Evaluate 4 Excellence
The Evaluate 4 Excellence effectiveness framework guides the College’s assessment programs. The Office of Institutional Research coordinates and supports:
- Educational Program Outcome Assessment
- General Education Outcome Assessment
- Administrative & Student Support Unit Outcome Assessment
- Educational Program Review
General Education Outcome Assessment
The Virginia Community College System (VCCS) defines general education as, “An integrated and cohesive whole, provides the educational foundation necessary to promote intellectual and personal development”. The general education component of each program offered by the College develops the six general education core competencies that distinguish graduates of the VCCS, “As individuals with a breadth of knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to pursue further education and their careers, continue to develop as learners, and contribute to the well-being of their communities.”
All graduates of Virginia Peninsula Community College will be competent in:
- Civic Engagement is the ability to contribute to the civic life and well-being of local, national, and global communities both as social responsibility and a life-long learning process. Degree graduates will demonstrate the knowledge and civic values necessary to become informed and contributing participants in a democratic society.
- Critical Thinking is the ability to use information, ideas, and arguments from relevant perspectives to make sense of complex issues and solve problems. Degree graduates will locate, evaluate, interpret, and combine information to reach well-reasoned conclusions or solutions.
- Professional Readiness is the ability to work well with others and display situationally and culturally appropriate demeanor and behavior. Degree graduates will demonstrate skills important for successful transition into the workplace and pursuit of further education.
- Quantitative Literacy is the ability to perform accurate calculations, interpret quantitative information, apply, and analyze relevant numerical data, and use results to support conclusions. Degree graduates will calculate, interpret, and use numerical and quantitative information in a variety of settings.
- Scientific Literacy is the ability to apply the scientific method, and related concepts and principles to make informed decisions and engage with issues related to the natural, physical, and social world. Degree graduates will recognize and know how to use the scientific method, and to evaluate empirical information.
- Written Communication is the ability to develop, convey, and exchange ideas in writing, as appropriate to a given context and audience. Degree graduates will express themselves effectively in a variety of written forms.
To evaluate the extent to which VPCC students and graduates are achieving these competencies, the College assesses two competencies each year. Faculty from across all educational programs and courses are asked to identify assignments within their courses that require students to demonstrate learning in the competency area that is being assessed.
Members of the College’s Academic Assessment Committee then compile this broad sampling of student work artifacts and score them on standardized rubrics. Once scoring is complete, the Committee reviews the results, makes recommendations for improvement, and shares with the faculty and administration.
Results from the most recent assessment of each competency area are provided below:
| Academic Year | Competency | Artifacts Scored | Average Score | Areas to Improve |
| 2019-2020 | Quantitative Literacy | 151 | 2.09 | Assumptions |
| 2020-2021 | Critical Thinking | 214 | 1.98 | Evidence, Influence of Content and assumptions, conclusions, and related outcomes |
| 2021-2022 | Written Communication | 345 | 2.00 | Sources and evidence, genre and disciplinary conventions |
| 2022-2023 | Civic Engagement | 274 | 1.69 | Diversity of communities and cultures, analysis of knowledge, civic identity and commitment, civic action and reflection, civic contexts, and structures |
| 2023-2024 | Scientific Literacy | 229 | 2.36 | N/A |
| 2023-2024 | Professional Readiness | 174 | 1.68 | Responds to conflict |
Target Level of Achievement: For the academic years 2019-2020 through 2023-2024, students will achieve an average score of 2 or higher on the AAC&U VALUE Rubric and each of its component rubric dimensions. For all subsequent academic years, students will achieve an average score of 2 or higher on the VPCC General Education rubrics, and each component rubric dimension.
Following the completion of the last five-year assessment cycle, the process was shortened to assess two competencies per year for a 3-year assessment cycle.
Concerns about the alignment between competencies, outcomes, and the rubrics used to assess student learning were addressed through collaborative faculty engagement throughout the spring 2024 and fall 2024 semesters. New outcomes, that better aligned with the competencies, were adopted, and used to develop new assessment rubrics.
Faculty continue to work through the 2024-2025 academic year, to map the development of the general education competencies across the College’s curricula. The faculty have also been engaged in efforts to more intentionally design assignments that align to the general education competencies, and to embed specific general education learning objectives into courses across the College’s curricula.