The Academic Senate voted that each course must be assessed once every 4 years. The first year of this new assessment cycle is the Academic Year 2023-24. This means that by the end of the 2027-28 academic year, every course your department offered during that period should have been assessed at least once.

The new cycle starts with the academic year 2023-24.

Department chairs usually use a rotation list. In this sample rotation list, the first sheet is for courses offered every academic year. The second sheet is for courses offered every other academic year. The third sheet is for courses offered sporadically. Courses offered sporadically may need to be assessed every time they are offered, as it is better to have a course assessed twice during the 4-year cycle than to miss assessing a course. Because these assessments are rotated by course (not by the instructor), department chairs may also want to create a rotation list of faculty in their department so the work will be evenly distributed.

It is preferable that faculty are assigned to complete an SLO a semester in advance. For instance, if a course needs to be assessed and is offered only in Spring 2026, the chair should let the faculty member know about this assignment by the end of the 2025 Fall semester. This gives the faculty member time to prepare any new assignments.

According to article 17.02, contract faculty are required to “participate” in the SLO process. If a contract faculty member insists that they want to participate in a different way, they should share their “participation” with the department. For instance, if a faculty member decides that reading professional literature about SLOs is how they will “participate,” that faculty member should present their analysis of the professional literature at the department meeting when SLOs are discussed.  

It is preferable to assign contract faculty to complete SLO reports. If a course is taught *only* by an associate faculty member when that course is scheduled to be assessed, then the chair may assign that duty to that associate faculty member. The associate faculty member will be paid for 3 additional hours. To get a PAF for that associate faculty member, chairs should contact their deans.

The SLO report consists of a narrative that analyzes the data from your course and a presentation to your departmental colleagues to discuss whether the SLOs as written on the current Course Outline of Record (COR) are effective, accurate, and measurable. If a department discovers that a COR has problematic SLOs, they can revise the COR ahead of the 6-year review cycle.

Chairs should set aside time at a department meeting for a presentation and a conversation about the CORs for courses assessed in the previous year. It would be helpful for chairs to document these discussions by amending them.

For the data to be meaningful, it would be best to collect as much data as possible. This will give you more data points to inform your narrative and your departmental presentation. One section of a class will give some data; five sections of a class will give you better data.

We have videos that explain how to collect data in Canvas (uncaptioned), even if you don’t teach online  (uncaptioned). Additionally, you can get help by booking an appointment with an SLO Liaison or by contacting the SLO Coordinators.

Complete a Distance Education (DE) support request form for assistance.

"Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) assessment is an important part of this course, aimed at gauging your progress and the effectiveness of our teaching methods. It's essential for refining our educational approach and ensuring your success.

However, I want to emphasize that your performance in SLO assessments will not impact your final grade in this course. These assessments are solely for learning purposes and to enhance your educational experience. Feel free to engage in them without concern about your grade."