Departmental Assessment Update - Arts and Humanities Report
Department: Speech
Program: BA
Level: Undergraduate
1. Has your program developed learning outcomes? If
yes, please list.
Yes. We just revised our SLOs. Dept of Speech SLOs: 1. To demonstrate understanding of key concepts and theories in communication a. To demonstrate understanding of key concepts and theories of message processing b. To demonstrate understanding of key concepts and theories of social influence c. To demonstrate understanding of key concepts and theories of relational communication d. To demonstrate understanding of the relationship between culture and communication 2. To demonstrate the ability to apply the understanding of key concepts and theories in communication in a variety of contexts, including: a. To demonstrate the ability to apply the understanding of key concepts and theories of message processing b. To demonstrate the ability to apply the understanding of key concepts and theories of social influence c. To demonstrate the ability to apply the understanding of key concepts and theories of relational communication d. To demonstrate the ability to apply the understanding of the relationship between culture and communication 3. To demonstrate understanding of basic communication research concepts and processes, including: a. The ethics involved in conducting human subjects research b. Basic library and Internet research c. Basic research design, data collection, and analysis d. Structure of basic research reports 4. To demonstrate the ability to analyze demographic and situational factors and the ability to apply that information to achieve communicative goals
2. If your program has learning outcomes, where are
they published (e.g., department web page)?
We have our old SLOs listed in the website, UH catalog, and informational brochures. We will be working on updating these with new SLOs this year.
3. Do your faculty list course learning outcomes on
their syllabi?
All faculty members at the Department list their course goals in their syllabi. However, there is a sizable variation across faculty as to how close the articulated course goals are to learning outcomes.
4. Does your program have a curriculum map that
links course outcomes to program outcomes? If
so, please include.
Yes, but only for our required classes. Map included below. It is in a table format, and won't fit properly in the space provided. Let me know if you need me to send you the table separately. SLO SP251 SP301 SP302 SP364 SP381 SP370 SP385* SP470 1 I 1A I D D D M D M 1B D D M D D D D 1C D D M D D D 1D I D D D D M D 2 I I 2A I D M D M 2B D M D D D 2C D M D D D 2D I D D D M D 3 3A M I I 3B D I M D D D D D 3C M D D D D D 3D M D D 4 D I I M D D M D I: Introductory level D: Developed & Practiced with Feedback M: Demonstrated at the Mastery Level Appropriate for Graduation
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)
We assess the Speech majors’ acquisition of fundamental content in human communication as presented in our required classes: Sp 201, Theories in Speech Communication; Sp 251, Public Speaking; Sp 302, Introduction to Inquiry; Sp 364, Persuasion; Sp 370/470 (students choose between Verbal Communication or Nonverbal Communication); and Sp 381, Interpersonal Communication. Specifically, an instrument was developed that uses a multiple choice format to assess students’ knowledge of the content areas covered by our core courses. At the end of each semester, all graduating majors (minors will be included beginning this academic year) are required to make an appointment to complete the assessment instrument, and the results are compared to data from a control group. Serving as the control group are undergraduates who were enrolled in Speech 151 (during the Fall 2002 semester) and who have never taken a Speech Class. These students completed the assessment instrument during the first week of classes. Speech 151 is a course that does not count toward the Speech Major and draws students from a variety of majors. In addition, we also collect data on students’ subjective assessments of their learning as well as their assessment of the Department of Speech. These data are collected in an exit survey completed by all graduating seniors in Speech. The instrument records various demographic data; the number of Speech classes students have taken; students’ perceptions of faculty knowledge and enthusiasm; students’ beliefs about the importance and usefulness of what they learned in Speech classes; and students’ interactions with professors in Speech. Finally, students also respond to items that assess their perceptions of their learning in the various content areas covered by the core courses as well as student perceptions regarding their improvement in writing skills; oral communication skills; critical thinking skills; and information search and retrieval skills.
7. Who interprets the evidence of student learning?
We have a departmental assessment committee. The chair of the committee is responsible for conducting the necessary statistical tests, interpreting outcomes, and reporting back to all faculty.
8. How are the assessment data/results used to
inform decisions concerning the curriculum and
administration of the program?
Our data provide direct and indirect evidence of learning as well as students’ perceptions of their experience in and satisfaction with the department. After several years of cumulative data collection, patterns have emerged that have pedagogical implications. It is clear that our graduating majors understand and retain course content significantly better than the comparison group. Nevertheless, variance in effect sizes in understanding and retention of material across required courses suggests that some content is retained better than other content. This is most likely the result of certain content areas being given redundant attention across courses. Consequently we are increasing our efforts to give more attention to areas (such as research methods) that have shown the smallest effect sizes. Over the years we have offered multiple sections of our required courses in any given semester, and various faculty have taught these courses in that time. Naturally some diversity in content has evolved. Consequently we have embarked on a program to standardize our course content and SLOs for required courses. This year we began collecting data from graduating minors as well as majors in order to assess the success of our minor program.