The department will develop the assessment tool to evaluate the newly implented SOCI 2399 course. One or more performance indicators will then be created and added for the 2013-2014 cycle. Due to the fact that a relatively high percentage of students did not meet the exit-level evlauation criteria, the department will re-evaluate the objectives and/or the instructions of the writing assignments in the senior seminar course.

The desired outcome for the entry-level learning indicator was 85% in the 2012-2013 cycle. This criterion was achieved (87.6% for Component Area IV; 87.1% for Component Area V). In the 2013-2014 cycle, we maintained the desired criteria (minimum of 85). The outcomes of the entry-level evaluations in 2013-2014 are 87.2% in Component Area IV and 92.4% in Component Area V. These outcomes indicate the learning objective was achieved successfully. Students in introductory sociology classes are learning the basic core concepts at a level above the minimum of 85%.

The outcome of the exit-level evaluation did not meet the desired criteria in the 2012-2013 cycle. Therefore, the exit-level learning objective remains the same at 75% in the 2013-2014 cycle. To achieve the desired learning outcomes, early in the 2013-2014 academic year the department re-evaluated the objectives and instructions of the SOCI4399 course and suggested interventions. As a result of the intervention we successfully met the desired minimum criteria of 75% (83.3%) indicating that Sociology majors are able to demonstrate and apply advanced sociological knowledge and scientific skills to critically analyze social phenomenon through a research paper.

Regarding the entry level assessment, while in the 2014-2015 cycle we will maintain the desired criteria of the 2013-2014 cycle (minimum of 85%), the Sociology Department Undergraduate Program will put more effort on improving the learning outcomes of online students. The department has experienced a rapid increase in the number of students taking online classes. Online classes tend to exhibit more pedagogical challenges. To improve overall student learning outcomes, it is important to elevate the learning outcomes of online students. The Undergraduate Committee will develop instructional recommendations to improve students’ learning outcomes by coordinating with the Department-level performance objectives regarding the undergraduate program. 

Regarding the exit level assessment, the outcome of the exit-level evaluation met the desired criteria in the 2013-2014 cycle. To stabilize this successful pattern of student learning outcomes, we will maintain the same criteria (minimum of 75%) for the 2014-2015 cycle, but continue to invest our effort on improvement of student learning outcomes. As part of this effort, the major challenges for students in the SOCI4399 class regarding the three core areas (theory, methods, and sociological perspective) will be identified and a plan for appropriate interventions will be discussed and suggestions for improvement provided by the undergraduate committee.  

As a new component of continuous improvement, the SOCI2399: Writing in Sociology course will be included as a mid-level assessment for all sociology majors in the 2014-2015 cycle. To better prepare Sociology majors for writing in all upper-level courses, the SOCI2399 course was added to the Sociology major core requirements in Fall 2013. To develop the proposed mid-level assessment, a pilot evaluation protocol was created, implemented, and revised during the SOCI2399 course in Spring 2014.

In the 2014-2015 academic year, this course will be provided in the Fall and Spring  semesters. The Undergraduate Committee will meet in early Fall 2014 and establish achievable criteria to measure mid-level student success toward the learning objectives. As a potential procedure, twenty-five percent of the students enrolled in each class will be randomly selected for assessment in both semesters. The Undergraduate Committee will review the papers at the end of the Spring semester based on the revised evaluation protocol.