SACS Reaffirmation
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Assessment : 2007 - 2008 : Educational Programs :
Psychology BS
4 Goals 4 Objectives 4 Indicators 5 Criteria 5 Findings 5 Actions
GOAL: Apply and Communicate Scientific Knowledge
| Objective | Students apply and communicate scientific knowledge | |
| Students who complete the BS program in Psychology will be able to apply the results of scientific investigations and communicate their implications. Associated Goals: Apply and Communicate Scientific Knowledge |
| Indicator | Assessment Of Ability To Apply And Communicate Scientific Knowledge  The ability of students to apply and communicate research is assessed by means of an instrument which is a portion of the final exam for Psychology 317--Statistics lab. Objective 3 and 4 are the relevant items for this assessment. |
| Criteria | Acceptable level of ability to apply and communicate scientific knowledge. 80% of psychology majors will receive a score that is at least acceptable (27 or above), according to a departmental rubric. |
| Finding | Ability to apply and communicate scientific knowle 95% of psychology majors received a score that was at least acceptable, according to a departmental rubric. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action | Apply scientific knowledge We will attempt to better align the course material with real-life applications. We also will attempt to offer this course as a synthesis of Stats and Research Methods. |
GOAL: Generate Scientific Knowledge of Psychology
| Objective | Students generate scientific knowledge | |
| Students who complete the BS program in Psychology will demonstrate knowledge of the scientific tools necessary for conducting and interpreting research. Associated Goals: Generate Scientific Knowledge of Psychology |
| Indicator | Ability to generate scientific knowledge assessed The ability of students to conduct and understand research is assessed by means of the research rubric developed in the department which serves as a final lab exam for Psychology 317--Statistics lab. This instrument asses student ability to choose research designs, compute statistic and interpret outcomes. Objectives 1 and 2 are the relevant items for this assessment. |
| Criteria | Aceptable level of ability to generate scientific knowledge 80% of psychology majors will receive a score that is at least acceptable (25 or higher) according to the departmental rubric, which was developed by a faculty committee. |
| Finding | Generate scientific knowledge 86% of students received a score of 25 or higher. |
| Criteria | Student Perception On the IDEA student evaluation forms, at least 75% of students having taken Elementary Stats will report that they made large or outstanding gains in applying the scientific method to thinking, problem solving, and decision making, indicating a 4 or 5 on a 5-point Likert scale, to a. apply course material to improve thinking and problem solving; b. apply course material to critically evaluate ideas and arguments. |
| Finding | IDEA Scores 83% of students indicated that they had made either substantial or exceptional progress in applying course material to thinking and problem solving. 68% reported substantial or exceptional progress with respect to learning to analyze and evaluate ideas and arguments. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action | Generate Scientific Knowledge Although no actions are deemed necessary at this time, departmental faculty will continue to raise the percentage of students who show mastery of this item. |
| Action | IDEA application Students appear to have more trouble analyzing and evaluating ideas and arguments, so we will place more application to real-life examples in the course. |
GOAL: Provide High Quality, Challenging Academic Experience
| Objective | Provide high quality, challenging academic experience | |
| Students who complete the BS program in Psychology will have an academic experience that is challenging and of high quality. Associated Goals: Provide High Quality, Challenging Academic Experience |
| Indicator | Academic challenge and experience assessed. Department administers an exit survey to graduating seniors that employs a 1-5 system of assessing student perception related to their academic experience and a 1-4 system to assess their involvement in the academic experience. |
| Criteria | Acceptable level of academic experience 75% of graduating senior should rate their psychology classes as 4 or higher in academic challenge. 75% of graduating seniors should rate the quality of their experience as a psychology major as a 4 or higher. |
| Finding | Academic Experience 80% of graduating seniors rated their psychology classes a 4 or higher in academic challenge. 80% of graduating seniors rated the quality of their experience as a psychology major as a 4 or higher. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action | Academic Experience No actions deemed necessary at this time. |
GOAL: Understand Core Concepts in Psychology
| Objective | Students demonstrate broad knowledge base | |
| Students who complete the BS program in Psychology will demonstrate knowledge of core concepts in the various subdisciplines of Psychology. Associated Goals: Understand Core Concepts in Psychology |
| Indicator | Broad base knowledge assessed Course grades in four core courses, as well as grades in the three course blocks will be assessed. |
| Criteria | Acceptable level of broad based knowledge in psychology 75% of graduating seniors will receive a grade of C or better in their core courses and in their required block course. |
| Finding | Broad-based knowledge For the academic year 2007-2008, the percentage of graduating seniors with C or better in core psychology courses ranged from 89 to 100 with a mean of 95. Of the remaining block courses, the percentage of graduating seniors with a grade of C or better ranged from 88 to 100 with an overall mean of 95. For a course by course evaluation, please see the attachment. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action | Broad-based knowledge The criteria were met, and no further action is deemed necessary at this time. |