Thursday, February 16, 2012

Updates from SBCTC Assessment, Teaching and Learning

Assessment, Teaching and Learning updates - February 16, 2012



Prior Learning


·         Identified single point of contact for each public, higher education institution (CTCs and BIs)

·         Conducted a day-long workshop for college teams, including points of contact, on November 15, 2011

·         A second, day-long workshop is in the planning stages, to include: hands-on training for faculty in use of a variety of assessment tools commonly used to assess prior learning; training for advising staff; and, training for public information officers, all in line with the legislative requirements for system-wide consistency and transparency.

·         These two recommendations were passed at the Prior Learning work group meeting on February 15th:

o   Fee structure: The work group recommends that the Cost Analysis and Fee Structure for Prior Learning Assessment as outlined be adopted throughout the higher education system in Washington.  

Institutions will use a formula based on the average hourly wage of faculty multiplied by the average time spent on administration of competency assessments for prior learning, plus the indirect cost rate.

Direct Cost Rate: Average full-time faculty hourly rate, including benefits

Indirect Cost Rate: A percentage of the direct cost rate determined by the institution

Direct Cost Rate + Indirect Cost Rate X Time of Assessment =Maximum Rate for Course

For the average full-time faculty member in the Community and Technical College system, the hourly rate – including benefits - is $45/hour.  The indirect cost rate shall not exceed 50.7% of the direct rate, for a combined maximum of $68/hour. The same formula will be used to determine fees of other institutions, by inserting the applicable average hourly faculty wages and indirect costs.

o   Coding: The work group recommends that the Community and Technical College System implement direct transcription of Prior Learning Assessment courses using section and item codes as identified by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges with implementation for the 2012-13 academic year. (Note: SBCTC research staff tentatively recommended a code of “PLC.”)

·         The HECB is responsible for providing a report to the Legislature for 2011. That report is still in draft form.



Transforming Precollege Education

Link to Precollege Education wiki: http://precollegeeducation.wikispaces.com/

·         Recommendations of the Transforming Precollege Education (pedagogy) work group are being implemented through training offered at the Fall and Winter College Readiness Retreats, and through sessions at the upcoming Assessment, Teaching and Learning Conference (May 2-4)

·         A spreadsheet has been developed to identify instructional practices at each college which represent implementation of the precollege pedagogy recommendations. View at Google docs: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArVpzmcv6u1ZdDFWYkozZ0lIeFZuMVZSY19HWjJPNFE&pli=1#gid=0



Leading from the Classroom

Link to Leading from the Classroom wiki: http://leadingfromtheclassroom.wikispaces.com/

The purpose of this WACTC/TACTC-sponsored project is to accelerate adoption of instructional technology and open education resources:

·         Kick-off/train-the-trainer was held in November

·         Regional workshops – led by faculty-trainers – have all filled to capacity:

o   Lake Washington Technical Institute, February 7th

o   Tacoma Community College, March 16th

o   Spokane Community College, March 23rd

·         A finale is being planned in conjunction with the Assessment, Teaching and Learning Conference

·         This project is currently under budget and we hope to be able to offer one additional regional workshop.

Note: This project is currently under budget and we hope to be able to offer one additional regional workshop, within existing funds.



Further details are available on each work group wiki.

Questions? Contact Noreen Light, nlight@sbctc.edu  or 360.704.4345

Campus Safety and Security

In 2011, the Business Affairs Commission (BAC) formed the Campus Safety and Security committee which has:

·         Discussed the Campus Safety and Security report submitted to the legislature in December of 2011.

·         Identified the Center of Excellence for Homeland Security as one resource for training.

·         Met with Elman McClain, Campus Security Director at Seattle Central CC, and president of a loosely-organized group of Safety, Security and Emergency Management Personnel, to discuss the purpose of the committee and a proposed training event for campus safety and administrative personnel.

·         Discussed the need to formalize the SSEMP group.

·         Developed an agenda for a two-day training (to be held in late August) based upon areas of need as noted in the 2011 report to the legislature. The topics of workshop sessions include behavior intervention teams, campus community emergency response teams, and working with local first responders (mutual aid, memoranda of understanding, and so forth). Workshop sessions will be led by college teams identified as exemplary models in these areas.

·         Proposed creation of a Campus Safety and Security web page to be housed on the SBCTC web site. The page would include links to each college’s safety and security page. Because colleges are already updating and posting their crime statistics and other information in compliance with state and federal law, having the links to each of the college’s security pages would provide access to the college information without compiling all of the information in one written document. (There is a bill still moving which would eliminate the biennial Campus Safety and Security report to the Legislature.)



Professional Development  for Instruction

Link to the Assessment, Teaching and Learning web page: http://www.sbctc.edu/college/e_assessment.aspx

Highlights of professional development activities:

·         College Readiness Retreats – designed for precollege faculty; 50-60 participants attend; mostly developmental education faculty, some ABE faculty, ESL faculty, faculty who teach college-level courses in a team-teaching setting with precollege faculty; and, a few advisors, librarians and administrators. Workshops are developed to showcase classroom practices implementing the recommendations of the Transforming Precollege Education work group, in the areas of 1) contextualized/integrated; 2)outcomes-based/accelerated; 3)modularized; 4) cohort-building; or 5) inverted models/”flipped” classrooms.

·         Assessment, Teaching and Learning Retreats – convening the Assessment Liaisons and the Faculty Development Leads from each of the colleges. The Fall retreat is focused on assessment, and the Winter retreat is focused on faculty development.

·         Assessment, Teaching and Learning Conference – this is an annual event held in even years in Vancouver, WA and in odd years in Spokane, WA. Usually attended by about 400 people, primarily faculty. There are 5 concurrent pre-conference workshops - each is 3.5 hours long – on May 2nd. And, there are 48 sessions scheduled during May 3rd and 4th. Session tracks include the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning; Assessment; Precollege education; Multicultural; Students experiences; and, eLearning.

·         New Faculty Institute – a two-day event for new (and not-so-new) faculty held in the fall of each year. Sessions include Writing Outcomes, Assessment, Lesson Planning, Syllabi, Classroom Management, and Legal Issues.

·         Faculty Learning Communities – 22 learning communities have been meeting this year. Highlights of the work faculty have been involved in will be showcased at the ATL Conference in May.

·         Leading from the Classroom: Accelerating adoption of instructional technology and open education resources (see other side of page)

·         eLearning – online trainings area offered monthly in How to Teach Online, Introduction to ANGEL, and Intermediate ANGEL. Face-to-face trainings are offered regionally in use of Tegrity, Advanced ANGEL, and Quality Matters. Seats are available in Sloan-C online workshops. See your eLearning Director.


·         Adult Basic Education – ABE offers a variety of ABE and ESL-specific trainings, including a statewide conference, Rendezvous 2012 – Accelerating Success, July 23-25, Yakima, WA


·         Workforce  - workforce-specific trainings are offered through the Center of Excellence for Careers in Education, and other Centers of Excellence. CoE Education page: http://www.careersined.org/training_events/index.shtm

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