Unit: Anthropology
Program: Anthropology (BA)
Degree: Bachelor's
Date: Mon Dec 10, 2012 - 3:09:16 pm

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

1. Learn to think anthropologically, specifically to include cross-cultural perspectives, especially in regard to issues of diversity and commonality in understanding human societies.

2. Gain a basic understanding of the origin and development of humanity.

3. Develop the ability to think critically about cultural assumptions and use active learning modes in assessing their effects on social processes.

4. Acquire a holistic understanding of how biological evolution and cultural histories interact.

5. Understand how populations adapt to social and environmental change, especially in terms of human empowerment.

6. Become culturally literate with regard to the physical and cultural dimensions of the Pacific and Asian regions, including historical movements and connections among diverse populations.

7. Learn various methods employed by anthropologists from a variety of sub-disciplines and specializations.

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

Department Website URL: http://www.anthropology.hawaii.edu/index.html
Student Handbook. URL, if available online:
Information Sheet, Flyer, or Brochure URL, if available online: http://www.anthropology.hawaii.edu/Programs/Degrees/Bachelor%20of%20Arts/Majoring_Flyer.pdf
UHM Catalog. Page Number:
Course Syllabi. URL, if available online: http://socialsciences.people.hawaii.edu/esyllabi/index.cfm
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.

The assessment instrument consists of a short list of pertinent concepts that the faculty believes any person holding a BA degree in anthropology ought to be able to respond to more or less competently.  We agree on the questions, the criteria for assessing the respondents.  The two questions chosen for this exercise were: 1) What does it mean to think anthropologically? and 2) Critically interpret or analyze a basic culture assumption in your culture, American culture, or some other culture.

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.

The data for assessment of learning outcome was obtained from 2 semester classroom attendees during the academic year 2011-2012.  The procedure: ask students to take 15 or 20 minutes to respond in writing to 2 questions, that this was not a quiz for this course but data for anthropology colleagues to assess their effectiveness in communicating core ideas of the undergraduate curriculum in anthropology, that since this 490 course was the closest to a undergraduate summit course, we were asking the participants in 490 for their responses. It was made clear that this exercise was entirely voluntary but that each participant would receive an extra one point credit toward their final score in this course. Also, that the name of each participant would be excised from the essay when it was given to other faculty to assess. There were 14 juniors and 18 seniors (and two that did not indicate class).

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

see previous page #7

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.

The responses are assessed at 4 levels:  3 is “on the way to mastering the craft” at the UG level. 2 is “becoming a journeyman,” 1 is “becoming a novice,” and 0 indicates a “lack of any progress toward knowing the craft of anthropology.”  These assessments are made by colleagues who volunteer their time.  The criteria used for assessment include showing some critical insight for “mastering the craft,” ability to comprehend the significance and intent of the question for the status of “journeyman,” and coming up with comprehensible assertions on the topic at hand  for “novice.”  Leaving the space blank or inarticulate or sarcastic assertions warranted a “0.”

The results

 The results are divided juniors (N=14) and seniors  (N=18) (two respondents failed to indicate their class rank).  The average assessment scores are the same for juniors and seniors: 1.8, which is the high end of what faculty assessors regard as “novice.”  Or we could say the UG respondents are moving from novice to journeymen in their craft of anthropology. The seniors had the widest standard deviation since two of them were

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

Results will be discussed among concerned faculty and discussed about what to do next.

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.

not yet

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.

none to report yet.