Higher education professionals have moved from teaching- tolearning-centered models for designing and assessing courses andcurricula. Faculty work collaboratively to identify learningobjectives and assessment strategies, set standards, designeffective curricula and courses, assess the impact of their effortson student learning, reflect on results, and implement appropriatechanges to increase student learning. Assessment is an integralcomponent of this learner-centered approach, and it involves theuse of empirical data to refine programs and improve studentlearning. Based on the author's extensive experience conducting assessmenttraining workshops, this book is an expansion of aworkshop/consultation guide that has been used to provideassessment training to thousands of busy professionals. AssessingAcademic Programs in Higher Education provides a comprehensiveintroduction to planning and implementing the assessment of collegeand university academic programs. Written for college and university administrators, assessmentofficers, department chairs, and faculty who are involved indeveloping and implementing assessment programs, this book is arealistic, pragmatic guide for developing and implementingmeaningful, manageable, and sustainable assessment programs thatfocus faculty attention on student learning. This book will: * Guide readers through all steps in the assessment process * Provide a balanced review of the full array of assessmentstrategies * Explain how assessment is a crucial component of the teaching andlearning process * Provide examples of successful studies that can be easilyadapted * Summarize key assessment terms in an end-of-book glossary