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Institutional Effectiveness Achievement Report
Parameter Title
Parameter Value
Organization
Journalism: BS Mass Communication
Assessment Period
2012-2013
Outcome/Goal Type
Student Learning Outcome
Organization: Journalism: BS Mass Communication
Assessment Period: 2012-2013
Outcome/Goal Type: Student Learning Outcome
Total Outcomes/Goals: 4
Unit Head: Dwight Brooks
Reports to: College of Mass Communication
Report Date: Wed Mar 19 2014
Mission Statement
Middle Tennessee State University > Academic Affairs > College of Mass Communication > Journalism
(School of) Mission To promote the development of knowledge and skills sets that enable our students to
become media professionals, discerning media consumers, media critics, and media producers in a global
environment marked by digital convergence. We accomplish this by creating an atmosphere that allows faculty
to teach to their strengths, to think about the media in various ways, and to touch audiences through traditional
research and creative scholarly activity in order to make an impact on our universities, our industries, and our
societies.
Summary of Achievements
Outcomes and Goals Assessment Plans
The following tables contain outcome/goal data for Assessment Period: 2012-2013
Outcome/Goal
Category
Graduating seniors write correctly and clearly in forms and styles appropriate for the
communications professions, audiences and purposes they serve
Instruction
Measure 1:
Person
Completion
Responsible: Date:
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Extent of Outcome's
Achievement/Results for
Measure 1:
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More than half of 2012-2013 intern
supervisors will rate the writing ability
of the School of Journalism intern
Ken Blake
whom they supervised as either
"Very good" or "Excellent."
Measure 2:
Graduating seniors will score an
average of at least two on the fivequestion grammar portion of the
2013 senior exit exam.
07/31/2013
Inconclusive. Only three useable
intern evaluation forms were received
during the 2012-1013 academic
year. Of these three, two rated the
intern’s writing skills as “excellent,”
and the third rated the intern’s writing
skills as “very good.” With so few
cases, though, it is not possible to
determine whether the proportion
meeting the criteria was nonrandomly
greater than 50 percent.
Person
Completion
Responsible: Date:
Extent of Outcome's
Achievement/Results for
Measure 2:
Ken Blake
Met. Graduating seniors who
completed the five-question
grammar portion of the exam
scored an average of 2.2
questions right, with a standard
deviation of 1.3 questions. The
average was nonrandomly higher
than the target average of 2 (t =
2.454, df = 190, p < .05). As was
the case last year, students
performed best on a question
asking them to correctly
distinguish between “affected”
and “effected” (73 percent
correct) and next-best on a
question involving the correct use
of commas (54 percent correct).
Students struggled with questions
testing knowledge of subject-verb
agreement involving subjects
joined by “neither/nor” (39
percent correct), knowledge of
pronoun case (34 percent correct)
and knowledge of subject-verb
agreement when a prepositional
phrase separates the subject and
verb (23 percent correct
07/31/2013
Overall Outcome Results:
The senior exit exam's objective grammar assessment showed satisfactory levels, but the internship evaluation
measure was inconclusive due to an insufficient number of cases.
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This program outcome/general
goal was:
*If less than Met, program should plan further action to improve
performance.
Partially Met
Further Action Planned
What strengths were
displayed through the
assessments of your
measures?
What weaknesses were displayed through the assessments
of your measures?
Both measures suggest
that graduates possess
adequate writing skills.
Students need improved knowledge of some more specialized
aspects of grammar. Also, the method for collecting supervisor
feedback on interns needs revisions aimed at increasing the amount
of data collected.
Additional
Comments:
Recommendation 1:
Share grammar test results with the department's writing instructors and redouble efforts to standardize the
grammar instruction materials used in writing courses.
Recommendation 2:
Begin using a Web-based form to gather intern evaluations from internship supervisors.
Action Plan
Use of Results:
Last year's measurements produced satisfactory results. However, the School experimented with some new,
more thorough ways of assessing writing competence. The School plans to continue these experiments and
perhaps add measures based on them.
Programmatic
Changes:
Assessment Changes:
We plan to use a Web-based form to gather evaluation information from internship
supervisors. We feel this approach will be more "user friendly" than the .pdf-based approach
used this past year.
Person/Group Responsible for Action:
Target Date for implementation of the action:
Priority:
Outcome/Goal
Category
Graduating seniors understand and apply the principles and laws of freedom of speech
and press, including the right to dissent, to monitor and criticize power, and to assemble
and petition for redress of grievances.
Measure 1:
Person
Completion
Responsible: Date:
Extent of Outcome's
Achievement/Results for
Measure 1:
Met. On the exit exam’s 10-point
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Graduating seniors will average five
points or better on the 10-point free
Ken Blake
expression portion of the school's
exit exam.
07/31/2013
measure of free expression
knowledge, graduating seniors
averaged 6.39 points correct with a
standard deviation of 1.69 points.
According to a t-test, the 6.39 point
average was nonrandomly higher
than the target average of 5 points
correct (t = 11.76, df = 203, p < .05
Overall Outcome Results:
This learning objective appears to have been met satisfactorily.
This program outcome/general
goal was:
*If less than Met, program should plan further action to improve
performance.
Met
Further Action Unnecessary
What strengths were displayed through
the assessments of your measures?
What weaknesses were displayed through
the assessments of your measures?
Students showed a satisfactory level of
knowledge about baseline aspects of free
expression.
An additional measure - perhaps one assessing
more advanced knowledge - would be
desirable.
Additional
Comments:
Recommendation 1:
Explore additional ways of measuring understanding and application of free expression principles and laws perhaps measures tied to the School's law and free expression courses.
Action Plan
Use of Results:
Faculty were informed that last year's measures were satisfactory.
Assessment Changes:
Programmatic Changes:
Person/Group Responsible for Action:
Target Date for implementation of the action:
Priority:
Outcome/Goal
Category
Graduating seniors demonstrate an understanding of the history and role of media
professionals and institutions in shaping communications.
Measure 1:
Person
Completion
Responsible: Date:
Extent of Outcome's
Achievement/Results for
Measure 1:
Met. On the exit exam’s five-point
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Graduating seniors demonstrate an
understanding of the history and role
Ken Blake
of professionals and institutions in
shaping communications.
07/31/2013
measure of history knowledge,
students average 3.50 points with a
standard deviation of 1.36 points. A
t-test found the average to be
nonrandomly different from the target
of two points (t = 15.77, df = 203, p
< .05
Overall Outcome Results:
The results were satisfactory.
This program outcome/general
goal was:
*If less than Met, program should plan further action to improve
performance.
Met
Further Action Unnecessary
What weaknesses were
displayed through the
assessments of your
measures?
What strengths were displayed through the
assessments of your measures?
Additional
Comments:
Students demonstrated a satisfactory level of baseline
An additional measure would be
knowledge about the historyand role of media professionals
desirable.
and institutions in shaping communications.
Recommendation 1:
Look for further opportunities to assess students' knowledge of this area of learning, perhaps opportunities
tied to the School's media history course.
Action Plan
Use of Results:
Faculty were informed that last year's assessment results were satisfactory.
Assessment Changes:
Programmatic Changes:
Explore additional opportunities for assessment of this area.
Person/Group Responsible for Action:
Target Date for implementation of the action:
Priority:
Outcome/Goal
Category
Graduating seniors apply tools and technologies appropriate for the communications
professions in which they work.
Measure 1:
Person
Completion
Responsible: Date:
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Extent of Outcome's
Achievement/Results for
Measure 1:
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Fifty percent or more of School of
Journalism graduating seniors taking
the university's graduating senior
survey will rate as either "Somewhat"
Ken Blake
or "Very much" the degree to which
the university contributed to their
progress in "developing computer
skills."
Measure 2:
07/31/2013
Person
Completion
Responsible: Date:
Fifty percent or more of School of
Journalism graduating seniors taking
the university's graduating senior
survey will rate as either "Excellent" Ken Blake
or "Good" the "adequacy of
computer resources" within their
major.
07/31/2013
Met. Fully 81 percent of the 106
graduates who took the survey chose
either “Somewhat” or “Very much,”
a figure nonrandomly higher than the
target proportion of 50 percent (p <
.05). Notably, the figure represented
a statistically significant 13percentage-point decline from the 94
percent satisfaction rate reflected in
the 2011-2012 graduating senior
survey. Meanwhile, the figure was
statistically equivalent to the 77
percent satisfaction rate among all
Mass Communication students and
significantly higher (p < .05) than the
71 percent satisfaction rate among all
MTSU students.
Extent of Outcome's
Achievement/Results for
Measure 2:
Met. Seventy-five percent of the 96
graduates who took the survey chose
either “Excellent” or “Good,” a figure
nonrandomly higher than the target
proportion of 50 percent (p < .05).
The proportion was statistically
equivalent to the proportions
observed among last year’s 20112012 graduating senior survey
respondents as well as among
current year survey respondents in
the College of Mass Communication
and the university in general.
Overall Outcome Results:
The results were satisfactory, although some student concern was noted regarding the university's
contribution toward helping them develop computer skills.
This program outcome/general
goal was:
*If less than Met, program should plan further action to improve
performance.
Met
Further Action Unnecessary
What strengths were displayed through
the assessments of your measures?
Students appear generally satisfied with the
What weaknesses were displayed through
the assessments of your measures?
Additional
Comments:
Compared to last year, satisfaction has slipped,
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level of technology instruction the School
offers.
at least in terms of the university's contribution.
Recommendation 1:
Attempt to learn and address the causes of the decrease in student satisfaction with the university's
contribution to technological instruction.
Action Plan
Use of Results:
Faculty were informed that last year's results were satisfactory.
Assessment Changes:
Programmatic Changes:
Person/Group Responsible for Action:
Target Date for implementation of the action:
Priority:
13:53:20 CDT
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