the key missions of the community college, presents sample criteria and measures specific to the strategic planning process, and includes an institutional self-assessment instrument. First, an introductory section...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Accreditation (Institutions), College Administration, College Outcomes Assessment,...
This report reviews the concept and means of assessing progress toward meeting Goal 5 of the National Goals Panel which aims at universal adult literacy and knowledge and skills needed to compete in the global economy and exercise citizenship. The goal's specific objectives focus on the relationship between work and education and outcomes, increased enrollment (especially of minorities) in postsecondary education, and outcomes of postsecondary education. The report identifies significant issues...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Achievement, Adult Literacy, College Outcomes Assessment, Educational...
Graduate teachers' preparedness for working in rural settings are mediated by the development of pedagogical expertise, professional engagement with parents and the community, and broader notions of preparation to teach in rural contexts. The Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) project is a four-year longitudinal study tracking teacher education graduates in Queensland and Victoria to investigate the effectiveness of their programs in equipping them to meet the learning needs...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Rural Schools, Teacher Education Programs, Graduate Students,...
The report summarizes a survey of 46 graduates of the Nova Southeastern University (Florida) doctoral program in optometry, the only such program in the state, concerning professional and program issues, including professional employment patterns and feedback on the doctoral program. Results indicate that school location was a primary reason for many students' choice of program. About two-thirds of respondents were permanent Florida residents at time of entry, and this rate declined only...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Clinical Teaching (Health Professions), College Choice, College Graduates, College...
This report describes a 1997 survey which examined performance funding in higher education and offers guidelines for states' and institutions' explorations of performance-based funding. Among highlights of the survey are: 32 states are planning or using performance measures in the state budget process; legislatively mandated initiatives are growing in number and scope; and most states report that it is too early to assess the impact of performance measures on institutional behavior. Advantages...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Budgeting, College Outcomes Assessment, Data Collection, Educational Finance, Finance...
This report examines trends in the educational progress of women who attended Maryland institutions of higher education from 1978 to 1997. Data on the educational achievements of women are compared with those of men, organized under the general categories of enrollment, retention and graduation rates, degrees or certificates conferred, and employment of graduates. Eight figures and associated text provide information on: (1) representation of women students: 1978 and 1997; (2) enrollment in...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Persistence, College Graduates, College Outcomes Assessment, Educational...
This study compared completers of a postsecondary technology program in British Columbia based upon whether they had a university degree prior to entering the applied two-year technology training program. Program completers (n=1,053) were surveyed one year after completion and included nearly 300 university graduates. Subjects had also been surveyed on entering the program concerning previous postsecondary education, previous employment, and views on work and education. Analysis of survey...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Graduates, College Outcomes Assessment, Employment Opportunities, Foreign...
Community colleges generally conduct little research. Further, there is no generally accepted national research agenda for community colleges, no consistently funded national agency charged with studying the institutions as unique entities, and few educational researchers directing their attention toward them. The research that is undertaken on community colleges is conducted primarily by university professors and students, state agencies mandated by legislation, the Department of Education, in...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, Educational Finance, Educational...
This report is part of the effort by the State University of New York to assess, evaluate, and plan for efficient use of resources. The report covers seven areas: (1) funding, which includes data on percent of revenue derived from tuition, trends in revenue sources, sources of community college revenues, costs for students living in dormitories, for commuter students, median family income, and expenditure and appropriation trends; (2) admission and enrollment data for freshmen and transfer...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Persistence, College Faculty, College Outcomes Assessment, Comparative...
Since 1986-87, California's Los Rios Community College District (LRCCD) has annually collected data on students who transfer from the District's three colleges (i.e., American River College (ARC), Cosumnes River College (CRC), and Sacramento City College (SCC)) to the California State University (CSU) and the University of California (UC) systems. For the 1995 study, data were collected on the number of new transfers between 1986-87 and 1993-94, the characteristics of transfer students between...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Persistence, College Outcomes Assessment, College Transfer Students,...
The report summarizes a study of the six-year graduation rates of first-time college-degree-seeking undergraduates at Nova Southeastern University (NSU) (Florida). The purpose of the study was to (1) develop research methods that would be in compliance with the Student Right-to-Know Act (SRK), and to further investigate the composition of undergraduate cohorts at the university. The study examined rates of graduation and persistence for cohorts defined in the SRK who entered NSU in fall 1989,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Persistence, College Freshmen, College Outcomes Assessment, College...
A study was done of the relationship between the American College Testing (ACT) Assessment and the ACT/COMP (College Outcomes Measures Program) test and general intellectual ability of college students. The subjects for the study were 133 undergraduates, mostly freshmen, in Introductory Psychology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The subjects took the Multidimensional Aptitude Battery (MAB), a group-administered intelligence test patterned after the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale....
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Achievement, Achievement Tests, Aptitude Tests, College Outcomes Assessment,...
Every 5 years, Johnson County Community College (JCCC), in Overland Park, Kansas, conducts a study of community perceptions to measure the level of community satisfaction with the overall mission of the college. Specifically, the studies seek to measure constituents' awareness of JCCC's role, their support of the college's activities to fulfill this role, and their perceptions of JCCC's performance. The 1992 study gathered data from 15-minute telephone interviews of 524 randomly selected adults...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Accountability, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Attitudes, Community Colleges,...
This article looks at motivations and both formal and informal learning contexts for well-educated young Balinese from poorer areas who enrol in cruise ship training colleges. The major motivations were getting a high income and helping the family. While basic hospitality and tourism skills are acquired, trainees also named other capacities such as politeness, confidence and tricks such as juggling as advantageous. The work on board was acknowledged to be arduous and demanding. Physical and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Hospitality Occupations, Marine Education, Tourism, Education Work...
The third in a series of volumes reporting on the outcomes related to first-year seminars. Research reports from 39 institutions are collected here. Each report includes descriptions of the institution and its students, the seminar course, research methods, and course outcomes. Reported course outcomes are related to retention, student learning and engagement, interaction with faculty, social integration, satisfaction with the institution, and GPA. Both quantitative and qualitative research...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Grade Point Average, Social Integration, Research Methodology, Research Reports,...
The American university is currently undergoing a period of often-uncomfortable public scrutiny. Rising tuition costs and attendant higher student loan debt loads have caused both considerable human hardship and considerable criticism of individual institutions and the college education system as a whole. This report presents the following: (1) a discussion of the current political pressure to assess college learning; (2) a discussion of some of the basic requirements for an effective...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Standardized Tests, Outcome Measures, Politics of Education, Political Influences,...
With greater demands being placed on postsecondary education as employers report that graduates have inadequate skills, interest has been generated in assessing student academic achievement in reliable and valid ways. A descriptive case study was used to outline the process that has been developed to identify and implement program outcomes for 55 programs at Western Wisconsin Technical College (WWTC). For the purpose of the study, program outcome was defined as a culminating demonstration of...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Alternative Assessment, College Outcomes Assessment, Communication Skills,...
In 2012, a private University in South Texas sought to prepare eight cohorts of 25 nursing, optometry, pharmacy, physical therapy, and health care administration students with an interprofessional education activity as a model for collaborative learning. The two semester interprofessional activity used a blended model (Blackboard Learn®, face-to-face and simulated experiences) to teach the core competencies of Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice (IPECP). The organizing...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Interprofessional Relationship, Models, Private Schools, Higher Education,...
The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of both industry professionals and faculty members of technology-based programs concerning the preparedness of recent graduates as they began a quality related position. To gain this information, surveys were administered among managers and technical leaders in industry and compared with surveys of faculty members from four-year industrial technology and engineering technology programs. Recent graduates were evaluated with regard to...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Industry, Quality Control, Engineering Technology, Technology Education, Graduate...
The third in a series of international conferences on measuring quality in post-secondary education was held to design four proposed project briefs, to identify new areas of collaboration, to encourage participation in the current projects, and to promote continued dialogue and exchange on the projects. Each of four working groups addressed one of the following four projects: (1) international assessment of student learning in specific disciplines; (2) impact of quality assessment on higher...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Achievement, College Outcomes Assessment, College Students, Dropout Rate,...
Over the last decade, policymakers, educators, and researchers have increasingly sought to understand community college policies and practices that promote students' success. This effort has been partly driven by an increased emphasis on outcome accountability, but it has also promoted a productive discussion about improving institutional performance. The research reported here has two related goals. One goal is to work towards strengthening the ability to assess and compare institutional...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Community Colleges, Graduation Rate, College Outcomes Assessment, Institutional...
The tables in this report present certificates and degrees conferred during the 2005-06 academic year by the public and independent institutions of higher education in West Virginia, as well as trends in selected areas. Contents include: (1) Certificates and Degrees Awarded by Level, 2005-06, Public and Independent Institutions; (2) Certificates and Degrees Conferred by Level, 2005-06; (3) Total Certificates and Degrees Awarded, 1995-96 through 2005-06; (4) Undergraduate Awards, 2004-05 and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Degrees, Statistical Analysis, Statistical Data, Enrollment Trends,...
This student learning outcomes assessment report from Prince George's Community College (PGCC) in Maryland summarizes findings of several ongoing assessments. Part I provides an executive summary and reviews changes in academic regulations and standards adopted in 1993-94, including: (1) extending minimum standards for academic standing to include developmental courses; (2) adding the category of academic restriction, which limits course registration for students who fail to meet certain...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Achievement, Academic Standards, College Outcomes Assessment, Community...
This report uses data from the third follow-up of the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 and the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study to project postsecondary outcomes of the high school class of 1992. Specifically, the study tracked, over a four-year period, the paths of college-qualified students who first enrolled in a four-year college or university in 1992-93. Major findings included: (1) low-income students and Black or Hispanic students were less likely than...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Persistence, Asian Americans, Bachelors Degrees, Black Students, College...
This paper on the feasibility of using teaching practices as indicators of student learning was developed as part of an ongoing project to develop a process for the assessment of college student learning in the context of National Education Goal 5, Objective 5, which aims to increase the proportion of college graduates with "advanced ability to think critically, communicate effectively, and solve problems." The paper reviews the empirical research literature in three areas: (1)...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Standards, Class Size, College Environment, College Outcomes Assessment,...
In response to the increasing use of state-based performance indicators for postsecondary education, a study was undertaken to review the reliability and validity of state-level indicators in the Florida Community College System (FCCS). Data were collected from literature reviews and the 1996 FCCS Accountability Report, detailing outcomes for 17 accountability measures for the 1993-94, 1994-95, and 1995-96 academic years. Information was also gathered on institution size, program mix, and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, Institutional Characteristics,...
This study investigated the performance of Alabama College System (ACS) students on a Basic Skills Test (BST) and compared it with non-ACS students' scores to determine whether there were significant differences in achievement. The Alabama Basic Skills Test is required of all students seeking admission to teacher education programs at Alabama colleges or universities. This study included 1,181 ACS students and 1,518 non-ACS students. A comparison of the mean scale score for students who had...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Basic Skills, College Outcomes Assessment, Comparative Analysis, Educational Testing,...
The Atlantic Philanthropies has recognized both the great societal need for programs that serve older Americans and the important role that community colleges can play in meeting this need. Consequently, The Atlantic Philanthropies provided funding for the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) to conceive and implement the Plus 50 Initiative, a three-year project designed to build and support model programs for plus 50 students at 15 community colleges. As part of this initiative,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Community Colleges, School Surveys, Adult Education, Adult Programs, Program...
Each year, Johnson County Community College (JCCC, Kansas) conducts follow-up studies of students who completed a JCCC career program during the previous academic year. This report summarizes findings, based on both graduates' and their employers' satisfaction with JCCC, for the follow-up study of the class of 1996-97. Out of a list of 573 graduates working in a job related to their community college program, 494 completed surveys for an adjusted response rate of 86%. These graduates identified...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Graduates, College Outcomes Assessment, Community Colleges, Employment,...
The purpose of this report is to identify the most prominent issues in U.S. higher education and to develop strategic research plans to address the issues that are most relevant to ETS's capabilities in measurement and assessment through the ETS's higher education research initiative. In the United States, issues related to higher education such as improved performance and effective accountability have received unprecedented attention from stakeholders at many levels. At the national level,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Higher Education, Testing Programs, Accountability, Strategic Planning, Research...
