University of Wisconsin - Superior College Portrait

With the establishment of the Office of Assessment in Spring 2010 and the adoption of a campus-wide assessment plan by the Faculty Senate in December 2010, the institution began a systematic effort at assessment of student learning.  The Assessment Plan calls for assessing student learning in the following five areas: Institution-wide assessment of liberal education learning goals – led by the HLC Assessment Academy Team; General education assessment – led by the General Education Committee; High Impact Practices assessment – led by HIPs coordinators; Academic program assessment – led by departmental assessment liaisons and the Assessment Coordinator; Co-curricular program assessment utilizing the standard set by CAS (The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education) -- led by the Vice Chancellor of Campus Life.

Student learning goals and outcomes have been established for each of these areas and approved by the appropriate bodies.  These outcomes are also assessed under the appropriate leadership. 

At the institutional level, students are expected to meet five Liberal Education Learning Goals (LELGs).  These goals were adopted by the Faculty Senate in December 2009, revised in October 2011, and include the following: ability to think and make connections across academic disciplines; ability to express oneself in multiple forms; ability to analyze and reflect upon multiple perspectives to arrive at a perspective of one’s own; ability to think and engage as a global citizen; and ability to engage in evidence-based problem solving.   The campus has been planning and implementing the assessment of these learning goals under the leadership of the HLC Assessment Academy Team.  According to the plan developed by this team, the five goals are to be assessed over three years on the rotation bases.  In 2011-12 the faculty participated in the assessment of one of the LELGs “ability to express oneself in multiple forms.”  The results revealed that the vast majority of seniors achieved the satisfactory level of written and oral expressions.     

Students at the UW-Superior are also expected to meet the General Education learning outcomes.  Our General Education Program aims to meet the following mission: “General Education at the UW-Superior integrates students into a community of creative learners rooted in the tradition of liberal arts education.  It does so by familiarizing students with the ‘ways of knowing’ associated with the various academic disciplines and by fostering the development of a set of habits of mind and academic skills associated with reflective and critical learning” (UW-Superior Undergraduate Catalog 2010-12).  The Catalog also lists specific learning goals for the General Education Program, which are to be achieved through the General Education curriculum comprised of the core curriculum and knowledge categoriesThe General Education Committee plans to finalize an assessment plan and facilitate its implementation starting in 2013-14.

As for the program-level assessment, each academic major program has established a set of student learning outcomes and submitted it to the Office of Assessment.  These outcomes will be assessed under a 3-5 year rotation plan determined by each program.  The faculty and staff in each academic program are to select appropriate tools for this assessment (e.g., methods, measures, and measurements) so as to make the assessment feasible and relevant to their respective program needs.  The Assessment Coordinator keeps track of the progress made in this program-level assessment and post summary information at its website as appropriate.

The UW-Superior also plans to assess student learning in co-curricular programs, including Liberal Arts High Impact Practices (LAHIPs; e.g., first-year seminar, first-year experience, writing across the curriculum, global awareness, academic service learning, and senior-year experience) and various programs offered through the Campus Life.  Student learning through the LAHIPs are assessed mainly by indirect measures (such as the First Year Seminar student survey, the Academic Service Learning surveys of student as well as community agencies, and the Senior-Year Experience survey to the faculty/staff).   Student learning through Campus Life programs is to be assessed by the standard developed by the CAS (Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education).  This assessment plan has been developed and implemented. Overall, student learning assessment processes at the UW-Superior are effective in engaging the faculty and staff in the continuous improvement of the quality of education.  Because the faculty/staff participate in the development and implementation of student learning assessment plans at all levels, they are more likely to own the process and results of student learning assessment.  Through assessment activities, many of them became more cognizant of the alignment of curricular offerings and student assignments with student learning outcomes and more willing to improve the curriculum based on the evidence of student learning.   These indicate the culture of assessment is growing at UW-Superior. 

Learning Assessment Examples

University of Wisconsin - Superior administered the ACT CAAP in Fall 2009 - Spring 2011.

University of Wisconsin - Superior conducted a Value-added administration of the ACT CAAP in Fall 2009 - Spring 2011. The results are displayed below in the SLO Results tab.

For additional information on UWSUPER’s process for administering ACT CAAP, please click on the Assessment Process Tab below. For information on the students included in the administration, please click the Students Tested Tab above.