Education Commons^™

Fulbright Foreign Student Program At Wmu Assessment Of Student Needs & Support, Michelle Metro-Rolland

Assessment Grants

Funding is sought to conduct a survey and focus groups with the Fulbright Foreign Students (FFS) at Western Michigan University and recent Fulbright graduates in order to assess student needs and better align program support. Fulbright students are supported by the Fulbright Foreign Student Advisor who liaisons with the placement agencies, departments, and international admissions as well as provides guidance to students in navigating university bureaucracy. The FSA also provides cultural programming.

Aligning Course Learning Objectives And Program Learning Outcomes With Data Visualization, Jessica Cataldo

Assessment Grants

The proposed project will result in the creation of two data visualization tools that map course learning objectives to program learning outcomes for the new Health Administration bachelor’s program. These tools will guide the development of a skill level curriculum map to determine which course(s) are most appropriate to assess program outcomes. Since the program is new, program assessment is in its infancy, thus the project will serve as a catalyst for developing a comprehensive program assessment plan. The project will also support the program’s goal of obtaining Association of University Programs in Health Administration certification.

Exit Survey Development, Melinda Koelling, Cynthia Klekar, Todd Kuchta, Heather Petcovic, Linda Borish

Assessment Grants

In a department like Geography, an exit interview is used to assess programs. In a department like Mathematics, there is no existing exit interview or survey. Even for those interview and survey questions that exist, the questions could be shared and improved. A core group of chairs from Mathematics, Geography, and Philosophy would like to develop exit assessments. A larger group of units proposes to work together to develop a bank of exit interview assessment questions that can be used to assess undergraduate and graduate programs.

Take A Bite Out Of Health Disparities, Betty D. Dennis

Assessment Grants

In spring 2023, the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) launched a new lunch and learn series called “Take a bite out of health disparities.” Speakers, internal and external to CHHS, are invited to lead informal conversations about four specialty topics to address the myriad of individual, environmental, and social factors that contribute to these various health disparities. We also discuss the intersectionality of race, gender, and sexual identity. The goal is to teach faculty, staff, and students in health services their role in teaching compassionate care. We will expand this series in 2023-2024 by adding new topics and …

Assessing Inspera Assessment, Matthew Ross

Assessment Grants

This mini grant will allow for preliminary assessment of Inspera Assessment software at WMU. The Norwegian company Inspera AS presents a more versatile digital assessment platform than the Respondus lockdown browser which is the current WMU platform. Specifically, Inspera offers MS Excel enabled examinations which is not possible with Respondus or similar platforms such as Proctorio or TopHat. However, assessing the capabilities of Inspera is expected to be a challenging, multidisciplinary, and time-consuming endeavor. This grant application requests funding for faculty time to document the capacity of Inspera Assessment to support WMU finance courses.

Assessment Of An Interdisciplinary Climate Change Facultylearning Community: From Course Redesign To Implementation, Elise Decamp

Assessment Grants

This project is an IRB approved secondary data analysis that serves as a program assessment of the Climate Change Across the Curriculum learning community facilitated in Spring 2022. The primary objectives are to evaluate the learning community’s (1) success in supporting the integration of the complex topic of climate change across the curriculum through interdisciplinary faculty collaboration and (2) the role of this programming in promoting climate literacy among WMU students. Data include pre-/post-survey data on the learning community’s faculty participants, session notes, faculty module and course revision plans, faculty reflections on implementation of their plans, and pre-/post-climate literacy quizzes.

Data Storytelling Strategies, Kate Mcdowell

Measures of Success Series

By understanding storytelling dynamics, anyone can learn how to bring data stories to life. Data stories can help persuade decision-makers, but we need accessible tools for breaking down the dynamic process of storytelling into achievable steps. Based on ongoing research, this talk presents tools anyone can use, including:

-Introduction to storytelling thinking
-Classic advocacy arguments
-Evidence and forms of data for those arguments
-Narrative strategies that draw from common story structures
-Tone and tactics for engaging storytelling with different audience attitudes

One of the most critical things we can do to support institutions of higher education in challenging times is …

Measures Of Success - Learning From Our Assessment Heroes: The 2022 Assessment Mini Grant Winners, Amy Heath, Carrie Barrett, Elizabeth Isidro, Zee-Sun Yun, Chitra Singh, Kelly Weathers

Measures of Success Series

This session highlights the accomplishments of a number of WMU instructors and staff who were recipients of the WMU 2022 University Assessment Steering Committee Assessment Mini Grant Program. With subjects ranging from assessment in literacy studies, fashion merchandising, and physical therapy, the presenters offer up insights that you can use in your own projects and courses.

Measures Of Success: The Why And How Of Wmu Essential Studies Assessment, Jonathan Bush, Randy Ott

Measures of Success Series

Dr. Jonathan Bush, Professor of English and Director of WMU Essential Studies, and Dr. Randy Ott, Senior Director of Academic Collaboration in Merze Tate College, will share the how and why assessment within WMU Essential Studies courses is important, including how the rubrics can be used to measure student learning and future course optimization.

Centering Equity In Assessment: Theories, Models And Practices, Anne E. Lundquist

Measures of Success Series

Assessment data can be a valuable tool to explore inequities on campus and move to remedy them. But assessment itself is not apolitical or objective and the approaches we use and the mindfulness with which we conduct assessment can advance equity in higher education or perpetuate inequities and cause harm. This session will highlight the critical role of cultivating individual awareness as assessors; discuss the context and scholarly history of equity-centered and equity-minded assessment; share frameworks for considering various approaches to centering equity in assessment; and provide some examples of practice and resources. Participants will have an opportunity to reflect …