SACSCOC Fifth Year Interim Report
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Assessment : 2013 - 2014 : Educational Programs :
Dance MFA
Dance MFA
1 Goal 2 Objectives 3 Indicators 3 Criteria 1 Finding 2 Actions
| GOAL: Develop Professional Level Of Expertise In Dance |
| Objective |
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Students will demonstrate excellence in creating extended choreographic works, employing effective tools of composition to create well-crafted original statements in movement. |
| Indicator |
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| Required Choreographic Work is evaluated on common standards of choreographic effectiveness as shown in attached rubric. These choreographic evaluations take place within the three required MFA choreography courses in (DNC 5676,5378, and 5380). Instructors judge student work as Unsatisfactory, Satisfactory or Excellent. Extensive, qualitative, face-to-face feedback is also given. |
| Criterion |
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| 90% Students will be judged to have at least Satisfactory proficiency in choreography. 75% will be judged to have Excellent proficieny. |
| Finding |
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Although students demonstrated Excellent facility with movement invention and innovative concepts, the majority of their final projects did not demonstrate sufficiently strong development as coherent artistic statements. |
| Indicator |
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As the culmination of the creative thesis, students develop and present an extended original choreographic work. The process, from proposal through performance, is mentored by members of the thesis committee. The thesis presentation will be assessed on the following points: the choreography is informed by student's research; the choreography stands on its own as a work of art; the performance reflects effective directing by the student. |
| Criterion |
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| 100% of MFA Thesis performers will be assessed by Thesis Committee to meet standards for choreographic effectiveness. (In addition, Students who meet the standard for acceptable choreographic production will receive a passing score for that portion of DNC 699, Thesis II.) |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
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We find that the more opportunities MFA candidates have to produce and present mentored work, the more growth we see in them as artists. We find, too, that there are definite limits in terms of resources (faculty able to attend rehearsals, students to be cast, studios available for rehearsals, theater available for performances, students available to crew concerts). Finding a balance between these varied resources and student needs is an issue that we continue to evaluate. In 2013, a third course in choreography was added to the curriculum. The class of students presenting theses in 2015 will be the first to have three choreograhpy classes prior to beginning thesis; we shall then see what benefits may result. |
| GOAL: Develop Professional Level Of Expertise In Dance |
| Objective |
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| MFA graduates will have a solid understanding of dance technique, choreography, production, and history, and will be able to write and speak from that informed perspective. |
| Indicator |
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| Students will be given a choice of topics to research relevant to all aspects of study that the student has experienced in the program. A passing grade on the comprehensive examination will serve as an indicator that a Dance MFA candidate has acquired a breadth of knowledge in the field of dance. Additionally, the students' ability to express themselves critically and at a standard commensurate to the profession will be demonstrated. |
| Criterion |
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| As demonstration that the Dance graduate program is successful in preparing students for the written comprehensive examination, at least 90% of students will pass the exam at the first sitting or upon retaking it. We observed last year that students were not as comfortable expressing themselves orally as they are with dance. Thus, we believe this exercise is beneficial to develop and extend oral expression. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
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| Finding that our students have experiences in writing embedded into their coursework, but that their ability to express themselves orally is generally far less developed, comprehensive exams will now be oral. Third year MFA candidates were given the option of written or oral exams during the spring of 2014. Faculty were satisfied that this process reflects skills needed for success in the profession more realistically than the written exam. The effectiveness of the oral exam process will be discussed, and the process refined. |
| Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
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In the past three years, we have added three courses to the graduate curriculum. A fourth course, pedagogy, is being developed and will be submitted for review this year.
Two faculty are no longer part of the department, as one passed away and the other retired. As we consider applicants for these two positions, ability to contribute to the graduate program, through teaching and serving in the thesis process, will be a primary consideration. As we increase courses at the graduate level, we must consider course loads of the faculty,who also teach the majority of the BFA curriculum. Without additional faculty, we must consider how we can use the graduate students to teach some of the undergraduate courses, and consider how we can prepare them to do so effectively. |
| Update on Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
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One new faculty member was hired in the fall of 2013. She is graduate faculty. The other position is being filled as of fall 2014. Having one additional gradute faculty has enabled the department to offer the new choreography course. Pedagogy will be offered in the spring. The effect on the gradute program of the newest hire is not yet known. |
| Plan for Continuous Improvement |
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The number of Dance MFA candidates in residence has grown from an average of approximately 8 to 15 in the past five years. Our goal is to graduate five per year, or 25 over 5 years. With the increase in number of students, we must continue to assess the way we deliver the curriculum so that students are well served. Given that our six graduate faculty also deliver the majority of the undergraduate curriculum, we must also not burn out our faculty with excessive hours of graduate mentorship.
We will see what effects, if any, having additional choreography course study will have in the thesis concerts presented in 2015, and will continue to assess the mode of comprehensive exam, written or oral. We plan to improve our follow up with students' employment after graduation, determine our track record of placing students in positions in higher education, as this is the goal for the majority of students seeking this degree. |