Department of Social Sciences
Queensborough Community College/CUNY
222-05 56th Avenue Bayside, NY 11364
718-631-6251
2010-11 SS510 Course Assessment Project
“Closing the Loop” Meeting
11-30-11 1:15-2:00 p.m. M-105
In Attendance: J. Culkin, J. Jankowski, M. Peller, R. Perrotto, D. Springer
We met to discuss implementation of the Action Plan from the SS510 Individual
Course Assessment Report of May 2011 (see attachment). Each of the four items
from the Action Plan was discussed, and the following decisions were reached:
Item 1: A copy of the General Education and Individual Course Objectives for
SS510 will be distributed to all psychology faculty with instructions to include them
on course outlines distributed to students.
Timetable for Implementation: Spring 2012 semester
Item 2: Individual faculty will be informed that they may emphasize to students
their own priorities for objectives as pertains to their classes.
Timetable for Implementation: Spring 2012 semester
Item 3: The wording of Individual Course Objective will be revised to increase
clarity of meaning (see attachment).
From: Students will read psychological text effectively.
To: Students will understand readings in psychology (e.g., books, articles,
website documents).
Timetable for Implementation: Fall 2011 semester
Item 4: Participants in the meeting constituted an Ad Hoc Committee as noted in
the Action Plan. We recommend that whenever possible psychology faculty point
out to their students where assignments, readings, and other academic activities
address specific General Education and Individual Course Objectives.
Timetable for Implementation: Spring 2012 semester
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Queensborough Community College/CUNY
Department of Social Sciences
Individual Course Assessment Report
SPRING 2011
Date Submitted: May 2011
Course No./Title: SS510 Psychology
Course Description (from QCC Catalog):
Introduction to the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. Topics include research
methods, biological bases of brain and mind, sensation-perception, sleep and states of
consciousness, learning-memory, development, cognition-intelligence, motivation-emotion,
personality, abnormal psychology-therapy, and social psychology. Research findings and
principles related to everyday life.
General Education Objectives (GEO) Assessed:
GEO2. Use analytical reasoning to identify issues or problems and evaluate evidence in order to
make informed decisions
GEO5 Integrate knowledge and skills in their program of study
GEO8 Use historical or social sciences perspectives to examine formation of ideas, human
behavior, social institutions, or social processes
Individual Course Objectives (ICO) Assessed:
ICO1. Students will read psychological text effectively.
ICO2. Students will critically evaluate theories and concepts in psychology.
ICO3. Students will analyze research in psychology.
ICO4. Students will draw conclusions from scientific observations and research findings.
ICO5. Students will apply psychology to real-life events.
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Curricular Objectives (CO) Assessed: None
Participants
No. Sections Assessed: 41
No. Students Assessed: 875
Course Assessment Method
See Appendix A for SS510 Psychology Outcomes Survey.
Course Assessment Results: Narrative Summary
Forty-one sections of SS 510 (Psychology) representing a total of 875 students completed
a course evaluation in fall, 2010. The survey asked the respondents to indicate whether they
agreed with each of ten statements designed to measure either a General Education objective, an
Individual Course objective, or both. For ease of scoring, all 10 items were keyed so that
“agree” signified that the objective was met.
As shown in the General Education Objectives Results Table below, analysis of the
results indicated strong agreement for nine of the statements. Agreement ranged from 57-89%
across the 10 statements with statement #6, “This class helped me to apply psychological
perspectives to the understanding of human behavior,” receiving the highest agreement, and
statement #7, “This class helped me to read psychological text (e.g., books, articles) effectively,”
receiving the lowest agreement.
A comparison of results in the General Education vs. Individual Course Objectives
Tables indicates that overall students agreed more with the statements representing General
Education Objectives (mean agreement of 83.8%) than with statements representing Individual
Course Objectives (mean agreement of 71.6%.) With the exception of statement #6 that
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represents both General Education Objective 8 and Individual Course Objective 5, every
statement of Individual Course Objectives received lower agreement than any statement on
General Education Objectives.
I. General Education Objectives (GEO) Results
Gen Ed Objectives Results Summary Table
Gen Ed
Objective
Survey
Question
Q1
GEO2
Q2
GEO2
Mean
Q3
GEO5
Q4
GEO5
Mean
Q5
GEO8
Q6
GEO8
Mean
GEO2,5,8
Overall Mean
4
Agree
N (%)
84
87
85.5
87
69
78
87
89
88
83.8
II. Individual Course Objectives (ICO) Results
Individual Course Objectives (ICO) Results Summary Table
Individual
Course
Survey
Objective Question
ICO1
Q7
ICO2
Q8
ICO3
Q9
ICO4
Q10
ICO5
Q6
ICO1-5 Mean
Agree
N (%)
57
71
70
71
89
71.6
Conclusions
How then did SS510 fare with regard to its helping students achieve the General
Education and Individual Course Objectives? If we apply the grading standards of QCC in
translating numerical grades to letter grades, we can rank the grades for each objective as
follows:
1) 87% (B+) for General Education Objective 8: Use historical or social sciences perspectives
to examine formation of ideas, human behavior, social institutions, or social processes;
and for Individual Course Objective 5: Students will apply psychology to real-life events.
2) 85.5% (B) for General Education Objective 2: Use analytical reasoning to identify issues or
problems and evaluate evidence in order to make informed decisions
3) 78% (C+) for General Education Objective 5: Integrate knowledge and skills in their
program of study
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4) 71, 70, and 71 (C-) for Individual Course Objectives 2, 3, and 4, respectively:
ICO2: Students will critically evaluate theories and concepts in psychology.
ICO3: Students will analyze research in psychology.
ICO4: Students will draw conclusions from scientific observations and research findings.
5) 57% (F) for Individual Course Objective 1: Students will read psychological text effectively.
The low percentage (57%) of students who agreed with statement #7 “This class helped
me to read psychological text (e.g., books, articles) effectively”, while still a majority, is
considerably lower than the number agreeing with the rest of the survey. One possible
explanation for this somewhat atypical result is that the students may have interpreted the word
“read” to indicate the process of decoding the written symbols corresponding to speech rather
than its intended meaning “to understand.” Some instructors assign or recommend
supplementary readings (e.g., books, articles, etc.) in addition to the required text. Others do not.
Thus, those students of the latter group who might have misinterpreted “read” would not agree
with statement #7 as there were no additional reading assignments in their course.
Interestingly, there were higher levels of agreement with the statements measuring the
General Education objectives than for those reflecting Individual Course objectives . This
outcome might be expected if the entire Psychology faculty were mindful of the General
Education objectives but emphasized different Individual Course objective in their specific
class(es). That is, some might emphasize empirical work, others clinical. Nonetheless, it was
particularly gratifying to note that statement 6, “This class helped me to apply psychological
perspectives to the understanding of human behavior” which satisfies both General Education
and Individual Course objectives produced the highest level of agreement of all ten statements.
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Action Plan
Description of action plan for addressing issues raised by course assessment project.
Timetable for action plan implementation
As the data indicate, there was stronger agreement for attainment of the General
Education objectives than for the Individual Course objectives. In order to increase the latter the
following suggestions are offered:
1.
Psychology faculty could list on their syllabus what objectives the course aims to fulfill
to inform the students as to what will be emphasized. Then, as the semester progresses, when a
specific instance of a course objective emerges, the students can be alerted to it.
2.
Psychology faculty could rank their priorities from a complete list of acceptable
individual course objectives. In addition, the faculty could be asked to briefly describe how they
(could/would) achieve these goals.
From this, a list of the (3, 4, 5, ?) most valued course
objectives along with their accompanying examples could be distributed to all Psychology
faculty to use as a guide when developing future syllabi, reading lists, assignments, etc.
3.
The wording of Individual Course Objective #1 should be revised to clarify its intended
meaning. It should state: Students will understand psychological text effectively.
4.
Psychology faculty should discuss among themselves ways of integrating activities,
readings, and/or assignments into SS510 to better help students achieve the Individual Course
Objectives 1-4. To this end an Ad Hoc Committee of psychology faculty can be formed to
address this issue.
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APPENDIX A
SS-510
Psychology
Outcomes Survey
Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with these statements by marking the Scantron
form in the following way:
A = You agree with the statement.
B = You are neutral about the statement. (You do not agree or disagree.)
C = You disagree with the statement.
1. This class helped me to discuss theories, concepts, and debates in psychology.
2. This class helped me to analyze theories of human psychology.
3. This class helped me to understand of the role of psychological processes in everyday life.
4. This class helped me to discuss applications of theory and research in psychology and other
fields.
5. This class helped me to understand how psychological concepts can be applied to social
problems.
6. This class helped me to apply psychological perspectives to the understanding of human
behavior.
7. This class helped me to read psychological text (e.g., books, articles) effectively.
8. This class helped me to critically evaluate theories and concepts in psychology.
9. This class helped me to analyze research in psychology
10. This class helped me to draw conclusions from scientific observations and research findings.
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SS510 Action Plan (From May 2011 Individual Course Assessment Report)
Description of action plan for addressing issues raised by course assessment project.
Timetable for action plan implementation
As the data indicate, there was stronger agreement for attainment of the General
Education objectives than for the Individual Course objectives. In order to increase the latter the
following suggestions are offered:
1.
Psychology faculty could list on their syllabus what objectives the course aims to fulfill
to inform the students as to what will be emphasized. Then, as the semester progresses,
when a specific instance of a course objective emerges, the students can be alerted to it.
2.
Psychology faculty could rank their priorities from a complete list of acceptable
individual course objectives. In addition, the faculty could be asked to briefly describe
how they (could/would) achieve these goals. From this, a list of the (3, 4, 5, ?) most
valued course objectives along with their accompanying examples could be distributed to
all Psychology faculty to use as a guide when developing future syllabi, reading lists,
assignments, etc.
3.
The wording of Individual Course Objective #1 should be revised to clarify its intended
meaning. It should state: Students will understand psychological text effectively.
4.
Psychology faculty should discuss among themselves ways of integrating activities,
readings, and/or assignments into SS510 to better help students achieve the Individual
Course Objectives 1-4. To this end an Ad Hoc Committee of psychology faculty can be
formed to address this issue.
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SPRING 2008
Date: JUNE 2008
Department: Social Sciences
Course: SS 510 Psychology
Curriculum or Curricula:
PART I. STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES
For Part I, attach the summary report (Tables 1-4) from the QCC Course Objectives Form.
TABLE 1. EDUCATIONAL CONTEXT
SS-510 Psychology is an entry-level, introductory course that provides students with an
overview of the fundamental principles and practices in the contemporary study of
behavior and mental processes, as well as a historical perspective on the development of
the field and the applications of psychology in modern society and everyday life.
This course is required in four curricula:
1.
Health Sciences (A.S.)
2.
Environmental Health (A.S.)
3.
Massage Therapy (A.A.S.)
4.
Nursing (A.A.S.).
TABLE 2. CURRICULAR OBJECTIVES
Note: Include in this table curriculum-specific objectives that meet Educational Goals 1 and 2:
2. Curricular Objectives
A) Health Sciences (A.S.)
Briefly describe activities in this
course which help students meet
each of these curricular objectives
Students who complete SS-510 will
satisfy the requirement for articulations
in health sciences bachelors programs.
CURRICULAR OBJECTIVES
ADDRESSED BY THIS COURSE
Meet the distribution requirements of
the liberal arts and sciences core, with
specific recommendations in math,
chemistry, and the humanities for the
current health science baccalaureate
programs for which articulations have
been established or for unique
programs of interest
B) Environmental Health (A.S.)
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Briefly describe activities in this
course which help students meet
each of these curricular objectives
Students will acquire an understanding
of the basic principles of human
behavior and mental processes.
CURRICULAR OBJECTIVES
ADDRESSED BY THIS COURSE
To provide the student with the
knowledge required for them to
become a well rounded individual
better prepared to succeed in the
Environmental Health profession
C) Massage Therapy (A.A.S.)
Briefly describe activities in this
course which help students meet
each of these curricular objectives
Students read and analyze concepts and
research to better understand human
behavior and mental processes.
CURRICULAR OBJECTIVES
ADDRESSED BY THIS COURSE
Provide students with a strong
foundation in the biological sciences,
together with a broad base of general
education in the liberal arts
D) Nursing (A.A.S.)
Briefly describe activities in this
course which help students meet
each of these curricular objectives
Students will acquire an understanding
of individual psychological needs and
developmental issues that pertain to
health and illness.
CURRICULAR OBJECTIVES
ADDRESSED BY THIS COURSE
The graduate will become a provider of
care in structured health care settings
using critical thinking to develop,
implement, and evaluate individual
plans of care to meet the self-care
needs/deficits of patients throughout
the life cycle.
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TABLE 3. GENERAL EDUCATION OBJECTIVES
3. General Education Objectives
General educational objectives
addressed by this course
Use analytical reasoning skills and
apply logic to solve problems
Integrate knowledge and skills in their
major field and across disciplines
Identify concepts and methods of the
social sciences to examine human
behavior, social institutions, and multicultural awareness
Briefly describe activities in the course
which help students meet each of these
general education objectives
a. Students discuss theories, concepts,
and debates in psychology
b. Students analyze and critique
research in psychology
a. Students discuss applications of
theory and
research in psychology
and other fields
b. Students identify relevance of
psychology to everyday life and career
interests
c. Students will analyze examples from
other disciplines to illustrate how
concepts from psychology apply.
d. Students will select topics in
psychology to use as themes in other
courses.
a. Students demonstrate understanding
of applications of psychology to
individuals and society
b. Students choose readings on
relevance of psychology to culture
c. Students will indicate how
psychological concepts can be applied
to social problems.
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TABLE 4: COURSE OBJECTIVES AND STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
Course objectives
Learning outcomes
1. Students will read
a. Students will summarize passages from assigned readings.
psychological text effectively. b. Students will identify correct and incorrect statements based
on assigned readings.
2. Students will critically
a. Students will discriminate between different kinds of
evaluate theories and concepts theories.
in psychology.
b. Students will list key concepts from specific theories.
3. Students will analyze
research in psychology.
a. Students will identify features of different research methods.
b. Students will specify testable research hypotheses.
4. Students will draw
conclusions from scientific
observations and research
findings.
a. Students will identify practical uses of psychology.
b. Students will indicate areas of everyday life in which
psychological applications are needed.
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PART II. ASSIGNMENT DESIGN: ALIGNING OUTCOMES, ACTIVITIES, AND
ASSESSMENT TOOLS
For the assessment project, you will be designing one course assignment, which will address at least one general
educational objective, one curricular objective (if applicable), and one or more of the course objectives. Please
identify these in the following table:
TABLE 5: OBJECTIVES ADDRESSED IN ASSESSMENT ASSIGNMENT
Course Objective(s) selected for assessment: (select from Table 4)
•
•
Students will analyze research in psychology
Students will draw conclusions from scientific observations and research findings.
Curricular Objective(s) selected for assessment: (select from Table 2)
General Education Objective(s) addressed in this assessment: (select from Table 3)
•
Use analytical reasoning skills and apply logic to solve problems.
In the first row of Table 6 that follows, describe the assignment that has been selected/designed for this project.
In writing the description, keep in mind the course objective(s), curricular objective(s) and the general education
objective(s) identified above,
The assignment should be conceived as an instructional unit to be completed in one class session (such as a lab) or
over several class sessions. Since any one assignment is actually a complex activity, it is likely to require that
students demonstrate several types of knowledge and/or thinking processes.
Also in Table 6, please
a) identify the three to four most important student learning outcomes (1-4) you expect from this assignment
b) describe the types of activities (a – d) students will be involved with for the assignment, and
c) list the type(s) of assessment tool(s) (A-D) you plan to use to evaluate each of the student outcomes.
(Classroom assessment tools may include paper and pencil tests, performance assessments, oral questions,
portfolios, and other options.)
Note: Copies of the actual assignments (written as they will be presented to the students) should be gathered
in an Assessment Portfolio for this course.
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TABLE 6: ASSIGNMENT, OUTCOMES, ACTIVITIES, AND ASSESSMENT TOOLS
Briefly describe the assignment that will be assessed:
1. Students will be instructed to study the section of the textbook that pertains to experimental
research.
2. Students will be given a description of an experiment in psychology to read in class.
3. Students will be given an 8-item paper-and-pencil test that requires them to use information
from both the textbook and the described experiment. The format of the test will be as
follows: For each of the three Learning Outcomes there will be at least 2-3 questions –
multiple choice or true/false.
Desired student learning outcomes
for the assignment
(Students will…)
List in parentheses the Curricular
Objective(s) and/or General
Education Objective(s) (1-10)
associated with these desired learning
outcomes for the assignment.
Briefly describe the range of
activities student will engage in
for this assignment.
What assessment tools will be
used to measure how well
students have met each learning
outcome? (Note: a single
assessment tool may be used to
measure multiple learning
outcomes; some learning
outcomes may be measured using
multiple assessment tools.)
1. Students will identify
features of different research
methods. (Gen. Ed. Obj. 1)
a. Students will remember
and understand the research
methods section of the
textbook.
b. Students will read,
analyze, and evaluate an
experiment in psychology.
c. Students will answer a set
of questions based on the
experiment and on the
information in the textbook.
A. Paper-and-pencil test
with multiple-choice and
true/false questions.
2. Students will determine
whether empirical results
support a hypothesis. (Gen. Ed.
Obj. 1)
3. Students will draw
conclusions from scientific
observations and research
findings. (Gen. Ed. Obj. 1)
PART III. ASSESSMENT STANDARDS (RUBRICS)
Before the assignment is given, prepare a description of the standards by which students’ performance will be
measured. This could be a checklist, a descriptive holistic scale, or another form. The rubric (or a version of it) may
be given to the students with the assignment so they will know what the instructor’s expectations are for this
assignment.
Please note that while individual student performance is being measured, the assessment project is collecting
performance data ONLY for the student groups as a whole.
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TABLE 7: ASSESSMENT STANDARDS (RUBRICS)
Brief description of assignment: (Copy from Table 6 above)
1. Students will be instructed to study the section of the textbook that pertains to experimental
research.
2. Students will be given a description of an experiment in psychology to read in class.
3. Students will be given an 8-item paper-and-pencil test that requires them to use information
from both the textbook and the described experiment. The format of the test will be as
follows: For each of the three Learning Outcomes there will be at least 2-3 questions –
multiple choice or true/false.
Desired student learning
outcomes from the
assignment: (Copy from
Column 1, Table 6 above;
include Curricular and /or
General Education Objectives
addressed)
Assessment measures for
each learning outcome:
(Copy from Column 3,Table 6
above)
Standards for student performance:
 Describe the standards or rubrics for
measuring student achievement of each
outcome in the assignment.
 Give the percentage of the class that is
expected to meet these outcomes
 If needed, attach copy(s) of rubrics.
1. Students will identify
features of different
research methods. (Gen.
Ed. Obj. 1)
1. Paper-and-pencil test
with multiple-choice and
true/false questions.
1. It is expected that more than 60%
of responses will be correct given that
these ideas are considered
fundamental to a psychology course.
They represent a basic idea taught in
the context of experimental design.
2. Students will
determine whether
empirical results support
a hypothesis. (Gen. Ed.
Obj. 1)
2. Same as A
2. Determining whether empirical
results support a hypothesis represents
a more difficult ability. Only 60% of
the class is expected to meet these
outcomes. Students are required to
critically evaluate a study to decide if
the hypothesis is supported.
3. Students will draw
conclusions from
scientific observations
and research findings.
(Gen. Ed. Obj. 1)
3. Same as A
3. Drawing conclusions require
inferential skills. Students must
understand the way the study was
conducted, interpret the results, and
generalize them appropriately. Such
an endeavor is cognitively demanding
but integral to the scientific method;
50% of the students are expected to
meet this outcome.
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Assignment (Revised)
To understand the influence of time on memory, a psychologist studies a group of 100
college students (50 males and 50 females) between the ages of 18 and 35. All of the people in
the study are shown ten photographs of people with the first name of each person below the
picture. They have 5 minutes to learn the names. (No one in the study saw the people in the
photographs before.)
Then, people in the study are separated into two groups: Group 1 and Group 2. Students
picked a number out of a hat to determine which group they were in. For people in Group 1,
their memory is tested right after they learn the names. For people in Group 2, their memory is
tested after a two hour delay. There are the same number of males and females in both groups.
On the memory test, people in both groups are shown the photographs but now this time several
names are below each picture. The participants are told to circle the correct name.
The people in Group 1, those who had their memory tested right after learning, circled
80% of the correct names. The people in Group 2, those who had memory tested after a two
hour delay, circled 20% of the correct names.
Answer the following questions:
1. The independent variable in this experiment is:
A. the time between learning and the memory test
B. the gender of the participants
C. the photographs of the people
D. the memory test the participants took
2. The dependent variable in this experiment is:
A. the time between learning and the memory test
B. the gender of the participants
C. the photographs of the people
D. the memory test the participants took
3. Which hypothesis is correct regarding the two groups?
A. It is easy to remember people’s names over long delays.
B. The time between learning and test has no influence on memory.
C. Females are better than males in their memory for names.
D. It is easier to remember people’s names when tested right after learning.
4. The hypothesis that the delay between learning and test influences memory is strongly
supported by the results of the experiment.
A. True
B. False
5. The idea that people over age 50 have difficulty with their memory is strongly supported by
the data.
A. True
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B. False
6. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. Five minutes is not enough time to learn the names of people in the photographs.
B. Males should have been placed in Group 1 and females in Group 2.
C. It was good to give both groups the same memory test.
D. None of the above
7. This experiment uses the method of random assignment.
A. True
B. False
8. What could be done to improve the design of the study?
A. Have more females than males because females have better memory.
B. Include people older than 35.
C. Give each person in the study a different memory test.
D. All of the above
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PART IV. ASSESSMENT RESULTS
TABLE 8: SUMMARY OF ASSESSMENT RESULTS
Use the following table to report the student results on the assessment. If you prefer, you may report outcomes
using the rubric(s), or other graphical representation. Include a comparison of the outcomes you expected (from
Table 7, Column 3) with the actual results. NOTE: A number of the pilot assessments did not include expected
success rates so there is no comparison of expected and actual outcomes in some of the examples below. However,
projecting outcomes is an important part of the assessment process; comparison between expected and actual
outcomes helps set benchmarks for student performance.
TABLE 8: SUMMARY OF ASSESSMENT RESULTS
Desired student learning outcomes:
(Copy from, Column 1,Table 6 above;
include Curricular and/or General
Education Objectives addressed)
Student achievement: Describe the group achievement of each
desired outcome and the knowledge and cognitive processes
demonstrated.
A total of N=572 students participated in this
assessment project from twenty-two different sections
of psychology (SS510).
1. Students will identify features The first learning outcome was assessed with two
of different research methods.
multiple choice (MC) questions. Below are the
(Gen. Ed. Obj. 1)
incorrect and correct responses (number and
percentage) by question as well as combined over
questions.
Incorrect
Correct
N (%)
N (%)
Question 1 (MC)
235 (41)
337 (59)
Question 2 (MC)
287 (50)
285 (50)
Combined
522 (46)
622 (54)
The results for this learning outcome were near
expectations. Overall, a majority of the students
attained the skills necessary to answer the questions
correctly.
2. Students will determine
whether empirical results
support a hypothesis. (Gen. Ed.
Obj. 1)
The second learning outcome was assessed with one
multiple choice (MC) question and two true/false (TF)
questions. Below are the incorrect and correct
responses (number and percentage) by question as
well as combined over questions.
Incorrect
Correct
N (%)
N(%)
Question 3 (MC)
37 (6)
535 (94)
Question 4 (TF)
67 (12)
505 (88)
Question 5 (TF)
40 (7)
532 (93)
Combined
144 (8)
1571 (92)
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The results for this second learning outcome greatly
exceeded expectations. More than 90% of responses
overall were correct. Students exhibited considerable
mastery over this learning outcome.
3. Students will draw
conclusions from scientific
observations and research
findings. (Gen. Ed. Obj. 1)
The third learning outcome was assessed with two
multiple choice questions (MC) and two true/false
(TF) questions. Below are the incorrect and correct
responses (number and percentage) by question as
well as combined over questions.
Question 6 (MC)
Question 7 (TF)
Question 8 (MC)
Overall
Incorrect
N (%)
203 (35)
135 (24)
205 (36)
543 (32)
Correct
N (%)
369 (65)
437 (76)
367 (64)
1173 (68)
The results for this third learning outcome exceeded
expectations. More than 60% of responses overall
were correct. Once again, students exhibited mastery
over this learning outcome.
ALL OUTCOMES, ALL
QUESTIONS
Incorrect
N (%)
1209 (26)
Correct
N (%)
3367 (74)
Overall, students responded correctly more than
two-thirds of the time to the questions posed on this
assessment. Students demonstrated an
understanding of the scientific method such that
they were able to identify if the results supported a
hypothesis and could draw conclusions from the
research.
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TABLE 9. EVALUATION AND RESULTING ACTION PLAN
In the table below, or in a separate attachment, interpret and evaluate the assessment results, and describe the
actions to be taken as a result of the assessment. In the evaluation of achievement, take into account student
success in demonstrating the types of knowledge and the cognitive processes identified in the Course
Objectives.
A. Analysis and interpretation of assessment results:
What does this show about what and how the students learned?
On the assessment, students answered the questions correctly more than 70% of the time.
It should also be noted that this performance reflects a total of 572 students from twentytwo sections of Psychology (SS 510) taught during the Spring semester of 2008. By
answering questions correctly, students demonstrated knowledge regarding the scientific
method. That is, students were able to read a research scenario, identify the features of
the research, determine whether the results supported a hypothesis, and draw conclusions
from the findings. These skills are essential to understanding psychological science
because they allow students to judge the validity and generalizability of research
findings. The scientific method is the bedrock upon which the body of psychological
findings rests.
B. Evaluation of the assessment process:
What do the results suggest about how well the assignment and the assessment process worked
both to help students learn and to show what they have learned?
The assignment and assessment process worked very well at helping students learn and
show what they learned. First, students were instructed in the key concepts during
several class periods. Then, students were given a research scenario to demonstrate their
knowledge. The assessment instrument required that the students have an understanding
of the scientific method and, more importantly, apply the information learned.
Application is key because this ability will be needed not only in the introductory
psychology course but in all future psychology courses and even when considering
scientific findings in the public square.
C. Resulting action plan:
Based on A and B, what changes, if any, do you anticipate making?
Based on the results of this assessment, most instructors will continue to emphasize the
scientific method and feel reassured that their efforts are having an impact. Instructors of
Psychology (SS510) will continue to make a concerted effort to teach elements of the
scientific method with the goal of understanding and application.
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SS510 PSYCHOLOGY OBJECTIVES
General Education Objectives
Use analytical reasoning to identify issues or problems and evaluate evidence in order to
make informed decisions
Integrate knowledge and skills in their program of study
Use historical or social sciences perspectives to examine formation of ideas, human
behavior, social institutions, or social processes
Individual Course Objectives
Students will understand readings in psychology (e.g., books, articles, website documents).
Students will critically evaluate theories and concepts in psychology.
Students will analyze research in psychology.
Students will draw conclusions from scientific observations and research findings.
Students will apply psychology to real-life events.
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