A tool instead of a chore: Measuring student learning gains in order to improve instruction

ABSTRACT

Assessment is often treated as an unwelcome and time-consuming university or departmental requirement. This project proposes that assessment is actually an opportunity that communication faculty should embrace. Beginning with the end in mind, this study used stated course learning outcomes to construct a pre-/posttest instrument, administering those assessments in order to find out whether students were really learning what they were supposed to be learning. This article explains how the assessment instruments were constructed and administered, demonstrates clear and significant learning gains across three semesters, and identifies learning outcomes in need of instructional improvement. It also finds that by separating assessment from grading, pretests can identify concepts that need not be retaught, and posttests can reveal that an instructor’s perception of a successful instructional day does not necessarily match the reality of student learning for that day.