Assessment Excellence

NCATE, the Oklahoma State Board of Education, and ABET have praised ORU’s approach to assessing student learning outcomes. Additional self-studies in process for site visits will inform other accrediting agencies of evidence of the success of individual majors and programs in achieving student learning outcomes. The School of Nursing completed a self-study with ePortfolio data as a main source for documenting student progress and program improvement. The School of Theology and Missions has completed a two-year process of examining the school’s learning outcomes and converting their tracking process to ePortfolio in preparation for the start of their next re-accreditation visit, as have the music and social work programs. The School of Business is using ePortfolio to demonstrate its success in measuring and increasing student learning as well as in identifying program weaknesses in its current study to achieve initial accreditation through the Association of Collegiate Business School...

ORU educators interact with professional colleagues regarding the use of ePortfolio to trace and document achievement of learning objectives. They inform the larger academy of institutional progress, share lessons learned during the implementation and maintenance processes, and obtain peer input to improve ePortfolio. ORU’s Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs supports, promotes, and encourages ORU faculty, staff, and administrators in their efforts to share ePortfolio experiences. Faculty and staff members have presented at over 40 regional and national conferences, offered 6 regional workshops, authored numerous publications, and consulted with other institutions that are considering a similar approach to assessing student learning outcomes. An article outlining ORU’s ePortfolio in the May 11, 2005, issue of Education Week quoted the dean of the ORU School of Education as saying, “Now, all [evidence needed to qualify for graduation] is available online and can quickly be ga...

Oral Roberts University routinely provides students and the public with information about its student learning outcomes and ePortfolio, both of which have become integral parts of the ORU experience and culture over the past three years. Students and faculty members work with them daily. Members of the ORU faculty, administration, and staff have shared the ORU ePortfolio process through 41 publications, presentations, and workshops. Many of these were at the national level and addressed a wide range of constituencies, including (1) students, (2) professional colleagues, (3) accrediting agencies, (4) alumni, and (5) the general public. All ORU students are trained in the operation of ePortfolio and required to submit approximately 50 artifacts over the course of their undergraduate careers and 15 during their graduate careers. With each submission, a student is reminded of how each learning outcome links to ORU’s mission. From faculty feedback, students see their progress and learn whic...

Hey, gang. You can read about us in the March 2007 issue of Campus Technology Magazine: http://campustechnology.com/articles/45245/ Have a happy day!