• http://www.aascu.org/accountability/default.htm

The Voluntary System of Accountability is a joint project of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC). Responding to the challenges of the Spellings Commission, the VSA aims to make publicly available information about a wide variety of factors, ranging from accurate tuition costs to institutional performance in meeting core learning outcomes.

Of particular interest is the "Core Educational Outcomes Task Force," which has "decided on a preliminary set of learning outcomes tests that, at a minimum, measure critical thinking, analytic reasoning and written communication, and that also can be used in a value added format. Those tests are: C-Base, CLA, CAAP, MAPP, GRE and ACT WorkKeys." The Task Force is currently evaluating these tests for possible piloting.

Although the task force is comprised entirely of administrators, there is an open forum for public comment on these tests in particular, and more broadly on the mechanisms of value-added assessment of higher education, especially liberal education.  John Hammang, the AASCU's Director for Special Projects, has posted responses from each of the various test publishers to a set of common questions.

Anyone interested in general education assessment, or worried about the impact of No College Student Left Behind the Spellings Commission should probably start paying attention to the Voluntary System of Accountability.