The purpose of the College of Education’s Unit Assessment System is to collect and analyze data related to candidate and graduate performance, program effectiveness, and unit operations. Features of our Unit Assessment System include:

• Collaboration among university faculty from across colleges as well as members of the P12 community in the implementation and refinement of the assessment system;

• Alignment of candidate assessments with our Conceptual Framework as well as with professional, state, and institutional standards;

• Continuous formative and summative assessments embedded throughout programs;

• Use of multiple indicators to assess candidates at various decision points included (a) at admission, (b) in program, (c) at program completion, and (d) after graduation;

• Use of external data such as Praxis I and Praxis II to evaluate candidate performance;

• Ongoing analysis of assessments to ensure their validity and reliability and to eliminate any sources of bias;

• Creation and refinement of surveys, interview protocols, observation instruments, and rubrics for judging the quality of candidates’ work;

• Use of a variety of sources of data to evaluate and improve the College of Education and its programs, courses, instruction, and field experiences; and

• Collection and analysis of data on unit operations including administrative areas, unit governance, leadership, and diversity.

Candidate assessments that are currently used in our Initial Preparation Programs include:

Admission

• GPA at admission to Teacher Education
• Grade from Introductory Education course
• Praxis I scores

In-Program

• GPA in education courses (disaggregated by Area F education courses, professional education courses, concentration courses, methods courses)
• Work samples from field experiences/practica
• Program-specific field experience assessments (e.g., Middle Grades Field Experience Block Rating Form, Practicum II Assessment for Program in Mental Retardation, Teaching Performance Evaluation Instrument, Secondary Programs Field Experience Block Rating Form.

At Program Completion

• Work samples from Student Teaching Internship
• TEFEE
• Undergraduate Program Evaluation (UPE)
• Praxis II scores

After Graduation

• Survey for Graduates of the Teacher Education Program (GTEP)
• Survey for Employers of Graduates of the Teacher Education Program (ETEP)
• Interviews with graduates

Candidate assessments that are currently used in our Advanced Preparation Programs include:

Admission

• GPA at admission
• GRE Scores

In-Program

• Course grades
• Graduate Student Survey-Midpoint (GSSM)

At Program Completion

• Culminating experience (e.g., portfolio, presentation, paper, exam)

After Graduation

• Graduate Student Survey-Completer (GSSC)
• Interviews with graduates/completers
• Praxis II

A flowchart has been developed to demonstrate the ways data are used for improving unit operations. This flowchart, which is available by clicking here, illustrates a process of data collection, analysis, dissemination, and use of data for unit improvement. In our system, candidate data are collected by the assessment coordinator during the fall and spring semester. These data include the Teacher Education Field Experience Evaluation (TEFEE), the Undergraduate Program Evaluation (UPE), the Evaluation of University Supervisor (EUS), the Evaluation of Supervising Teacher (EST), the Survey for Graduates of the Teacher Education or Initial Certification Program (GTEP), the Survey for Employers of Graduates of the Teacher Education or Initial Certification Program (ETEP), the Graduate Student Survey-Midpoint (GSSM), and the Graduate Student Survey-Completer (GSSC). During June, July, and August, the Assessment Coordinator analyzes data from these instruments and from Praxis II scores and course grades. During this time period, the Assessment Coordinator also reviews written annual committee reports from the Diversity Committee, the Faculty Development, Mentoring, and Retention Committee, the Personnel Committee, and the Assessment Advisory Ad-Hoc committees. In September and October, the Assessment Coordinator provides aggregated and disaggregated data summaries to the unit and to programs. These data are also made available to stakeholders (data are placed on the Assessment website). In November and December, the Assessment Advisory Committee and faculty review candidate, program, and unit data. By May, programs submit Program Improvement Plans to the Assessment Coordinator and AAC. Also by May, the AAC and Assessment Coordinator present the Unit Assessment Report to the College of Education Dean and to the unit. This report will also be made available on the Assessment website.