Balancing the Counter-Pressures of Assessment in 21st Century Higher

Education

Will Miller

Lay of the Land• 11th Century Notion of College• 19th Century Agrarian Calendar• 21st Century Student

Politics• Assessment can be political• While data should be pure, interpretations can

vary

The Cross-Pressures• Federal and state agencies• Accrediting bodies• Board of Trustees• Senior Administrators• Faculty• Students• Staff• Media• General Public

Federal and State Agencies• Lens:– Compliance– Standardized– Inflexible–Not interested in stories

• Politics

Accrediting Bodies• Lens:– Compliance– Standardized–Not terribly flexible– Effective

• Politics

Board of Trustees• Lens:– Success of institution– Personal reputation– Student success–Wildcard

• Politics

Senior Administrators• Lens:– Institutional effectiveness– Student success– Satisfaction– Low cost

• Politics

Faculty• Lens:– Student success and learning–Workload– Improve teaching– Programmatic benefits– Institutional pride

• Politics

Students• Lens:– Job– Degree– Learning– Institutional pride

• Politics

Parents• Lens:– Jobs– Cost– Student experience

• Politics

Staff• Lens:– Departmental effectiveness– Budget battles– Institutional pride

• Politics

Media• Lens:–Need a story– Data reports don’t get readers/viewers/listeners– But still want to stay in good graces

• Political

General Public• Lens:– Entirely contextual and individualized

• Politics

Result• A single piece of data can be pulled in a multitude

of ways– Leaving IR in an awkward spot– Difference between producing data and interpreting

data

Personality• Within each group, there are distinct, generalized

personalities present as well that add to difficulty– The Assessment Expert– The Academic Freedom Expert– The Eeeyore– The Enthusiastic Amateur– The One Data Point Wonder– The Old Guard

Keys• 1) Remember the goals of the group to whom you

are providing data • 2) Be cautious in offering

interpretations/meanings• 3) Learn the personalities of the frequent

requesters• 4) Accept that data is out of your hands after you

send it off• 5) Use disclaimer statements when unsure

Questions?