Archived Assessment Report
| Program | BIOL Science Gen Ed |
| Assessment Reporter | [email protected] |
| Theme | Practicing Community |
| Review Year | 2024-2025 - Midpoint Report |
| Learning Outcome (or Gen Ed Essential Skill) | Focus Area |
|---|---|
| 2a. Personal and Social Responsibility: Intercultural reasoning and intercultural competence | Can students work together to maintain lab safety and set up standards. |
| 2b. Personal and Social Responsibility: Sustainability and the natural and human worlds | Can students identify a relevant, scientifically critical news topic about the human and natural words and communicate the main findings of this topic to their classmates. |
| 2e. Personal and Social Responsibility: Civic discourse, civic knowledge and engagement – local and global | Can students identify a relevant, scientifically critical news topic about the human and natural words and communicate the main findings of this topic to their classmates. |
| 3a. Quantitative Reasoning: Communication/Representation of Quantitative Information | Can students accurately interpret data on a graph and predict trends and outcomes Can students summarize a lab projects' quantitative data using graphics and other modes of data representation . |
| Learning Outcome (or Gen Ed Essential Skill) | Description of Assessment Tool | Population or Courses Assessed | Hypothetical Analysis/Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2a. Personal and Social Responsibility: Intercultural reasoning and intercultural competence | Students will be assessed on a 5-6 pt rubric for lab safety and set up. | BIOL 1140L F2F, in the future will apply this tool to DL as well. | ~70% threshold |
| 2b. Personal and Social Responsibility: Sustainability and the natural and human worlds | Students will summarize a critical scientific news topic about the human or natural world using a common rubric. | BIOL 1110 F2F and DL | 70% or better on assignment |
| 2e. Personal and Social Responsibility: Civic discourse, civic knowledge and engagement – local and global | Students will summarize a critical scientific news topic about the human or natural world using a common rubric. | BIOL 1110 | success threshold of 70% or greater |
| 3a. Quantitative Reasoning: Communication/Representation of Quantitative Information | BIOL 1110L: Final exam question series on graphs about a heart rate trend for post- exercising students BIOL 2110: a specific lab summary and write up with specific data requirements such as graphs | BIOL 1110L F2F and DL BIOL 2110L F2F and DL | 70% threshold for lab write up summary and 70% pass rate or greater on each part of the heart rate question series |
| Learning Outcome (or Gen Ed Essential Skill) | Summary of Results | Reflection on Focus Area | Intepretation of Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2a. Personal and Social Responsibility: Intercultural reasoning and intercultural competence | BIOL 1140L results:. Three sections of 1140L were assessed totaling 52 students. A rubric with a system of check marks was used to evaluate 4 areas of communication/social responsibility. Overall 43/52 or 83% achieved our benchmark (75%) or better for all possible points for this activity. Breakdown 1) "Students talk to peers to plan experiment" 43/52 or 83% received a point for this measure. " 2) "Records mass or egg before and after soak" using correct units" 41/52 or 81% received a point for this measure. 3) "Records egg mass and reports a visible changes in notebook" 47/52 or 90%, received a point for this measure. 4) "Performs microscope steps to correctly view a slide", 44/52 or 84% received a point for this measure. | BIOL 1140L results reflection: The majority of our students demonstrated a strong ability to communicate with their peers in experimental planning as well as the ability to record accurate data for future analyses. | BIOL 1140L results interpretation: While the majority of our students demonstrated strong oral and written communication skills, it was observed (anecdotally) that there is a small group of students in each group that do not engage with their peers during a group activity. Another subset did not record any data during the experiment. It is noted that only 3 sections were assessed, from one instructor for a total of 52 students. |
| 2b. Personal and Social Responsibility: Sustainability and the natural and human worlds | For BIOL 1110 classes, a total of 97 students about 50% DL (N =46) and 50% F2F (N-51) were assessed using this measure. For all students only about 53% (n=52/97) actively completed the assignment. Of the 52 students who completed the assignment from both class modalities, 44/52 (85%) achieved a 70% on the assignment and met the benchmark for summarizing an important science news topics using a rubric. 8/52 (15%) did not meet a 70% benchmark. To further break down these number there was higher participation among DL classes with 34/46 DL students participating (74%) and only 18/51 (35%) of F2F students participating. The F2F % numbers did vary by section, and instructor. For both F2F sections counted, the % of students who met the benchmark was 17/18 or 94%, where as for the DL students, 27/34 (79%) students met benchmark. | The results of students who participated, 44/52 or 85% met the benchmark score of a 70% on the assessment or greater. This indicates that the students can identify a news area of general interest and effectively summarize the topic. | These results show overall general student effectiveness in this communications assessment. The N is lower than we would hope to see for participation. The difference in values in DL and F2F classes in both participation and overall % of benchmark met could be further investigated. |
| 2e. Personal and Social Responsibility: Civic discourse, civic knowledge and engagement – local and global | A total of 97 students about 50% DL (N =46) and 50% F2F (N-51) were assessed using this measure. For all students only about 53% (n=52/97) actively completed the assignment. Of the 52 students who completed the assignment from both class modalities, 44/52 (85%) achieved a 70% on the assignment and met the benchmark for summarizing an important science news topics using a rubric. 8/52 (15%) did not meet a 70% benchmark. To further break down these number there was higher participation among DL classes with 34/46 DL students participating (74%) and only 18/51 (35%) of F2F students participating. The F2F % numbers did vary by section, and instructor. For both F2F sections counted, the % of students who met the benchmark was 17/18 or 94%, where as for the DL students, 27/34 (79%) students met benchmark. | The results of students who participated, 44/52 or 85% met the benchmark score of a 70% on the assessment or greater. This indicates that the students can identify a news area of general interest and effectively summarize the | These results show overall general student effectiveness in this communications assessment. The N is lower than we would hope to see for participation. The difference in values in DL and F2F classes in both participation and overall % of benchmark met could be further investigated. |
| 3a. Quantitative Reasoning: Communication/Representation of Quantitative Information | BIOL 1110L results: still waiting for compilation BIOL 2110 L results: Students were assessed on a lab discussion for a 70% better summary of the lab results. 85% of students achieved this metric. | BIOL 1110L results: still waiting for compilation BIOL 2110L reflection: The data did support the outcome | BIOL 1110L results: still waiting for compilation BIOL 2110L int: This show us the students are able to communicate with each other and present their findings in a scientific format. |
| 2a. Personal and Social Responsibility: Intercultural reasoning and intercultural competence | |
|---|---|
| Describe the change that was implemented. | 1140L: We plan to 1) Use a more simplified assessment rubric for the next round, 2) get greater faculty response, and higher numbers to look at the response. |
| Type of Change |
|
| Change in Assessment Approach or Tools? | Yes, and we have already modified the tool for use in a second round of assessment. |
| What data motivated the change? | We applied the more complicated assessment to 3 sections of 1140L. The instructor who used the rubric found it cumbersome and hard to do well. We have modified the rubric based on her feedback, and for the next round will expand to all sections of this course offered to gather more robust data. |
| Hypothesis about the effect the change will have? | The changes should make the faculty more likely to collect the data, and with greater numbers we hope to have a more accurate picture of how well our students are working together in teams during this selected lab experiment. |
| 2b. Personal and Social Responsibility: Sustainability and the natural and human worlds | |
|---|---|
| Describe the change that was implemented. | This term we plan to try to get all faculty teaching this course to participate in assessment, and to offer it as a requirement rather than optional which is what seems to have occurred the last round for some sections. |
| Type of Change |
|
| Change in Assessment Approach or Tools? | No |
| What data motivated the change? | The raw data suggested that many students in the sections did not participate in the assessment giving skewed data by instructor. |
| Hypothesis about the effect the change will have? | Improved participation in the assessment will give a better picture across instructors and the course sequence of how well this topic is handled by our students. |
| 2e. Personal and Social Responsibility: Civic discourse, civic knowledge and engagement – local and global | |
|---|---|
| Describe the change that was implemented. | This Learning outcome is covered by the same tool and assessment as in 2b so our changes are the same as for that outcome. |
| Type of Change |
|
| Change in Assessment Approach or Tools? | no |
| What data motivated the change? | This Learning outcome is covered by the same tool and assessment as in 2b so our changes are the same as for that outcome. |
| Hypothesis about the effect the change will have? | This Learning outcome is covered by the same tool and assessment as in 2b so our changes are the same as for that outcome. |
| 3a. Quantitative Reasoning: Communication/Representation of Quantitative Information | |
|---|---|
| Describe the change that was implemented. | |
| Type of Change | |
| Change in Assessment Approach or Tools? | |
| What data motivated the change? | |
| Hypothesis about the effect the change will have? | |
| Learning Outcome (or Gen Ed Essential Skill) | Description of Assessment Tool | Population of Courses Assessed |
|---|---|---|
| 2a. Personal and Social Responsibility: Intercultural reasoning and intercultural competence | Th tool used to assess this topic is a checkmark on three specific skills used in the Osmosis lab of 1140L and monitored throughout the class experiments. | 1140L |
| 2b. Personal and Social Responsibility: Sustainability and the natural and human worlds | The same tool as used in the last round- the science in the news homework will be used again for this round. | BIOL 1110 |
| 2e. Personal and Social Responsibility: Civic discourse, civic knowledge and engagement – local and global | The tool that will be used is the Science in the News Homework, | BIOL 1110 |
| 3a. Quantitative Reasoning: Communication/Representation of Quantitative Information |
| Learning Outcome (or Gen Ed Essential Skill) | Summary of Second Round Results | Intepretation of Results, Pre- and Post-Change | Follow up questions, possible next steps |
|---|
Describe any change in student achievement observed as part of this assessment process, and what led to those changes.
Describe long-term changes in the program(s) that the assessment process led to, and what motivated those changes?
What did you learn about the teaching and learning of "Practicing Community" in your programs?
Describe any external factors affecting the program or affecting assessment of the program.