1P1 Common Learning Outcomes

• Aligning common outcomes to the mission, educational offerings, and degree levels of the institution (3.B.1, 3.E.2)
• Determining common outcomes (3.B.2, 4.B.4)
• Ensuring the outcomes remain relevant and aligned with student, workplace, and societal needs (3.B.4)
• Articulating the purposes, content, and level of achievement of the outcomes (3.B.2, 4.B.1)
• Incorporating into the curriculum opportunities for all students to achieve the outcomes (3.B.3, 3.B.5)
• Designing, aligning, and delivering co-curricular activities to support learning (3.E.1, 4.B.2)
• Selecting tools/methods/instruments used to assess attainment of common learning outcomes (4.B.2)
• Assessing common learning outcomes (4.B.1, 4.B.2, 4.B.4)

Common Learning Outcomes Process:  A Brief History

Common Learning Outcomes (CLO’s) have been aligned to the mission, educational offerings and associate degree levels of Southeast Tech since their inception in 1995, with assessment occurring at the program level. CLO’s were directly tied to Southeast Tech’s mission of educating for employment by addressing the question, “What skills do employers of Southeast Tech’s graduates expect?” When the Institute moved toward an Institutional-level CLO assessment, the original set of outcomes were based on the 2000 Department of Labor SCANS Report, employer surveys of graduates, faculty and Program Advisory Committee input, and CLO’s at peer institutions. The twice-yearly Program Advisory Committee meetings provided feedback and input from businesses and industry regarding outcome relevancy to industry needs and helped to assure that curriculum reinforces these outcomes. The CLO’s were reviewed and revised from eight to four outcomes in 2005.  In 2014, the term for the outcomes was changed from “Broad Student Outcomes” to “Common Learning Outcomes” to reflect common terminology in higher education. (3.B.1), (3.B.2)

Aligning Common Outcomes to the Mission, Educational Offerings, and Degree Levels of the Institution AND 

Determining Common Outcomes 

The formal process for determining and assuring alignment of CLO’s occurs during the first year of implementation of any new strategic plan.  During each Strategic Planning process (4P 2 ), Southeast Tech reviews its mission, vision and values and sets the future direction of the Institute.  Because any changes to the mission, vision, values or Institute direction could impact the CLO’s (and therefore program learning outcomes, outcome matrices and lesson plans) the Institute assures that a formal review of CLO’s always occurs after the Strategic Planning process is completed (Figure 1P1.1).

Southeast Tech then gathers input (capture) on CLO’s by engaging stakeholders in the CLO review process.  Both internal and external stakeholders are given the opportunity to provide input through surveys, Advisory Committee meetings, and focus groups. The Celebrating Learning Team (CLT), with the help of the Institutional Research Office, collects the data, analyzes it, and determines a course of action, which may include new CLO’s or revisions to current CLO’s (develop).  Because Southeast Tech believes that the General Education department is integral to the development of CLO’s, imparting broad knowledge and intellectual concepts to all students, members of that department are included in the CLO review. 

The recommendation of the CLT is sent to Southeast Tech stakeholders (both internal and external) for further review and modification. Once completed, the CLT prepares a final report on the CLO’s and presents the report to Southeast Tech’s Administrative Team for approval, then to the Southeast Tech Council and Southeast Tech Board for adoption (decide). The Academic Administrative Team then works with faculty and academic staff to integrate the new CLO’s into the curriculum, and the Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students work with departments to communicate the new CLO’s to all Southeast Tech stakeholders (deploy). (3.B.2), (4.B.4)

Southeast Tech’s most recent strategic planning process was completed in Summer 2016 and approved in Fall 2016, and a new mission statement was developed, setting the stage for a new CLO cycle review in 2016-2017. The CLT is currently gathering input on the CLO’s from the Institute’s stakeholders, which will be used in Summer 2017 to determine any CLO adjustments or additions.

Southeast Tech’s requirement of a minimum of 15 general education credits for all AAS degrees (five to nine credits for diploma programs), including courses in composition, mathematics, sociology, and psychology, assures students are engaged in curriculum that helps build student skills in collecting, analyzing, and communicating information and developing the ability to succeed in an ever-changing world. General Education faculty function as a coherent team, meeting monthly to address areas such as online learning, curriculum, and student success, and are instrumental in the development of student general education course placement and transfer guidelines. (3.B.1)

Ensuring Common Learning Outcomes Remain Relevant and Aligned to Student, Workplace, and Societal Needs

Once established/revised, the CLO’s are reviewed annually during team and program meetings and with Program Advisory Committees. Additionally, the AQIP Education Design and Delivery and AQIP Celebrating Learning teams discuss the appropriateness and relevance of the CLO’s as part of the CLO assessment process (evaluate) (1P1 Selecting Tools and Targets, and Assessing Common Learning Outcomes). Included in that review are results from the Southeast Tech Employer Survey, which is conducted every other year and provides feedback from employers on graduate skill level attainment for various areas, including the CLO’s.  The survey includes the opportunity for employers to provide feedback on additional skill areas they believe graduates may be missing or should be enhanced, which is reviewed for possible adjustments to the CLO’s by the Celebrating Learning and Education Design and Delivery teams.  CLO adjustments may be recommended by these two teams and approved by the Administrative Team.  Should these annual processes reveal a need to review the CLO’s at a more significant level prior to the next Strategic Plan, the President has the authority to begin the formal process review at any time (reflect).

Because the respect for diversity is one of Southeast Tech’s core values, awareness of the human and cultural diversity of a global society is incorporated into the Professionalism CLO and is included in instruction as learning outcomes within the Social Issues general education course, individual program coursework, and the Student Success Seminar course.  Diversity events, activities, and/or awareness campaigns are provided annually. (3.B.4)

Articulating Purpose, Content, and Level of Achievement of Common Learning Outcomes

Southeast Tech has established the following four CLO’s:

Science & Technology: Technical competence including knowledge of technology and/or scientific principles as these apply to programs.

Problem Solving & Critical Thinking: The ability to select and use various approaches to solve a wide variety of problems – scientific, mathematical, social and personal. Graduates will also be able to evaluate information from a variety of perspectives, analyze data and make appropriate judgments.

Communication: The ability to communicate effectively in several forms – oral, written, nonverbal and interpersonal. Graduates will also demonstrate knowledge of how to manage and access information.

Professionalism: Strong work ethic, including responsible attendance; skill in teamwork and collaboration, as well as an ability to work with others, respecting diversity; ability to adapt to change; commitment to lifelong learning; adherence to professional standards; and positive self-esteem and integrity.

The assessment methods used to determine achievement of these outcomes is provided in 1R 1 .  (4.B.1)

Southeast Tech articulates the CLO’s and their purpose and content through (publish):

• General Education mission and purpose statements
• Standardized syllabi template, including CLO’s
• Posters in classrooms
• Bookmarks in the Bookstore
• Online Southeast Tech Catalog
• CLO assessment results published in this portfolio (3.B.2)  

Incorporating into the Curriculum Opportunities for All Students to Achieve the Outcomes

All programs provide multiple opportunities for students to practice and learn the CLO’s. Each program has:

• Aligned its specialized program outcomes (PLO’s) to the CLO’s through a published chart showing program outcomes within each CLO;
• Developed a Course Mapping Matrix that indicates the method (standardized test, performance test, portfolio, true/false or multiple choice test, etc.) used to assess the CLO’s by course;
• Developed a Program Mapping Matrix that indicates in which course PLO’s are taught and to what level (introductory, reinforcement, mastery) in order to assure curriculum is designed effectively to build skills and assure that all PLO’s are covered to the level expected of graduates.  

Since PLO’s directly relate to CLO’s, this process also helps assure that the CLO’s are covered and mastered accordingly.

General education at Southeast Tech reinforces the teaching of the CLO’s through the core coursework required for diplomas and degrees. General education functions as an integral but complementary component of the AAS and diploma programs and is designed as a coherent core of courses taught by qualified faculty in the General Education Division (3P 1 ). Since CLO’s are the skills all program graduates are expected to achieve by the time they graduate, these outcomes are integrated and assessed within each program as well as through the general education coursework.  Program mapping matrices assure that content introduces, reinforces, and provides mastery opportunities for student achievement of CLO’s in a structured building-block approach. Review of these matrices provides for continued improvement of this process and opportunity for students to achieve the CLO’s.  (3.B.3, 3.B.5)

To assure these linkages are further strengthened, General Education faculty participate on program Advisory Committees.  This regular participation helps assure strong General Education/Program faculty collaboration, relevancy of general education courses to business and industry requirements and standards, and a positive model that encourages student understanding of the value general education plays in their learning.  (3.B.1, 3.B.2, 3.B.3, 3.B.5)  

Designing, Aligning, and Delivering Co-curricular Activities to Support Learning

Students at Southeast Tech have the opportunity to participate in various professional student organizations, primarily linked to career areas. These organizations promote leadership, field exposure, opportunities to attend state, regional and national conferences and competitions, and networking opportunities with employers. Currently, Southeast Tech has sixteen student program organizations (see 1P 2  for listing). In addition to these organizations, Southeast Tech’s Student Government Association (SGA) provides students the opportunity to build leadership skills while providing student input into the planning and operations of the Institute.  SGA is composed of two members from each program and is responsible for the development and implementation of campus student activities and campus events such as movie/pizza night, talent shows, dances, and holiday celebrations. (3.E.1)

To form a student organization or club, students must complete an application with the Student Activities Coordinator and develop a set of by-laws.  All student organizations must be directly linked to a program of study. Student clubs can be developed around student interest areas, such as music, art, gaming, etc.  Prior to approval, both organizations and clubs must have at least one Southeast Tech employee assigned as an advisor. All clubs and organizations must have a minimum of five active members. (3.E.1)

Each year both organizations and clubs are required to participate in a minimum of one service learning event.  To assure that this requirement is met, Southeast Tech will be piloting an annual reporting process in 2017-2018, submitted to the Student Activities Coordinator, that details the service learning event, participation, and final outcomes.  The report will also provide details on other organization/club accomplishments and activities and how the group reinforces CLO or PLO development. The report will then be made available to Southeast Tech stakeholders on STInet and incorporated into future planning and budget through the Annual Planning process (4P 2 ). (3.E.1)

Once a student organization or club is established, it is allowed to continue into the next year as long as:  1. the by-laws are up-to-date; 2. an advisor is established; and 3. membership is kept at five or more students. (4.B.2).   

Selecting Tools and Targets AND Assessing Common Learning Outcomes 

A Brief History on CLO Assessment: The initial tools, assessment targets, and timetable for measuring the CLO’s was developed by Southeast Tech’s former Assessment Coordinator and Assessment Committee. From 2005-2010, a Writing Across the Curriculum assessment was implemented to measure the CLO of written communication. Programs from across the Institution submitted student writing samples, which were rated in the summer by a team of English faculty. Assessment of the technology, problem-solving, and professionalism CLO’s was left up to the program teams with assessments conducted at the program level on an annual basis. In 2012, the Celebrating Learning Team (CLT) was formed to develop a more Institutional-wide assessment process.  

The CLT developed and implemented a problem solving assessment in 2013, which collected student work on problem solving from programs across the Institute. The problem-solving assessment was repeated in 2014 after a CLT review and revision of the process.  In 2015-2016, the CLT developed and conducted an Institutional professionalism assessment pilot (Figure 1P1.2).

Current Tool Selection and Assessment Process:  The Celebrating Learning Team has been delegated the responsibility for overseeing Southeast Tech’s formal CLO assessment process. Team membership includes an Academic Administrator, a member of the campus Institutional Research Office, and faculty and staff representing programs and departments from across campus.  The CLT determines the methods used to assess the CLO’s at the institutional level and creates rubrics or other measures for CLO’s.  Measures are developed to allow Southeast Tech to gauge Institutional-level CLO achievement while at the same time are flexible enough to be individualized at the program level to meet varying industry requirements.  The CLT determines which CLO’s will be measured in what year (Figure 1P1.1 and 1P1.2) and establishes Institutional assessment targets, which are then approved by the Administrative Team. (4.B.1, 4.B.4)

Throughout the process of selecting assessment tools, setting assessment targets, and developing and deploying CLO assessments, the CLT seeks direction and input from faculty and staff at all-campus monthly meetings, in-services, through email requests for suggestions, and through direct discussions with CLT members.  Prior to any assessment selection or implementation, the process is approved by the Southeast Tech Academic Administrative Team. The CLT members function as coaches for faculty and staff, helping them throughout the process of creating and implementing CLO assessments, as well as helping programs to develop action plans based on assessment results. (4.B.4)

CLO’s are assessed on a rotational schedule established by the CLT (Figure 1P1.1). Southeast Tech generally assesses CLO’s during the spring semesters and requests that programs assess those students who are closest to graduating.  Each program is responsible for conducting and submitting results of the CLO assessment within their program area. The CLT provides assistance in this process as needed and guides faculty in the completion of the assessment. (4.B.1)

Once the assessment results are collected, the assessment data is aggregated by the Institutional Research Office and reviewed by the CLT during the Team’s summer retreat. Aggregated and disaggregated-by-program data are stored in Southeast Tech’s Planning and Assessments database and are available for review by all Institutional employees on the STInet intranet site.  An Institutional assessment report is created, and overall Institutional and individual program results are presented at employee meetings and/or posted on the Institutional STInet site to provide access to all employees. The assessment report includes an analysis of the overall student strengths and weaknesses as related to the CLO’s and provides suggestions for improvement or further analysis by program and general education faculty. Program faculty then use their individual program results for program improvement and review by Advisory Committees (1P 2 ). Overall results are posted within the Systems Portfolio for external stakeholder access (1R 1 ).

Along with direct assessment of CLO achievement, Southeast Tech also uses its Job Placement and Employer Survey results to assess student overall achievement. Placement rates and Employer Survey results, which include questions directly related to CLO achievement, are located in 1R 1  and provide indirect evidence that the Institute is meeting its CLO assessment objectives.  The CLT analyzes the data from both of these sources with the direct assessment data as part of its review of graduate academic achievement of CLO’s. 

At the Institutional level, the CLT reviews the overall results and determines what actions, if any, are necessary for improvement.  The CLT then implements actions and makes recommendations to Southeast Tech administration for those actions needing administrative approval or support (4.B.1, 4.B.2, 4.B.4).  

Southeast Tech defines four Institutional student learning outcomes and measures these outcomes both at the Institutional and program levels:

Science and Technology                

Program areas define specific measurements and targets that meet the technical standards required of their industry (1R 2 Figure 1R2.1 Proving Student Learning Chart).  To document the achievement of an Institutional-level Science and Technology Outcome, each program runs the assessment and reports the results to the Office of Institutional Research, reporting the number taking the assessment and the number achieving the established target level. This information is then aggregated into an Institutional Science and Technology CLO assessment result, allowing program flexibility in determining an appropriate technical standards assessment, while assuring that Institutional Research can aggregate data into an Institutional-level achievement result.

Problem Solving/Critical Thinking

The Celebrating Learning Team (CLT) developed a problem-solving/critical thinking rubric that is easily adaptable to the needs of individual program areas.  Each program uses this common rubric to score an appropriate problem-solving assessment for their program area.  These results are then aggregated by the Office of Institutional Research for the Institutional-level problem solving/critical thinking assessment.    

Communication

Southeast Tech has developed a Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) communication assessment based on program student writing samples within a range of appropriate writing assignments as determined by programs and approved by the English department faculty to assure the writing sample meets requirements for assessment.  The samples are scored based on a WAC rubric designed by the CLT with input from English faculty.  Results are provided to the Office of Institutional Research to be aggregated into the Institutional-level communication assessment.

Professionalism 

In Spring 2016, Southeast Tech piloted its Institutional-level professionalism assessment.  The CLT created a rubric that is adaptable to all program areas.  Programs then conducted the assessment with results returned to the Office of Institutional Research to be aggregated into Institutional-level results.  

For all assessments, the Office of Institutional Research and CLT develops and publishes on STInet reports providing aggregated and disaggregated analysis and results.  The CLT also disseminates the report to all employees through email and on the STInet site.  CLT members discussed individual program results with program faculty as requested.