Purpose, Principles, and Responsibilities of the Educational Assessment Committee (EAC)
Purpose: The Educational Assessment Committee (EAC) is a standing appointed committee of the Faculty of The College of Wooster, charged by the Faculty to facilitate outcomes-based assessment of student learning and development in order to enhance the educational program of the College.
Principles: Wooster students develop their intellectual and personal capacities as defined by the Graduate Qualities and their learning is multidimensional, integrated, and revealed in performance over time. Given this, the work of the Educational Assessment Committee (EAC) is grounded in the following principles:
- Effective assessment provides meaningful information that guides decision-making to maintain and improve the quality of courses, curricula programming, and co-curricula programming;
- Effective assessment is intentionally designed and embedded throughout courses, programs and activities;
- Effective assessment is aligned with clear and explicit student learning goals and stated department or program purposes; and
- Effective assessment leads to improvement when it is part of a larger set of institutional conditions that promote change through stimulating conversations among departments, programs, and committees.
Responsibilities: The Educational Assessment Committee (EAC) will guide institution-wide educational assessment related to student learning, development, and support by prioritizing student educational needs through:
- Communicating the College’s philosophy of educational assessment to the Wooster community, along with best assessment practices within our community;
- Advising academic departments and programs, in addition to student affairs offices, in developing and implementing assessment plans, as well as evaluating findings;
- Overseeing and advising educational assessment initiatives with College-wide implications;
- Facilitating professional development activities for faculty and staff, including workshops, consultant visits, and study groups; and
- Collecting, reviewing, and interpreting educational assessment findings, then referring these for additional analysis and decision-making to the Educational Policy Committee (EPC) and the appropriate departments, programs, offices, and committees within Academic Affairs and Student Affairs.
Educational Assessment Committee (EAC) Membership
Four faculty members, one staff member representing Academic Affairs (appointed by the Provost), one staff member representing Student Life (appointed by the Dean of Students), the Director of Educational Assessment (DEA), Dean of Curriculum and Academic Engagement (ex officio), Chief Information and Planning Officer (ex officio), and two students (appointment by Scot Council). Term: 2 years for faculty, staff, and student members.
The chair of the Educational Assessment Committee shall be one of the four faculty members. When the chair of the committee will be a continuing member of the committee in the following year, that person will call the first meeting in the new academic year. If there is not a continuing chair, the Director of Educational Assessment (DEA) will call the first meeting in the new academic year, and a faculty chair will be selected at that meeting.