SACSCOC Fifth Year Interim Report
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Assessment : 2013 - 2014 : Educational Programs :
Agriculture BS (Animal Science)
Agriculture BS (Animal Science)
2 Goals 2 Objectives 2 Indicators 2 Criteria 2 Findings 2 Actions
| GOAL: Knowledge Of Key Concepts And Skills |
| Objective |
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Students will be able to demonstrate competency in key areas of animal science. |
| Indicator |
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All students enrolled in the program must complete an advanced animal science course. The course for assessment (AGRI 3373) addresses key concepts relevant to the field of animal science and knowledge expected for animal science graduates. During the fall semester, 15 randomly selected student assignments will be reviewed by animal science faculty members. Faculty members will score the assignments using a scale of 1 - 5 with 3 "meets expectations," 4 "exceeds expectations," and 5 "far exceeds expectations." |
| Criterion |
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There will be a general consensus among Animal Science Faculty members that at least 70% of the students enrolled in the advanced course will perform at an acceptable level with a score of 3 (meets expectations) or higher, especially in the areas of scientific knowledge, application of knowledge, and grammar. Weaknesses continue to be observed in grammar, organization of thought and clarity. Although we averaged a 4.1 last year, and average includes those below that point although they still might "meet expectations." Thus, the standard will remain at 3 (meets expectations) for this assessment period. |
| Finding |
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Overall, 66% of the students achieved an overall score of 3.0 (met expectations) from the rubric with the average score of 3.5. The low percentage achieving expectations was evident do to the number of assessed documents that lacked scientific knowledge and unable to document application of knowledge, average score of 2.9 and 2.6, respectively. However, an improvement over other assessment periods was high scores in grammar and clarity with average scores of 4.4 and 3.6, respectively, were achieved. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
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Assessed student documents demonstrated an improvement in grammar and clarity of writing. This improvement can be attributed to an increased objective of writing activity across the animal science curriculum that has been initiated in freshman courses. Though, scientific knowledge was slightly shy of expectations the course will address alternative methods (outlines of lectures, course packets, etc.) of providing the scientific information to students. Providing lecture outlines will allow the student to listen more closely to faculty explanations of concepts. This should allow the student to improve their assimilation of the knowledge and improve their application of the knowledge. |
| GOAL: Develop Professional Skills |
| Objective |
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| Students completing the BS in Animal Science will demonstrate skills necessary to compete in the professional marketplace. |
| Indicator |
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| All students seeking a degree in Animal Science will be required to complete AGRI 4120 during their senior year. The course addresses essential skills necessary to compete in the market place for agriculture employment - resume preparation, interview skills, and employment opportunities. Faculty will review student assignments and access student performance on selected assignments using a faculty-developed rubric. |
| Criterion |
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| Faculty evaluations are expected to indicate that at least 70% of the animal science students enrolled in AGRI 4120 will perform at an acceptable level and score a 3 (meets expectations) or higher on a scale of 1-5. Organization, grammar and content were identified as areas needing improvement from 2012-2013 assessment. We averaged 4.1 last year and will up the expectation to from 3.0 to 3.5 for this assessment period. |
| Finding |
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The average score from the assessment was 3.2. Strengths were: quality in resumes and well organized, cover letters we acceptable with some attention need to grammar. Weaknesses were following instructions on reference pages and letters of references. Evaluators are satisfied with the student outcomes thought the average score is below the expected goal. The shortfalls were minor in the scheme of professional resumes writing, etc. Instructor will spend more time on explaining importance of reference pages and alignment in subsequent assessment periods. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
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Though the actual score was not met the professional writing skills and organizational outcomes were met from the evaluated documents. The shortfalls were noted and more detailed explanations will be provided. |
| Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
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Faculty will emphasize professional writing skills and Math in lower level courses to enhance their writing and STEM attributes. Organization of thoughts on paper is difficult for some students and math is a challenge.
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| Update on Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
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Writing skills and grammar have shown improvements from past assessment periods, these improvements are believed to be attributed to the across curriculum writing emphasis.
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| Plan for Continuous Improvement |
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Emphasis will continue on professional writing and concise writing skills. Lecture outlines and lecture modifications will be incorporated in the classroom to improve student scientific knowledge and application of such knowledge.
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