Please enter information for 2 or 3 learning outcomes that you assessed this year. At least one means of assessment for each outcome should be a direct measure of that outcome. Please complete your posting by June 30, 2018.
Intended Student Learning Outcome #1 |
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Students will demonstrate knowledge of basic descriptive statistics, multivariate analysis, probability issues, inferential statistics, and use of statistical computer software. |
| Alignment with institutional mission and goals | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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| College Mission Reference | The entire college community works together to develop socially responsible citizens with skills and values important to the pursuit of an enriched life and success in the world. |
| Relevant College Planning Goal | Enhance digital learning and data analysis learning. |
| Relevant Academic Affairs Planning Goal | Develop new and innovative ways to support and enhance digital and computational learning. |
| Relevant Program Goal | Prepare students for success in graduate study and/or professional employment. |
| First Means of Assessment | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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Procedures & Criterion for Success | To assess this set of learning outcomes, three (3) sections of SOCL-211 – Statistics for Social Research were examined from Fall 2014 (two sections) and Spring 2015 (one section). Direct measures were taken from students’ work including homework assignments, exams, and data analysis projects using statistical software. Students’ work were evaluated as either satisfactory or unsatisfactory across five knowledge domains: 1) descriptive statistics, 2) probability, 3) inferential statistics, 4) multivariate analysis, and 5) statistical software. Success in each domain is defined as 75% of students' work evaluated as satisfactory. |
| Results | Of the 108 students assessed, 67 students (62%) received a satisfactory evaluation on all five criteria and 90 students (83%) satisfied four of the five criteria. The knowledge domain with the most students who did not meet the criteria successfully was “multivariate analysis,” where more than a quarter of all students failed to meet the criteria. This suggests that greater efforts should be made by faculty teaching the course to convey this material more clearly and effectively. |
| Reflection on Results | Overall, the results of this assessment indicate that a majority of students complete SOCL 211 Statistics for Social Research with the intended level of statistical knowledge. As noted above, there is room for improvement in teaching “multivariate analysis,” which remains the most difficult and least well-grasped topic in the course. Students who go on to conduct research might benefit from taking an intermediate level statistics course focusing on multivariate analysis, if one was offered. Other than in this area, based on this assessment no major changes to the Sociology department’s statistics courses are warranted at this time. |
| Second Means of Assessment | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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Procedures & Criterion for Success | Student responses to questions on the survey of majors conducted for the last program review were examined. Question #3 asked how effectively their coursework prepared them to use statistics to answer questions. A response rate of 95% or more in the Very Much category was defined as success. |
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Intended Student Learning Outcome #2 |
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| Students will demonstrate the ability to reflect on their civic, personal, and professional lives. |
| Alignment with institutional mission and goals | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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| College Mission Reference | The entire college community works together to develop socially responsible citizens with skills and values important to the pursuit of an enriched life and success in the world. |
| Relevant College Planning Goal | Promote Civic Engagement |
| Relevant Academic Affairs Planning Goal | Increase availability of high-impact learning experiences to students. |
| Relevant Program Goal | |
| First Means of Assessment | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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Procedures & Criterion for Success | Students will write short essays reflecting on how their civic participation has affected their personal growth and their understanding of course material in their major and how their work in the major contributed to a better understanding of their civic work. Each paper will be evaluated by two faculty members using a common rubric. A successful outcome will be 85% or more of papers evaluated in the highest rubric category. |
| Results | When the two scores for each student were averaged, 80% of the papers fell into the top category. |
| Reflection on Results | The assessment results fell short of the program's criterion for success. We will discuss possible steps to be taken for improvement. We will assess this outcome again in two years and report on the entire process in our next five-year program review. |
| Second Means of Assessment | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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Procedures & Criterion for Success | Student responses to the personal development question on the Personal and Social Responsibility Inventory will be examined. A 95% response to the Very Much category on Question # 9 will be a successful outcome. |
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| Reflection on Results | |
Intended Student Learning Outcome #3 |
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| Alignment with institutional mission and goals | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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| College Mission Reference | |
| Relevant College Planning Goal | |
| Relevant Academic Affairs Planning Goal | |
| Relevant Program Goal | |
| First Means of Assessment | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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Procedures & Criterion for Success | |
| Results | |
| Reflection on Results | |
| Second Means of Assessment | Please type text in boxes below. They will expand as needed. |
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Procedures & Criterion for Success | |
| Results | |
| Reflection on Results | |
Have you made, or are you considering, any program changes in light of results from your previous round of assessment? If so, please describe the changes below.
As a result of the assessment results on outcome #1 above, we have begun developing a mid-level course in multivariate analysis.
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