Measuring the Value of a Postsecondary Education by Norrie Ken;Lennon Mary Catharine; & Mary Catharine Lennon

Author:Norrie, Ken;Lennon, Mary Catharine; & Mary Catharine Lennon
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
Published: 2013-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

LESSONS LEARNED

PEQAB has learned a number of lessons in its first decade of operations. Chief among these is that demonstrations that learning outcomes have been achieved:

•require clarity in their expression and expertise in their measurement;

•underlie our confidence in other, related measures; and

•are a necessary and (under the right circumstances) sufficient measure of program quality.

Two Requirements for Successful Measurement

Institutions have to articulate their intended outcomes with sufficient clarity, and the appropriate expertise has to be brought to bear on determining whether or not they have been achieved. In the absence of a clear and comprehensive statement of expectations, outcomes have to be inferred, not just by experts charged with advising on whether appropriate outcomes have been achieved, but also by students, employers, and other postsecondary institutions.

Assuming clear statements of outcomes, the right expertise must be engaged to determine whether the outcomes are present in samples of student work. Scholars with expertise in the field have to be engaged to determine whether the appropriate discipline/field-specific outcomes have been realized. Scholars with expertise in assessing generic communication and critical thinking skills are also required.

In PEQAB’s experience, learning outcomes expertise at both the institution and on the part of expert assessors is variable. The practice of articulating and measuring the sorts of outcomes set out in a qualifications framework is new and not yet perfected by all providers and assessors. Over time, the utility of the framework as a quality assurance tool will develop, particularly in light of the efficiencies it affords in transparency and quality assurance.

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