Category Archives: Accountability

ETS Study Recommends Higher Education Accountability System

Princeton, N.J. (July 20, 2006) —
With little hard evidence to demonstrate postsecondary education’s effectiveness, ETS researchers have recommended a broad national system to better understand student learning in two- and four-year colleges and universities.

The report, “A Culture of Evidence: Postsecondary Assessment and Learning Outcomes,” comes as the federal Commission on the Future of Higher Education is developing a comprehensive national strategy for postsecondary education. Authored by Carol A. Dwyer, Catherine M. Millett and David G. Payne of ETS, the report recommends focusing on four dimensions of student learning:

workplace readiness and general skills
domain-specific knowledge and skills
soft skills such as teamwork, communications and creativity
student engagement with learning

The Chronicle: Amid Debate Over Spellings Commission Report, Testing Group Proposes National Accountability System

A new report by the Educational Testing Service proposes a national accountability system that would assess students’ general skills and proficiency within their disciplines.

The report, “A Culture of Evidence: Postsecondary Assessment and Learning Outcomes,” also recommends that colleges measure soft skills such as creativity and teamwork as well as student engagement, though it argues against including assessments of either in the proposed accountability system, at least not initially.

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Inside Higher Ed: Accountability Proposal Evolves

Three months ago, an association of state universities stepped out in front of other higher education groups by announcing that it was exploring the possibility of creating a new, voluntary system to define, measure and make public how well its members educate undergraduates.

Today, the group, the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, is providing new details about the plan, which suggests that its members collect and make publicly available a common and clearly defined “bundle of information” including consumer information about costs and graduation rates, data about the “learning climate” on campuses, and information on how students perform in college.

The Chronicle: Proposed Voluntary Accountability System Would Rely on ‘Meaningful but Manageable’ Measures

Public universities and the associations that represent them should work together to develop a voluntary accountability system that would allow prospective students, their parents, and policy makers to compare similar institutions, the associations suggest in a paper scheduled for release today.

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