2013-2014 Annual Program Assessment Report
Please submit report to your department chair or program coordinator, the Associate Dean of your College, and to
james.solomon@csun.edu, director of assessment and program review, by Tuesday, September 30, 2014. You may submit a separate
report for each program which conducted assessment activities.
College: Science and Mathematics
Department: Mathematics
Program:
Assessment liaison: Vladislav Panferov
1. Overview of Annual Assessment Project(s). Provide a brief overview of this year’s assessment plan and process.
Assessed the effectiveness of the Online Tutoring Center for freshman Calculus (MATH 150A) and Math Methods for Business
(MATH 103). Revised the department SLOs.
Collected data on participation in the online tutoring forum run by the math department, the grade distribution and studied
correlations between different types of posts on the forum and improvement in grades.
2. Assessment Buy-In. Describe how your chair and faculty were involved in assessment related activities. Did department
meetings include discussion of student learning assessment in a manner that included the department faculty as a whole?
Discussions about the department needs for assessment involved the members of the department curriculum committee, the
department chair, and faculty members participating in Calculus assessment projects (Shubin, Alekseenko). We plan to include
assessment matters into regular department meetings this year, which are becoming both more frequent and better attended.
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3. Student Learning Outcome Assessment Project. Answer items a-f for each SLO assessed this year. If you assessed an additional
SLO, copy and paste items a-f below, BEFORE you answer them here, to provide additional reporting space.
3a. Which Student Learning Outcome was measured this year?
SLO2: Communicate mathematical ideas clearly and cogently, both orally and in written form
3b. Does this learning outcome align with one or more of the university’s Big 5 Competencies? (Delete any which do not apply)
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Oral Communication
Written Communication
Quantitative Literacy
Information Literacy
The online tutoring assessment project concerned primarily Written Communication competency; however due to specifics of
the online forum question/answer format, this type of communication is much closer to “real life” oral communication, and
provides a significant variety from the traditional exam question communication. The content of the forum aligns with
Qualitative Literacy, while Information Literacy is addressed in the way of communication.
3c. What direct and/or indirect instrument(s) were used to measure this SLO?
Student GPA, and course grade information were put into correspondence with the number of posts of either question or
answer/followup type, and the number of views of the online forum.
3d. Describe the assessment design methodology: For example, was this SLO assessed longitudinally (same students at different
points) or was a cross-sectional comparison used (Comparing freshmen with seniors)? If so, describe the assessment points used.
Data were collected for the students enrolled in the courses during the Spring 2013 – Spring 2014 semester period. The
student GPA prior to taking the course was used to
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separate the student population into “A”, “B”, “C” and “D” groups. For each group the grade distribution was cross-matched
with data on forum participation, to determine whether there was a positive correlation between improvement of grades
and forum posts and views.
3e. Assessment Results & Analysis of this SLO: Provide a summary of how the results were analyzed and highlight findings from the
collected evidence.
For each of the groups except group “D” (GPA below 1.5) it was observed that active online participation correlates with the
course performance above the group average. Online participation for group “D” was too low to make this type of
conclusion; however this fact itself speaks in support of increased student participation in the online forum. It should be
noted however, that the “gain” in the course grade was observed for students with large number of forum views; in contrast,
large number of forum posts was not correlated with grade improvement. Thus, students who ask questions frequently are
not ones who end up with better grades for the course...
3f. Use of Assessment Results of this SLO: Describe how assessment results were used to improve student learning. Were
assessment results from previous years or from this year used to make program changes in this reporting year? (Possible changes
include: changes to course content/topics covered, changes to course sequence, additions/deletions of courses in program, changes
in pedagogy, changes to student advisement, changes to student support services, revisions to program SLOs, new or revised
assessment instruments, other academic programmatic changes, and changes to the assessment plan.)
Online tutoring center is a relatively recent initiative in the department (it operates since the Fall of 2011). It is the first time
that data on the effectiveness of the forum were studied systematically. The results will be used to increase the student
participation in the online forum in the future.
4.
Assessment of Previous Changes: Present documentation that demonstrates how the previous changes in the program
resulted in improved student learning.
N/A
5.
Changes to SLOs? Please attach an updated course alignment matrix if any changes were made. (Refer to the Curriculum
Alignment Matrix Template, http://www.csun.edu/assessment/forms_guides.html.)
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1: Changed formulation; same alignment
OLD SLO 1. Demonstrate a command of the content usually associated with an undergraduate Degree in Mathematics
NEW SLO 1. Demonstrate a solid foundation in mathematics which exhibits both breadth and depth of knowledge
3: Broaden the formulation to make applicable to 100- and 200-level courses. Include alignment with critical thinking
competence.
OLD SLO 3. Present clear and rigorous proofs
NEW SLO 3. Apply principles of mathematical reasoning to construct and evaluate rigorous mathematical arguments
4: Broaden formulation to include 100- and 200-level courses; include reference to Critical Thinking competence
OLD SLO 4: Build mathematical models and demonstrate problem-solving skills, including proper use of mathematical
software
NEW SLO 4: Develop problem-solving skills and critical thinking in both theoretical and computational approaches to
mathematical problems
5: Remove SLO as too narrow and difficult to assess
OLD SLO 5: Understand the principles underlying various branches of mathematics and recognize their interrelationship
6: Replace SLO 6 by a more focused formulation, which is also applicable to a broader range of 400-level courses:
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OLD SLO 6: Experiance mathematical discovery and independently read and understand mathematical articles and texts
written at an undergraduate level
NEW SLO 5: Explore open-ended problems, learn to make conjectures, and gather evidence to support or refute these
conjectures
Alignment matrix: in progress
6.
Assessment Plan: Evaluate the effectiveness of your 5 year assessment plan. How well did it inform and guide your
assessment work this academic year? What process is used to develop/update the 5 year assessment plan? Please attach an
updated 5 year assessment plan for 2013-2018. (Refer to Five Year Planning Template, plan B or C,
http://www.csun.edu/assessment/forms_guides.html.)
In progress
7.
Has someone in your program completed, submitted or published a manuscript which uses or describes assessment activities in your
program? Please provide citation or discuss.
A. Alekseenko, C. McKinlay, B. Shapiro, C. Shubin; A Study of the Influence of the Student Participation in the Online
Tutoring on the Student Success in Calculus and Mathematical Methods for Business, internal report, CSUN (2014).
8. Other information, assessment or reflective activities or processes not captured above.
N/A
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