Belle Wheelan, Accountability in Higher Education
Challenges:
• Students aren't even graduating from high school (only 60% in the south)
• Unskilled workers for the workforce
• Students lack some basic skills in math, science, information technology, critical thinking, analytical skills, and writing
• There are fewer visas, and therefore fewer foreign workers in engineering
• Baby boomers are retiring and exacerbating the problem
• Expanding global competition -- we're woefully low in science and math skills relative to other schools
• Changes in American labor markets -- the skills that we need in a knowledge economy are very different
• Exploding growth of knowledge
• Innovations in technology
Response:
• Promote service learning, and get students out and working in the community
• Link course thematically and create cross-disciplinary efforts
• Develop strategies to ensure matriculation and graduation.
• Work with ethnic minorities to help them prioritize and get to college
• Train more women in science and math
The commission is looking for:
• Access to education
• Affordability
• Private vs federal loans
• Accountability
•• Student learning
•• National tracking system
• Transparency
•• Graduation rates
•• Job placement rates
The problem is that these things don't always capture the positive things that are happening. Some community colleges, for instance, have high levels of transfer -- students leave and go to other schools. If they only focus on graduation rates those folks wouldn't be considered a success.
ETS Report: "A Culture of Evidence: Postsecondary Assessment Assessment..."
She advocates for an approach in which accountability is viewed as ensuring that you are meeting student needs and progressing.