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Sam Houston State University’s Online Assessment Tracking Database (OAT Db)

OAT.Db is a web-based application that collects, manages, stores, and displays academic and non-academic assessment information from all university units. It prompts input, organizes, stores, retrieves, and reports assessment data, encouraging learning and sharing of assessment procedures across units.

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Sam Houston State University’s Online Assessment Tracking Database (OAT Db)

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  1. Sam Houston State University’s Online Assessment Tracking Database (OAT Db) • Institutional Research & Assessment (IRA) Office • Jeff Roberts, Assessment Coordinator • Rita Caso, Ph.D., Director • Information Technology (IT) – Web Development Group • Colt Ramsden, Lead Programmer • Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs • Mitchell Muehsam, Ph.D., Associate Vice President & SACS Liaison

  2. What is the OAT Db? OAT Db stands for “Online Assessment Tracking Database,” a 24/7 web-based application for collecting, managing, storing and viewing academic and non-academic assessment information from all university units. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  3. History of the OAT Db • Fall ‘05 • New SHSU Institutional Research & Assessment (IRA) Director begins drafting designs for web-accessible assessment planning and documentation tools. • Winter ‘05-’06 • Anticipating 2009 SACS reaffirmation, Academic Affairs Assoc. V.P. (SACS Liaison) endorses investigation of commercial, online assessment applications. • Interim Action: With Advisory Committee approval, IRA Director develops & distributes standardized template for prompting, organizing, documenting & collecting yearly outcomes assessments from all units, using Blackboard. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  4. History of the OAT Db • Spring ‘06 • SHSU IT Web Development (Web Dev) Supervisor reviews and evaluates WEAVEonline with IRA Director • Data maintained off campus • Specific feature and function limitations (at that time) • Start-up fee & yearly fee • SHSU IT Web Dev Team recommends local development of online assessment-tracking database application, and projects optimistic timeline • With support and input from the SACS Liaison/Assoc. VP for Academic Affairs & IRA Director, SHSU Web Dev Team begin to develop OAT Db (Interim assessment template on Blackboard provides guide ) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  5. History of the OAT Db • Fall-Winter ‘06-’07 • Revisions of OAT DB interface by Web Dev Team with intensive input from SACS Liaison/ Assoc. VP Academic Affairs and IRA Director • IRA conducts focus-group testing of Beta OAT Db • March ‘07 • Group training sessions for every major university unit, by IRA • Session 1: Introduction & overview of assessment bare-essentials and OAT DB (12-40 people per event) • Session 2 & 3: Hands-on computer lab training on use of OAT Db and essentials of assessment planning, implementation & documentation (8-15 people per event) • The OAT Db is opened for use by entire campus community • IRA provides continuing individual and small-group hands-on training, coaching, and review, on demand and as needed. • Web Dev responds to technical problems on demand, through IRA liaisons TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  6. Why Locally Developed OAT Db? • Easy, assured access to data over years • All the data entered is stored in our databases, rather than elsewhere • No yearly fees • Application Support and Improvements • Local Development team can provide better support • Local Development team can continue to custom-modify and improve the application over time as needed TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  7. What does OAT Db collect? • Key Elements of each unit’s assessment process • Goals (for each unit) • Outcome Objectives (Learning & Performance) • Indicators • Criteria for satisfying Objectives • Findings & Conclusions (Results of Assessment) • Actions (based upon Findings & Conclusions) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  8. OAT Db Elements • Goals • The unit’s broadly stated intentions, aspirations, or ambitions. • Objectives • Unit’s specifically stated, desired outcomes -- related to one or more of the entered goals. • All objectives must be measurable. • Indicators • Specific, observable and measurable evidence of whether or not an objective was achieved or satisfied. Related to a particular objective TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  9. OAT Db Elements • Criteria • Specific, predetermined targets, standards, or benchmarks for a particular Indicator that must be met in order to indicate success • Determined prior to the collection of data. • Findings • Related to a specific Criterion, these are the results or conclusions derived from the assessment process. • Actions • Specific actions taken in response to the Findings, in relation to a single Objective. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  10. What does it do? • Prompts input & editing of useful assessment information • Organizes & relates information (across assessment Elements & across Levels of related units) • Stores (across years) • Retrieves and reports (across years) • Encourages learning & sharing assessment procedures across units • “Rolls” previous reporting period’s Goals, Objectives, Indicators & Criteria into new reporting period, on demand TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  11. Who Uses OAT DB? • Everyone with SHSU computer account I.D. has viewing access to all information in OAT DB • Units designate authorized person to input and edit information for the unit • Every academic & non-academic unit documents its assessment information • IRA can provide targeted assessment coaching to units through OAT DB • External reviewers and guests use special I.D.s for OAT DB viewing access TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  12. How is OAT DB Used? • SACS reaffirmation process • Professional and disciplinary accreditation processes • Regular internal planning, accountability-tracking & reporting , i.e., • Provides indicators, targets & outcomes for President’s Performance Indicator Reports • Informs University Strategic Planning • Documenting periodic and continuous self-assessment for unit improvement & justification of change • Assessment and evaluation of research & intervention projects (internally or externally funded) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  13. Technical Aspects of the OAT Db • Written in PHP scripting language • Written using PDO in PHP, which is an abstraction layer for a variety of different relational databases • Currently working with MIMER DB • Can work with variety of relational DBs such as as Oracle, SQL, mySQL, etc. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  14. Technical Aspects of the OAT Db • Minor integration into University’s “SamWeb” • Program is designed so that it can work without it • Plug-in design for all actions (e.g. "Add Indicator") • Additional "plug-ins" can be developed and linked to within the OAT Db with little effort • Built-in ability to store assessment data for multiple institutions • Terminology customizable for each institution TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  15. Introduction to OAT Db (screen) (The next 4 slides will explain this screen) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  16. Levels in the OAT Db • Levels define the “familial” standing of units in relation to each other • i.e., College is Parent to its Departments. • Department is Parent to all of its Degree Programs, which are siblings to each other • Degree Programs are Children of the Department and Grandchildren of the College TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  17. Levels in the OAT Db • Users enter unit information in their own specific levels, but Parent and Grandparent units may edit their Children’s and Grandchildren’s information • Users see links to their Parent and Child levels on their main OAT Db page • Goals of Child-Level units should reflect the goals of their Parent, or Grandparents • Objectives of Child-Level units should reflect their own or their Parent, or Grandparents’ goals TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  18. Accessing OAT DB(screen) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  19. Accessing OAT DB(screen) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  20. Entering Information Into OAT Db • 24/7 Access from link on SHSU main web page with SHSU’s universal login ID • Users authorized to input, revise & delete unit information are recognized by their SHSU login ID. • Parent-level users authorized to edit Child-level programs are recognized by their SHSU login ID TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  21. Starting page for OAT Db unit input(screen) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  22. Inputting a new Objective (screen) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  23. Inputting a new Objective (screen) TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  24. Entering Information Into the OAT Db • Input unit assessment information into each Element of the OAT Db by clicking active links and using drop-boxes • Each Element is linked with previous elements • Supporting documents can be uploaded and attached to Indicators, Criteria, Findings, and Actions. • i.e., Sample Surveys; Reports; Writing Samples; Student Test Samples; Scoring Rubrics; Sample Portfolios; Sample Videos or Sound Recordings; Meeting Minutes, etc. • At any time, authorized users can edit, modify, or delete any information they have entered. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  25. Objective-centered assessment documentation • Objective-centered approach to assessment tracking • Every Objective must be related to one or more Goals, and must have at least one associated Indicator, Criteria, Finding, and Action. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  26. Learning Outcome Objectives vs. Performance Outcome Objectives • The OAT Db captures assessment information for both Learning Outcomes Objectives and Performance Outcome Objectives. • Assessing either type of outcome objective is about observing and measuring the desired impact. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  27. Learning Outcome • A desired behavior, knowledge, or attitude that someone will be able to demonstrate as a result of activities intended to promote learning • Most often associated with intentional instructional experiences offered by academic programs • Not exclusive to academics • Non-academic programs have learning outcome objectives re. staff development, client or community development, and advisement TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  28. Performance Outcome • A particular achievement, or level of attainment in operations that an office, department or program expects to accomplish • Most often associated with efficiency or productivity levels by which administrative and support services seek to improve processes, products and services. • Underlying purpose to improve infrastructure or operations that help make it possible for university mission to succeed. TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  29. Common pitfalls for OAT Db users • Insufficient familiarity with outcome assessment • Trouble distinguishing between Goals and outcome Objectives • Difficulty specifying Indicators for outcome Objectives • Difficulty pre-specifying Criteria • Insufficient understanding of need for outcome Indicators measures to be.. • Consistent • Replicable, beyond the judgment of a single instructor • Recognizable to professional peers • Confusion about use of class-embedded student assessments as measurements & indicators of learning outcome Objectives TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  30. OAT Db Work-in-Progress Coming soon • Automated reports and searches To be scheduled • Customizable reports and searches Under consideration • Additional input and storage fields for.. • Introductory unit descriptiosn • Descriptions of HOW learning and performance outcome Objectives will be achieved TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  31. Hurdles • Remaining unfamiliarity with good assessment processes and good practices in assessment documentation among SHSU units • Residual resistance to using OAT DB • Some negative technical experiences with early OAT Db • Some infrequent technical problems with current OAT Db • Some resistance to standardized documentation of assessment information • Competition for local development resources make additional OAT Db progress slower than wished TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  32. Conclusions • Increased awareness of assessment’s role in quality management and improvement efforts • More involvement in assessment and its documentation across all university units • Information about the assessment activities of university units is much more accessible • Assessment processes and their documentation are much more consistent • OAT Db users are more knowledgeable about the goals, objectives and assessment efforts of other units in the university TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

  33. Contact Information • Mitchell Muehsam, Associate Vice President, Academic Affairs • ECO_MJM@shsu.edu • 936 294 1031 • M. Rita Caso, PhD, Director, Institutional Research & Assessment • DR_RITA@shsu.edu • 936 294 3618 • Jeff L Roberts, Assessment Coordinator , Institutional Research & Assessment • JLR022@shsu.edu • 936 294 4321 • Colt T Ramsden, Analyst , SHSU IT/Web Development • CTR002@shsu.edu • 936 294 4488 TAIR 2008 Conference, 2/5-6/08

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