Report for the Core Curriculum Committee
As part of the charge to the Core
Curriculum Committee, we were asked to develop an assessment program for the
core. The immediate motivation for this request was the recent NCA review. In
their final recommendation the site team was concerned about two things:
strategic planning and assessment. They recommended a return visit no later
than 2004-2005 at which time “With regard to student academic assessment, it is
expected that at the time of the focused visit:
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The university has an HLC approved institution-wide Student Academic Assessment
Plan that is adequately funded and being implemented.
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There is continuous assessment of student learning in all degree programs and
the general education core curriculum.
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Assessment data are being used by faculty to inform their curricular and
program decisions.
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Assessment data are being used by the administration in planning and resource
allocation decisions.”
The purpose of assessment is to improve the quality of the education that we are providing for our students. Ultimately, this is accomplished by expressing the goals of our program in measurable outcomes, devising means of assessing those outcomes and then analyzing the results to determine if we are meeting the goals and using the analysis to make improvements in the core. We want to know how well our educational goals are being accomplished. Are our students leaving the University with a good general education? How do their math, science reasoning, writing and critical thinking skills stack up? How do we compare with peer institutions? Do the results of testing indicate that we should change our curriculum to strengthen certain areas?
The Core Curriculum Committee has met on a biweekly basis and has reviewed the literature on assessment, looked at such assessment at other institutions and had three members of the committee attend a national conference on core curriculum, one strand of which was devoted to assessment. We also invited a representative from ACT to discuss the CAAP test (see below).
The program we recommend below is two-pronged. The first part is a review of the learning experiences of our students in the core curriculum courses area by area to insure that the courses still meet the requirements that we intended when they were approved for the core. As a part of the review, at the same time we plan to refine the competencies defining the area, hopefully restating the goals, where necessary, into measurable goals. In addition, we plan to refine our understanding of the nature of the definitions of the areas and to set up an explicit rubric or template against which to judge the courses.
The second prong is to ascertain student learning in the core. This will be done through analyzing grading, working with departments and through student performance on the CAAP (Collegiate Assessment of Academic Proficiency) test. Developed by ACT, CAAP assesses academic achievement in four exams: reading, mathematics, science reasoning, writing and critical thinking. The CAAP can be used to assess core curriculum general education skills and learning; it can be used to compare results to similar institutions around the country; and, by comparing CAAP scores with the ACT scores, it can be used to demonstrate change in academic performance.
Costs for the CAAP include a $330 annual participation fee plus roughly $10 per each student taking a single module of the test.
1. Review of learning experiences
(a) Annual review of courses offered and enrollments
The Core Curriculum Committee will annually review the list of core courses that are offered. The purpose of this review is to determine if sufficient numbers of courses are being offered in each of the areas and at times that accommodate students. If deficiencies are found, suggestions will pass to the dean and department chairs.
The committee will also review a list of courses that are in the core but have not been offered for three years. For courses that have not been offered or are being cancelled or are going with low enrollment, the committee will discuss the core with the affected departments. Listing courses in the core and then not having them regularly offered could mislead students.
(b) Five year review by area
The courses in each area of the core will be reviewed, by area, on a five-year, rotating basis. The intention is to evaluate each course only in so far as it contributions to the core curriculum. The aim is to ensure that courses continue to reflect the values and goals of the core and to monitor student learning vis-ŕ-vis the core. To this end, the Core Curriculum Committee will review syllabi and course materials; and will sample student work. In cooperation with the departments, the committee in cooperation may also work to develop a student survey about their experiences with the core. The committee will report their results to the departments involved. If problems are identified, the committee will work with the departments to rectify the situation.
As a part of this review, the committee will review the statement of competencies goals of the area under review to determine if changes or refinements need to be made. The intention is that the committee will work toward making the statement of goals into measurable outcomes that will become the objects of assessment. Any such recommended changes will be reported to and approved by the Faculty Senate
2. General assessment
Administer the CAAP test to selected juniors and seniors. The procedure for administering the CAAP will be as follows: In consultation with the Office of Institutional Research, select suitable representative courses, courses that give us a cross section of all of our junior and seniors. Faculty of the courses chosen will be asked to volunteer one hour to assessment. Alternate courses will be chosen should it not be feasible to work with that particular course.
The results of the CAAP testing would be reported to the Faculty Senate. If the analysis of the CAAP testing identifies areas of concern, the committee would develop a set of recommendations to deal with the concerns.