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COMPLETING QUALITY DEGREES: IDAHO’S AGENDA FOR POST-SECONDARY LEARNING. Daniel J. McInerney Tuning USA Advisory Board Professor & Associate Department Head Utah State University, Department of History [email protected]. learning & listening – not just lecturing - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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COMPLETING QUALITY DEGREES:
IDAHO’S AGENDA FOR POST-SECONDARY
LEARNING
Daniel J. McInerneyTuning USA Advisory Board
Professor & Associate Department Head
Utah State University, Department of History
learning & listening – not just lecturing
as much a matter of vocabulary as an issue of pedagogy and administration
the ambitious agenda for post-secondary education
learning & listening – not just lecturing
the ambitious agenda for post-secondary education
integrating – not simply adding – reform projects
example
60% of Idahoans ages 25-34 will have a degree or certificate by 2020.
Idaho must grow talent within the state to fuel innovation and economic competitiveness.
increased education attainment improves the quality of life for Idahoans and drives a vibrant, diverse economy.
It is imperative we commit to efficiently and effectively increase postsecondary degrees and certificates.
In 2010, the Board set an attainment goal that 60% of Idahoans, age 25 to 34, have a postsecondary degree or certificate by 2020.
This will require a focus not only on increasing the number of students who complete college, but also on maximizing students’ abilities and potential for success in the workforce.
To encourage access and completion involves demystifying the college going process and experience.
Ensuring there is alignment between secondary graduation requirements and postsecondary expectations so that students are ready for the rigor and expectations of college are integral to completion, which includes the development of a statewide model for assessment of college and career readiness.
The transition from secondary to postsecondary education opportunities must be clear and straightforward, by simplifying and streamlining the college admissions process.
And, transfer processes between colleges must be understandable and attainable.
WHAT IS THE FOCUS? -numbers of degrees -percentages, growth
-transferring courses credits
GPAs
QUANTIFICATION & ADMINISTRATION OF DEGREES
.
Post-secondary degree -represents Carnegie credits, grade point averages, residency requirements, state-mandated requirements?
-symbolizes institutional identification, college “rankings”?
“Gen Ed,” “Core, “Major field” -represent lists of courses, credits, minimal grades?
What do degrees and curricula and cores and major fields represent in terms of learning?
What do degrees and curricula and cores and major fields represent in terms of learning?
-How clearly do we define the learning that our institutions & programs develop?
-How well do our students (and their parents, their employers, their policymakers) understand these goals?
-Student understanding of these issues: -when they complete program of study? -when they enter program of study?
-How well do we clarify these objectives and expectations to secondary schools & other post-secondary institutions?
THE QUESTIONSADDRESSED BY IDAHO’S INITIATIVES
THEIR FOCUS:
WHAT DO DEGREES REPRESENT?
-the learning that informs post-secondary work
-the quality of degrees
-the intentionality of academic programs
-the knowledge, skills, and abilities students develop
-the clarity with which we communicate this information
HOW DO THE INITIATIVES
FIT TOGETHER?
What should post-secondary education aim to achieve?
What qualities should students develop in post-secondary education?
What qualities do educators develop at different degree levels?
What should students’ majors aim to achieve – overall and at different degree levels?
What is one way of determining if we are achieving our goals?
What can we do to facilitate transfer and mobility?
WHY SHOULD ANY
OF THIS MATTER TO
YOU?
top-down approach
isolated from the rest of the world
one size fits all
collecting (but not
using)data
shhh . . . be quiet; maybe assessment
will go away
-Assessments are here to stay
-Who else but discipline experts should respond?
-Assessment and education
A GOOD STARTING POINT
The types of issues addressed in the Tuning project
Clarify what (too often) remains unstated
Tuning is a a faculty-led project
-within individual disciplines
-working together across different sectors of post-secondary education
to clarify the subject-specific knowledge, skills, and competencies we expect students to learn, demonstrate, and master upon completing a program of study
-not simply to generate more degrees but quality degrees understandable degrees
-not simply discussions among academics but a range of stakeholders in higher ed students parents administrators alumni policy makers employers
-not simply stating our learning goals but scaling our learning goals
-within a curriculum -to different degree levels
Central question Tuning poses: What should students
know, understand, and be able to do
when they complete a program of
study?
~~ a question that helps us address theissues involved with LEAP, ELOs, DQP ~~
EU USFOCUS OF THE INITIATIVES
teaching learning
educational “inputs” learning outcomes
teacher-centered student-centered
degree as a reflection degree as reliable
of an institution “credential” of
accomplishments
implicit purposes clarity, transparency
Tuning’s DUAL commitmentsTen Tips For
harmony
common reference
points
diversity
autonomy
(1) informing question
“What should students know, understand, and be able to do?”
“When students complete our program of study, they will be able to . . . .”
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(1) informing question(2) bottom-up approach(3) discipline-specific (4) focus on learning outcomes (5) clarity and transparency (6) degree levels (7) colleagues at other institutions (8) inclusive; many “stakeholders” (9) diversity and autonomy “wind up singing in the same key – though not the same tune”(10) a process, not a finished product
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THE TUNING
ELEVATOR SPEECH
The “Tuning” project asks faculty to drill down and clarify the core goals and the key skills pursued in their disciplines. We want to answer a basic question: when students complete a program in a discipline, what should they know, understand, and be able to do? We ask this question to understand our own roles and responsibilities in higher education. And we want our students to understand what they take from their studies into employment, further education, and civic life.
2009: 2009: start of Tuning USA start of Tuning USA projectproject April, Chicago April, Chicago
Utah’s work in TuningUtah’s work in Tuning
8 state institutions◦2 research universities◦4 comprehensive or regional universities
◦2 community colleges
Utah’s work in TuningUtah’s work in TuningWhat did Utah offer?
-10+ years of state-wide meetings
-Majors’ Meetings - all institutions in the Utah
System of Higher Education - 37+ disciplines, annually
-Annual Conference: “What Is An Educated Person?” – faculty from all institutions
Utah’s work in TuningUtah’s work in TuningWhat did Utah offer?
- general education- articulation- transfer- trust
Utah’s work in TuningUtah’s work in TuningWhat did Utah lack?
(1) a coordinated body of goals and objectives
(2) evidence of goals achieved
(3) discussions outside of circle of faculty and administrators
Approaches
Ten Tips ForMEET PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARENOT WHERE YOU WANT THEM TO BE
2008-9: annus horribilis
administrative orders
functions of conflict and complaint
start at the endpoint
Ten Tips ForDON’T GO IT ALONE
UK learning outcomes
AHA lit on assessment
Australian colleagues
Ten Tips ForBUILD THE PROJECT INCREMENTALLY
provisional learning outcomes:knowledge / skills / thinking
syllabi
rubrics
single rubric for capstone
inter-rater-reliability
revise intro survey for majors
create a pre-major
Ten Tips ForTALK WITH PEOPLE OUTSIDE ACADEME
stakeholders students, parents, alumni, employers, policy makers
surveys focus groups alumni letters
HARTRESEARCH
P e t e r D
A S S O T E SC I A
Raising The BarEmployers’ Views On College Learning In The Wake Of The Economic Downturn
Key findings from survey among 302 employersConducted October 27 – November 17, 2009
Search: “aacu raising the bar”
47
Employers: room for 2-year & 4-Employers: room for 2-year & 4-year year colleges to improve colleges to improve
Doing good job
Some improvement needed
Significant improvement needed
How good a job are our colleges/universities doing in preparing students effectively for the challenges of today’s global economy?
60%
68%
Two-year colleges and universities
Four-year colleges and universities
48
% saying two- and four-year colleges should place MORE emphasis on helping students develop these skills, qualities, capabilities, knowledge
Employers’ Top Priorities For Employers’ Top Priorities For Student Learning Outcomes In Student Learning Outcomes In CollegeCollege
Effective oral/written communication
Critical thinking/ analytical reasoning
Knowledge/skills applied to real world
settingsAnalyze/solve complex
problemsConnect choices and
actions to ethical decisions
Teamwork skills/ ability to collaborate
Ability to innovate and be creative
Concepts/developments in science/technology
Ten Tips ForBUILD A BASKET OF METRICS
rubricsstudent portfolio
course evaluationscourse management systems(Moodle, Blackboard, Canvas)
Ten Tips ForCLARIFY WHAT DISTINGUISHES THE
MAJOR
levels
pre-major
Ten Tips ForFAMILIARIZE STUDENTS WITH THE LANGUAGE OF TUNING
“requirement sheet”
guide to graduation guide to learning
Historical study develops one’s ability to: investigate problems, identify reliable sources, analyze information, contextualize complex questions, and communicate conclusions in a clear and thoughtful manner.
Embrace your distinctiveness
mission priorities
student profile curriculum
entry point majors
interdisciplinary evaluations
spec. resources soc/civic engagm’t
Ten Tips For
Here is a coherent set of learning goals.
Here are the ways our institution fosters that
learning in distinctive ways.
Tuning EU: www.unideusto.org/tuningeu/
Tuning USA: tuningusa.org/
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board – Tuning in Texas
www.thecb.state.tx.us/index.cfm? objectid=8FFC700A-D9F8-57C3-
CD178199FADC8CD4
On the Tuning USA website -PDF: “Why Tune?” (2011) -Tuning guide -Degree Qualifications Profile
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Kentucky Tuning Project cpe.ky.gov/committees/tuning/
Midwest Higher Education Compact Tuning Project
www.mhec.org/ProgrammaticInitiatives
Tuning in the discipline of History
http://www.historians.org/projects/tuning/
Tuning at Utah State University, History Department
history.usu.edu/assessment
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