ACPA & NASPA Professional Competencies Snapshot
• Facilitate appropriate data collection for system/department-wide assessment and
evaluation efforts using up-to-date technology and methods.
• Align program and learning outcomes with organization goals and values.
• Design ongoing and periodic data collection efforts such that they are sustainable,
rigorous, as unobtrusive as possible, and technologically current.
• Effectively manage, align, and guide implementation of results of AER reports and
studies.
• Contribute to the understanding of colleagues, faculty, and others in the institution of the
relationship of departmental AER processes to learning outcomes and goals at the
student, department, division, and institutional levels.
• Construct basic surveys and other instruments with consultation.
• Use culturally relevant and culturally appropriate terminology and methods to conduct and
report AER findings.
• Prioritize program and learning outcomes with organization goals and values.
During my first year in the College Student Personnel program at Bowling Green State University, I advised the Sibs ‘N Kids weekend student planning committee. Composed of five student leaders from UAO, this committee coordinated, planned, and implemented Sibs ‘N Kids weekend, a University-sponsored weekend where families are invited to come and engage with the Bowling Green campus. As I began to advise the student committee, I realized that there was no assessment plan in place. Rather, it was up to the discretion of the advisor to assess the students. I found this problematic, because there were no guiding learning outcomes and assessment measures in place to assist in demonstrating the benefit students reap from being on the committee.
As an elementary education major in undergraduate, and a licensed kindergarten-through-sixth grade teacher in Pennsylvania, I am knowledgeable of how to appropriately develop and assess student learning. Creating the assessment plan for the Sibs ‘N Kids student committee leaders, I was able to use my prior assessment knowledge as a foundation to develop my skill with assessment in higher education.
Firstly, for this assessment I created learning outcomes for the students. The four learning outcomes of communication skills, advancing classroom knowledge, leadership skills, and critical thinking skills tie directly back to the University’s and Division of Student Affairs’ learning outcomes. Tying these together ensures that by participating in the Sibs ‘N Kids committee students are achieving the goals of the University. These four outcomes also serve to guide the advising and assessment of student learning.
Secondly, activities that students engage in while on the committee were identified and matched with their respective learning outcome. Making these connections allowed for the integration of the outcomes with practice. Again, this helped me further develop my skills in intentionally aligning outcomes and practice with institutional goals and values.
Thirdly, assessment techniques were identified. To show a breadth of learning, formal and informal pre-, formative, and summative assessments were created. The assessments were created in a manner that they required students to reflect on their learning, provided the advisor with feedback, as well as provided qualitative data. These assessments were then placed strategically on a timeline to guide practice. Creating this timeline in junction with the assessment methods helped me develop and understand the importance of sustainable and periodic assessment.
One of the greatest areas of development in this plan for me was learning how to appropriately collect the data in a manner that allows for it to guide the results of end-of-year reports for the Division of Student Affairs. While all of the pre- and summative assessments were reflection and conversation based, the summative assessment required working with an outside assessment company, Campus Labs. I worked closely with a representative of the company to construct an online survey that would ensure appropriate and trustworthy collection of data to support the requirements of reports. Through this collaboration I developed my knowledge of non-biased question asking, and wording of questions and possible responses. I also utilized knowledge from my Statistics in Education and Research in Education courses to guide the creation of the assessment measures.
Through the creation, implementation, assessment, and reporting of learning outcomes for this assessment plan, I continued to develop my skills in constructing and collecting effective assessment that closely aligns with the goals of the University.
Sibs 'N Kids Student Leader Assessment and Implementation Plan
