Unit: Ethnic Studies
Program: Ethnic Studies (BA)
Degree: Bachelor's
Date: Wed Oct 10, 2012 - 10:48:54 am

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

1. To demonstrate-through papers, exams, class discussions, service learning, et. al.- a grasp of the core concepts in the ethnic studies field.  This includes ethnic and racial group dynamics, histories and identities, as well as challenges facing indigenous peoples and minorities, inter-group conflicts, racism and discrimination.

2. To demonstrate-through class discussions, papers, exams service learning, et. al.-the ability to make explicit connections between ethnicity/race and other aspects of social life (ie. economy, politics, cultural values and gender relations).

3. To demonstrate an understanding-through class discussions, papers, exams, service learning, et. al.- of the unique history of Hawai’i’s multi-ethnic working people and the importance of social justice everywhere.

4.  To demonstrate through the use of reading, writing and thinking skills the ability to critically analyze both historic and contemporary patterns and issues in multi-ethnic societies.

5.   To demonstrate the ability to connect classroom ideas and knowledge to current events and processes in both Hawai’i’s communities and the world beyond.

6.  To demonstrate an understanding of civic engagement and the skills involved in change-oriented democratic citizenship.

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

Department Website URL: http://www.ethnicstudies.hawaii.edu/pages/academic_program.html
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: http://socialsciences.people.hawaii.edu/esyllabi/?subject=es
Other:
Other:

3) Select one option:

Curriculum Map File(s) from 2012:

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) Did your program engage in any program assessment activities between June 1, 2011 and September 30, 2012? (e.g., establishing/revising outcomes, aligning the curriculum to outcomes, collecting evidence, interpreting evidence, using results, revising the assessment plan, creating surveys or tests, etc.)

Yes
No (skip to question 14)

6) For the period June 1, 2011 to September 30, 2012: State the assessment question(s) and/or assessment goals. Include the SLOs that were targeted, if applicable.

SKIP

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

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

9) 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:

10) 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:

11) For the assessment question(s) and/or assessment goal(s) stated in Question #6:
Summarize the actual results.

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

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

14) If the program did not engage in assessment activities, please explain.
Or, if the program did engage in assessment activities, please add any other important information here.

The Ethnic Studies Department has been mainly engaged in recent years in hiring and integrating new faculty.  However, the task of evaluating whether we are fulfilling our mission of academic endeavor and community service requires that we reinvigorate our approach to assessment.  We have a departmental retreat scheduled for October 26th in which current and future approaches to assessment are definitely on the agenda.  We need to identify and celebrate areas of success in the realization of our student learning outcomes and identify shortcomings and students who are not achieving what we think is vital.  Then, we need to formulate new plans to achieve our SLOs and implement changes to fulfill them.