This web site review was contributed by Paula S. Krist, Ph.D., SOLES, University
of San Diego. Thank you Paula! If you are interested in reviewing a book, evaluating
a web site, or reviewing other resources of use to IR and assessment professionals,
please email Gayle Fink, gfink@bowiestate.edu.
The Association for Institutional Research has developed a site for institutional
representatives to learn more about assessment instruments, tools, and services.
The site is interesting, well-organized, and will definitely be useful to institutional
research and assessment professionals; it may also be useful to other college administrators
involved in institutional effectiveness efforts. Below is a review of three specific
aspects of the site: usability, design, and resources.
Usability: I would rate the ease of use of this site as a B+. Absolutely
every link on the site works. It is easy to use the menu on the right side to navigate
to the page you want. Within the search menu of the inventory, there are many ways
to search for an item of interest. This search flexibility will be helpful to people
with varied levels of assessment experience.
Usability Suggestion:
Within the section titled Organization of the Measuring Quality Inventory,
it would be useful to have a link to the each of the groups of resources accessible
by clicking on the correct category name.
Design: The design is generally good. In particular, I like the
Announcements section on the home page. Some of the design suggestions would likely
improve usability, too.
Design Suggestions:
- I would recommend adding a cleaner home page that gives a one or two sentence overview
of the purpose of the site and a list of features that the site includes (e.g.,
introduction guidelines, searchable inventory, etc.) Retain the announcements section
on the home page.
- A very good section called The Assessment Landscape deserves better placement
than appended to the Guidelines for Selecting and Using Assessment Instruments,
Tools, and Services. Many people, particularly those new to the field,
may not know the current state of affairs regarding assessment. Because this section
provides a context for why an institution might need new resources, it could have
a link under the web site guide.
- Consider highlighting (e.g., different color, larger text) the "View Search Options"
link on the Inventory page to make it stand out more.
- If the site has directions for submitting items for consideration in the Announcements
section or to recommend instruments, tools, or resources, they are not obvious.
If it is not yet a feature of the site, it might be considered in the next update.
- When you click “Learn More about the Four Categories of Instruments,” you go to
a section titled Organization of the Measuring Quality Inventory. It would
be helpful to number the four categories within this section and make them bold.
Currently, the first two categories are not numbered.
- The terms used within this section should be an exact match for the terms used on
the search options inventory page. For example, the search area should say "assessment
instruments” versus "instruments", and "software tools/platforms" versus "tools/platforms."
The largest disconnect occurs between what is described as "collaborative projects
and assessment services" in the text, and "projects, initiatives, and services"
on the search page.
Resources: The scope of each category listed in the resources section
is well focused for the 10,000 foot level approach that is taken.
Resource Suggestion:
Consider adding a link to the new National Institute for Learning Outcomes
Assessment (www.learningoutcomesassessment.org)
under Assessment.