Create an Action Plan

The action plan can serve a multitude of purposes. It can help identify areas of strength and where improvements need to be made and demonstrate how well a program is meeting school or institutional goals, or accreditation requirements, if appropriate. It can inform strategic planning initiatives and budget planning decisions. It also provides an opportunity to celebrate good assessment findings and to address disappointing findings. Most importantly, it can be used to identify areas needing change, identify new learning goals, promote revision of current goals, and help determine the allocation of resources to improve the program.

For each outcome that has been assessed, add the actions your program or department is taking or will take in response to the assessment. If the proposed action plan requires a change in a course in the curriculum, then the change should be entered in the curriculum map; any change in learning outcomes should be added to the department’s list of learning outcomes. It is important to indicate who is responsible for implementing any changes and to include a timeline for the implementation.

Questions to consider:

• What additional information or evidence is needed to understand how well students are achieving program or course goals?
• How will the assessment findings be used to improve student learning?
• How can the program improve learning more effectively in a time or tight or limited resources?
• Who will be implementing and monitoring any program changes?