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R. W. HARTEL, Dept. of Food Science, Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, 1605 Linden Dr., A-13 Babcock Hall, Madison, WI 53706-1519 Historically, IFT approval of Food Science programs was based on the old Minimum Standards, a check list of courses and prerequisites that had to be met. There was little flexibility and measures of student learning were not required. In 1998, the IFT Executive Committee charged a Task Force to develop new Education Standards based on outcomes assessment. In 2002, the new Education Standards were released and IFT program approval is now based on assessment of student learning outcomes. To gain IFT approval, each food science program must document how specific learning outcomes, written for both individual courses and the program as a whole, are assessed. Furthermore, a process for curricular revision must also be in place where the data collected in the assessment program are analyzed and changes made to the curriculum as needed. Conversion to the new system of program approval has generally been met with favorable response. Many programs that have been reviewed against the new Standards have recognized the value of this approach. It forces departments to consider student learning rather than just course content. Greater coordination of the curriculum is required. In the first reviews under the new Education Standards, IFT has been very lenient regarding assessment programs and specific learning outcomes. As long as programs are moving in the right direction, they receive IFT approval. However, as programs come back up for review the second time (after 5 years), IFT will look carefully for progress in assessment of learning outcomes and how changes have been implemented according to the assessment data. Greater emphasis will be placed on valid assessment programs for subsequent program approval. Thus, it is now more imperative than ever that food science programs truly switch from a content-based approach to a learner-based approach.
Session 21, Assessment continued
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