Any topic (writer's choice)

Instructions

Spellings Commission ReportAs you read in the Institutional Research Overview in the Reading, stakeholders, parents, politicians, and others expect institutions to provide evidence that they are assessing and improving student learning. In response to these increasing expectations, Margaret Spellings, the U.S. Secretary of Education at the time, appointed a commission to examine the state of higher education. The Spellings Commission Report was published in 2006. The Spellings Commission was concerned with issues of higher education reform, especially in the areas of access, cost and affordability, financial aid, learning, transparency and accountability, and innovation of higher education institutions.Please read the report along with these articles that raise questions about the impact of the report and progress made in higher education since the report was published:Field, K. (September 18, 2011). Spelling panel spurred progress in some key areas but failed to remake American higher education. The Chronicle of Higher Education. U.S. Department of Education. (2006). A test of leadership: Charting the future of U.S. higher education. Retrieved from http://www2.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/hiedfuture/reports/pre-pub-report.pdfZemsky, R. (September 18, 2011). The unwitting damage done by the Spellings commission. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Then respond to the following questions:What do you think about the report, its findings, and its recommendations?Are the critiques presented in these articles justified?Have accountability issues been adequately addressed?How does the call for accountability affect institutional research at the institutional level?In response to the Spellings Commission Report, many higher education institutions now participate in the College Portrait (VSA Voluntary System of Accountability). Visit the following websites to learn more about these programs:College Scorecard. Retrieved from https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/The Voluntary System of Accountability: http://www.voluntarysystem.org/NCES Annual Reports. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/annuals/One requirement is to have a sample of freshmen and senior students take one of three standardized tests (presumably to show the value added by the institution). A summarized college rating of these scores (using ACT or SAT scores for the institution to determine expected) is reported for each school using these terms: Well Below Expected, Below Expected, As Expected, Above Expected, and Well Above Expected. Since the way a college looks on the College Portrait is high stakes, it might be advantageous to use a carefully selected sample of students, even though the tests indicate one should use a random sample. Suppose you are a researcher in your institutions IR office and respond to the following:What are the ethical implications of using a random sample versus a carefully selected sample?How should the IR office address this and other ethical dilemmas regarding accountability and reporting?After you post your responses to the previous questions and situations, review the responses of your classmates. Reply from the viewpoint of an institutional stakeholder. Remember from the IR Overview that institutional research turns data into information, and information into knowledge that can inform decision making. Challenge your classmates about the consequences data from College Portrait and VSA may have on issues such as student enrollment or federal funding.This Discussion addresses the following unit learning outcomes:Summarize key factors associated with institutional research.Describe how the call for accountability in higher education today affects institutional research reporting.Describe typical ethical dilemmas faced by institutional researchers regarding accountability and reporting, and their possible resolutions

Answer