General Education Annual Course Assessment Form
Course Number/Title: KIN 169, Diversity, Stress & Health
GE Area
S
Results reported for AY 2010-2011
# of sections 7 # of instructors 4
Course Coordinator: Matthew Masucci
E-mail: Matthew.Masucci@sjsu.edu
Department Chair: Shirley Reekie
College: CASA
Part 1: To be completed by the course coordinator:
(1) What SLO(s) were assessed for the course during the AY?
Fall 2010 – SLO #3: “Students will be able to describe social actions which have led to greater
equality and social justice in the U.S. (i.e. religious, gender, ethnic, racial, class, sexual orientation,
disability, and/or age).”
Spring 2011 – SLO #4: “Students will be able to recognize and appreciate constructive interactions
between people from different cultural, racial, and ethnic groups within the U.S.”
(2) What were the results of the assessment of this course? What were the lessons learned from the
assessment?
Fall 2010 – SLO #3 (Assessment Data: 3 sections, 92 students)
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Assessment: The primary way students demonstrated mastery of SLO #3 was through the successful
completion of a final research paper (required in all sections of HS/KIN169) that explores current research
related to structured inequalities experienced by a particular diverse group (e.g., race, ethnicity, gender,
religion, disability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, age) in the U.S. In the paper, students must
address social actions and behavioral interventions for reducing/eliminating inequities and related stressors,
in addition to showing how these interventions have led to greater equity.
An additional assignment that each section utilizes is called “Social Action Model and Small Group
Presentation” where students are required to investigate and present a practical social action/intervention
model for reducing or eliminating inequalities and related psychosocial and environmental stressors. One
element of the presentation is expected to address how social actions and interventions have helped
address issues of inequality.
Lessons Learned: Using the final research paper as the primary measure of successful mastery of SLO #3,
88% of the students completed the assignment with a grade of C or better. While writing issues continue to
be a challenge for some students, the content of the final papers is increasingly focusing on SLO#3 directly.
One explanation is that the assignment has been tweaked over the past several semesters (by specifically
asking students to address social actions) in order to align with this particular SLO even more directly.
Spring 2011 – SLO #4 (Assessment Data: 4 sections, 79 students)
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Assessment: The primary way students demonstrated mastery of SLO #4 was by successful completion of a
written paper (required by all instructors) called the personal inequity assignment that requires students to
tell their own stories and report on the stories of others, as related to the origins of personal inequities (that
are linked to one’s identity), the social, economic, and political processes involved in experienced inequities,
and interventions and social actions taken to alleviate stress and diminish or alleviate the inequities. Since
the paper directly asks students to interview a person with experiences different from their own, a
constructive dialog between different identity groups is fostered.
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Lessons Learned: Using the Personal Inequality Paper as the primary measure of successful mastery of SLO
#4; 92% of the students completed the assignment with a grade of C or better. One explanation for the high
rate of success with SLO #4 may be the significant amount of class time and resources (handouts) that are
used to clarify the expectations of the assignment. While it can be a challenge for some students to see the
link between their own personal identity and inequality (if they feel as though they have not experienced
prejudice, for example), the second part of the personal inequality assignment, where they interview
another person, seems to help bridge the gap between personal experience and the (inequality) experiences
of others.
(3) What modifications to the course, or its assessment activities or schedule, are planned for the
upcoming year? (If no modifications are planned, the course coordinator should indicate this.)
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Throughout the semester, it seems important to discuss the expectations for the paper(s), and to highlight
how the issues that are discussed in the class are historically, politically, socially and economically situated.
Connecting these fundamental concepts to how the students’ papers should be written may be beneficial to
draw a direct link between comprehension and communication of ideas. For the personal inequality paper,
a section that asks students to reflect on the experience of interviewing somebody different than
themselves may also help to strengthen the link to SLO#4. Another broad strategy the KIN 169 instructors
employ is regular discussions of pedagogical techniques that can be particularly important with the sensitive
content covered in Diversity, Stress, and Health. Not only do these conversations serve a practical purpose-to exchange tips and techniques about teaching the material (what works and what does not)--but an added
benefit is to foster a community of support among the instructors.
Part 2
To be completed by the department chair (with input from course coordinator as appropriate):
(4) Are all sections of the course still aligned with the area Goals, Student Learning Objectives (SLOs),
Content, Support, and Assessment? If they are not, what actions are planned?
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Yes, all sections of the course are aligned with the Area S Goals, SLOs, Content, Support, and Assessment.
This is facilitated by using a common green sheet and textbook. At least two common assignments are
required in all sections of the course: A Personal Inequality Paper, and the Scholarly Research Paper. Since
only four instructors regularly teach KIN 169, coordination of the course has been fairly uncomplicated. The
instructors meet formally and informally to share teaching strategies, discuss alignment with GE objectives,
and plan assessment of the class. As new instructors begin to teach KIN 169, a formal orientation will help
to maintain the current level of consistency.