Queensborough Community College/CUNY
Department of Social Sciences, Julia Rothenberg
Assessment Report for 2014 Assessment Institute
Course Assessed: SOCY 101 PNET, WI
Course Description: In this Writing Intensive, Partially Online class, students become familiar
with key concepts that sociologists use to study the social world. Students learn to use these
concepts to understand the challenges and problems facing their own society and their own role
in social reproduction and social change. Students learn to identify and analyze dynamics of
human society with special emphasis on application of scientific methods of observation and
analysis of social groups, intergroup relations, social change, social stratification, and social
institutions.
General Education Objectives (GEO) Assessed Learning Objectives and Outcomes:
QCC General Educational Objectives
Students will use analytical reasoning to identify issues or problems and evaluate evidence in
order to make informed decisions.
Students will integrate knowledge and skills in their program of study.
Pathways Common Core Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) Assessed:
PATHWAYS LEARNING OUTCOMES II .D. INDIVIDUAL AND SOCIETY
Students will learn to evaluate evidence and arguments critically and analytically.
Students will learn to produce well-reasoned written or oral arguments using evidence to support
conclusions.
Individual Course Objectives to be Assessed
 students are also expected to develop writing skills and critical thinking skills appropriate
for study at the college level.
This Student Learning Outcome has been subdivided into specific, observable for faculty to
evaluate student work

Students will demonstrate a critical use course material by evaluating and synthesizing
this material to support their thesis and analysis
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
The ideas are arranged logically to support the thesis, flow smoothly and are clearly
linked to each other.

Students will demonstrate proper use of grammar, syntax, and spelling; logical
compositional structure (intro body conclusion); and proper use of citations and
bibliographic reference
Participants:
No. Sections Assessed: 3
No. Students Assessed: 43
Course Assessment Rational: Toward the end of the Spring, 2014 members of the Sociology
faculty conducted an assessment of 8 sections of SOCY101, with a total of 302 students based on
a range of Gen Ed, Pathways and Course Objectives for SOCY 101, which resulted in a detailed
report compiled by myself and my colleague, Ryan Moore. Our assessment was based on a
reading assignment followed by a series of multiple-choice questions. This task called on
students to utilize and identify key concepts and skills from SOCY 101 including: the
sociological imagination, norms and values, social class, qualitative sociological methods and the
relationship between social structure and individual outcomes. In brief summary, our students
evidenced either mastery or strong development in all of the four categories.
SOCY 101 PNET Writing Intensive courses include the same Gen Ed, Pathways and Individual
Course Objectives as the SOCY 101courses that we assessed. However, students are expected to
demonstrate their mastery of these objectives largely through writing tasks. They are not
“graded” for their writing skills per se, but the inability to communicate effectively through
writing will likely negatively impact their grade.
For this Assessment Seminar, I piloted an additional assessment task, which, together with our
earlier assessment, will flesh out our understanding of the needs and position of SOCY 101
students who choose to take SOCY 101 PNET Writing Intensive classes. Since writing is a
particular challenge for our students, as evidenced by the high percent of students who require
remediation and ESL support at QCC, and there are no writing requirements that students must
meet in order to register for this class, it is important to assess the writing skills of these students
in order to get a better understanding of the likelihood that they will be able to perform at least
the basic writing tasks that we assign successfully in this and other introductory PNET WI
courses.
Course Assessment Tools and Methods: Students were given a written assignment to be
completed on the Discussion Board feature of Blackboard (appendix item 1) relatively early in
the semester. This assignment required that they compose three cogent paragraphs based on a
film and a series of questions. These questions asked them to correctly use key concepts from the
textbook and lectures. While they were graded primarily on “content” for the purposes of the
course, I also assigned each response a number and assessed each response on the basis of a
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standard rubric and scoring form (appendix item 2) developed to assess basic writing skills in
any subject. This score had no impact on the students’ grade for the class, but the fact that they
were being graded on this assignment (using separate criteria) ensured that the students would
take the task seriously and give it their best effort.
Results and Discussion
43 students completed the assignment.
The table below represents all 43 scores in each of the three categories:
exemplary
content
9
organization
5
Grammar/sentence 6
structure
acceptable
29
27
25
unacceptable
5
11
12
total
43
43
43
In addition to the base scores in each category, I performed an in-depth analysis of a random
sample of 10 assignments. Further insight can be gained regarding the writing samples provided
by these 10 students in the table below:
Student 1
Student 2
Student 3
Student 4
Student 5
Student 6
This student’s writing was relatively strong in terms of organizing content and
structuring the argument necessary for the assignment. Most grammar and
punctuation issues were acceptable, with a few misplaced modifiers and other
minor grammatical issues which detracted from overall quality.
Student 2 had very poor grammar and this detracted significantly from his/her
ability to develop a cogent argument. Run on sentences with multiple
grammatical errors such as “Also my sister have to wait six months after
working for Walmart before she could even get a Walmart discount. I waited
but I like how I revive my items quickly and how they are able to have a
variety of products at lower costs but watching the video makes me more
aware and of how they help and don't help our economy and I don't like how
they take advantage of other countries laws to benefit its own corporations”
made for difficult reading.
Student 3, while able to pull together decent content did not use appropriate
punctuation such as quotes and periods. These errors may well have been due
to negligence as opposed to lack of familiarity with grammatical rules.
This assignment was rife with sentence fragments, but with an excellent grasp
of the argument.
In this case, the student was able to write a basic three paragraph essay in
relatively good form, but the concepts did not reflect the assignment. The
student appeared not to have read the question carefully.
Student 6 did an excellent job on the assignment with a clear, well written
short analysis of the problem. An example includes: “This has had a negative
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Student 7
Student 8
Student 9
Student 10
impact on the American worker. Many manufacturing jobs have been lost
because these jobs have been outsourced overseas where production costs are
cheaper. These production costs are cheaper because you are paying the
worker overseas less money than you would pay an American. You do not
have to give these employees benefits like health insurance and a retirement
plan. The American worker is basically too expensive to pay.”
The student clearly identified the major issues in the film, but a few
grammatical and spelling errors detracted from the assignment. For example,
this student used the work meat when indicating a meeting between people.
This essay was written in casual form, with almost no evidence of mastery of
college level writing. It was rife with sentences of this quality: “This effects
me because if i want to save on money which everybody wants to do, we
would want to shop at a place where we can get the most for the least amount
of money.”
This student seemed to have some liited grasp of the material, but very poor
grammar and organization, jumping from topic to topic as evidenced by “[t]he
impact of this model on American workers is that, Walmart is very organized,
there's different sections, very easy to keep things organized. Prices are very
organized also. Walmart has the greatest productivity. Americans prospects
were changed by having a class of what they have to do. The workers pay
attention on what the customers wants to buy. The focus is what matters to
Walmart, it's also the prices. For workers in other places, the buisness isn't as
great as the other corporation. The power of Walmart changed many
manafactures. The fate of workers in different parts of the world is linked
through the Walmart model because Walmart have the largest customers, and
helped other companies have growth in their economy. Walmart was the most
admired company in 1994. They do the things that help admire others. This
buisness model impact the way we consume because it helps us to find what
is cheaper and the retailing is good. I shop by just looking at the price and I
know other places are cheaper so I check other places also. I buy and have a
lot of stuff such as candy, desk organizers, and copy paper. I buy my items at
staples or rite aid. I am willing to pay about $50. Walmart is good for
America because it can help us understand how sales work and how buisness
should be done or can be done. Walmart can also help us focus on our
customers more than being on our phones and not knowing how the price
argument would work.”
This student gave an average performance, displaying basic written
communication skills with distracting errors such as run-on sentence: “Many
Americans don't have a job anymore because they used to work at a factory
which is no longer available to them anymore because China’s factories are
much cheaper for Walmart as a business.”
These conclusions suggest that many students have mastered basic writing skills before taking
this class. Over 15% of the scores available on the rubric (see table 1) were in the exemplary
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column, and over 60% were acceptable. However, as closer analysis confirmed, there is a great
disparity between the strongest and weakest students that likely cannot be remedied in the
context of a one semester writing intensive course, even with outside supports such as the
Writing Center or ESL tutoring.
Implications and Suggestions for Further Study
While earlier results show that students are able to master basic content for SOCY 101 in the
course of a semester, this pilot suggest that for at least some of students, struggles with written
expression are likely to hamper their progress in this and other disciplines. Social Sciences and
other departments might want to consider implementing requirements, such as having passed
remedial reading and writing or equivalent courses before allowing students to take Introductory
level Writing Intensive classes. The department might also want to consider encouraging faculty
to work more closely with centers of academic support at QCC, like the Writing Center, in order
to encourage or indeed require students in WI courses to utilize these tutoring services. The main
issue identified in this pilot is disparity between the strongest and weakest writers. Given the
issues faced by the weakest writers among our students, it is unlikely that all the writing issues
along with the area content could be addressed within the semester by the SOCY 101 instructor
alone.
This pilot study also suggests that more research is needed in order to accurately identify
students’ writing struggles. Moving forward, we might consider administering a “before and
after” writing assessment, and using a much larger sample size, in order to determine what level
of writing improvement can be achieved during the course of a semester. We might also want to
probe more deeply into the previous writing experiences and struggles of our students, perhaps
using focus groups or surveys.
Appendix:
Item 1, Blackboard Assignment:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/
Click on the link above to watch the film "Is Walmart Good for America?"
This discussion board post should answer the following questions. Don't forget to check for
grammar and spelling before you submit.
Use complete sentences and back up your statements with reasoned arguments. Use chapter 14 to
guide your discussion.
This post is due before class Friday, October 17 and is worth 4 points.
The film addresses the Walmart business model. This model has replaced the old fashioned,
manufacturing driven business model characterized by MG, Ford, US Steel and other companies.
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This model is characteristic of a new phase of capitalism and has had a profound impact on the
way we work and the way we consume.
Describe the Walmart model -how does this corporation do business? Use terms from chapter 14
such as globalization, outsourcing, flexible production, international division of labor,
transnational production, unions and so forth.
What is the impact of this model on the American worker? How has it changed working
conditions and prospects for Americans? What is the impact on workers in other parts of the
world? Describe how the fate of workers in different parts of the world is linked through the
Walmart model. Specifically, if possible, discuss how the Walmart model will or has impacted
your own work experience.
How does this business model impact the way we (or you, specifically) consume? How do you
shop? How much stuff do you have? What do you buy? Where do you buy it? How much are
you willing to pay?
Overall, is Walmart good for America? Support your response with arguments.
Item 2, Rubric
Student Number ____________
1. Written Communication
Criteria
Exemplary (A)
Content
Organization
Sentence
structure and
Even, balanced
information
clearly and
effectively
supports a central
purpose or thesis.
Reader gains
insights.
The ideas are
arranged logically
to support the
thesis, flow
smoothly and are
clearly linked to
each other.
Sentences are
well phrased and
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Acceptable (C)
Unacceptable
(F)
Information provides some
support for the thesis and
displays evidence of a
basic understanding of a
central purpose or thesis.
Reader gains some insight,
but not fully.
Paper does
not clearly
identify a
purpose or
thesis and is
vague leaving
the reader
confused.
The writing
lacks any
semblance of
logical
organization.
The ideas are arranged
logically to support the
thesis, but some of the
ideas fail to make sense
based on the structure of
the writing.
Sentences are adequately
phrased and flow well with
Sentences are
awkward and
Your
Grade (A,
C, F or
NA)
grammar
flow smoothly
using correct and
error-free
grammar.
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few grammatical errors.
ill phrased
with
grammatical
errors that
impede the
flow.