UST 190 - AAPLE Handbook

A HANDBOOK OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
THE ACCREDITATION AND ASSESSMENT
OF PRIOR LEARNING EXPERIENCE PROGRAM
(a.k.a. the Credit for Life Experience Program)

MAXINE GOODMAN LEVIN COLLEGE OF URBAN AFFAIRS

CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY

(Adapted with permission from

Texas Christian University)

PREFACE

This website has been prepared in an effort to provide information and direction to students who may be interested in the Accreditation and Assessment of Prior Learning Experience (AAPLE)/Credit for Life Experience Program at the Levin College of Urban Affairs. The program recognizes that learning takes place in settings other than the classroom. It is designed to allow adults with significant prior work experience related to Urban Affairs to apply their learning towards an undergraduate degree in Urban Affairs. Students enrolled in the program may submit portfolios which qualify for anywhere from 4 to 24 credits.

It is important that students be fully versed with the policies and procedures which underpin the program before they engage in any efforts in the direction of seeking credit through preparation of a portfolio. The steps outlined and the procedures indicated have been developed with the purpose of assuring that the Levin College's approach to granting credit as an outcome of assessment of non-collegiate, but college-level experiential learning embodies the highest level of academic standards. Though this approach may impose rigorous efforts on the part of students and faculty assessors alike, it is believed that adherence to high and generally accepted standards serves all involved parties well.

The faculty and staff of the Department of Urban Studies, the College unit which is administratively responsible for the AAPLE Program, are ready to answer questions about this program and are willing to render assistance to students who choose to participate. Persons wishing more information and/or who wish to schedule an interview to discuss this program in person should contact the following:

Office of Student Services
Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs
1717 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland State University
Cleveland, Ohio 44115
Telephone: (216) 687-4506
Facsimile: (216) 687-5398
marcie@urban.csuohio.edu
http://urban.csuohio.edu

I. Introduction

Continuing Education is a vital part of professional and personal growth. The need to update professionally, retrain for new skills, and solve complex domestic and social problems requires a commitment to life-long learning. For individuals who wish to maintain an active contributing role in contemporary society, life-long learning brings work and study together into a unified, continuing educational process directed toward individual growth.

For many people the life-long learning process functions best when they utilize the resources of a university. These resources have long been available through traditional classroom-oriented studies. Now universities can also render assistance to learners by serving as a mechanism through which "life experiences" may be evaluated or "assessed" for the purpose of ascertaining the propriety of awarding academic credit for them. Two common methods are employed by colleges and universities to accomplish this service.

First, college credit for non-collegiate learning can be obtained by taking CLEP examinations. This method is not discussed in this site. Information about CLEP examinations is available from the CSU Admissions office (687-3755).

The second method by which credit can be earned for non-collegiate, but college-level learning is a process known as "assessment of experiential learning". At the Levin College this assessment takes place in the Assessment and Accreditation of Prior Learning Experience Program (AAPLE). The purpose of the following information is to provide an explanation of the Program as discussed below.

II. Philosophy of the AAPLE Program

The basic idea underlying the assessment of experiential learning--or learning stemming from prior experience--for the possible award of academic credit is that what a person knows is more important than how he or she learned it. The university is not interested in having students spend time in classrooms and laboratories re-learning knowledge and skills that they already possess as a result of "life" or "non-collegiate learning experiences." The term "life experience" should not be interpreted in an all-inclusive sense, but rather as denoting college-level learning--learning comparable to college courses acquired outside a college or university program.

Since years of experience do not in themselves indicate a level of learning, some procedure must be devised to appraise these learning outcomes. At Cleveland State University's Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs this is done by "portfolio assessment."

While this program is not restricted to certain age groups, it is designed primarily to meet the needs of experienced adults. Younger persons are not likely to have the extensive and in-depth experience which might qualify for academic credit.

III. What is a "portfolio"?

The formal, written communication from the student to the university in which credit for prior life experiences is requested is known as a "portfolio".

A. Portfolios are term-paper-like documents that also contain elements of a resume and detailed personal history.

B. Only well-organized portfolios that present substantial evidence of college-level learning related to Urban Affairs can be considered.

C. Portfolios will be considered only when the experiential learning presented address the Urban Affairs curriculum.

D. A portfolio is to be prepared in relation to each specific course or concentration area in the Urban Affairs curriculum for which the student requests credit for experiential learning.

IV. How much credit can be earned through the AAPLE Program?

At the Levin College, a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 24 credit hours may be earned through the AAPLE Program depending on the amount of your experience and its relevance to a degree in Urban Affairs.

V. Who may participate in this program?

A. Undergraduate students who are officially admitted to Cleveland State University and pursuing one of the College of Urban Affairs degrees are eligible to participate in the program.

B. Graduate credit may not be earned through the AAPLE Program.

VI. What are the advantages to students?

A. Advantages to students of an assessment of life experience include the following:

1. The process can help to integrate life and work experience with other learning goals and educational programs.

2. The process of assessment can facilitate improved self-understanding of students' real competencies--and deficiencies.

3. The assessment process becomes a valuable aid to better planning of future learning experiences--both formal and informal.

4. Though preparation of a portfolio is an exacting and time-consuming challenge, it may--for some persons--mean time saved in reaching educational goals. Credits earned through assessment can reduce the total amount of time spent in classrooms needed to move students toward a degree or other academic objectives.

5. Cost savings may be realized. The fees paid to have portfolios assessed will be less than tuition paid to earn the same number of credits.

VII. What kinds of experiences are assessed?

A. The most prevalent kinds of experiences presented for assessment are:

1. Work experiences--in business, in education, in the military, in human and health services or other organizational settings.

2. Experiences gained through participation in non-credit courses, workshops, or seminars.

3. Extensive and substantive experiences in community, volunteer, or service organizations.

B. Travel, hobbies, homemaking, and related experiences may be acceptable for evaluation only when clear and extensive evidence can be provided to indicate that the learning outcome comprises college-level learning.

C. The following are some general criteria that may be used in selecting experiences which may lend themselves to portfolio assessment:

1. The learning should be verifiable. Students should be able to demonstrate learning to an expert.
2. The learning should be equivalent to that usually acquired in college-level courses.

3. The learning should have a general applicability outside the specific situation in which it was acquired.

4. The learning should be related to a specific Urban Affairs course content areas. It is not customary for the University to entertain an award of credit where it does not offer course work.

VIII. What are the assessment procedures?

The procedural steps to be followed by students in developing a portfolio are defined by the Department of Urban Studies to include the following:

A. Students contact the Levin College's Office of Student Services to learn more about the AAPLE Program.; B. Students applying for portfolio credit must be fully admitted to CSU.; C. Prior to enrollment in UST 190, the possibility of acquiring credit by portfolio must be explored with either the College's Undergraduate Academic Advisor or the Manager of the AAPLE Program. If the student is a viable candidate for portfolio credit, the Academic Advisor will facilitate their registration.

D. A preliminary draft of the portfolio to be assessed for credit is prepared while enrolled in a special Internet course* entitled "Analysis of Experiential Learning in Urban Studies" (UST 190). Final portfolios may be written and submitted for evaluation up to one year after completing UST 190 or with permission from the AAPLE Program Manager for an extension.; * The Internet course is designed to allow students to freedom to complete course requirements via a home or office computer. Two face-to-face sessions are built into course delivery and computer literacy is advised.; E. In the UST 190 (Internet) course, students are guided through the process of preparing a portfolio equating the outcomes of life experiences to the outcomes of specific Urban Affairs courses or areas of concentration. Upon completion of the UST 190, students receive a letter grade for the course and two hours of credit. Students are entitled to two follow up review sessions with the AAPLE program manager before final submission of their portfolio.
: F. Students meet with the College's Undergraduate Academic Advisor to determine the exact number of credits to be requested through portfolio assessment.
: G. Students present their completed portfolio to the AAPLE Program Manager, Urban Affairs Building and receive an assessment fee form to complete.; H. Students pay a nonrefundable assessment fee, based on the number of credits to be awarded, at the CSU Bursar's Office, Unviersity Center 460 and present the payment receipt and completed portfolio to the APPLE Program Manager, Urban Affairs Building - Room 210. This step formally initiates the review process.; I. The AAPLE Program Manger reviews the document and transmits the portfolio to a faculty assessor. Students may be contacted at this point by faculty members making the assessment of the portfolio for the purpose of arranging for a personal interview. Faculty members have great latitude in defining what actions students may be called upon to take in an effort to make faculty assessors more confident about their understanding of the students' knowledges and competencies.

J. The faculty assessors make their recommendation to the Director of the AAPLE Program.

K. Faculty members have the following options in making a recommendation stemming from their assessment of a portfolio:

a. Recommends award of full amount of credit for the course(s)/concentration area requested.; b. Recommends award of less credit than requested.; c. Recommends that no credit be granted.

L. The AAPLE Program Manager notifies students of the disposition of their request for credit by portfolio assessment.

M. The Levin College Office of Student Services notifies the Registrar of the appropriate credit to be granted and the credits are posted on student transcripts.

IX. How does one actually prepare the Portfolio?

The following kinds of information should be submitted in a binder with appropriate headings, introductions, and explanations. (See sub-paragraph G, below, "Portfolio Format").

A. General Format/Title Page

1. The concentration area, the learning cluster areas, and the number of credits sought should be included on the title page, along with the name of the student, home and work phone numbers, e-mail address, and the date on which the portfolio was prepared.

2. REMEMBER, IF YOU ARE PREPARING COURSE-SPECIFIC PORTFOLIOS, A SEPARATE PORTFOLIO MUST BE PREPARED FOR EACH COURSE WHERE CREDIT IS SOUGHT.

3. A table of contents should indicate the nature and location of major pieces of information in the portfolio.

B. The Autobiographical Resume

An autobiographical resume is to be prepared for inclusion in the portfolio. The autobiographical resume should take the form of an annotated resume, emphasizing those aspects in one's life experience which relate most particularly to the concentration area for which the student seeks credit. For the most part, biographical information should be presented in chronological format. Elements which should be included are among the following:

1. Name, address, and telephone number(s).

2. Work experiences

3. Educational experiences

a. It will be helpful to evaluators for the students to provide a total recapitulation of their educational background including elementary, high school, and college experiences.

b. All non-credit experiences that may have occurred in the context of a college or university should be reported.

c. Other, non-collegiate, educational and training experiences should also be reported. These could include, but are not limited to those experiences students may have incurred in the military, in a business setting, while a member of a professional organization or society, or similar organizations.

4. Societal experiences
Students should indicate memberships and participation in community organizations, political activities, work in volunteer organizations and similar experiences.

5. Special interests
Students should indicate any hobby and avocational pursuits which might relate to the request for credit.

6. Licenses, awards, professional recognitions or organizational affiliations should be reported. Some elaboration may be warranted if any of the foregoing are particularly relevant to the students' request for credit.

7. Publications, reports, and exhibitions authored by the student should be carefully listed. Facts of publication, or details regarding exhibitions or other forms of creative expression should be carefully documented.

C. Competency Statement

In this section of the portfolio, students are expected to introduce/list those aspects of background and experience (introduced in the autobiographical section) which most closely relate to the courses or concentration for which credit is being sought. The objective of this section is for the students to present the skills, knowledge, and values learned through life experiences. It is recommended that the presentation in this section of the portfolio follow the following format:

1. Description of occupational/vocational/professional competencies.

2. Description of interpersonal competencies.

3. Problem-solving competencies.

4. Civic competencies.

D. Narrative Section

In this section of the portfolio, students are expected to expand on competencies listed in the previous section. This is one of the most important portfolio sections as students describe situations and circumstances in which skills were applied and brought to bear with some observable effect or impact. Students should be sure to include for each competency area (vocational, interpersonal, etc.) the following information:

1. A list of activities in which students have participated and from which learning has resulted. (For example, the specific nature of the job experiences, training projects, and similar activities which contributed to their learning.)

2. An indication of the amount of time involved in each activity.

3. Information about where and under what circumstances these activities and experiences occurred.

4. A description of students' role in this activity (as observers, participants, leaders, subjects, etc.).

5. A description of how activities, roles or situations contributed to the competencies that students have asked to be evaluated.

6. A description of what was learned to include connections between real life learning and what is actually taught in the classroom. Students must not lose sight of the importance of citing relevant theory to substantiate the learning that has taken place. Detail, rather than generalities will be most helpful on this point.

E. Documentation for Learning

Providing documentation is a very important aspect of portfolio development. APPLICANTS SHOULD BEAR IN MIND THAT IT IS NOT UP TO THE FACULTY MEMBERS WHO WILL EVALUATE STUDENTS' PORTFOLIOS TO HAVE TO GUESS AS TO WHAT STUDENTS KNOW. IT IS UP TO THE APPLICANTS TO PROVIDE EVIDENCE OF WHAT THEY KNOW.

Any number of items could be considered as evidence of experiential learning and could constitute the documentation for students' request for credit. Possibilities include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Letters of testimony from current or previous supervisors or analogous persons who could attest to the quality of the students' work, or about other experiences for which letters may comprise suitable evidence. Such letters must address the relationship between the experience and the credit requested.

2. Job descriptions for positions held by the students and which are germane to the credit request.

3. Copies of performance appraisals or evaluations that relate to positions which are being offered as examples of situations where non-college learnings were achieved.

4. Copies of any certificates connoting honors, awards, and special commendations where these documents are germane to students' request for credit.

5. Copies of articles, reports, papers, clippings, work samples, or similar items which may support their request for credit (See Table 1).

TABLE I: DOCUMENTING EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING: Examples

Type of Activity: Work Experience
Possible Documentation: job descriptions; awards; letters of commendation; letters of corroboration from superiors, peers, clients; congratulations on high performance; promotion evaluations; evidence of suggestions adopted; explanation of tasks performed; explanation of ranking, rating, or classification system in company or organization; licenses; performance standards for acquiring licenses, membership in professional or trade organizations; membership requirements for professional/trade organizations; scores on licensing exams; military separation papers; bills of sale; rating forms; military records; work samples;

Type of Activity: Community Service
Possible Documentation: commendations; awards; newpaper and magazine clippings; letters of cooroboration from co-volunteers, clients served, supervisors transcripts;

Type of Activity: Non-college Courses and Training/Workshops & Seminars
Possible Documentation: amount of assignments; amount of time spent on outside assignments; letter attesting to enrollment in training; learning outcomes or objectives of course; syllabi; evidence of completion; course description(s)/outline(s); number of course instruction hours; number of clinical or practicum hours; diplomas;

Type of Activity: Special Accomplishments
Possible Documentation: books published; a list of books read; patents obtained; list of countries visited; mementos from countries lived in and traveled to; machines designed; photographs of famous landmarks visited; speeches given; programs from performances; writing samples; audiovisual presentations; proposals written; conversations with experts.

F. Education Plan/Goals Statement

In two to three pages, applicants should write an original essay which describes the courses taken or will be taken to supplement the knowledge gained through prior learning and the educational and career outcomes expected from continuation in the Urban Studies academic program. This section should demonstrate that the accredited experiential learning is not random, but bears direct relevance to the students' studies at the Levin College of Urban Affairs.

G. Portfolio Format

1. Students should endeavor to make the portfolio a visually-attractive, well-organized, and professional presentation. Principles of visual organization should be followed in order to enhance the professionalism of the submission.

2. When deciding upon which materials and documents are to be included in the portfolio, students should be mindful of the fact that the portfolio will not be returned.

a. Should it be desirable to include in the portfolio any documents which have personal or professional meaning for the applicant (and which are also germane to the request for credit), they should be photocopied and the photocopies, rather than the originals, should be enclosed.

b. If it is necessary for the faculty assessors to authenticate the photocopies, the students and the faculty member can agree upon a time when originals can be presented for a "sight check."

X. Are there personal interviews?

Faculty members completing the assessment of a given portfolio may, at their option, interview students submitting portfolios for consideration.

1. Students should prepare for an interview as if it were an oral examination of their stated competencies in the area where credit has been requested.; 2. Beyond the interview, the faculty members may require additional materials constituting documentation of the students' claims.
XI. How much does it cost?

A. The non-refundable fee paid to the university by students prior to assessment of a portfolio is contingent upon the number of credits sought. At present, fees are $35.00 per credit hour.

B. As noted above, fees are paid by students in the Bursar's Office when they formally register for this service.

XII. Standards

A. Despite the non-traditional nature of gaining credit for life experience via the assessment of a portfolio, traditionally high university academic standards apply to this program. Earning credit through assessment of relevant life experiences should not be construed as being easier than traditional methods of earning college credit--it is just a different method of earning college credit.
: B. When credit is granted as a result of a favorable portfolio assessment by faculty members, no grade is given. The portfolio course credits will be entered on the students' permanent record as hours earned under the related Urban Studies practicum course. There is no effect upon students' accumulative grade point average.; C. Not all colleges and universities will accept transfer credit earned by students through the process of assessment of experiential learning. If students contemplate transfer from the Levin College to another college or university where they would like credit earned through the portfolio assessment process to be applied to a degree, then it would be in students' self interest to inquire about the institution's policies on transfer of credit when the credits are awarded from an assessment of the life experience program.

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