September 25, 1996

To: Glen Hower, Chair, AAC

From: Roger Schlesinger, Chair, General Education Curriculum

Richard Law, Director, General Education

Subject: Draft Statement of "Goals and Outcomes of WSU's Baccalaureate Programs'

We have enclosed a document, "General Education Assessment Plan: Summary of Progress" [April 25, 1996], which represents the thinking of the General Education Committee on the appropriate goals and outcomes of WSU's general education program as it relates to and supports the more specific goals of the various baccalaureate programs. The document also presents a tentative plan, in outline form, of how to go about assessing the effectiveness of the General Education Program in achieving those goals. We are forwarding this draft report for the purposes of sharing information with the appropriate Senate bodies and with the University community in general. In addition, however, we direct your attention specifically to item II. "Goals and Outcomes of WSU's Baccalaureate Programs," and we solicit your advice concerning appropriate action, including possible revision of the statement by the AAC, and/or formal approval or rejection by AAC or by the Faculty Senate.

The assessment plan is admittedly very much a work in progress rather than a finished document, and it may therefore seem inappropriate to request this level of attention to a draft statement.. At the same time, although it is perhaps in need of further refinement, the "goals statement" portion of the document has reached a stage where it can be used--in fact, it has been used by the Extended Degree Program to define its own programmatic goals. Obviously, before other programs use the document and before the GEC can refine its larger plan, it would be useful to have a consensus or a formal sign of approval that we are moving in the right direction. We therefore request the AAC's assistance in obtaining the assent of the University community that this modification of the Commission goals statement is, in fact, an appropriate statement of the goals of the General Education Program and the criteria by which the program should be measured.

A brief history may help to contextualize this request: at the outset of the general education reform in 1986, it was clear that the revised curriculum would be designed to assist students in achieving specific educational goals. Those goals were outlined in the "Report of the Commission on General Education" of February, 1989 (see Appendix A of the enclosed document). In the meantime, the national as well as local conversation on assessment has progressed significantly and, since 1990, the University has been affected in several ways by a state initiative on assessment. Budget requests are now routinely based on assessment data, and WSU graduates are asked to respond in the "WSU Graduate Survey" to a set of goals established by the HEC Board for all baccalaureate institutions in the state (see Appendix B of attached document). Measuring progress toward learning goals has in the past few years become a routine part of accountability and on-going efforts to achieve continuous improvement in many units.

Accordingly, when requested by the central administration to establish a plan for assessing the General Education Program, the General Education Committee saw a need to revise the "goals and outcomes statement" from the Commission document in the direction of greater specificity--to articulate usable goals statements rather than (or as well as) to state an overall philosophy for the program. It was our intention in this revision to remain faithful to the spirit of the original Commission document while adding items from the HEC Board goals. That synthesis is contained in item 11. "Goals and Outcomes of WSU's Baccalaureate Programs," and we hereby submit it for AAC's approval.

Assessment Subcommittee of the GEC

John Tarnai, Convener

Dan Bartels

Rich Haswell

Al Jamison

Richard Law

Sue McLeod

Context of Assessment Planning

The primary purpose of all assessment is to improve performance and programs. The recent revisions of the General Education Program have provided numerous opportunities for re-examination of existing practices, testing of assumptions, innovations, and a variety of enhancements. It is clear, however, that the activity thus far represents only the beginning rather than the end of needed improvements. It is essential, therefore, to retain institutional momentum in this regard through continuous on-going assessment of all aspects of the General Education program.

In compliance with the HECB assessment initiative, institutions of higher education in Washington have been obliged to (1) identify program goals and objectives with greater precision than ever before, and (2) develop locally on each campus the expertise necessary to design, administer, and evaluate the results of assessment. WSU has taken a long-range strategic approach to satisfying both of these needs, using a comprehensive reform of the General Education Program already in progress to define the broad objectives of undergraduate education at the university.

It is far more feasible to measure progress in a designed curriculum than in programs where students have completely miscellaneous experiences. Accordingly, WSU's General Education Program has moved from a loose menu approach of distribution requirements to a designed general education curriculum with common core experiences at the freshman year in mathematics, science, history and culture, and writing. As portions of the new General Education program have been put in place, careful curriculum design and preplanning, needs assessments, and pilot offerings of key features have been used to modify and improve the program. Participation by a

broad range of faculty in these activities has, for the first time, made on-going assessment routine in many areas of the curriculum, and it has also produced a small cadre of faculty knowledgeable about assessment.

In short, the reform of WSU General Education program is one of the chief vehicles by which on-going assessment has become part of the institutional culture. The program also affords--simply by virtue of its higher level of organization--opportunities to identify institution-wide goals in quantitative skills, science literacy, cultural and international awareness, and writing skills, and subsequently to measure the effectiveness of those specific curricula.

A comprehensive assessment plan of the General Education Program will necessarily examine both student -outcomes and the effectiveness of the several components of the program; it will use a variety of methods, both formative and summative, and employ nationally normed instruments as well as ones of our own making.

I. Student Outcomes

In examining educational outcomes for students, we will be more interested in cognitive development (as described in paradigms such as the Perry Scheme) than in acquisition of specific kinds of knowledge. Models of this kind of assessment are readily available: novice/expert comparisons are used by Carnegie-Mellon, and the HECB has experts in measuring progress within the Perry Scheme.

The new General Education Program offers several strategic points for gathering information and assessing program effectiveness..

1. Tier III capstones will be main targets of assessment for higher level skills.

2. Writing Placement[Portfolio From the start, the WSU Writing Placement/Portfolio examinations were designed as a unit, to allow the assessment of program outcomes or provide material for value added studies. Complete data from the exams is stored electronically and contain many kinds of information. It should be possible to use the writing assessments to measure progress toward several of the GE program goals, not only growth in writing skills but also abilities such as reasoning critically; self-awareness of how one reasons and makes value judgments, independent learning, and understanding of and respect for diverse view points. At the same time, the two exams offer the potential for "value-added" assessments from entry level to mid-career.

3. Tier I courses and the proposed Freshman Seminar are, by virtue of their role as transition courses, obvious places to check student progress and to measure their satisfaction/discomfort with the university experience. The outcomes of core courses have also been defined with greater attention to program goals (i.e., quantitative skills [mandated by HECB]; science literacy; cultural awareness; international or global understanding; and critical thinking) than most aspects of the curriculum.

In addition, there are many institutional data-gathering points: the AIN numbers of entering classes and the Cooperative Institutional Research Program "Entering Freshman Survey" provides nationally comparable data about entering freshmen. The alumni survey, an existing instrument, is being re-designed to address the goals of the GE program and will allow comparison of late-career student attitudes against entry-level data. As the University develops or adopts new instruments, it will be imperative to remain alert to potential applications to General Education. The use of some normed exams, such as ACT (in conjunction with our own instruments) appears to be mandated by the state; we will adopt such instruments cautiously and use them only for well-defined purposes for which there is no locally developed measure.

Student Success

Grade distributions,

rates of attrition through drops

class standing of students in selected courses

student evaluations

peer evaluations

student focus groups and interviews

differences between native and transfer students

II. Goals and Outcomes of WSU's Baccalaureate Programs The "Goals and Outcomes" listed below define, in draft form, the aims of WSU's undergraduate degree programs, including major programs. Other discipline-specific objectives may be identified and addressed within the various majors. The General Education curriculum should contribute substantially to the achievement of these outcomes, but in conjunction with the students' experience of the major curriculum. Attempts to measure student progress at certain strategic points in the curriculum do not imply that some single component or course is the sole source of the progress; intellectual growth is a complex and synergistic process with many contributing factors, including extracurricular ones. On the other hand, part of the purpose of articulating programmatic goals and outcomes is to allow instructors to envision more clearly how their separate courses relate to a larger whole.

As outcomes of their edUC2tion, WSU students must be able to:

1. Reason critically

a. Define and solve problems

b. Integrate and synthesize knowledge

c. Assess the accuracy and validity of findings and conclusions

d. Understand how one thinks, reasons, and makes value judgments

e. Understand and respect diverse viewpoints, ambiguity and uncertainty

f. Understand differing philosophies and cultures

2. Conduct self-directed or independent learning projects

a. Demonstrate research and information retrieval skills

in the library

on the internet

b. Evaluate data and apply quantitative principles and methods

c. Show evidence of continued self-directed learning

d. Demonstrate creativity in framing and solving problems

e. Understand how one thinks, reasons, and makes value judgments

3. Understand the roles of normative views and values, including ethics and aesthetics

a. Understand distinctions between value assertions and statements of fact; recognize and respect evidence

b. Derive the premises upon which systems of value are grounded

c. Understand historical and contemporary systems of political, religious, and aesthetic values

d. understand and respect diverse viewpoints, respect the contingent nature of truth; tolerate ambiguity and uncertainty

e. have developed aesthetic sensibilities in regard to art, literature, nature

4. Communicate conclusions, interpret2tions and implications clearly, concisely and effectively, both orally and in writing

a. Critically analyze written information

b. Define, evaluate, and solve problems

C. Organize for clarity and coherence in writing and speaking tasks

d. Show awareness of contexts--audiences, styles, & conventions

e. Use correct standard English

f. Show evidence of copy-editing skills

g. Work cooperatively in groups

5. Acquire and assimilate knowledge in a variety of modes and contexts and recognize diverse disciplinary viewpoints and methods

a. Understand and apply scientific principles and methods

b. Understand and apply quantitative principles and methods

c. Understand and apply the principles and methods of the arts and humanities

d. Understand and apply the principles and methods of the social sciences

6. Understand the historical development of human knowledge and cultures, including both Western and non-Western civilizations

a. Demonstrate awareness of a broad overview of the human past

b. Understand perspectives linked to race, gender, ethnicity both in American society and in international contexts

c. Understand differing philosophies and cultures

d. Understand the interaction of society and the environment

e. recognize one's responsibilities, rights, and privileges as a citizen

N.B. These goals were derived from the "Program Goals and Outcomes" statement in the "Report of the President's Commission on General Education" (1989) and the outcomes included in the WSU Graduate Survey; both lists are appended to this document. The General Education Committee has given tentative approval (5/7/96) to this draft restatement of the goals.

Several items in the WSU Graduate Survey are not directly addressed in the curriculum but are relevant to many co-curricular activities. Accordingly, General Education and Residence Life have collaborated to produce a redrafting of the "Goals of the Freshman Year Experience' which includes those items. The draft document is attached as Appendix C.

III. Program Assessment

A. Obvious kinds of information to collect:

1. Content and structure of curriculum

2. Enrollment data

size of courses & sections

students turned away by course & by semester

retention/attrition

grade distribution

3. Staffing information

rank of instructor(s), level of TA assistance

4. Training of instructors and TAs

5- Evaluations/Assessment of Instructors

uniform/comparable student evaluations

alumni surveys

results of focus groups

outside evaluations

annual review of instructors

B. Strategic programs to examine carefully:

1. Tier I courses--[While expensive in faculty preparation time. a broad interdisciplinary course of study of the kind WSU is implementing at Tier I ensures permanent institutional focus on entering students, puts ranking faculty in front of freshman and affords multiple opportunities both for assessment and training a broad spectrum of faculty in the techniques and of assessment.]

English 101

World Civilizations I and 11

math core courses

Tier I sciences courses

2. The English composition curriculum

3. Writing in the Major courses

4. Capstone courses

5. Placement examinations

C. Assessment activities in progress in 1996

1. Survey of practices in and faculty satisfaction with Writing in the Major Courses--Sue McLeod and Richard Law

2. Comparison of student writing on the Freshman Placement Examination and the University Writing Portfolio--Rich Haswell

3. Statistical analysis of predictive value of AIN (by quartile of entering class) of success in Tier I courses and in terms of overall g.p.a.--Fran Hermanson, Dan Bartels, Al Jamison

1. PROGRAM GOALS AND GUIDELINES

A. General education courses should be designed to develop student competence in a broad spectrum of the disciplines and perspectives by which knowledge is acquired and organized in the modern world.

B. Education is about opening and shaping minds, not just filling them. Given the inevitability of change, there can be no conceivable educational content which, imparted in an inert form, could adequately serve life-long needs. The educated person must consequently have a continually developing framework for acquiring new knowledge. Rigorous training in the several modes of thought and explanation employed in scholarly disciplines bestows the competence--and hence the freedom and independence of mind--for a lifetime of learning.

C. It follows from point B that students should be required to participate actively (in tutorials, small seminars, or other close contact with faculty) in the organization and assimilation of information.

D. Some elements of common experience and common knowledge are essential in the system in order to counterbalance the tendencies toward specialization and divergence in the curriculum. General education must provide The common learning and conscious knowledge of our culture required of citizens and future leaders. At the same time, the prescribed elements in the curriculum should be balanced by larger areas where students can exercise choice.

E. General education courses should form a coherent whole; to this end they should be organized vertically in meaningful sequences as well as horizontally (i.e., across disciplines). This allows study in depth in organized sequences along a variety of tracks. To ensure opportunities for such study, a portion of the required courses should be taken, in the upper division. Some components of the system should be designed to aid students in the process of integrating and synthesizing material and concepts from diverse areas of the curriculum.

F. General Education should reflect the diversity within our society, and should therefore include the perspectives, experience, and contributions of women and racial or ethnic minorities.

G. Students should acquire basic research skills, including a working familiarity with computers and an effective knowledge of libraries.

H. Careful attention must be given to the development of communication skills, particularly writing. To this end, writing experiences should be integrated into all components of general education.

I. General education must include knowledge of the diversity of cultures, including an understanding of at least one other culture. Such study provides insights into other cultures and a better understanding of one's own.

J. The intellectual and cultural resources of the campus, including some programs that bring artists, scholars, and others to WSU, should be coordinated with the general education program.

K. Evaluation and assessment of the quality of teaching and learning must he built into the program at every level.

L. A program of faculty and graduate student development and other forms of instructional support should be established to serve the general education program.

II. OUTCOMES FOR THE STUDENT

General education should contribute measurably to the students' ability to perform certain intellectual tasks. The university also has a responsibility to define areas of critical or necessary knowledge and to ascertain whether its students have mastered them. The following is a broad, preliminary definition of those intellectual abilities and areas of knowledge.

Students who have completed the General Education Program should have made significant progress in their abilities to:

A. Understand the historical development of human knowledge and cultures including both Western and non-Western civilizations. History, as an assessment of the significance of the past and an explanation of the present world, has multiple roles in education. The inclusive study of history reveals the character and evolution of distinct ways of thought and life and the manner and degree to which their interaction has shaped and brought about subsequent civilizations. Hence, it is intrinsically useful for students to acquire a broad overview, including the specific perspectives influenced by class, gender, race or ethnicity, and to comprehend the most salient forces and developments that have caused both change and stability in major world cultures over time.

B. Understand the roles of normative views and values. including ethics and aesthetics. In recognition that values are a part of all human actions, the student should become familiar with the distinctions between value assertions and statements of fact, between moral and aesthetic values, between norms and values, between ethical systems and critical moral philosophy, and with the premises upon which systems of value are grounded. Awareness of historical and contemporary systems of political, religious, and aesthetic values enhances the students' understanding of the cultural bases of their own points of view and encourages them to explore and develop a great degree of coherence in their own values.

C. Understand and respect diverse viewpoints, ambiguity and uncertainty.

Experience presents us both with facts and accepted principles and with paradoxes and unresolvable issues. General education should encourage a recognition that this is so, as well as to foster the ability to understand, although not necessarily to accept, other sides of controversial, emotional, or ambiguous issues. To try to see other sides of an argument, holding one's own bias or judgment in abeyance, allows one to gain knowledge of other ways of thinking and, eventually, to see one's own viewpoint and oneself more clearly.

D. Acquire and assimilate knowledge in a variety of modes and contexts. Knowledge is information made meaningful by integration into an existing framework of facts and ideas--the more connections, the better the assimilation. General education should develop techniques for integration. Techniques include observing, questioning assumptions and approaches, using library and other resources effectively, reading, writing, listening, experimenting, learning by doing, applying languages (including mathematics), and recognizing diverse disciplinary viewpoints and methods. Development of such techniques is the key to advancement of knowledge and should be a lifelong undertaking.

E. Define problems and issues.

F. Integrate and synthesize knowledge.

G. Reason critically.

H. Assess the accuracy and validity of findings and conclusions. (Comments on objectives E through H.) Students need to gain a firm grasp of critical reasoning and an explicit awareness of appropriate techniques, including conventional logics (e.g., deductive, statistical) and modes of explanation (e.g., functional, structural, teleological, genetic and historical, comparative, logical). For the most part, these skills will be consciously embodied in general education and major offerings of the various disciplines and professional programs. These courses should make explicit their styles of reasoning and provide the student with exemplary models for emulation and use as tools. Facility with and awareness of these forms of argumentation and skills in critical reasoning will aid the student in subsequent studies. The acquisition of a critical attitude will enable the student to examine intelligently the underlying assumptions implicit in the fabric of knowledge and should help in gaining an understanding of the common threads that connect the various kinds of knowledge.

I. Communicate conclusions, interpretations and implications clearly, concisely and effectively. Conveying knowledge to others persuasively and in a variety of ways is vital in a.11 walks of life.

J. Develop an awareness of how one thinks, reasons, and makes value judgments.

Q24 How satisfied are you with Washington State University's contribution to your academic and/or personal growth in each of the following areas:

a. Writing effectively

b. Speaking effectively

c. Critically analyzing written information

d. Learning independently

e. Understanding and applying scientific principles and methods

f. Understanding and applying quantitative principal methods

g. Defining and solving problems

h. Ability to lead

i. Readiness for advanced education

j. Readiness for a career

k. Working cooperatively in a group

1. Understanding differing philosophies and culture

m. Understanding and appreciating the arts

n. Understanding the interaction of society and the environment

o. Recognizing your responsibilities, rights, and privileges as a citizen

The freshman year experiences at Washington State University are intended to:

1. provide freshman opportunities to become successful academic and social members of the university learning community

2. enhance the academic experience of freshmen by providing opportunities for satisfying and rewarding interactions with faculty, staff, and students

3. introduce freshmen to the potentials of life-long learning

During your freshman year, you should make substantial progress in the following life-long processes:

1. grow intellectually and socially

2. use your expanding educational experience to explore your academic and career options

3. learn to understand and respect diverse points of view

4. learn to be a team member and a leader

5. form positive relations with members of the faculty and staff

6. develop friendships with other students that enhance your learning

7. cultivate your personal philosophy, ethics, and identity

8. further your understanding of your responsibilities as a member of a community and as a citizen