Abstract:

Assessment has become a commonplace word in the vocabulary of all educators’ today. The educational industry assesses teaching, student’s learning, institutional goals, individual courses, programs, colleges and more. Professional educator’s rationale for detailed assessment is varied and will continue to grow as education becomes more complex with changing students and environments. One known assessment rational states, “to provide a rationale and legitimacy for the social structures and power relations of modern day societies, and one’s place within these. It (assessment) is concerned directly with what is taught and what is valued within our education system” (Leathwood, 2005, p. 307). Looking more narrowly at education, Cummings, Maddux, and Richmond (2008) state, “Higher education in the United States is increasingly subjected to demands to implement alternative assessment strategies that provide outcome measures of both student and programme effectiveness” (p. 599). So not only do educators want to substantiate their professional work, but outside stakeholders also want to know how learning occurs.

This research paper is an evaluation of Minot State University’s broadcasting program assessment methods. This type of evaluation isn’t only happening at the local level, but nationally as well, as Crook, Gross, and Dymott (2006) state, “Student assessment is one aspect of university life attracting reform” (p. 96). Reform has become evident in MSU’s broadcasting program in order to not only assess pedagogy, but student learning as well. As Walvoord (2004) states, “The goal is that assessment becomes a way of doing business for the department, integral to all its decisions about curriculum, pedagogy, staffing, budgeting, and other factors that affect learning” (p. 64). Having better assessment procedures in place not only serves the students, faculty and university, but enlightens us as educators to complex learning issues that might otherwise go undiscovered. In fact, Cummings, Maddux, and Richmond (2008) state, “Corresponding assessment activities would be directly related to the learning tasks and would tap higher level thinking and problem-solving abilities” (p. 600). Current assessment models at the program level at MSU don’t achieve those lofty goals. Evaluating and modifying assessment methods is the first step to lead educators in that direction. This paper explores the goals for program level assessment, some advantageous methods of assessment and pre and post testing as a direct method of program assessment by highlighting both past literature in these areas and MSU’s current procedures.

Keywords:

Assessment, evaluation, pre and post testing, program assessment, education, multiple choice.