Columbia Assessment Manager
The Columbia Assessment Manager (CAM) is a new online tool for assessing student learning which is based on years of assessment research conducted by the Theatre department. CAM was created through a collaboration between Information Technology and Evaluation and Assessment and is currently being rolled out across the college. Evaluations in CAM enable faculty to holistically assess students based on course-level and department-level learning outcomes. The tool is intended to help programs more easily track where students acquire specific learning outcomes and to help improve student learning. CAM is easy to use for both faculty and students and is highly flexible for individualized needs.
Pilot
In fall 2012, a handful of
departments across the college piloted the CAM system.
Courses in the Theatre department used CAM in order to assess students on their progress level throughout the course, their skill level in various areas, and to provide more detailed feedback to students on course learning outcomes.
The Fashion Design department used CAM in their Senior Thesis course in order to assess students in twenty-six different areas including skills, communication, research, and attendance.
In the History, Humanities, and Social Science department, a course in cultural anthropology used CAM in order to assess students on their ability in the course learning outcomes as well as the effectiveness of their writing in the course.
“The Columbia Assessment Manager has allowed the Theatre Department to gather rich evaluative data, watch patterns emerge in student learning and follow an individual student’s or a cohort’s progress through the program all of which can lead to deeper Scholarship of Teaching and Learning research, better facilitation of learning, and higher transparency in the curriculum. It also helps students set individualized learning goals for each semester based on previous performance.”
Kathleen Perkins, Associate Professor, Theatre Department
“Utilizing the Columbia Assessment Manager (CAM) system has enabled The Fashion Studies Department to assess all sections of our capstone Senior Thesis course. Data was collected pertaining to students in several areas including skills, communication, research, and attendance. Future plans involve the addition of student self-evaluations’, as well as industry professionals assessing the students’ work. This data will help our faculty identify strengths and weaknesses in our current curriculum so that changes in the future are mindful and focused on the evolving needs of our students and the fashion industry.”
Audrean Been and Virginia Heaven, Fashion Studies
In spring 2012, departments across the college will be utilizing the system in some of their courses.
Step-by-step User Guides
For general technical questions about the system, contact:
Client Services at clientservices@colum.edu or 313-369-7001
If you would like to learn more about this system, then please get in touch with:
André Foisy
Acting Director of Evaluation and Assessment
afoisy@colum.edu
312-369-7768
