Creating a faculty community that values curricular assessment and improvement: one DNP program's experience

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Curriculum Development
• Educational Assessment

Background:

• Developing faculty ownership for curricular improvement in nursing schools is challenging.
• Limited research exists on fostering faculty communities for curricular assessment and improvement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe features of a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) curricular assessment process.
• To evaluate faculty satisfaction with the DNP curricular assessment.
• To outline considerations for an ePortfolio-supported curricular assessment process.

Main Methods:

• A case study approach was used in one school of nursing.
• ePortfolio matrices mapped student assignments to American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Essentials.
• A rubric scored evidence of student learning, and faculty satisfaction was surveyed.

Main Results:

• First-year results showed high faculty satisfaction with the assessment process.
• The assessment identified four specific areas for curricular improvement.
• Faculty agreed to continue the assessment process biannually.

Conclusions:

• The curricular assessment successfully enhanced faculty satisfaction.
• The process effectively identified needed curriculum improvements.
• A faculty community supporting curricular assessment is vital for a transformational learning environment.