What is Assurance of Learning?

“Assurance of learning (AoL) refers to the systematic processes and assessment plans that collectively demonstrate that learners achieve learning competencies for the programs in which they participate that are within the scope of the school’s accreditation. AoL also includes the processes of identifying competency gaps and designing and implementing changes to the curriculum and learning experience so the learning competencies are met.” (AACSB, 2020 Guiding Principles and Standards for Business Accreditation)

Simply, AoL is about:

• Evaluating how well the students are achieving programme-level outcomes and the university graduate profile
  
• Collecting student assessment data to inform continuous curriculum improvements

The AoL Process (for accreditation)

The Assurance of Learning (AoL) process aims to leverage data-driven insights to support continuous improvement of our academic programmes.

1. Define Programme Graduate Profile (GP) capabilities and indicators

Below is an example of how the university graduate profile was aligned with one of our programmes:

Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) Profile Capabilities

2. Strategic Identification and Planning

Programme Director/Major Lead works with Course Directors/Coordinators and leverage curriculum maps to develop AOL plans that identify the courses and assessments to measure the level of achievement of each graduate profile capability within their programme/major. Completed AoL Plans are reviewed and approved by the Innovative Learning and Teaching Team before the start of each semester/quarter.

3. Implementation and Support

• Curriculum Development Managers advise faculty on assessment and rubric design to enhance the measurement of student performance.
  
• Once an assessment is graded, the Curriculum and Learning Assurance Adviser downloads the AOL data through Canvas and summarises the results in a standardised reporting template.

4. Reflection and Action Plans

• Programme Director/Major Lead works with their colleagues to review the data and identify areas for improvement. The primary focus is to improve on the capabilities that don't meet the target set by the faculty (i.e., 80% of students are meeting or exceeding the expected standard for each capability). They are expected to develop and implement action plans in the following curriculum cycle.
  
• Departments use insights from AoL data to supplement semester or quarter-based reporting and inform annual curriculum development initiatives.

5. Closing the Loop

Following the implementation of agreed actions, the Programme Director/Major Lead, Course Directors, Lecturers, Curriculum Development Managers, and the Curriculum and Learning Assurance Adviser conduct a further cycle of data collection to measure the effectiveness of the initiatives and reflect on the results.