Abstract:

In the face of rising costs, limited financial resources, and an increasing focus on students’ educational return on investment, assessment has become an essential task for higher education institutions. However, the assessment process at many institutions is faced with many challenges, as faculty members balance these additional administrative tasks with teaching, research, and service responsibilities. Nevertheless, faculty “buy in” is imperative for an assessment model to truly produce meaningful results; therefore, this paper seeks to examine the perceptions of assessment among faculty members at Florida International University, with a focus on perceptions and reasons for assessment resistance.

The research will be guided by several previously published articles and papers outlining why faculty members may experience resistance to assessment. To measure perceptions, we will design a survey that will gauge the faculty’s knowledge and perception of assessment. The survey will include likert scale, single answer, and short answer questions. Based on the results, we will use both quantitative and qualitative analysis to determine the areas in which assessment knowledge at Florida International University can be improved, and how we can interact with faculty in the future to promote a healthier culture of assessment. Based on the results, several recommendations will be made to improve how assessment is discussed and implemented to more fully engage faculty members. The instrument and method of analysis will serve as a useful tool in the assessment community, as professionals in the field can evaluate the knowledge and perception of assessment at their own institutions, thereby encouraging meaningful assessment that should ideally translate into concrete and applicable improvement strategies.

Keywords:

Assessment, faculty perceptions.