The University of Toledo

Department of Music and Dance

 

Assessment Plan

 

 

Department of Music - Mission Statement

The Department of Music seeks to provide its students with a comprehensive education to prepare them for professional careers in music education and performance, including classical and jazz traditions.  Undergraduate and graduate courses in music education, performance, technology, history, and composition are offered for music majors and minors, as well as general academic courses for non-majors. The department promotes the highest professional standards, a scholarly approach to academic subjects, and awareness of aesthetic values. Additionally, the department is committed to providing opportunities for participation in or access to artistic musical activities for all University students and members of the community. The department is committed to engaging in scholarly research, providing a rich variety of performance activities, and offering service to the University and community.

 

Goals and Objectives

Goal 1

Students will demonstrate the ability to write in a clear, effective style and to use research materials to strengthen their arguments.

Objective 1.  Students will demonstrate the ability to write a clear thesis statement and develop the ideas necessary to support it.

Objective 2.  Students will demonstrate the skills needed to research a topic, to gather ideas from disparate sources, and to organize the presentation of the information that aids the development of the paper.

 

Goal 2

Students will demonstrate an understanding of musical genre, historical periods, and composers.

Objective 1.  Students will demonstrate their knowledge of subject areas in music history and provide historically accurate information on the topic.   

 

 

Goal 3

Students will demonstrate an understanding of multiple cultural perspectives in music, as well as a diversity of musical influences within one style.

 

                                                                                                                                                                          

Goal 4

Students will demonstrate the ability to identify historical development and make connections between developments within time and place.

 

 

Undergraduate Methodology

The Department of Music and Dance will create student portfolios that may include the following materials:

 

1. Writing Samples

Music majors will contribute samples of their writing from various stages of the degree program.

  • Students will choose a writing sample that was written in conjunction with class requirements for 2000 level music history course.
  • Students will designate a 3000 or 4000 level course as their “capstone” and contribute a paper or project completed in conjunction with the class requirements.
  • Students will choose a third writing sample for inclusion in the portfolio.

 

An Assessment Committee consisting of Department of Music and Dance faculty will review the writing samples.  Assessment will be scored according to a rubric created by the department.  (See Appendix A)  Scores will be quantified for purposes of comparison over time.

 

2.  Exit Interview

The Assessment Committee will prepare an “exit questionnaire” for completion by music majors enrolled in 4000 level courses during the spring semester of their senior year.

 

3. Transcript

Assessment Committee members will provide a brief analysis of the transcript that identifies patterns in course selection and grades.  This analysis will be used to provide a comprehensive portrait of the degree program.

 

 

Graduate Methodology

The Department of Music and Dance will begin tracking the following information:

 

1. Comprehensive Examinations

Students pursuing a Master’s degree take comprehensive examinations upon completing their coursework in the department.  These examinations are independently graded by several members of the department.  These scores will be recorded and archived in a yearly database that will allow the department to track changes in the performance of our graduate students over time.

 

2. Theses

Students in the Masters level research and write theses or projects that are independently graded and evaluated by a committee of graduate faculty.  Faculty will be urged to grade students according to an established evaluation rubric in addition to their overall evaluation.  These scores, in addition to the name of the student’s faculty advisor, and the student’s years in residence at UT will be archived in a database and updated yearly.

 

 

 

Timeline:

End of Spring Semester

Student papers will be requested for the portfolio.

Beginning of Fall Semester

The Assessment committee will meet to evaluate student portfolios.

End of Fall semester

Evaluations, including data on graduate examinations, projects, and theses, will be tabulated and archived by the department chairperson.  A comparison report will be prepared by the chair of the Assessment Committee.  This report will be the basis for department-wide discussions of curricular and programmatic changes.

 

 

Assessment Committee Members: 2004-2005

Lee Heritage, Department Chair

Bonnie Fleming

Erik Johanson

Stephen Hodge

 

 

This document was approved by the faculty of the Department of Music and Dance on 12-7-2004.

 

Appendix A

 

Rubric for the Evaluation of Music Department Student Essays (16 possible points)

 

Level      

1

2

3

4

General Writing and

-Undeveloped ideas

-Develops a variety of simple ideas

-Presents ideas of simple complexity

Develops ideas fully to create greater understanding

Research Skills

(Goal 1)

-No clear point of view

-Point of view

somewhat clear

-Point of view clearly

expressed

-Point of view clearly

and convincingly expressed

 

-Weak vocabulary

-Contains some good

vocabulary

-Contains good

vocabulary              

-Contains new terminology that

supports the work

 

-One type of sentence

- Contains a variety of sentence structures 

- Contains a wide variety of sentence structures

- Contains a wide variety of sentence structures effectively used.

 

-There is no clear    

structure or organization

-Some evidence of

structure                 

-Structure is logical

and effective           

-Structure supports

the thesis and enhances

the argument

 

-No thesis has been

stated

-A thesis is present

but is not clearly

expressed

-A thesis is clearly

expressed

-Thesis clearly

expressed and resolved

 

-Rudimentary research

undertaken little use

of relevant secondary

sources

-Evidence of research

sketchy use of relevant

secondary sources  

-Use of both primary

and secondary sources.  Some major resources used on the topic.

-Extensive appropriate

and varied use of both primary and secondary sources and includes all major resources on the topic. 

 

-No bibliography or

sourcing, footnotes, quotes

-Bibliography present but incomplete.  Limited use of footnotes and quotes.

-Bibliography is complete with proper style of citation for both bibliography and footnotes.  Use of footnotes and quotes is appropriate.

-Extensive bibliography

correctly presented  with proper style of citation

and sophisticated use

of quotes is present.  Quotes are well documented.

Historical               

Understanding     

of Genre/

Period/Composer

(Goal 2)                 

-No evidence of awareness of genre/period/composer

-States understanding of genre/period/composer in overly broad sometimes inappropriate, irrelevant references.

-States understanding of genre/period/composer with increased specificity, coherence and relevance               

-Shows thorough

understanding genre/period/composer with fluency using many specific and appropriate references.

 

-There are several major

factual errors and

omissions

-There are factual errors and omissions

-There are only a few

factual errors and

omissions

-No factual errors or

omissions

Cultural                

Understanding

(Goal 3)                 

-No evidence of awareness

of cultural/social contexts multiple perspectives

 

-States understanding of cultural/social contexts in overly broad sometimes inappropriate, irrelevant references from limited perspectives.           

-States understanding of cultural/social contexts with increased specificity, coherence and relevance from a broadening number of perspectives

-States thorough understanding of cultural/social contexts with fluency using many specific and appropriate references enlightened by multiple perspectives.

Cognitive

Connections

(Goal 4) 

-Unable to demonstrate an understanding of the connections between the content that was learned previously, the current content and newly encountered content and is unable to articulate those connections

- Demonstrates a vague understanding of the connections between the content that was learned previously, the current content and newly encountered content and is able to articulate limited connections

- Demonstrates an understanding of the connections between the content that was learned previously, the current content and newly encountered content and is able to articulate those connections

- Demonstrates a thorough understanding of the connections between the content that was learned previously, the current content and the newly encountered content and is able to fluently articulate those connections

 

-Does not refer to musical elements of the music

-States understanding of musical elements in overly broad sometimes inappropriate, irrelevant references

-States understanding of musical elements with increased specificity, coherence and relevance

               

-States thorough understanding of musical elements with fluency using many specific and appropriate references.