Text Expander and Assessment
TextExpander is a powerful application from the folks at SmileSoftware.com. With it, I am able to create shortcuts, snippets, and boilerplate documents to facilitate assessment and feedback both in my courses and in my role as General Education Assessment Coordinator. This application is available now for both Windows and Macintosh operating systems. I have created two boilerplates to specifically help with Nuventive Improve assignments - one for the subject line and one to create the body of the assignment text. Feel free to use them or modify them if you wish.
Assignment Subject Line
This is the script to create a standardized subject line. These are used to organize results in Nuventive Improve ad hoc reports. The leading zeroes are important for proper sorting of the results in the ad hoc reports online. Here is the boilerplate:
Evaluate the %fillpopup:name=competency:default=Collaboration:Communication:Culture:Diversity:Natural Sciences:Problem Solving:Quantitative Literacy:Self and Society:Training% competency using standard measure %fillpopup:name=measure:default=01 (a selected response exam):02 (a constructed response exam):03 (a pre- and post-test):04 (a nationally normed exam):05 (a short written report):06 (a medium written report):07 (a long written report):08 (a student project):09 (a laboratory report):10 (a student portfolio):11 (a capstone project):12 (an oral presentation):13 (a student performance):14 (an oral interview)%
Using this, the result for a Natural Sciences course using an essay exam to assess FLO1 would look like this:
Assignment Message Body
I find it more informative for our faculty if I replace the body of the Nuventive Improve assignments with my own message. The boilerplate for this is a little more extensive:
%filltop%Greetings,
It is time again to document student learning in our General Education program at Ferris State University. This semester, we are evaluating FLO NUMBER %fillpopup:name=FLO:default=1:2:3:4% in each core competency area. You previously indicated your intent to measure student learning in the following manner:
COMPETENCY = %fillpopup:name=outcome:COLLABORATION:COMMUNICATION - ORAL:COMMUNICATION - WRITTEN:default=CULTURE:DIVERSITY - GLOBAL:DIVERSITY - UNDERSTANDING RACE, ETHNICITY, AND GENDER:NATURAL SCIENCES:PROBLEM SOLVING:QUANTITATIVE LITERACY:SELF AND SOCIETY:TRAINING%
STANDARD MEASURE = %fillpopup:name=measure:default=1) SELECTED RESPONSE EXAM:2) CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE EXAM:3) PRE-TEST/POST-TEST:4) NATIONALLY NORMED EXAM:5) SHORT WRITTEN REPORT:6) MEDIUM WRITTEN REPORT:7) LONG WRITTEN REPORT:8) STUDENT PROJECT:9) LABORATORY REPORT:10) STUDENT PORTFOLIO:11) CAPSTONE PROJECT:12) ORAL PRESENTATION:13) STUDENT PERFORMANCE:14) ORAL INTERVIEW%
Please use the data collection workbooks provided to document your students' performance.
• If you are reporting student scores, use the appropriate SCORE workbook.
• If you are reporting pre-test and post-test scores for each student, use the appropriate PREPOST workbook.
• If you are reporting percentiles for each student on a national exam, use the appropriate NORM workbook.
• If you are reporting 0-4 rubric scores for each student, use the appropriate RUBRIC workbook.
All of the General Education data workbooks can be found at http://bit.ly/2wrStPB.
If you registered to report two different courses for the same competency and measure, you will only receive one initial assignment. Please let Dr. Franklund know when you have completed that assignment and another will be sent to you.
A short guide is available here (http://bit.ly/2nbTit6) which summarizes the steps to completing this assignment. If you have any questions concerning this process, please view the online training videos at http://bit.ly/2xR7lKq, or email me (Dr. Franklund) directly at GeneralEducation@ferris.edu. Thank you for your contribution to our program evaluations.
Sincerely,
Dr. Clifton Franklund
General Education Coordinator
A message for the example described above would look like this:
It is time again to document student learning in our General Education program at Ferris State University. This semester, we are evaluating FLO NUMBER 1 in each core competency area. You previously indicated your intent to measure student learning in the following manner:
COMPETENCY = NATURAL SCIENCES
STANDARD MEASURE = 2) CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE EXAM
Please use the data collection workbooks provided to document your students’ performance.
• If you are reporting student scores, use the appropriate SCORE workbook.
• If you are reporting pre-test and post-test scores for each student, use the appropriate PREPOST workbook.
• If you are reporting percentiles for each student on a national exam, use the appropriate NORM workbook.
• If you are reporting 0-4 rubric scores for each student, use the appropriate RUBRIC workbook.
All of the General Education data workbooks can be found at http://bit.ly/2wrStPB.
If you registered to report two different courses for the same competency and measure, you will only receive one initial assignment. Please let Dr. Franklund know when you have completed that assignment and another will be sent to you.
A short guide is available here http://bit.ly/2nbTit6 which summarizes the steps to completing this assignment. If you have any questions concerning this process, please view the online training videos at http://bit.ly/2xR7lKq, or email me (Dr. Franklund) directly at GeneralEducation@ferris.edu. Thank you for your contribution to our program evaluations.
Sincerely,
Dr. Clifton Franklund
General Education Coordinator
Using TextExpander and the GoogleSheet of course registrations, I have been able to create and deliver nearly 200 assignments to our General Education faculty in just a couple of hours of work. A similar approach can also be used for smaller programs. I am currently working on adapting this approach to our Biological Sciences program assessment at Ferris. I would be curious if anyone finds this interesting. Drop me a line in the discussion board below or contact me with the feedback email at the top of the page. Thanks.