Departmental Assessment Update - Social Sciences Report

Department: Geography
Program: BA
Level: Undergraduate

1. Has your program developed learning outcomes? If yes, please list.

In the past the geography department has used capstone seminar papers, exit interviews and portfolios as evidence for student learning outcomes. However after attending a number of different seminars and workshops on assessment, we have decided to start over since the speakers classed these efforts as worthless.

The faculty has met weekly for the last five weeks to try to accomplish a program mission statement that reflects our requirements. This was unsuccessful because many of the faculty felt that we had to start first by defining a new set of undergraduate major requirements. At the present we are working on defining three tracts or streams that reflect the clusters of faculty specialties.

When we define the streams, then the mission statement can be crafted to reflect the new requirements. We have developed several tentative program outcomes that can be evaluated however these are still in drafts under discussion.

2. If your program has learning outcomes, where are they published (e.g., department web page)?

They will be printed, along with the mission statement in the web page, the catalog and distributed to each new declared major.

3. Do your faculty list course learning outcomes on their syllabi?

Most do.

4. Does your program have a curriculum map that links course outcomes to program outcomes? If so, please include.

No, that will come after the program outcomes are developed.

5. Does your program benchmark or have goals for student performance? (e.g. 70% students will graduate within 5 years)

No

6. Other than GPA, what data/evidence is used to determine that graduates have achieved stated outcomes for the degree? (i.e. capstone project, class assignment)

Primarily the jobs that find or the higher education they seek.

7. Who interprets the evidence of student learning?

Undergraduate advisor.

8. How are the assessment data/results used to inform decisions concerning the curriculum and administration of the program?

They are not.