Implementing ILO-PLO-CLO Assessment in Your Courses
By Dr. Kenneth Locke, Dean of Administration, and Monica Sanford
Navigation:
- Why Does This Matter?
- Learning Outcomes ← YOU ARE HERE
- UWest’s Institutional Learning Outcomes
- Rubrics
- Creating Course Learning Outcome Rubrics
- Linking CLOs to Assignments
- Recording CLO Rubrics in Taskstream
- Conclusion
Learning Outcomes
UWest’s mission is to provide a whole-person education in a context informed by Buddhist wisdom and values and to facilitate cultural understanding and appreciation between East and West. In order to fully assess how well we are accomplishing this mission, UWest has created learning outcomes at the institutional, program, and course levels. Learning outcomes refer to the knowledge, skills, and character we expect our students to develop as a result of their courses, co-curricular activities, programs, and experiences here at UWest. The three levels of outcomes are based on a natural cascade that flows from the most macro level (institution), to the broad level of our academics (program or department), to the most micro level (courses).
An Institutional Learning Outcome (ILO), from a university’s perspective, clarifies what the university is trying to achieve in terms of student learning and development. Deriving directly from the university’s mission, it clarifies institutional identity. A Program Learning Outcome (PLO), which derives from and is closely linked to an ILO, enables each program or department (academic and co-curricular) to clarify what it is trying to achieve within the broad context of the university’s identity. A Course Learning Outcome (CLO) enables a particular professor to clarify what he or she is trying to achieve in a particular course within the context of the program’s/department’s and university’s identities. CLO assessment is not the same thing as grading and will not always directly correlate with a student’s final grade in a course. In a measurable sense, learning outcomes at the institution, program, and course-level enable the university to determine 1) how well it is fulfilling its mission in terms of student learning, and 2) how well its programs and departments are functioning in terms of student learning, 3) how well its courses are functioning in terms of student learning, and 4) how well courses, programs/departments, and the institution are linked with each other in a seamless assessment system. Altogether, data obtained at the three levels should indicate where we can act to improve student learning at the university.
The learning outcomes do not exist merely for administrative purposes or to comply with accreditation requirements. Professors do not teach in a vacuum. They need a bigger picture of where their programs/departments and course(s) fits within the institution. Learning outcomes provide the guidance faculty need to clarify for themselves the topics, issues, and concerns they should focus on in their course(s). Furthermore, faculty do not simply impart information. The learning outcomes better crystalize in their minds how their teaching is actively shaping students to become better people. Therefore, ILOs, PLOs, and CLOs 1) help professors understand the university’s mission and learning goals and 2) enable professors to understand how their programs/departments and course(s) relates to the mission.
At the course-level, CLOs also enable the instructor to give students a better understanding of what the course is about, what is expected of them, and what is important to their success in the course. CLOs help students understand the relationship of individual courses to the program/department, institution, and mission of the university. From the course learning outcomes, students discover what is expected of them in the course and, through the links to PLOs and ILOs, at this university. The discover what to expect not just in terms of intellectual learning and growth but also in terms of their development as a whole person.
Partial PLO Heirarchy for MA in Religious Studies
1. Why Does This Matter? ← Last Section ¦ Next Section → 3. UWest’s Institutional Learning Outcomes