ePortfolio as an Element of Total Assessment Program

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 Schools and Programs (ACBSP).

Dr. John Taylor of the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (HLC) recently visited the ORU campus and cited the remarkable progress the University has made in measuring student learning outcomes as a means for institutional improvement. His only concern was sustaining such an ambitious ePortfolio project over time. Strong support from top ORU leadership and buy-in from the faculty indicate that the University will be able to do so. ORU takes advantage of such assessment measures as NSSE, HERI surveys, CAAP Tests, nationally normed subject-area tests, and an array of special assessments, but ePortfolio offers non-self-reported evidence of meeting student learning outcomes across the entire curriculum that can be broken down over a large number of demographic and other variables and compared across time.

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