This book's contribution will be a very big one--and not just in size...there is no compAndium of examples like it. As such, it's invaluable. It will be very useful to those who plan and carry out assessment on campuses.

?Thomas A. Angelo, director, AAHE Assessment Forum

Brings together in one volume the best current knowledge of what assessment methods work best and how their principles should be incorporated into all effective assessment efforts?whether at institutional, program, or department levels. Drawing from 165 actual cases?and reporting 86 of them in their entirety?the authors illustrate methods and techniques of assessment covering a wide range of objectives in diverse types of institutions.

Fifteen years ago Trudy Banta and her colleagues surveyed the national landscape for the campus examples that were published in the classic work "Assessment in Practice." Since then, significant advances have occurred, including the use of technology to organize and manage the assessment process and increased reliance on assessment findings to make key decisions aimed at enhancing student learning. Trudy Banta, Elizabeth Jones, and Karen Black offer 49 detailed current examples of good practice in planning, implementing, and sustaining assessment that are practical and ready to apply in new settings. This important resource can help educators put in place an effective process for determining what works and which improvements will have the most impact in improving curriculum, methods of instruction, and student services on college and university campuses.

A comprehensive expansion to the essential higher education assessment text This second edition of Assessment Essentials updates the bestselling first edition, the go-to resource on outcomes assessment in higher education. In this thoroughly revised edition, you will find, in a familiar framework, nearly all new material, examples from more than 100 campuses, and indispensable descriptions of direct and indirect assessment methods that have helped to educate faculty, staff, and students about assessment. Outcomes assessment is of increasing importance in higher education, especially as new technologies and policy proposals spotlight performance-based success measures. Leading authorities Trudy Banta and Catherine Palomba draw on research, standards, and best practices to address the timeless and timeliest issues in higher education accountability. New topics include: * Using electronic portfolios in assessment * Rubrics and course-embedded assessment * Assessment in student affairs * Assessing institutional effectiveness As always, the step-by-step approach of Assessment Essentials will guide you through the process of developing an assessment program, from the research and planning phase to implementation and beyond, with more than 100 examples along the way. Assessment data are increasingly being used to guide everything from funding to hiring to curriculum decisions, and all faculty and staff will need to know how to use them effectively. Perfect for anyone new to the assessment process, as well as for the growing number of assessment professionals, this expanded edition of Assessment Essentials will be an essential resource on every college campus.

In this book, leading experts in the field examine the current state of assessment practice and scholarship, explore what the future holds for assessment, and offer guidance to help educators meet these new challenges. The contributors root assessment squarely in several related disciplines to provide an overview of assessment practice and scholarship that will prove useful to both the seasoned educator and those new to assessment practice. Ultimately, "Building a Scholarship of Assessment" will help convince skeptics who still believe outcomes assessment is a fad and will soon fade away that this is an interdisciplinary area with deep roots and an exciting future.