Relevant
resolutions by the State Academic Senate re ACCJC imposition of SLO standards.
(From 2002)
Roy Bauer
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/use-current-measures-absent-clear-showing-inadequacy
Use of Current Measures Absent
"Clear Showing of Inadequacy"
Whereas, The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) 1991 Statement on "Mandated Assessment of Educational Outcomes" notes that the justification for developing any assessment plan must be "accompanied by a clear showing that existing methods of assessing learning are inadequate for accomplishing the intended purposes of a supplementary plan"; and
Whereas, Given that the new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards require that faculty develop student learning outcome measures at the course, program, certificate, and degree level, even though the ACCJC has provided no evidence that these would document the inadequacy of current methods for assessing learning;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates to assert the right and responsibility of faculty to determine appropriate measures of student learning and achievement (such as grades, certificates, and degrees), and that absent "clear showing" of the inadequacy of current measures faculty need not develop additional outcome measures simply to satisfy the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) requirements for continuous documentation and improvement of student learning outcomes.
MSCDisposition: Local Senates
Status Report:
Insistence on Academic and Institutional
Excellence in the Self-study Process
Whereas, The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) statement on the "Role of the Faculty in the Accrediting of Colleges and Universities" addresses the centrality of faculty in the accrediting process and contains recommended standards for institutions of higher education;
Whereas, The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards adopted in June 2002 have generally retreated from a commitment to such commonly accepted standards for excellence in institutions of higher education and to the baseline resources that define a quality educational institution;
Whereas, Quality higher education institutions support the needs of students in the learning process by providing them with qualified full-time faculty who have appropriate control over the assessment of students and over the content and teaching of their courses and programs; and
Whereas, The protection of academic freedom and processes of collegial governance are critical to the sound operation of a college and are essential components of providing students the opportunity to learn and explore in educational environments that are free of coercion, encourage open inquiry, and promote the development of critical thinking and multiple perspectives;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local academic senates to insist that their local accreditation self-studies continue to include attention to generally accepted standards for institutions of higher education including:
The provision of qualified full-time faculty sufficient to conduct programs of academic excellence and to meet the learning and support needs of our students;
Appropriate faculty control over the assessment of students And over the content and teaching of their courses and programs;
The right of faculty to determine that grades and other current indicators of student achievement (such as degree and certificate attainment, transfer, and subsequent occupational success) are appropriate to the measurement of student learning;
The protection of academic freedom, due process, and tenure;
A substantive role for faculty in college and district governance and support for the processes of collegial governance; and
The provision and allocation of sufficient resources to support high quality educational programs, student services, and libraries.
MSU Disposition: Local Senates
Documentation of Cost of Implementing
New Standards
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/lack-evidence-restructuring-accreditation-standards
Lack of Evidence for Restructuring
Accreditation Standards
Whereas, The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) adopted new Standards for accreditation over the objections of the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges as well as those of the American Association of University Professors and the Community College Council of the California Federation of Teachers among others;
Whereas, The ACCJC has not responded to repeated requests to provide the Academic Senate the background materials and research upon which it based its decision to restructure the Standards around the continuous monitoring of student learning outcomes; and
Whereas, The ACCJC has not responded to repeated requests to provide the Academic Senate with evidence or research to support the contention that such an approach in fact leads to improvements in the quality of undergraduate education or enhances student achievement;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate continue to request the background evidence and supporting research that would justify recent radical restructuring of the Accrediting Standards by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC); and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate publicize in relevant educational and public venues its concerns regarding the secrecy and lack of substantive evidence provided by ACCJC to support these costly new accreditation requirements.
MSC Disposition:Accrediting Commission
Status Report:
Working group formed in 2003, chaired by the Accrediting Liaison, failed to function as chaired called no meetings. Since then it has become obvious that the ACCJC has no evidence and was only complying with federal demands (also not supported by evidence) to shift to outcomes based assessments.
Continued Use of Current Standards and
Redirection of Professional Development Resources
Whereas, The new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards do not actually take effect until Fall 2004, and colleges undergoing accreditation prior to that date will have a choice between the new and the old Standards;
Whereas, Recent reports regarding national and congressional debate over the processes and content of accreditation portend a likely period of instability and possibly even restructuring of accreditation;
Whereas, Local academic senates are experiencing enormous pressure to conform immediately to the new Standards, even if they are not yet the ones by which their college will be next accredited; and
Whereas, Faculty are being offered generous support for attending conferences on learning outcomes and the new Standards, but have had funding cuts for all other professional development programs slashed;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates in those colleges undergoing their next accreditation visit prior to Fall 2004 to insist that the current Standards continue to be used and resist the premature imposition of the new Standards;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates to recommend directing scarce college resources toward professional development and away from promotion of the new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards; and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate work with local senates to develop materials and strategies for resisting the new Standards in ways most relevant to their local situation and place in the accreditation cycle.
MSC Disposition: Local Senates
These colleges shared their experiences and strategies at a breakout at the 2003 Spring Session. Recommend that specific guidelines be developed with colleges undergoing accreditation in subsequent years.
Continued Coalition of Faculty
Organizations to Address Imposition of Standards
Whereas, The response to the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges' (ACCJC's) new Standards will require a coordinated faculty response and multiple, multidimensional strategies at the local, state, and national levels;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate continue to work in alliance with other faculty organizations to develop a coherent set of strategies to oppose the new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges Standards, consider and coordinate legal or legislative challenges, and educate legislators and other state and federal policy-makers regarding its concerns with the new Standards.
MSC Disposition: AAUP,COFO
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/opposition-standardized-objectives
Opposition to Standardized Objectives
Whereas, The new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards require that departments develop standardized course content and objectives;
Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges as well as the Board of Governors and the Chancellor's Office encourage a range of approaches and course content which are culturally sensitive and reflect the latest disciplinary developments; and
Whereas, The pressure toward curricular standardization in the new ACCJC Standards will likely discourage innovation in course content and objectives and potentially disempower faculty who may belong to traditionally marginalized groups, thus fostering a retreat from a commitment to diversity in both content and teaching and learning approaches;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates and the Board of Governors to protect diversity and multiculturalism by respecting academic freedom and not imposing standardized objectives and outcomes at the course, degree and certificate levels; and
Resolved, That The Academic Senate vigorously oppose the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges' and legislative pressure to standardize with the resultant exclusion of alternative viewpoints.
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/resisting-imposition-learner-outcomes-assessment
Resisting Imposition of Learner Outcomes
Assessment
Request the Commission to Solicit Input
from Pilot Institutions
Whereas, There has been no effort by the Accrediting Commission for California and Junior Colleges to solicit feedback from the pilot schools currently undergoing self-study;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate formally request of the Accrediting Commission for California and Junior College that it actually solicit input and in corporate consensus suggestions from the colleges piloting the new Standards.
These colleges shared their experiences and strategies at a breakout at the 2003 Spring Session.
Conflict of Interest
Whereas, The implementation of the proposed Accreditation Standards involve high cost to the taxpayers;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate of California Community Colleges formally request investigation by a statewide body, such as the Joint Legislative Audit Committee or a commission appointed by the Legislature, of the potential conflicts of interests and the cost of implementing the proposed Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges' accreditation Standards. MSC Disposition: Legislature
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/make-available-background-research-accreditation-requirements
Assigned to :
Topic:
Whereas, This dramatic shift in emphasis to documentation of student learning outcomes and systematic cycles of data analysis will require all colleges to make new, significant, sustained, and targeted investments in professional researchers, data analysis and computing capability, professional development, and faculty and staff time;
Whereas, This new emphasis will, by necessity, shift resources from those places most likely to produce enhanced student achievement, the classrooms, counseling offices, and libraries, where faculty and students interact, and will coincide with a time of economic downturn and lowered state support for the majority of institutions accredited by Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC); and
Whereas, Accreditation should evolve gradually and reflect evolving consensus regarding essential standards in the higher education community rather than abrupt, and possibly faddish, changes and trends;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, prior to adopting new standards, to make available to the public and the educational community the background research materials that formed the basis for its recommendations, provide the public with data supporting the efficacy of this approach in improving education for students, and provide a more detailed analysis of the projected costs, impact, and implications of this shift in standards for the colleges.
Assigned to :
Topic:
Whereas, Draft B of the new accrediting standards will require all colleges to specify student learning outcomes at the course, program, degree, and certificate levels, and to measure, document, and improve the attainment of these outcomes by students;
Whereas, Draft B will require that colleges specify and measure the competencies expected of students at the course, program, degree, and certificate levels;
Whereas, Draft B will require that faculty validate department or program examinations; and
Whereas, Draft B will require demonstration that student services, including counseling and library and learning resources, measure, document, and improve their effectiveness in contributing to the achievement of student learning outcomes;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate continue to engage the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges in a dialogue about the need for extensive documentation of student outcomes and competencies (at the course, program, degree, and certificate levels) as well as for documentation of the contribution to these student learning outcomes made by student development and support services and library and learning resource services; and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate work to change the standards to avoid such a prescriptive and intrusive set of requirements.
Assigned to :
Topic:
Whereas, The concerns about the new accreditation standards are widespread and still un
Resolved; and
Whereas, Even members of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges agree that the assessment of student learning outcomes is a new and evolving approach;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges to continue to use the current accreditation standards while engaging in more extended dialogue about any proposed new standards, and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges and local districts to refrain from piloting the proposed accreditation standards until the direction and content of any new standards are satisfactorily
Resolved.
The whole concept of MSLOs as the latest fad in education is somewhat akin to the now discredited fad of the `90's, Total Quality Management, or TQM. Essentially, the ACCJC adopted MSLOs as the overarching basis for accrediting community colleges based on their faith in the theoretical treatises of a movement, just as advocates for the use of TQM in education (often called continuous quality improvement or CQI in educational circles) were part of an ideological movement. After repeated requests for research showing that such use of MSLOs is effective, none has been forthcoming from the ACCJC. Prior to large scale imposition of such a requirement at all institutions, research should be provided to establish that continuous monitoring of MSLOs has resulted in measurable improvements in student success at a given institution. No such research is forthcoming because there is none. If the "learning paradigm" is so superior as to justify its widespread adoption, then the research should clearly be compelling.
Roy Bauer
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/use-current-measures-absent-clear-showing-inadequacy
Use of Current Measures Absent
"Clear Showing of Inadequacy"
Whereas, The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) 1991 Statement on "Mandated Assessment of Educational Outcomes" notes that the justification for developing any assessment plan must be "accompanied by a clear showing that existing methods of assessing learning are inadequate for accomplishing the intended purposes of a supplementary plan"; and
Whereas, Given that the new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards require that faculty develop student learning outcome measures at the course, program, certificate, and degree level, even though the ACCJC has provided no evidence that these would document the inadequacy of current methods for assessing learning;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates to assert the right and responsibility of faculty to determine appropriate measures of student learning and achievement (such as grades, certificates, and degrees), and that absent "clear showing" of the inadequacy of current measures faculty need not develop additional outcome measures simply to satisfy the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) requirements for continuous documentation and improvement of student learning outcomes.
MSCDisposition: Local Senates
Status Report:
Insistence on Academic and Institutional
Excellence in the Self-study Process
Whereas, The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) statement on the "Role of the Faculty in the Accrediting of Colleges and Universities" addresses the centrality of faculty in the accrediting process and contains recommended standards for institutions of higher education;
Whereas, The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards adopted in June 2002 have generally retreated from a commitment to such commonly accepted standards for excellence in institutions of higher education and to the baseline resources that define a quality educational institution;
Whereas, Quality higher education institutions support the needs of students in the learning process by providing them with qualified full-time faculty who have appropriate control over the assessment of students and over the content and teaching of their courses and programs; and
Whereas, The protection of academic freedom and processes of collegial governance are critical to the sound operation of a college and are essential components of providing students the opportunity to learn and explore in educational environments that are free of coercion, encourage open inquiry, and promote the development of critical thinking and multiple perspectives;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local academic senates to insist that their local accreditation self-studies continue to include attention to generally accepted standards for institutions of higher education including:
The provision of qualified full-time faculty sufficient to conduct programs of academic excellence and to meet the learning and support needs of our students;
Appropriate faculty control over the assessment of students And over the content and teaching of their courses and programs;
The right of faculty to determine that grades and other current indicators of student achievement (such as degree and certificate attainment, transfer, and subsequent occupational success) are appropriate to the measurement of student learning;
The protection of academic freedom, due process, and tenure;
A substantive role for faculty in college and district governance and support for the processes of collegial governance; and
The provision and allocation of sufficient resources to support high quality educational programs, student services, and libraries.
MSU Disposition: Local Senates
Documentation of Cost of Implementing
New Standards
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/lack-evidence-restructuring-accreditation-standards
Lack of Evidence for Restructuring
Accreditation Standards
Whereas, The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) adopted new Standards for accreditation over the objections of the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges as well as those of the American Association of University Professors and the Community College Council of the California Federation of Teachers among others;
Whereas, The ACCJC has not responded to repeated requests to provide the Academic Senate the background materials and research upon which it based its decision to restructure the Standards around the continuous monitoring of student learning outcomes; and
Whereas, The ACCJC has not responded to repeated requests to provide the Academic Senate with evidence or research to support the contention that such an approach in fact leads to improvements in the quality of undergraduate education or enhances student achievement;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate continue to request the background evidence and supporting research that would justify recent radical restructuring of the Accrediting Standards by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC); and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate publicize in relevant educational and public venues its concerns regarding the secrecy and lack of substantive evidence provided by ACCJC to support these costly new accreditation requirements.
MSC Disposition:Accrediting Commission
Status Report:
Working group formed in 2003, chaired by the Accrediting Liaison, failed to function as chaired called no meetings. Since then it has become obvious that the ACCJC has no evidence and was only complying with federal demands (also not supported by evidence) to shift to outcomes based assessments.
Continued Use of Current Standards and
Redirection of Professional Development Resources
Whereas, The new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards do not actually take effect until Fall 2004, and colleges undergoing accreditation prior to that date will have a choice between the new and the old Standards;
Whereas, Recent reports regarding national and congressional debate over the processes and content of accreditation portend a likely period of instability and possibly even restructuring of accreditation;
Whereas, Local academic senates are experiencing enormous pressure to conform immediately to the new Standards, even if they are not yet the ones by which their college will be next accredited; and
Whereas, Faculty are being offered generous support for attending conferences on learning outcomes and the new Standards, but have had funding cuts for all other professional development programs slashed;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates in those colleges undergoing their next accreditation visit prior to Fall 2004 to insist that the current Standards continue to be used and resist the premature imposition of the new Standards;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates to recommend directing scarce college resources toward professional development and away from promotion of the new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards; and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate work with local senates to develop materials and strategies for resisting the new Standards in ways most relevant to their local situation and place in the accreditation cycle.
MSC Disposition: Local Senates
These colleges shared their experiences and strategies at a breakout at the 2003 Spring Session. Recommend that specific guidelines be developed with colleges undergoing accreditation in subsequent years.
Continued Coalition of Faculty
Organizations to Address Imposition of Standards
Whereas, The response to the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges' (ACCJC's) new Standards will require a coordinated faculty response and multiple, multidimensional strategies at the local, state, and national levels;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate continue to work in alliance with other faculty organizations to develop a coherent set of strategies to oppose the new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges Standards, consider and coordinate legal or legislative challenges, and educate legislators and other state and federal policy-makers regarding its concerns with the new Standards.
MSC Disposition: AAUP,COFO
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/opposition-standardized-objectives
Opposition to Standardized Objectives
Whereas, The new Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) Standards require that departments develop standardized course content and objectives;
Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges as well as the Board of Governors and the Chancellor's Office encourage a range of approaches and course content which are culturally sensitive and reflect the latest disciplinary developments; and
Whereas, The pressure toward curricular standardization in the new ACCJC Standards will likely discourage innovation in course content and objectives and potentially disempower faculty who may belong to traditionally marginalized groups, thus fostering a retreat from a commitment to diversity in both content and teaching and learning approaches;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge local senates and the Board of Governors to protect diversity and multiculturalism by respecting academic freedom and not imposing standardized objectives and outcomes at the course, degree and certificate levels; and
Resolved, That The Academic Senate vigorously oppose the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges' and legislative pressure to standardize with the resultant exclusion of alternative viewpoints.
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/resisting-imposition-learner-outcomes-assessment
Resisting Imposition of Learner Outcomes
Assessment
Request the Commission to Solicit Input
from Pilot Institutions
Whereas, There has been no effort by the Accrediting Commission for California and Junior Colleges to solicit feedback from the pilot schools currently undergoing self-study;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate formally request of the Accrediting Commission for California and Junior College that it actually solicit input and in corporate consensus suggestions from the colleges piloting the new Standards.
These colleges shared their experiences and strategies at a breakout at the 2003 Spring Session.
Conflict of Interest
Whereas, The implementation of the proposed Accreditation Standards involve high cost to the taxpayers;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate of California Community Colleges formally request investigation by a statewide body, such as the Joint Legislative Audit Committee or a commission appointed by the Legislature, of the potential conflicts of interests and the cost of implementing the proposed Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges' accreditation Standards. MSC Disposition: Legislature
http://www.asccc.org/resolutions/make-available-background-research-accreditation-requirements
Assigned to :
Topic:
Whereas, This dramatic shift in emphasis to documentation of student learning outcomes and systematic cycles of data analysis will require all colleges to make new, significant, sustained, and targeted investments in professional researchers, data analysis and computing capability, professional development, and faculty and staff time;
Whereas, This new emphasis will, by necessity, shift resources from those places most likely to produce enhanced student achievement, the classrooms, counseling offices, and libraries, where faculty and students interact, and will coincide with a time of economic downturn and lowered state support for the majority of institutions accredited by Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC); and
Whereas, Accreditation should evolve gradually and reflect evolving consensus regarding essential standards in the higher education community rather than abrupt, and possibly faddish, changes and trends;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, prior to adopting new standards, to make available to the public and the educational community the background research materials that formed the basis for its recommendations, provide the public with data supporting the efficacy of this approach in improving education for students, and provide a more detailed analysis of the projected costs, impact, and implications of this shift in standards for the colleges.
Assigned to :
Topic:
Whereas, Draft B of the new accrediting standards will require all colleges to specify student learning outcomes at the course, program, degree, and certificate levels, and to measure, document, and improve the attainment of these outcomes by students;
Whereas, Draft B will require that colleges specify and measure the competencies expected of students at the course, program, degree, and certificate levels;
Whereas, Draft B will require that faculty validate department or program examinations; and
Whereas, Draft B will require demonstration that student services, including counseling and library and learning resources, measure, document, and improve their effectiveness in contributing to the achievement of student learning outcomes;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate continue to engage the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges in a dialogue about the need for extensive documentation of student outcomes and competencies (at the course, program, degree, and certificate levels) as well as for documentation of the contribution to these student learning outcomes made by student development and support services and library and learning resource services; and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate work to change the standards to avoid such a prescriptive and intrusive set of requirements.
Assigned to :
Topic:
Whereas, The concerns about the new accreditation standards are widespread and still un
Resolved; and
Whereas, Even members of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges agree that the assessment of student learning outcomes is a new and evolving approach;
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges to continue to use the current accreditation standards while engaging in more extended dialogue about any proposed new standards, and
Resolved, That the Academic Senate urge the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges and local districts to refrain from piloting the proposed accreditation standards until the direction and content of any new standards are satisfactorily
Resolved.
Leon F. Marzillier
(Academic Senate for California Community Colleges, October,
2002; Rostrum)
The whole concept of MSLOs as the latest fad in education is somewhat akin to the now discredited fad of the `90's, Total Quality Management, or TQM. Essentially, the ACCJC adopted MSLOs as the overarching basis for accrediting community colleges based on their faith in the theoretical treatises of a movement, just as advocates for the use of TQM in education (often called continuous quality improvement or CQI in educational circles) were part of an ideological movement. After repeated requests for research showing that such use of MSLOs is effective, none has been forthcoming from the ACCJC. Prior to large scale imposition of such a requirement at all institutions, research should be provided to establish that continuous monitoring of MSLOs has resulted in measurable improvements in student success at a given institution. No such research is forthcoming because there is none. If the "learning paradigm" is so superior as to justify its widespread adoption, then the research should clearly be compelling.
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