The word “assessment” can mean many different things in higher education, so it’s not surprising that there is some confusion around the term. Fundamentally all assessment at DePaul is about the understanding and improvement of student learning. Learning occurs in many places and at many levels, and so does assessment. Most of the resources on the Teaching Commons website focus on assessing classroom learning. The annual assessment of academic programs and departments, in contrast to classroom and course assessment, follows a reporting process established by a faculty committee and facilitated by the Office for Teaching, Learning & Assessment in Academic Affairs.

Annual assessment is an ongoing practice of gathering, analyzing, and using information about the extent to which students are achieving learning outcomes. Each year departments and programs decide which of their student learning outcome(s) to examine. As faculty know their subject matter and students best, faculty conduct the assessment by deciding where in the curriculum the learning outcome is likely to be taught and what sort of assignments can be gathered that demonstrate if students, as a group, are achieving the outcome at the desired level.

Departments and programs annually report the learning outcome(s) assessed, their findings, and, when appropriate, recommendations for improving student learning back to their faculty, the college or school, and Academic Affairs.

In addition to increasing the depth of understanding about student learning and informing conversations about teaching and learning, the process of annual assessment has also been designed to meet the current requirements of DePaul’s accrediting body, The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.

If you would like more information or assistance regarding DePaul’s annual assessment process for programas and departments, please contact Katherine Cermak at x2-7177 or go to the TLA assessment webpages.