An assessment architecture for competency-based learning: Version 1.0

The U.S. Department of Education (DoE) asserts that one way to improve student achievement is to consider competency-based learning. The DoE describes competency-based learning as “a structure that creates flexibility, allows students to progress as they demonstrate mastery of academic content, regardless of time, place, or pace of learning.” Competency-based learning focuses on outcomes and skill-sets. Students are encouraged to learn in a way that allows them to employ reproducible skills sets to generate tangible outcomes. Our group is early in an initiative to provide alternative learning environments in STEM higher education. The group consists of faculty from several academic units including liberal arts, libraries, and technology. One of the learning experiences currently being tested involves the tight coupling of all forms of communication and information literacy with technological skills and concepts. We develop an integrated learning experience that cultivates learner´s capacities of interpersonal communication and social and cultural awareness in a seminar environment. We will describe our process of generating competencies from AAC&U inspired rubrics and how these were mapped to learning outcomes and learning activities in the seminar environment. The institutional (and in some cases legal) constraints associated with the spirit of competency-based learning will be discussed.