Assessment of student learning outcomes is an integral part of OBE and the development and implementation of the Learning Outcomes Assessment Plan (LOAP) is one of the strategic goals of the forthcoming Strategic Plan of the University for 2008-12. The Learning and Teaching Committee (LTC) has now decided on the policy regarding the LOAP for PolyU for 2008-12.

The LOAP is important in that it ensures the systematic collection of assessment data for improving the effectiveness of our programmes, and demonstrates to our stakeholders, including employers and UGC, how well our students are performing with regard to the learning outcomes. As you may already know, UGC is putting a lot of emphasis on getting all its funded institutions to practise Outcome-Based Education, and the assessment of learning outcomes will form the core of the UGC Quality Assurance Council (QAC) audit of PolyU in November 2010. The Plan will help us collect assessment data systematically at the programme and institutional levels for the audit.

At the programme level, all Faculties/Schools/Departments are expected to develop and implement a learning outcomes assessment plan for their programmes, in accordance with the timeline recommended in the LOAP. The first step is to develop the plan for endorsement by the Faculty/School Boards by August 2009.

At the institutional level, three methods for assessing institutional learning outcomes will be conducted centrally: course-embedded assessments, electronic student portfolios, and Collegiate Learning Assessment. Three pilot projects will be set up on the use of these methods, and interested Faculties/ Schools/ Departments are encouraged to participate.

EDC will provide support to Faculties/Schools/Departments through developing resources, templates and teachers?? guides for programme outcomes assessment, and through workshops and in-kind support as and when necessary.

After the launch of the OBE website for teachers, EDC is building an OBE website for students. The main objective of the student website is to help students aware of the learning outcomes of their programmes and subjects, to use the outcomes to guide their study, to understand the role as active independent learners, and to appreciate the variety of learning activities thoughtfully designed by their teachers. 

The OBE website for students is still at the planning stage. If you are interested to contribute to its development, you are invited to send an email to etobe@inet.polyu.edu.hk.

In the website, you will find official documents and guidelines that clarify the University's position and policies with regard to the OBE initiative, news to keep you abreast of the developments of OBE in PolyU and in Hong Kong, you can find out about the activities and individualized support tailored to your very own need, offered by EDC and Working Group on Outcome-Based Education (WGOBE), as well as information on the OBE funding.

You can also learn about what others have done in "OBE in PolyU", access resources on outcome-based teaching and assessment, browse our selection of relevant links from the Internet, and consult a handy list of FAQs if you need some quick answers to common queries.

So here is the crucial piece of information you need?Vthe URL:http://www.polyu.edu.hk/obe.The website is already available and it will continue to expand its content, so visit it often!

(You can help expanding the content of the website. Please contact us for more information.)

Colleagues who are interested in developing strategies and methods for implementing OBA in their faculties/ departments/ programmes/ subjects may read and follow the guidelines and fill in the application form to apply for the funding.

For enquiries about the application procedures or arrangements, please contact Miss Miranda Fung, Secretary of WGOBE (Ext. 6299 mailto:etmifung@inet.polyu.edu.hk.

(For more information about OBA Funding, please visit the Funding for OBA Projects page in our website)

The formulation of the framework of our 4-year undergraduate degree structure was underpinned by the outcome-based approach. PolyU will aim at developing students' potential to the fullest extent so that they will possess abilities that will prepare them to become "preferred leaders" for the professions and responsible global citizens for the 21st century. These university goals have been mapped to our programmes, and the overarching intended learning outcomes of the new 4-year curriculum have been identified as professional competence in a chosen discipline and multidisciplinary perspectives with a broad knowledge base, with a wide range of generic attributes such as critical thinking and problem-solving abilities, creativity and innovation, communication and language skills, global outlook, leadership and teamwork skills, entrepreneurship, cultural appreciation, social and national responsibility, healthy lifestyle, and lifelong learning capability.

New 4-year programmes will be designed in alignment with these overarching intended learning outcomes to satisfy professional requirements and to provide for a broad knowledge base and holistic development of the students. A Working Group on the Implementation of the 4-Year Undergraduate Degree Structure has been set up with representatives from the broad disciplines and the Central units will proceed to work out the implementation details.

Professor Jacobson has over 30 years of experience as a professor in engineering and is an international authority on outcome-based education. During the visit he gave an open seminar on "Delivering Outcome-Based Education and Assessment for Engineering Programmes", discussed programme outcomes with programme leaders, and met 40% of the frontline teaching staff individually. A full report which detailed his observations and suggestions for improvement in terms of the Faculty's OBE implementation was presented, which would be discussed in subsequent FLTC meetings.

SAARD, which stands for Self-Assessment of All-Round Development, was developed to meet the need for a reliable measurement of the development of generic competence in students. SAARD is a self-report psychometric measure of a range of 14 generic competencies including communication, creative thinking, critical thinking, cultural appreciation, emotional intelligence and psychological wellness, entrepreneurship, global outlook, healthy lifestyle, interpersonal effectiveness, leadership, lifelong learning, problem solving, social and national responsibility, and teamwork. The instrument was piloted in early 2006 on a sample of 1498 students representing all Faculties and Schools of the University. The result was a 56-item self-assessment tool of proven reliability and validity that can be used to facilitate self-reflection by students as well as for outcome assessment at programme, departmental, faculty, and institutional level.

SAARD will be officially implemented in PolyU in the academic year 2007-08. It will be made available to all students as a self-assessment tool through the SPECIAL ePortfolio system.

He met with the academic staff of the departments of FCLU and Dr Angela Ho of Educational Development Centre to discuss various OBE issues. At the end of his visit, Prof Williams presented his observations and recommendations at different levels, i.e. University, Faculty, and Department, to FLTC members. A comprehensive report was also received from him. Prof Williams' experience sharing and valuable advice would help FCLU make further improvements in implementing OBE.

A total of 13 projects were received from Departments and Schools. They were reviewed by the Working Group on Outcome-Based Education. All the projects were supported.

In his email, VP(AD) explained the commitment of both PolyU and UGC in promoting outcome-based approaches and stressed that the move towards outcome-based education is clearly an important long term endeavour. He advised Departments and Schools to identify areas needing attention and work out how to involve frontline teachers in implementing OBE in their Departments and Schools. Departments that require an additional budget for implementing the plan in 2007-2008 should submit a request along with a brief proposal to the Working Group on Outcome-Based Education (WGOBE).

The QAC aims to assist the UGC in assuring the quality of programmes (however funded) at first-degree and above levels offered by UGC-funded institutions. (More information about the QAC can be found in their website:http://www.ugc.edu.hk/eng/qac/index.htm

The Audit Manual provides a detail description of the procedures of a QAC audit. The manual is intended to guide both institutions and audit panels, and covers all stages of the audit process from preparation for audit to follow-up of audit reports. A copy of the Audit Manual can be obtained from http://www.ugc.edu.hk/eng/doc/qac/publication/auditmanual.pdf

Chaired by Associate Vice President (Academic Development) Professor Arthur Mak, the task of WGOBE is to advise and recommend on policies, plans, and organizational structures to support the implementation of outcome-based approaches in student learning (Terms of Reference)

Faculties and Schools participate in these important discussions by the means of their Faculty OBE Champions, who are senior academics appointed by their respective deans. Staff members are encouraged to approach their champions (Meet the Members) to discuss matters of concern so that their opinions can be heard by the Working Group.

In addition to Faculty OBE Champions, members of WGOBE also include representatives from EDC, SAO, and observers from HKCC and SPEED.

With part of their duties released, OBE Champions will contribute to the development of implementation strategies and the promotion of existing good practices in their Faculties/Schools. They are also the ones from whom academic staff/frontline teachers could seek help or advice on outcome-based approaches. Colleagues are therefore always encouraged to approach your Faculty/School Champions on OBE matters. To know more about or approach your Faculty/School Champions, please visit the part Meet the Members

In 2006, LTC, with the assistance of EDC, conducted a study of international practices in the assessment of student learning outcomes in 2006. A draft paper on the development of an institutional student learning outcomes assessment plan (LOAP), which examine the different possible methods for assessing student learning outcomes, particularly in relation to students' generic competences at the institution level, was prepared and discussed in the 32nd LTC meeting.

The Committee has come to the consensus that as the LOAP Proposal would lead to the establishment of policies and organizational structures, decision regarding which should be arrived at only after thorough and careful consideration by a concerned focus group. As LOAP is closely related to the implementation of outcome-based education, the Committee has decided that the Working Group on Outcome-Based Education (WGOBE) would be in the most appropriate position to make recommendations on this matter, possibly after consulting the wider PolyU community.

Dr. Ewell, accompanied by Mr. David Leung, Assistant Secretary General (Quality) of the UGC, visited the PolyU in the afternoon of 26 April 2006. Dr. Ewell met with Professor Demokan and a panel of representatives from various Faculties, Departments and relevant Centres.

Dr. Ewell exchanged views with Professor Demokan and the panel of PolyU representatives on a range of issues related to the implementation of outcome-based approaches to student learning.

In the discussion Dr. Ewell commended PolyU for its efforts and achievement in the move towards the outcome-based approach.

The Symposium on Outcome-Based Approach to Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Higher Education: International Perspectives was organised by EDC under the auspices of LTC. The full-day programme was kicked off by an opening speech by UGC Secretariat-General Michael Stone.

Mr. Stone emphasised that UGC's intention with OBE is improvement and enhancement in student learning and teaching quality. He advised institutions to design outcome-based approaches to "challenge excellence rather than mandate adequacy" and he cautioned against taking this as a paper exercise. (For a transcription of Michael Stone's speech, please visit UGC website: http://www.ugc.edu.hk/eng/ugc/publication/speech/2005/sp171205.htm

The rest of the day featured presentations by OBE consultants Dr. David Baume and Dr. Mary Allen sharing their experience from UK and US respectively. Colleagues from PolyU, led by Vice President (Academic Development) Professor Suleyman Demokan, also shared with the audience PolyU's strategies and experience with OBE. The day closed with a concluding plenary chaired by Vice President (Student Development) Professor T. P. Leung.

(For more information about the Symposium, please visit http://edc.polyu.edu.hk/OBEsymposium.htm)

Dr. David Baume and Dr. Mary Allen are internationally renowned higher education consultants from UK and US respectively. During their visit, the two experts conducted two workshops on outcome-based teaching and assessment and offered consultation sessions to interested colleagues. They were also invited to speak at the OBE Symposium to share the experience of their respective countries in implementing outcome-based education.

Dr. Ewell visited PolyU in company with UGC Deputy Secretary General and Assessment Secretary General (Quality) on 29 November 200. He met with our Vice President (Student Development) Prof. T. P. Leung, Acting Head of EDC Dr Angela Ho, and a group of academic leaders and TDG project owners. Dr. Ewell showed great interest in our mechanisms for assuring and enhancing quality in teaching and learning.

Making WIE mandatory is in support of accomplishing PolyU's institutional outcome of developing 'all-round students with professional competence' and our vision of producing preferred graduates.

The prime purpose of including WIE is to enhance the quality and competitiveness of the academic programmes. The focus should be on helping students to develop a range of valuable generic abilities and to apply theories to real-life situations via the provision of work-based learning.

For more information about the policy on WIE, please refer to Guidelines for Work-Integrated Education (https://www2.polyu.edu.hk/cr/files/guidelines_WIE.pdf) prepared by the Working Group on Curriculum Revision.

Departments were given a year time to revise their programme documents according to the Guidelines for Curriculum Revision. All programmes submitted their revised programme documents in April 2005. Vice President (Academic Development) nominated senior academics to review the revised documents, which were subsequently approved by the respective Faculty Boards in May 2005. The revised programmes are to be implemented in the academic year 2005-06.

The new policy entails the abolishment of "grading on the normal curve" practices and the stipulation of assessing students' performance on a criterion-referenced basis. With its focus on the assessment of students' performance standard in relation to the intended learning outcomes, this approach is more in line with the underpinning philosophy of an outcome-oriented curriculum. It is expected that all students are passed on merit and graded according to their true performance, rather than their position on a normal distribution curve. Students who do not meet the criteria for the pass mark for a subject should be failed, regardless of the proportion of the class involved.

In order to help faulty staff get prepared for criterion-referenced assessment (CRA), LTC has prepared a set of guidelines, which is now available from https://www2.polyu.edu.hk/edc/staff/CRAguidelines.pdf

Vice President (Academic Development) has set up a Working Group on Curriculum Revision - chaired by himself and comprises representatives from all six Faculties, AS, and EDC - to steer its implementation. An official Guidelines for Curriculum Revision has been issued in May 2004 by the Working Group which explained the goals and focuses of the exercise.

The Curriculum Revision encompasses a number of efforts. The major focus is the adoption of the outcome-based approach to curriculum design. This entails clarifying the intended learning outcomes for programmes and subjects and designing teaching and assessment which are in alignment with the intended learning outcomes

Another focus is the integration of the cultivation of generic competences into the formal curriculum so as to fulfil the University's strategic objective of developing all-round students with professional competence. All programmes are required to aspire to helping students attain the two outcomes of "professional competence" and "all-roundedness", as well as to integrate the development of generic competence into the teaching of academic subjects.

A third focus is to include a work-based learning component in all programmes as a strategy for achieving professional competence and the kind of generic abilities that is valuable in life in general and in the workplace specifically. Emphasis is given to guiding students through their work-based learning and assessing the learning outcomes of the work-based experience.

For more information about the Curriculum Revision, please visit http://www.polyu.edu.hk/cr/

According to Professor Yeung, the emphasis on learning outcomes is partly a response to the TLQPR recommendations. But Professor Yeung stressed that it is something driven by necessity rather than forced by TLQPR. He explained that the close tie with professional requirements has been a much valued feature of our academic programmes, and now more and more professional bodies are looking at outcomes.

This conversion into outcome-based education is going into the Academic Development Proposal (ADP) for the next triennium along with several other associated initiatives.

Dr. Peggy Maki is an experienced education consultant on assessment. During her visit she conducted an open forum and a series of workshops to address the three main areas of concern: (1) how to align assessment to pedagogy and curriculum design, (2) how to use assessment results to inform learning and teaching, and (3) how to assess students' generic and professional competencies. She also held consutation sessions with Faculties and Departments to help them critically review and reflect on their assessment policies and practices, and to come up with an action plan for alignment.