Top 10 Objections to Assessment
[And
how to think about and respond to them]
Steve Ehrmann & Steve
Gilbert, TLT Group
Any of these sound
familiar?
• Just tell me the least I can do to keep the assessment
advocates off my back.
I've never seen an assessment that was worth the time and
money.
• Outsiders use assessment to grab power -to control people,
programs or budgets
• Studies are a waste of time. The findings don't change
anyone's conclusions.
• Setting assessment-oriented objectives will distort what
we do best in this program
• It's too soon for assessment. Let's wait until things are
running well
• Assessment may be OK in theory but I don't have time.
• Assessing costs? Just an excuse to cut budgets and jobs!
• More assessment? We already grade students and have a
student course evaluation system.
• By the time we get any results from an assessment, they'll
be obsolete.
• I already know more about my courses and students than any
'assessment' can tell me.
This Web
page offers a variety of resources to help people working on
activities where "assessment" can trigger a dangerous discussion, e.g.,
assessment training, accreditation, student course evaluation, testing
programs, personnel evaluation, cost analyses... This FridayLive!
session will discuss several techniques for avoiding needless
controversy (arguments that can happen even when people actually agree
with one another) and for shining a flashlight on real disagreements.
Excellent
preparatory/introductory
QuickTime file created and modified with PowerPoint &
LecShare for FridayLive! session
3/30/2007.
(Click
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MS Word file created and modified with
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by hand. The images of each slide that
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text or PowerPoint slides.
Take this survey to a) let
us know which objections it's most important for us to
discuss on Friday, b) see if you'd want to use a survey
like this to help deal with hot button issues in your
own work. (It's a
template
in Flashlight Online.)
NOTE: You might
experience some delay when first launching this file -
depending on the speed of your Internet connection.
You might also find some of the text easier to read if
you choose to display it "full screen."
Avail 4/3 Audio Only
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Need some kind of MP3
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Avail 4/3 Transcript of Text Chat - text only file.
TLT-SWG Blog entry
for Mar. 30, 2007 FridayLive! session
2:05pm
EST Background & Context - Assessment as a 'hot button'
issue
Focus
on a) 'confusors' that can derail discussion about assessment, b)
frequently made objections to assessment (we'll focus on topics
identified in advance by people who responded to
this survey),
and c) other ways to respond to objections and resistance.
2:50pm Closing
Sharing
examples, advice
Questions to ponder
Options for asynch discussion
"Last Words"
Announcements
FEEDBACK
v. 3:00pm Extra Informal Discussion
(END no later than 3:30pm Eastern)
