Desegregating Assessment: Infusing Diversity into the Assessment of Learning

Eric Haas, Ph.D.Scottsdale Community College

Outline

• Brief History of SCC’s Assessment Strategy• Infusing Diversity Skills• Development of Rubrics (drafts)• Pros and Cons• Thinking About the Future

Original Assessment Practices

• Critical Thinking• Writing Communication• Critical Reading• Cultural Awareness• Information Literacy

HLC Site Visit

Simple Changes

Stop clubbing baby seals

Once again, punctuation saves lives

Stop clubbing, baby seals

Juxtacognition

½ Half Air½ Half Air

½ Half Water½ Half Water

Structure vs. Freedom

Spagehetti vs. Waffles

WOVeN Model 

Written Oral Visual Numerical

Critically Analyze

Reading research articles

Reading literature Reading magazine

or newspaper articles

Listening to speeches

Listening to lectures or presentations

Examining: Visual art Graphs and figures Physical

specimens Objects Physical

demonstrations

Working with numbers and formulas

Examining data and statistics

Exploring spreadsheets

Effectively Communicate

Writing essays Writing journals or

reaction papers Writing research

reports

Presenting speeches Debating topics Explaining thoughts

or positions

Creating visual art Creating graphs and

figures Creating physical

objects

Creating data Creating

spreadsheets Creating statistics

What Happened to Diversity?

Intercultural Competence

• Understanding the cultural context of:– Information– Ideas– Situations– etc.

• How does culture affect information?• How does culture affect communication?

Fundamental Attribution Error

That is one That is one weird dog!weird dog!

That is one That is one weird cat!weird cat!

Effective Communication

Pros

• Infusion of diversity• Faculty involvement• Core learning skill• Practical focus• Operational feedback• Changes the structure• Breaks down privilege or reification• Equitable learning outcomes

Cons

• “Hidden”• Non-holistic • Lack of gestalt• Necessitates faculty understanding

Future Considerations

• Multi-faceted Approach• Workshops for faculty• Involve faculty in rubric creation

Questions?

eric.haas@scottsdalecc.edu