Please find the Best Practice and FAQ document below. If you would like to contribute to the FAQs, please email mckenna.rose@lmc.gatech.edu.
How long should I meet with my assessment group?
Each group should meet for 3 hours, allowing one hour per individual portfolio. Spend 10-15 minutes assessing and discussing each page of the portfolio. Each portfolio should have five pages, including a reflective essay, a first-week common video, and three additional artifacts. (Summer portfolios do not include first-week videos). The discussion that leads to scoring consensus with your group is the most important part of the assessment.
What exactly are we assessing?
As you assess, consider:
- The quality of the artifact itself
- How well the student describes the context for the artifact
- How well the student uses process documents as evidence of their writing process
- How well the student uses the reflection section to discuss the assignment Goals, Purpose, Audience, Design for Medium, and Revision
- How well the page is organized given the affordances of Canvas
Please do not assess:
- The software used to compose the ePortfolio
- The instructor’s assignment
When evaluating modes, are we looking at all the process documents or the final artifact?
The only modes you should consider are in the modes of the artifact itself.
Can I just list the number of process documents used?
No. Please list the type of each process document the student uses.
Are we assessing how the student uses Canvas?
The layout of the artifact page in Canvas should not influence your assessment of the student’s project. Likewise, the project having been submitted using Canvas is not sufficient grounds for an artifact to qualify as being electronic.
How do I judge if a mode is present in a project?
Written |
Oral |
Visual |
Electronic |
Non-Verbal |
| Most Artifacts | Podcasts | Posters | Websites | Podcasts |
| Sound Collections | Artbooks | Slideshows | Poster Session | |
| Vide0 | Brochures | Video | Presentation | |
| Recorded Presentations | Board Games | Podcasts | Board Games | |
| Slideshows | Posters/Brochures | Survey | ||
| Video | Protest | |||
| Websites | ||||
| 3D Objects |
This list above is not exhaustive. Many artifacts have multiple modes. Anything using digital design software, counts as both visual and electronic. Non-Verbal includes gesture, intonation, and volume of the voice.
Why is consensus preferable in the post-discussion ratings of portfolio artifacts?
A post-discussion consensus helps to prepare assessment data for university-facing reports. By discussing your judgments, everyone in the WCP develops a better understanding of the assignment and its rankings.
What should you do if you disagree with your group?
Try to resolve the disagreement. If after five minutes you do not agree, bubble in your score and use the notes field to indicate why you’re committed to a different position. The Assistant Director for Assessment uses this information to prepare the data for reports. Please also note, you do not need to agree exactly, but instead come within one category, higher or lower, as your group.
What should I do if a portfolio is missing an artifact?
In the Google form, select “N/A” across the board in both the pre and post discussion fields because the form requires an answer for each artifact. Please add a note explaining that the student was missing the artifact. This applies if a student is missing an artifact page altogether or if they do not include the final artifact in the page itself.
How do I assess an artifact that is unfamiliar to me (e.g., podcasts, board games, etc.)?
Review the instructor’s assignment sheet in order to understand the goals and purpose of the assignment. Consider how the common rubric applies to the assignment. The Google Monthly Team Assignment sheet provides links for each assignment.
How do I assess an artifact that consists of multiple parts?
Refer to the instructor’s assignment sheet so that you can understand the purpose of the various pieces of the artifact. If a student has included a scaffolding piece of a larger assignment (annotated bibliography, project proposal) that qualifies as a process document. In some cases, a final artifact might consist of two or more parts.
When we are evaluating modes, are we looking at all the process documents or the final artifact?
The final artifact should be used to determine the modes.
I’m doing assessment on a monthly basis. Should I list membership in the Assessment Committee on my CV?
No. While monthly assessment is an important and critical task, the Assessment Committee serves an administrative function that is distinct.
If you have a question or concern that you think the Assessment Committee should add to this document, please contact:
Dr. McKenna Rose
mckenna.rose@lmc.gatech.edu
Assistant Director for Assessment
Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow
Assessment Committee Members, 2018-Present
Hannah Markley, Executive Member
George Thomas, Member
Aleksander Sedzielarz, Member
Mary Grace Elliott, Member
John Taylor, Member
McKenna Rose, Chair
Assessment Committee Members and Chairs, 2016-2017 and 2017-2018
Michael Griffin, Member
James Howard, Member
Ian Afflerbach, Member
Dori Coblentz, Member
Russell Kirkscey, Member
Andrea Krafft (2015-16 Co-Chair, 2016-2017 Chair)
Rebekah Greene (2017-2019 Chair)