The purpose of assessment is to help us what we do. Understanding the roots of keywords clarifies the point. Assessment comes from assidere, meaning to sit beside. When someone sits beside us, that person provides additional perspective as a partner in order to assist us. Contrast this with the term evaluation which comes from valere, meaning to assign value and judge. If someone assigns value they can rank our work, prioritize it, and pass judgment on it. While it can be useful to have an external judgment, judgment always is not aimed in helping us improve our work. A third word that is recently entered this field is accountability.
Assessment is a critical tool for decision makers. Consider the types of questions that presidents, provosts, CIOs, deans, department chairs, and individual faculty members must addres:
· How much high is the quality?
· Any difference will occur after investment?
· How much viable the program is?
· Is our resources well oriented?
· How do we improve our student learning?
Assessment is necessary for institutional improvement because it provides the basis for answering internal and external questions, such as those dealing with accreditation, use of technology, cost efficiencies, or enrollment dilemmas.
Common Assessment Challenges
Assessment is a vital to making informed decisions, particularly in times of change. Because of the changes brought about by information technology, interest in assessment is on the rise. Today, when educators are pressured to justify methods and results, IT is a double-edged sword. It is both a solution to certain problems and a source of others. Measuring the potential of IT and the degree to which we are realizing it, and determining the cost we are willing to bear, are all assessment questions.
Technology assessment involves three common assessment challenges.
· Bundle Questions
· Unusual Solution
· Old Definitions of Success
