Master of Arts in Mathematics
Mathematics Emphasis
Student Outcomes Assessment Plan
Assessment Philosophy
The primary means for ensuring quality assurance in the program is through the design of the
curriculum and grading the work students do in courses. This is complemented by requiring both
a culminating scholarly paper and comprehensive examinations for students on the non-thesis
option and a research paper for students on the thesis option. Assessment of both the scholarly
paper/thesis and the comprehensive examinations is done using rubrics developed by the
department.
Program Goals and Objectives
The goal of the MA in Mathematics program is to build upon undergraduate foundations and
prepare students for pursuing graduate study at the Ph.D. level and/or for employment in fields
of applied sciences and college-level teaching. The objectives of the program are:
• to provide instruction to students spanning a mix of rigorous courses in the standard
mathematical core consisting of analysis, algebra, number theory, topology, and
differential equations,
• to prepare students to undertake advanced mathematical reasoning, and
• to help students develop competence in communicating mathematical ideas by writing
and presenting a culminating paper in the form of a scholarly research paper or a thesis
Student Learning Outcomes
Related to the goals of the program, the following student learning outcomes have been
identified:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Graduates will be able to undertake advanced mathematical reasoning
Graduates will be able to conduct independent work and develop new mathematical ideas
Graduates will be able to solve problems at the level of graduate mathematics
Graduates will be able to comprehend and communicate advanced mathematics both
orally and in writing
Assessment Methods
All incoming graduate students will be required to take written mathematics candidacy
examination early in their program. The examination consists of two components: a multiple
choice part covering calculus concepts as well as concepts from standard undergraduate
mathematics, and an essay part testing the student’s ability to write proofs. Assessment of
student performance will be conducted by the members of the Student Outcomes Assessment
Committee by using a rubric approved by the department. The results of this assessment will be
used to establish baseline data for student outcomes assessments.
The assessment of student learning outcomes will be conducted as described below:
1.
Graduates will be able to undertake advanced mathematical reasoning.
Assessment Method: Assessment of student skill in mathematical reasoning will be based
on the written component of the scholarly paper or thesis. The assessment will be
conducted by the Student Outcomes Assessment Committee based on a rubric approved
by the department. Each member of the committee will rate each paper and their ratings
will be used to compute an average score for the paper. An analysis of these average
scores will be used to inform changes in the program.
2.
Graduates will be able to conduct independent work and develop new mathematical
ideas.
Assessment Method: Similar to part 1.
3.
Graduates will be able to solve problems at the level of graduate mathematics.
Assessment Method: For students choosing the non-thesis option the assessment will be
conducted on the written component of the scholarly paper and the comprehensive
examinations. For students choosing the thesis option, the assessment will be conducted
on the written component of the thesis. In either case, the assessment is carried out by the
Student Outcomes Assessment Committee using a method similar to the method
described in part 1.
4.
Graduates will be able to comprehend and communicate advanced mathematics both
orally and in writing.
Assessment Method: Assessment will be conducted on both the written and the oral parts
of scholarly paper (for students choosing the non-thesis option) and on the written part
and the oral defense of the thesis (for students choosing the thesis option). The written
part will be assessed by the Student Outcomes Assessment Committee and the oral
part/defense will be assessed by the members of the scholarly paper/thesis committee. In
either case, the assessment will be based on rubrics approved by the department.
Methods of Evaluating and Interpreting Results
For each rubric used in assessment, an average score (on some scale) for each component will be
calculated every year and
• the magnitude of the score will provide insight on the proximity to an ideal value, and
• an analysis of the trend of the score over time will be performed.
When the number of data points in a given year is large enough, statistical analyses will be
performed to determine if the results are significantly different compared to previous years.
When the number of data points in a given year is too small to perform meaningful statistical
analyses, the current year’s data will be combined with data from either the preceding or the
succeeding year before statistical analyses are conducted.
Procedures for Implementing Program/Curricular Changes
The Student Outcomes Assessment Committee will connect the results of their analyses to
courses and topics/assignments in the courses to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the
curriculum and make appropriate changes to strengthen the curriculum.
November 25, 2008
This is a draft SOA plan that will be undergoing consultation and revision during the spring
semester of the 2008-2009 school year.