Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes - The systematic collection, review, and use of information about
educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning
and development. (Source: Assessment Essentials, Palomba &
Banta)
Assessment Plan – a planning document outlining the college’s
assessment procedures for each component of the college.
Assessment Analysis Report – for departments in Instruction,
Student Services and the Library, a reporting document containing an
analysis of departmental SLO assessment activities and
recommendations for improvment. These are submitted as part
of each area's Instructional Plan or departmental review to the Council
for Instructional Planning or the Student Services Manager's Team.
After scrutiny by those groups, the reports are forwarded
to the College SLO Assessment Review Committee.
Administrative Services departments, which indirectly aid instruction,
embed their assessment reports in their departmental reviews.
These are also forwarded to the SLO Assessment Review Committee
after scrutiny by manager teams.
Core
Competencies – these college-wide skills describe what Cabrillo students are
able to do at the end of General Education curriculum or when receiving an AA or AS degree. Cabrillo’s core
competencies are: 1) Communication, 2) Critical Thinking and Information
Competency, 3) Global Awareness and 4) Personal Responsibility and Professional
Development.
Course-embedded Assessment – a process that evaluates
artifacts from courses (major assignments, tests, portfolios, performances,
demonstrations, papers etc.) to assess student mastery of SLOs for Cabrillo’s
core competencies, courses and sometimes, if selected as an appropriate measure
by the department, occupational programs.
Course Objectives – statements
that tell students what supporting skills, knowledge, and attitudes they will
learn during a course that lead to mastery of the course SLOs. They are usually
discrete skills that require lower level thinking skills and form the building
blocks to course SLOs.
Program – a degree program or occupational program. Cabrillo considers its General Education program all one
program whose SLOs are described by the college core competencies.
Student
Learning Outcome (SLO) - the knowledge, skills, abilities or attitudes that
students have attained by the end of any set of college experiences – classes,
programs, degrees and certificates or encounters with college services. SLOs
articulate the major goals of each experience, require higher-level thinking
skills and usually result in a product that can be evaluated.
