Unit: Pacific Islands Studies
Program: Pacific Islands Studies (BA)
Degree: Bachelor's
Date: Tue Oct 18, 2011 - 2:33:46 pm

1) Below are your program student learning outcomes (SLOs). Please update as needed.

BA in Pacific Islands Studies

1.1 Students can describe the diversity of Oceania.

1.2 Students can identify major events in the history of the region.

1.3 Students can recognize and explain indigenous issues and concerns.

1.4 Students can analyze processes of change in island societies.

1.5 Students can engage with Pacific Island communities at home or abroad.

2) Your program's SLOs are published as follows. Please update as needed.

Department Website URL:
Student Handbook. URL, if available online:
Information Sheet, Flyer, or Brochure URL, if available online:
UHM Catalog. Page Number:
Course Syllabi. URL, if available online: NA
Other:
Other:

3) Below is the link(s) to your program's curriculum map(s). If we do not have your curriculum map, please upload it as a PDF.

Curriculum Map File(s) from 2011:

4) For your program, the percentage of courses that have course SLOs explicitly stated on the syllabus, a website, or other publicly available document is as follows. Please update as needed.

0%
1-50%
51-80%
81-99%
100%

5) For the period June 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011: State the assessment question(s) and/or assessment goals. Include the SLOs that were targeted, if applicable.

  1. As we develop the courses necessary to round out the BA program, will embedded assignments simplify data collection and assessment tasks?

6) State the type(s) of evidence gathered to answer the assessment question and/or meet the assessment goals that were given in Question #5.

  1. Embedded writing assignments, final course products, and exam questions were collected for general review and discussion.

7) State how many persons submitted evidence that was evaluated. If applicable, please include the sampling technique used.

  1. Writing assignments, 50%: 10; Course products, 50%: 10; Exam question responses, 50%: 15.

8) Who interpreted or analyzed the evidence that was collected? (Check all that apply.)

Course instructor(s)
Faculty committee
Ad hoc faculty group
Department chairperson
Persons or organization outside the university
Faculty advisor
Advisors (in student support services)
Students (graduate or undergraduate)
Dean/Director
Other:

9) How did they evaluate, analyze, or interpret the evidence? (Check all that apply.)

Used a rubric or scoring guide
Scored exams/tests/quizzes
Used professional judgment (no rubric or scoring guide used)
Compiled survey results
Used qualitative methods on interview, focus group, open-ended response data
External organization/person analyzed data (e.g., external organization administered and scored the nursing licensing exam)
Other:

10) For the assessment question(s) and/or assessment goal(s) stated in Question #5:
Summarize the actual results.

  1. Embedding assessment tasks in course design and archiving student work is an efficient method to assure regular assessment of course and program SLOs will occur. These tentative tasks were carried out by individual instructors, and data shared with the curriculum committee. Other strategies discussed include external evaluations of student capstone presentations and service learning hours.

11) State how the program used the results or plans to use the results. Please be specific.

Adapting assessment strategies to a developing BA degree requires engaging faculty who also teach graduate courses. With multiple sections of our introductory, required, PACS 108 course, assessment of course and program SLOs is particularly essential. We will continue to embed assessment tasks into course assignments, archive student work, and have courses with multiple instructors meet at the beginning, middle, and end of each semester to share assignments, student progress, and teaching strategies. These meetings help to reinforce program and course goals and encourage archiving of relevant assignments.

BA program assessment is being integrated into the Senior capstone course and its assessment tasks. Further, developing a simple method for assessing the impact of service learning on student learning outcomes at the course and program levels is also a significant task. We are considering establishing an exit survey much like that used in 2010 with MA graduates.

12) Beyond the results, were there additional conclusions or discoveries?
This can include insights about assessment procedures, teaching and learning, program aspects and so on.

As the “assessment coordinator” in a center with only 3.25 full time teaching faculty at the moment (one colleague has taken leave for 2 years), I have learned over the past year that assessment will only happen if one faculty person suggests a process of assessment, and actively encourages others to embed and archive assessment tasks and student work, and then meet at designated times to evaluate student work.

This is very challenging since each of us serves on scholarship, admissions, thesis, and other committees, is actively involved in Center publications and outreach, and pursues individual scholarship.

Adding assessment into the familiar and already busy routines is sometimes viewed as an imposition, and with suspicion, even among a small staff, perhaps, particularly among a small staff. We could use some help brainstorming ways to integrate and regularize these tasks into our hectic schedules.

Although we did not get the information posted to our website this year, we intend to publish the MA and BA SLOs through a link on our website. We also will post sample PACS syllabi.

13) Other important information.
Please note: If the program did not engage in assessment, please explain. If the program created an assessment plan for next year, please give an overview.

We had limited assessment activities in the past year for many reasons, one prominent reason being a joint focus on the MA AND newly approved BA (Dec. 2010). Additionally, unanticipated faculty leave resulted in a shuffling of responsibilities and the Center’s projects and goals for the academic year.

Our/My assessment goal for 2011-2012 is to draft a comprehensive assessment plan and a collective design a procedure for regular, ongoing assessment in conjunction with curriculum committee meetings. We will seek the input and direction of the UHM Assessment Office.