Learning assessment ensures our students have the knowledge and skills needed to be successful as they continue their education and into the workforce. The process includes collecting, analyzing and using data to improve student learning and the learning experience.
The Learning Assessment office supports faculty efforts to measure and improve student learning across all levels of the curriculum.
COD's General Education Student Learning Outcomes, which were modified and reaffirmed by faculty in 2018, identify the knowledge and skills students should have when they graduate from any COD associate degree program.
General Education encompasses the broad body of knowledge and skills common to all educated people, regardless of their profession. Our strong general education curriculum includes courses in the arts; the humanities which include literature, history, philosophy and foreign languages; mathematics, natural sciences, and the social sciences.
Learn more about General Education Assessment and how faculty are working to make improvements for our students.
At College of DuPage, departments use Student Outcomes Assessment Projects (SOAPs) to assess and improve student learning. SOAP reports are included in each department’s Program Review Annual Update each December.
- Programs assess student learning related to their Program Learning Outcomes. These outcomes are listed on each of College of DuPage’s Career and Technical Education program pages.
- Many disciplines, especially transfer disciplines, assess student learning at the course level. Course Student Learning Objectives are listed on the syllabus for each course.
- “How To” SOAP Summary
- Program Review and Annual Update Process
The Chaps Learn Podcast has been developed for College of DuPage faculty by the Learning Assessment office with short episodes and activities geared toward professional development relating to learning and assessment.
Chaps Learn Podcast—Episode One: Human Behavior & Societal Knowledge Assessment Results
Chaps Learn Podcast—Episode Two: Expression & Exchange of Ideas Assessment Results
Chaps Learn Podcast—Episode Three: Cultural and Historical Comprehension Assessment Results
Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) are quick techniques for assessing learning in your classroom.
Types of Classroom Assessment
Diagnostic Assessments (AKA “Baseline Assessments”)
- Measure students’ knowledge, skills, and abilities before instruction (or additional instruction) takes place
- Help you, the instructor, determine the most effective starting point for a lesson or course
- Examples: Background Knowledge Checks, Misconception/Preconception Checks, Ice Breakers
Formative Assessments
- Measure what students are learning in the midst of the teaching and learning process
- Provide feedback that you can use to guide improvements during the semester or unit, or within a specific class period
- Examples: Minute Paper, Muddiest Point, Memory Matrix, Journal
- Note: Formative assessments are what most people think of when they refer to CATs because they take place during the learning process. However, CATs can also refer to diagnostic (and some summative) techniques.
Summative Assessments
- Measure what students have learned from a unit, course, or program
- Conducted at the end of a course or program, or after completing a specific section of a course (as classroom assessment)
- Examples: sections of portfolios, performance tasks
Other Resources
- Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers - College of DuPage faculty can borrow a copy of the classroom assessment textbook from the Learning Assessment office by emailing learningassessment@cod.edu.
- Patricia Cross Academy Video Library
Contact Information
Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes
Email: learningassessment@cod.edu