Core Curriculum Assessment
What is the Core Curriculum at UMaine?
The Core Curriculum (previously called General Education) at the University of Maine (UMaine) makes up one third of a student’s academic experience. UMaine’s Core Curriculum prepares students to enter the world as leaders. The program consists of nine requirement categories that shape students into holistic learners and problem solvers. The competencies exhibited through these requirements help students develop skills that they can take with them beyond graduation as valued community members.
Our Approach
Our assessment of the Core Curriculum relies heavily on the direct assessment of student work. The assessment effort is led by the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment to collect data on program effectiveness. Our rubrics are based off of the American Association of Universities and Colleges’ (AAC&U’s) VALUE rubrics. These rubrics, as well as the student learning outcomes that guide the assessment process, can be found on the Faculty Resources page (below). Our past assessment reports can be viewed via the links below:
Western Cultural Tradition Report (May 2018)
Social Contexts and Institutions Report (May 2019)
Cultural Diversity and International Perspectives Report (January 2020)
An Improved Assessment Process
The purpose of our new assessment process is to build a stronger culture for continuous improvement of the Core Curriculum program at UMaine. With a redesigned assessment process, we will gain insight into whether all students have the opportunity to fulfill UMaine’s Core Curriculum program learning outcomes. In 2023 and beyond, we are centering faculty in the evaluation of their students to foster a bottom-up approach to assessment.
Timeline for Core Assessment Implementation Activities
Semester Prior to Course Offering
– OIRA will coordinate with department to identify Core courses that need to be assessed in the following semester
– Faculty asked to participate at least once per year
– OIRA & CITL will provide faculty training and support for the new assessment process
Semester Course Offered
– Faculty provide information about how the common rubrics can be assessed
– OIRA (with faculty permission) add rubric to Brightspace
– Faculty assess their students using the common rubric
Reporting and Improvement
– OIRA report assessment results to faculty, departments and the General Education Stewardship Committee
– Recommendations for Core curriculum improvements made at departmental level