Co-published with the Association for State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), which sponsored the project from which the book emerged. This book answers the question "What would your institution look like if students really mattered?" The authors argue that really putting student success at the center of attention will require a radical…

Getting all students to high levels of achievement is what matters most. Many campuses today are working hard to develop a clearer and more integrated, collective approach to this goal. This takes leadership, resources, good data, a willingness to try new things, and, above all, a sense of purpose--working toward shared goals for student success.…

This chapter discusses the role of institutional research in DQP and Tuning work. Examples from the field of the myriad ways in which IR has been involved, as well as an exploration of ways in which IR has yet to be involved, are discussed.

Over the past decade, the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) has been documenting what colleges and universities are doing to gather evidence about student learning and helping institutions to productively use assessment data to strengthen undergraduate education. NILOA also has been monitoring how institutions communicate…

Thirteen years ago, 276 bachelor's-granting colleges and universities inaugurated a new approach to assessing college quality by participating in the first national administration of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). This report summarizes what was learned over the NSSE's first 13 years, why the survey is being updated, and new…

This issue of "Assessment Update" presents the following articles: (1) Exact and Adjacent Inter-rater Agreement Associated with Peer Review of Teaching (Robert Koslow); (2) Examine Assessment of Student Learning outcomes as an Organizational Routine (Antigoni Papadimitriou); (3) Developing a Reliable and Valid Assessment Tool for Online…

This issue of "Assessment Update" presents the following articles: (1) James Madison University: Reflections on Sustained Excellence in Assessment (Keston H. Fulcher and Elizabeth R. H. Sanchez); (2) Editor's Notes: Assessment Excellence Abounds! (Stephen P. Hundley); (3) The Promise of an All-in-One Assessment System for Student…

Assessing the quality of undergraduate student learning continues to be a priority in U.S. postsecondary education. Although variations in outcome assessment practices have long been suspected, they have not been systematically documented. To follow up the 2009 National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) report on institutional…

There is no shortage of challenges facing postsecondary institutions in the US. One that cuts to the core of the enterprise is whether they are preparing their graduates to live productive, civically responsible lives in a dynamic global marketplace mapped onto diverse, yet increasingly interdependent, social and cultural systems. Much of the…

Assessment information should be actionable in that findings must be used to improve the student experience and educational effectiveness. Assessment is a worthwhile undertaking when campuses generate meaningful data, thoroughly consider and discuss evidence-based improvement initiatives, and ultimately use results to improve educational…

The expectation for accountability is legitimate. In order to have the desired effects, evidence of what students know and can do must respond to genuine institutional needs and priorities. Far too often, that condition is not met. On too many campuses, assessment activity is mired in a culture of compliance rather than driven by collective…

The value of establishing a strong community in institutions of higher education has been in the forefront of the thinking of educators for a number of years. As colleges and universities have grown in complexity, establishing and sustaining strong campus communities has been described as challenging and difficult. John Gardner has provided a…

A few years ago, in "Student Success in College (SSiC)," the authors profiled twenty colleges and universities that were unusually effective in fostering student engagement and success, defined as better-than-predicted scores on the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and better-than-predicted graduation rates. These schools are…

Established theories and constructs long associated with student success, including involvement, engagement, and integration, provide common language and a body of knowledge to inform understanding of the challenges currently facing higher education. This paper examines how the theories and terms have evolved, explores how the terms are currently…

This article reviews the results from an in-depth multi-site case study of 20 institutions examining approaches to student engagement exploring differences by mission. The research questions pursued were: Is mission related to distinctive approaches for creating an engaging environment for students? If so, in what ways? The results demonstrate a…