MVCC is committed to and conducts assessment activities to obtain information for the improvement of student learning, programs, services and the overall effectiveness of the College. These activities may include surveys and questionnaires, exams, focus groups, research projects, and standardized tests. Members of the College community are expected to participate.
MVCC Principles of Assessment
The guiding principle of assessment activities at MVCC is that assessment must be meaningful, manageable, and sustainable over time, and that the resulting data are not used for individual or collective evaluation, but for improvement. To that end, assessment methods must involve the entire campus community and be fair, varied, and engaging. To be meaningful, assessment results must be shared with appropriate constituents in a timely manner.
MVCC accepts the 9 Principles of Good Practice for Assessing Student Learning developed by the American Association for Higher Education and further recognizes the following:
- Assessment results must guide decisions and budgeting.
- High-quality assessment requires adequate funding, training, and personnel resources.
- Good assessment requires beginning with clearly stated expected outcomes.
- There are many valid approaches to assessment; the faculty and staff in each Program or
- Office should identify or create the assessment instruments appropriate for their own purposes.
- Student performance should be sampled in a variety of settings and through multiple modes.
- Student partnership in the assessment process is valued and encouraged.
- The Institutional Effectiveness Council, in conjunction with faculty and administrative staff, directs assessment processes.
Middle States Standard V:
Educational Effectiveness Assessment
“Assessment of student learning and achievement demonstrates that the institution’s students have accomplished educational goals consistent with their program of study, degree level, the institution’s mission, and appropriate expectations for institutions of higher education.”
Other standards highlight the periodic assessment of the mission, goals, ethics, integrity, planning, resource allocation, governance, and leadership of the institution.
Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation (13th Edition)
Glossary of Assessment Terms
Summary of Assessment Activities
This Summary of Assessment Activities provides a survey of various methods that can be used for institutional and student outcomes assessment. For additional information on any of these activities please contact Bradley Dixon, Coordinator of Assessment & Academic Programming, at bdixon@mvcc.edu.