Example 1

School A has defined a learning goal in ethical reasoning for each of its four undergraduate majors. Student achievement on this goal is relevant to demonstrating satisfaction of Standard 16.

The school’s faculty has defined the goal:

Learning Goal

"Each student can recognize and analyze ethical problems and choose and defend resolutions for practical situations that occur in accounting, human resource management, and marketing."

Demonstration of Achievement

The school uses course-embedded exercises in three required introductory-level courses. Faculty in the three disciplines have developed different methods for instructing and assessing achievement toward this learning goal.

In accounting, a two-week module near the end of the introductory course is devoted to "Ethical standards and fraud in accounting." A topic outline has been developed by faculty members to structure an exam on the materials of this module, and a standard set of expectations has been created for grading the exam. In addition to this exam’s contribution to the course grade, it provides a pass/fail indication on the learning goal.

In human resource management, students must provide four written analyses of problem situations during the course. On three of these analyses (on the topics of selection, reward systems, and job design), students are asked to respond to ethical issues. A standard scoring key on the ethical component provides evaluation toward the course grade and a pass/fail indication on the learning goal.

In marketing, each student must compose a term paper analyzing a current national or international marketing campaign. The analysis must include a specified set of components, and ethical issues that have been presented in lectures are among the required components. In addition to the overall grade of the paper, each student receives a pass/fail indicator on the ethics component.

In addition to reporting course grades, each instructor of these three courses provides a summary of cumulative student performance on the ethics activity. This cumulative data should inform the curricula development process if changes are needed to improve results. Though not required for assessment purposes, a list of all of those students who successfully completed the ethics expectation may be maintained and may become a part of each student’s record. Students who fail the ethics evaluation while passing the course may be required to repeat the evaluation exercise or ethics module until they are successful, but this is a separate decision from the assessment process.

Example 2

School B has a communications learning goal that is a part of its expectations for all undergraduate degrees. Student achievement on this goal is relevant to demonstrating satisfaction of Standard 16.

The school’s faculty has defined the goal:

Learning Goal

"Each student can conceptualize a complex issue into a coherent written statement and oral presentation."

Demonstration of Achievement

The school uses course-embedded exercises to demonstrate achievement of this learning goal. The Strategic Management course required of each student in the final year of the program includes among its course evaluations a written analysis of a multi-functional case study and an oral presentation on an industry-wide analysis. A faculty task force has developed a standardized scoring key for use with these two exercises. Using dimensions agreed to by the faculty, each student’s performance on these exercises is evaluated. Students must repeat the exercises until they have satisfactorily accomplished minimum levels of performance.

Example 3

School C has a language requirement for the M.S. in International Business degree. Student achievement on this goal is relevant to demonstrating satisfaction of Standard 19 for students in the MSIB program.

The school’s faculty has defined the goal:

Learning Goal

"Each student shall be able to converse and to write at an acceptable level for business communications in three languages one of which shall be English."

Demonstration of Achievement

Specific stand-alone examinations are used to measure performance on this learning goal. Each student must pass the conversation-level exam in two languages other than his or her native language. If English is not the native language, it must be one of the examined languages. The language department of the institution administers a program of standardized exams consisting of both oral and written components. Students may take the exams at any time during their enrollment in the MSIB program. No student is eligible for graduation until the language requirement is met, but for assessment purposes, aggregate information is all that is needed to assess the effectiveness of the educational experiences supporting the learning goal.

Example 4

School D has defined a learning goal for all students in general management master’s programs (MBA, EMBA, Master’s of Project Management) related to the understanding of organizational financial resources. Student achievement on this goal is relevant to demonstrating satisfaction of Standard 18.

The school’s faculty has defined the goal:

Learning Goal

"Each student shall be able to evaluate the financial position of organizations through examination of balance sheets, cash flow statements, and budgets."

Demonstration of Achievement

The school uses a course-embedded examination to assess performance on this learning goal. The final examination in the required Financial Accounting course includes a section specifically aimed at assessment of this goal at a level that has been determined by the accounting faculty. Student results are collected across all students and summary results are used for curricula development and improvement. A student’s performance on this section must satisfy the minimal level, or it must be retaken until it is passed. Students for whom the Financial Accounting course is waived by virtue of undergraduate accounting coursework, must satisfactorily pass an equivalent examination.

Example 5

School E has defined a learning goal pertaining to all master’s level degree programs. The goal relates to teamwork skills and, it is relevant to demonstrating satisfaction of Standards 18 and 19.

The school’s faculty has defined the goal:

Learning Goal

"Each student must understand and be able to use team building and collaborative behaviors in the accomplishment of group tasks."

Demonstration of Achievement

A course-embedded exercise is used to assess performance on this learning goal. The required Organizational Behavior course has an extensive assessment-center module which trains all students as assessment center evaluators on team-behavior dimensions, and all students are rated for team skills in a series of group experiences. Performance as both rater and team member is combined into an evaluation on the learning goal. Results are summarized across all students and the results are used for curricula development purposes.