Outcome Mapping

Rachael Redford shows off the new I-Learn 3.0 in the Smit Building.

What is Outcome Assessment Mapping?

Outcome assessment mapping is a method for reporting on student achievement of course outcomes. To do this, specific assessments in a course must be tied to course outcomes in the LMS. These resources will help Course Councils understand this process and interpret the associated data within the data portal.

Data Portal

Mapping Outcomes

According to the Online Handbook, course leads have primary responsibility for assessment strategy, including alignment with outcomes ( Course Leads 3.2.3). Course leads work with designers to determine assessments to be mapped through the process below. Course Councils will see outcome achievement data in the data portal the semester after it is mapped in the LMS.

Find the Course

Find the course's official university-approved outcomes.
-If the course's outcomes are not listed on the website above, work with your program or department chair to create them. Then, send the new outcomes to Jacob Adams in the Institutional Research office for approval.

Collaborate

Collaborate with your course council designer to choose which assessments in your course should be tied to which outcomes.

Map the Assessments

Your course council designer will put map the assessments in the LMS.

Finding the Data

Visit the data portal and select your course. Scroll down to the bottom of the page. Under "Detailed Course Information," there is a category entitled "I-Learn Gradebook Info."

Click on the semester you'd like to see. Your course outcome achievement is at the top of the page, with graphs showing the distribution of scores.

Students studying inside the Science & Technology Center.

Finding the Data

What if I don't see any data?

If your assessments aren't mapped to outcomes yet, you won't see any outcome achievement data. Instead, the data portal's screen will say, "No outcome achievement data is present. To enable outcome-based reporting, contact your Course Council designer."

Interpreting the Data

Computer Science study groups in the new Science and Technology Center.

There are many ways to interpret this data, and there are no hard indicators of something being “good” or “bad,” as results may vary depending on the structure of your course. In general, however, some indicators include the following:

Activities or outcomes that have a high percentage of “F” grades.
This might mean the course doesn’t offer enough resources and/or instruction to help students succeed. Course Councils might consider reviewing those activities and their supporting material.

Activities or outcomes that have a surprisingly high percentage of “A” grades
While the goal is to have most students pass, a disproportionate number of A’s might be a concern for a couple of reasons:

1. The assessments may not be graded appropriately. Adding or clarifying rubrics could help online instructors grade more meaningfully.

2. Assignments may not be at the right level of difficulty for the course, which could lead to a decline in student engagement. The Course Council might consider reviewing assignment difficulty to ensure it is appropriate and meaningful for students.

Duplicated or new activity names
Duplicated assessments may indicate that assignment names are being changed after sections have been created. The ACL (Assistant Course Leads) may want to speak with online instructors about changing assignment names.

Incorrect or imbalanced number of assessments
Have the best assessments been chosen to measure each outcome? Is there an appropriate number of assessments for each outcome? To review what assessments have been mapped to an outcome, have the Course Council Designer check the mapping that has been set up in the LMS.