2014-2015 Annual Program Assessment Report
College: College of Engineering and Computer Science (CECS)
Department: Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE)
Programs: EE and CompE
Assessment liaison: Dr. Deborah van Alphen
1.
Please check off whichever is applicable:
A. ____x____ Measured student work. (Collected data for all outcomes in the Sp ’15 semester)
B. ________ Analyzed results of measurement.
C. ____x___ Applied results of analysis to program review/curriculum/review/revision. (Implemented Program Improvement Plan in Fall ’14 semester)
Assessment Overview
Our assessment process (shown below) consists of a three-year cycle, with three phases: the Major Assessment Phase (lasting for one year), in which we collect data from exams, surveys, etc., the Major Evaluation Phase (lasting for one semester), in which we evaluate the assessment data and form an Improvement Plan, and the Implementation Phase (lasting for three semesters), in which we implement the Program
Improvement Plan.
The three-year cycle is:
Major Assessment Phase
(collect data: exams, homework, surveys, …)
1 (calendar) year:
2012, 2015, 2018, …
3 semesters
Implementation Phase
(Implement Program
Improvement Plan)
Major Evaluation Phase
(analyze and evaluate assessment results)
1 semester:
Sp ’13, Sp ‘16, …
Output: Program
Improvement
Plan

Fall ’14 Assessment
Fall ’14 was the third semester of our 3-semester Implementation Phase, during which we implement the changes that were approved as part of our Program Improvement Plan. (The Program Improvement Plan was recommended by the ECE Department Program Improvement Committee, and approved by the ECE Department faculty in Spring ’13. The plan was based on the results of our Major Assessment conducted in calendar year 2012.)
The list below provides the recommended actions that were part of the Program Improvement Plan of Spring ’13, along with a brief comment about the progress that was made during the total time allotted for their implementation (Fall ’13 – Fall ‘14).

Add ethics lecture to Senior Design, followed by an assignment and quiz o Done.

Design targeted assignments for Student Outcomes f, h, i, and j o Done by the department faculty at-large, and submitted to our accreditation agency, ABET; o Approved by ABET, leading to the final accreditation of our EE and CompE programs (good for 6 years).

Clean up lab manuals: ECE 240L, ECE 440L, ECE 442L, and ECE 443L o Manuals for ECE 240L and ECE 440L have been revised; we are still working on manuals for ECE 442L and ECE 443.

Develop videos to instruct students on the proper use of lab equipment o Done - videos were developed to instruct students on the proper use of the digital multimeter, the oscilloscope, and the function generator. These videos are now available from the department web page, and their availability is announced in the appropriate lab courses.

Write ECE 309 lab manual and oral report rubric suitable for internet oral reports o Done.

Add a section on Simulink to ECE 309 o Done.

Require Senior Design students to include a slide in their final oral presentations about at least one professional standard applicable to their project o Done, starting in Fall ’13 and now on-going.

Drop the prerequisite quizzes from our formal assessment process o Done.

Form faculty committee to eliminate curriculum overlap in math sequence: Math/ECE 280, ECE 309, ECE 350, ECE 351, and ECE 455 o The committee met twice, but some work remains to be done in the alignment of ECE 309 and ECE 455.
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In addition to implementing our improvement plan, we also reviewed our outcomes during the Fall ’14 semester. Based on input from our ABET reviewers following the 2012 visit, along with input from Dean Ramesh, we decided to revise our outcomes, making them identical to those required by our accreditation agency, ABET. This allowed us to reduce the number of outcomes from 14 to 11. Note that while three outcomes were eliminated, the remaining 11 only had minor changes in wording from our previous outcomes. The new outcomes, along with performance criteria for two of the outcomes, are given below:
ABET’s Student Outcomes a - k (Approved for EE and CompE Program: 9/14)
ABET Student Outcomes a. an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering b. an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data c. an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability d. an ability to function on multidisciplinary teams e. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems f. an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility g. an ability to communicate effectively h. the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context i. a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning j. a knowledge of contemporary issues k. an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice
Performance Criteria b. an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data
b-1. an ability to design experiments to test hypotheses and to verify designs b-2. an ability to conduct experiments, as demonstrated by efficient use of lab equipment and use of appropriate lab procedures in laboratory courses. b-3. an ability to analyze and interpret experimental data, demonstrated by the use of appropriate mathematics, graphics, and/or numerical methods.
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g. an ability to communicate effectively
g-1: an ability to communicate effectively through written reports, as demonstrated by writing lab reports. g-2: an ability to communicate effectively through oral presentations.
Sp ’15 Assessment
Sp ’15 was the first of two semesters in our 3-year cycle that are devoted to data collection. During the Sp ’15 semester, we attempted to collect data for all outcomes (a-k, as listed above). Of course, not every professor was cooperative, so the remaining data collection will be done in Fall ‘15. The two tables below show the data collection plan (for required courses and for elective courses) that we implemented in Sp ’15.
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Student Outcomes Assessed by Required Courses, Sp ’15
Required Courses
In Either Program
ECE 101/L
ECE 206/L
ECE 240
ECE 240L
ECE 280/Math 280
ECE 309
ECE 320
ECE 320L
ECE 340
ECE 340L
ECE 350
ECE 351
ECE 370
ECE 420
ECE 422
ECE 425
ECE 425L
ECE 442
ECE 442L
ECE 450
ECE 455
ECE 480
ECE 492
ECE 493
Student Outcomes a b c d e f g h i
X X e
X
X b2
X X b2 X
X b3
X b2 X
X
X
X
X s
X se g2
X
X
X
X b1
X b13
X
X
X
X
X X
X
X b13
X
X
X g1
X
X g2 g12 g2
X
X j
X X
X
X X k
X
PS
X
ML
X
PS
X
X
X
ML
X
X
X s g2
X
ML
X X X
X X es
g12
Total # of Courses
(# per Perf. Crit.)
7 12 6 5 6 7 9 5 7 5 6
3,3,3 3, 4 3,6 2,3
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Elective Courses
ECE 410
ECE 410L
ECE 411
ECE 412
ECE 440
ECE 440L
ECE 443
ECE 443L
ECE 445
ECE 451/L
ECE 460
ECE 460L
ECE 480L
ECE 501
ECE 503
ECE 520
ECE 520L
ECE 524
ECE 524L
ECE 526
ECE 526L
ECE 527
ECE 527L
ECE 545
ECE 546
ECE 561
ECE 561L
ECE 562
ECE 571
Student Outcomes Assessed by Elective Courses, Sp ‘15
Student Outcomes a b c d e f g h i j k
X
S
X
X
S
X b1
X g2
X
ML
X
X b2
X
X e
X e
X
X
X
X g1
X
X
X
X
X
X b3
X
S
X
S
X
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ECE 572
ECE 578
ECE 580
ECE 581
X
X
X
X
The outcomes are assessed with embedded test questions, homework assignments, projects and/or lab reports, with the choice being left up to the professor teaching the course. Professors are asked to submit a score, normalized between 0 and 10, to reflect the measure of student attainment for each outcome (or performance criterion) they are assessing.
Plan for Fall ‘15/Sp ‘16
In addition to finishing the collection of the (direct) assessment data from the various courses, we will also conduct surveys (of alumni, employers and students) in the Fall ’15 semester. The data analysis will be done in the Sp ’16 semester, and the department’s Program
Improvement Committee will produce a new Program Improvement Plan based on this analysis. The ECE Department Faculty will discuss and vote on the Program Improvement Plan either at the end of Sp ’16 or at the beginning of Fall ’16.
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