The-Ave.US

(Updated from April 3.) Ed. Senator Kohl-Welles, who holds a PhD in education,  has told us that she wil vote AGAINST the Senate version of HB1822.  To support her, you might send an email to [email protected].

Ed.  I have found Dr. Mendenhall’s thesis on the web. (The entire thesis is now available in The-AVE.US Pubic Library)

There are a number of things to comment on.

First, he wrote the thesis WHILE setting up WGU. and received it four years after becoming the President of WGU. in 2003, As far as I can see he did not have any prior education in educational, psychological, or other relevant areas other than management.

Second, on my first quick look through, the thesis seems more like a business report than an academic thesis.  Most worrisome, and rather nonacademic, is the lack of definition of terms and the lack of evidence that the questions raised using these  terms are ever answered.Instead there are bold assertions that the WGU “model” replaces the outmoded model of the modern university.

The simplest example I can find is his use of the terms “competence” and “competency based” learning as distinctive goals of his WGU methodology.  The following is as close I could come to definitions of these terms or evidence that the innovative methods, whatever they might be, actually work:

“ Few universities define clearly what it is their graduates are expected to have learned, and even fewer actually measure to determine that learning took place.

The principal mission of higher education is gradually shifting from the dispenser of knowledge to the role of measuring and credentialing knowledge that may have been learned elsewhere. Competency-based education is ideal, and perhaps essential, for this new role.

Because WGU is competency based, and the learning outcomes to be achieved have been defined, and measures developed to assess these outcomes, it is possible to determine objectively the most cost effective courses for students.”

R. Mendenhall, from his thesis

following excerpts are from the PhD thesis by Robert Mendenhall, President of Western Governors University, the thesis was presented and accepted at Brigham Young University in 2003, four years after Mr. Mendenhall became President of WGU.

As far as I could determine, the term “competency” is never defined.  It is, however exte3nsively used and appears to be central to the thesis.

(excerpted and rearranged for readability. The entire thesis is available in The-AVE.US Pubic Library)

A unique aspect of the WGU model is the decision, made early in WGU’s design, not to develop and teach our own courses. (WGU) has defined success through its goals which focus on 1) getting competency-based education recognized and accepted, 2) providing high-quality learning to its students, and 3) meeting enrollment and financial goals.

WGU (recognizes) that there are tens of thousands of  online courses …….Finally, and perhaps most importantly, past experience demonstrates that the cost of maintaining, updating and supporting courses is ultimately far more than the cost of initial development. (Ed. another mystery is WHO evaluates these “tens of thousands” of courses is WGU doe snot have its nw faculty?  the answer, seemingly is …) Because WGU is competency based, and the learning outcomes to be achieved have been defined, and measures developed to assess these outcomes, it is possible to determine objectively the most cost effective courses for students. (Ed. this seems to mean that  WGU (without faculty expertise) determines what is “competency,”  purchases courseware that WGU thinks will give good grades on “competency” based exams, and then declares success if students pass the exams.

The thesis goes on …). …

Competency-based education was created primarily to improve the quality and increase the accountability of higher education. Few universities define clearly what it is their graduates are expected to have learned, and even fewer actually measure to determine that learning took place. (Ed. my emphasis) What does a graduate with a B or C average mean? Does it mean the graduate learned half of the material really well, but not the other half?
Or does it mean that all the material was 80% learned? Do graduates with the same degree from different universities know the same things, or substantially different things?

The WGU competency-based degrees are one approach to this problem. WGU defines clearly what a student is expected to know and be able to do upon graduation, and we have developed clear measures to ensure that every graduate has mastered those competencies. Thus the ultimate measure of quality at WGU comes down to whether the competencies are the right ones and whether the assessments adequately measure the competencies.

(WGU) is the only university that offers competency-based degrees. The university does not develop or teach its own courses (with few exceptions), but utilizes courses, instructors and other learning resources from third parties. The university faculty does not teach courses, but rather act as mentors for students from the beginning to the end of the program. Students, primarily working adults, are organized into learning communities but work on individualized programs of study at their own rates.

….Competency-based degrees mean that students earn a degree by demonstrating their competency – what they know and can do – rather than by taking required classes or accumulating a certain number of credit hours. ….The WGU degree is not defined by a set of courses, but by domains of knowledge and expertise.

Competencies are grouped into subdomainsbwithin these domains of knowledge…. WGU faculty .. identifies existing university and commercial courses and other learning resources (textbooks, websites, etc.) that teach these competencies, and these learning opportunities are “mapped” to the competencies. ….  Identified courses and learning resources are used by students to gain the required competencies.

…. Students take a pre-assessment to determine what competencies they already have, and then in consultation with their mentor (Ed. the qualifications of “mentors” are never defined.  WGU students report that the mentors are not experts in any field other than WGU itself) , an individual “academic action plan (AAP)” is created for each student. The AAP lays out for each individual their path to a degree, including the recommended courses needed to gain the required competencies. The AAP also specifies a timeline for study, and a planned schedule for taking the domain assessments, but students are able to move more quickly or slowly as their needs require. When students are prepared for the competency assessments, they go to a secure proctored testing site to complete the examinations. They also need to complete the portfolio and project requirements, and having demonstrated their attained competencies, are awarded their degree.

When students demonstrate on university assessments mastery of the required competencies, they earn a degree. Courses are not required, and grades are not given, since each student must demonstrate mastery of the competencies independent of the learning resources used in preparation (WGU Brochure, 2000).

The research methodology is best described as data-driven critical reflection. Data includes input from literature review and peer review, as well as both quantitative measures and qualitative observations. Quantitative data is regularly collected and analyzed and includes learning outcomes (as measured by competency exams), student academic progress, enrollments, retention rates, graduation rates, usage statistics (for courses, learning resources, library, collaboration, etc.), financial measures, and others.

One of the criticisms of competency-based education is that it is more training than education, more skills-based than higher order thinking. This misunderstanding results from the feeling that general education competencies cannot be effectively measured. This, however, is simply not true. WGU has spent a considerable time and effort with national experts in defining the competencies of a general education and developing the assessments to measure them. While others may differ on both the definition and measurement of the competencies, sufficient work has been done to demonstrate that they may both be defined and measured.

A second challenge to competency-based education is that it encourages learning discrete bits of knowledge, rather than broad integration and application of knowledge and skills. However, competencies can be written to include skills and knowledge that cut across discrete pieces, such as working in teams, developing a computer program, or teaching in a classroom. It should be noted at the same time, that WGU competency assessments include a combination of objective and essay exams, portfolios, performance tasks and projects, in order to adequately assess the defined competencies.

(ed.,  bold emphasis by me. Green is to identify where “competence” appears.}