Colleges at UF may start assessing students' learning so prospective employers have a better understanding of graduates' preparation in their intended field.
The U.S. Secretary of Education's Commission on the Future of Higher Education recommended in 2006 that universities across the nation be clearer to the public about what students have learned when they graduate. As a result, over the past year, the UF administration has been developing a system that would assess students, said Daniel Wubah, associate provost for undergraduate affairs at UF.
"If you cannot demonstrate that you have impacted students, then what good is their diploma?" Wubah said.
Wubah was previously employed at James Madison University, where assessment was an integral part of the curriculum.
At JMU, class would be cancelled once per semester in order to assess all of the students, Wubah said.
Currently at UF, each class specifies certain skills students are supposed to gain with the completion of the class. However, the outcomes are vague and difficult to measure, Wubah said, so one goal is to specifically define these in a way that is measurable.
"We need to go in and tweak the standards to make sure the students learn what they need to be learning," he said.
Each college will develop its own assessment practices so the academic freedom will not be taken away from the faculty, Wubah said.
Some colleges have already addressed the issue with the use of accreditation, in which a consultation team certifies that the college is meeting assessment requirements.
Once a college has gone through the consultation process, it must maintain accreditation standards relative to a peer group, said John Kraft, dean of the Warrington College of Business Administration. Schools are ranked within these peer groups and must continuously improve and innovate upon learning standards.
The system is successful, but there are still a few improvements that could be made. Kraft said one improvement he would like to develop is a better pre- and post-screening process to see what skills students come to college with and to make sure they leave with all the requisite skills for their degree.
"You have to make sure what you are meeting for the degree is as advertised," he said.
Another career tool that could assist students is the use of an occupational personnel questionnaire, according to Dale Campbell, professor of educational administration and policy at UF.
Large companies use questionnaires to determine if prospective employees are a good fit, Campbell said. Those who don't achieve a certain score do not qualify for an interview. Colleges can start using the test to make sure students are acquiring the skills that employers are looking for.
It is one option compared to standardized testing, which may not be the best tool for learning assessment, Campbell said.
"It's a high-stakes industry and a very profitable industry," he said. "The best utilization, given limited resources, compared to others can make a difference."
