Overview of the Strategic Learning Assessment
The Strategic Learning Assessment (SLA) is being developed as a comprehensive self-assessment tool designed to empower college students to improve their academic performance. The SLA aims to be both diagnostic and prescriptive. As a diagnostic tool, it is intended to help identify students’ strengths and opportunities for growth in key learning areas. As a prescriptive tool, it is being designed to provide tailored recommendations and strategies for improvement. The SLA is currently being developed to assess 11 critical psychological and motivational factors that significantly influence learning and academic performance. Each factor is causative in nature, accounts for a meaningful amount of the variation in student success, and is amenable to change through educational intervention. The overarching goal is to help students become more strategic and self-regulated life-long learners.
College students often face difficulties identifying and addressing their unique learning challenges, which can impede academic success. While current assessment tools provide valuable insights, they may not always offer the depth and specificity needed for practical guidance and improvement. The SLA is being developed to address this issue by offering a thorough, strengths-focused approach to learning assessment and development, based on the latest research in educational psychology. The SLA is focused on empowering students to actively influence factors that may directly impact their learning outcomes.
The Strategic Learning Assessment is currently envisioned as a self-administered questionnaire. The assessment is being designed to cover 11 essential learning strategies and study skills, providing a holistic view of the student’s learning profile (Communication, Critical Thinking, Effective Learning Strategies, Focus and Concentration, Growth Mindset, Persistence, Seeking Help, Sense of Belonging, Stress Management, Test Preparation, and Time Management). Each scale is intended to focus on topics that students can actively employ to directly influence or cause their own learning, going beyond passive reception of information and involving students taking charge of their learning process. Download a PDF document with detailed explanations of each scale, including the reasoning behind their selection and links to relevant research and resources.
Upon completion of the assessment, students are expected to receive a personalized Profile Report outlining their strengths and areas for growth, along with actionable recommendations to enhance their academic performance. Student and group data will be made available to instructors/advisors through an Administrative Dashboard where multiple reports and downloadable data can be accessed. The assessment is being developed with cost-effectiveness in mind, making it an accessible resource for institutions and programs of all sizes.
We concluded the item development and refinement stage on September 30, 2024, with 106 items (approx. 10 per scale) developed for the pilot version. The items underwent rigorous review by a panel of experts in higher education to ensure the validity and effectiveness of the underlying constructs.
We are currently in the pilot testing phase and expect to finish by November 30, 2024. Once pilot testing is complete, all raw data will be anonymized and shared with our psychometrician for analysis. Neither schools nor students will be identifiable, and the data will be used solely for the purpose of developing psychometric data for the assessment. Upon completion of the pilot, we are hoping our psychometrician’s analysis supports 5-7 items per scale for the final version. We anticipate this analysis and finalization of the assessment will take approximately two to three months.
Download PDF Scale Descriptions