College Senate Bulletin
Bulletin No. 11
Pages 185-191
1 Feb. 2002
Contents
Page Topic
185 Contents
Announcements:
186 REVISED Spring 2002 College Senate and Senate Committee Meeting Schedule
186 Changes in Senate Membership
186 Senate Bulletin Mailing List
186 Nominations for Senate Offices
186 Call for Nominations: President’s Awards
187 Agenda for the College Senate Meeting, 5 February, 2002
188 Proposed General Education Assessment Plan
__________________________________________________________________
Correspondence: Janice A. Lovett, Department of Biology,
Bailey 210; e-mail: lovett@geneseo.edu; phone: 245-5413
______________________________________________________________________________
Announcements:
Spring 2002 College Senate and Senate Committee Meeting Schedule
Remember the first senate meeting of the spring semester has been changed from February 12 to February 5!
February 5 Executive Committee Meeting
College Senate Meeting
February 12 Faculty Affairs Committee, Welles 111, 4 p.m.
February 26 Executive Committee Meeting
March 5 College Senate Meeting and All-College Meeting
April 2 Executive Committee Meeting
April 9 College Senate Meeting
April 23 Executive Committee Meeting
April 30 College Senate Meeting
Changes in Senate Membership
William Cook is on sabbatical this semester.Mary Jensen, the next runner-up in the Spring 2001 election, has agreed to be nominated for approval by the Senate to replace Bill for the semester.
Senate Bulletin Mailing List
Any member of the College Community may receive an individual copy of the College Senate Bulletin. If you would like to receive a copy please send your name as you would like it to appear on the mailing label and your campus address to the Senate Chair, Janice Lovett, lovett@geneseo.edu or 210 Bailey.
Nominations for Senate Offices
The Nominations Committee is seeking nominations for Senate Officers and is required by the Constitution of the Faculty to present a slate consisting of at least two nominees for each position. Please, consider seriously running for Senate. If you would like to contact the Nominations Committee about running, you can contact James Allen directly (Psychology Department, allen@geneseo.edu).
Call for Nominations: President’s Awards
Please remember to that the deadline for nominations is February 15, 2002. Nominations should consist of a narrative of no more than two pages double spaced describing the nominee's fulfillment of the criteria as listed in the last Senate Bulletin. Nominations should be submitted to either the Campus Awards Selection Committee, c/o Provost's Office, Erwin 205 by 4:15 on February 15, 2002, or electronically to Linda Shepard (shepard). Please take the time to nominate a deserving colleague.
Agenda:
College Senate Meeting
February 5, 2002
Call to Order
Adoption of Agenda
Approval of the Minutes of the Previous Meetings
4 December, 2001 College Senate Bulletin 9, pp.163-179.
Senate Reports
President's Report Christopher Dahl
Provost's Report Barbara Dixon
Chair's Report Janice Lovett
Vice Chair's Report Terence Bazzett
Treasurer's Report Charles Freeman
University Senator's Report William Gohlman
Central Council Report Joshua Lieberman
Reports of the Standing Committees of the Senate
Undergraduate Curricula Judith Bushnell
Second Readings:
Course Deletions:
ANTH 225 - Ethno-nonverbal Communication (Bulletin 8, 145)
ANTH 308 - Field Methods in Paleoanthropology (Bulletin 8, 146)
ANTH 315 - Iroquois Field School (Bulletin 8, 146)
BIOL 313 - Horticultural Science (Bulletin 8, 146)
ECON/MGMT 322 - Managerial Economics (Bulletin 8, 146)
ENGL 334 - American Literature of the Depression Era (Bulletin 8, 146)
GEOG 360 - M/Asian Field Course: (subtitle) (Bulletin 8, 146)
GEOG 372 - Physical Environmental Hazards (Bulletin 8, 146)
HIST 327 - Transforming Russia & China (Bulletin 8, 146)
INTD 260 - Heritage of Jewish Civilization (Bulletin 8, 146)
INTD 270 - Topics in History of Science I (Bulletin 8, 146)
INTD 271 - Topics in History of Science II (Bulletin 8, 146)
INTD 292 - Race in the Americas (Bulletin 8, 146)
MGMT 322 - Managerial Economics (Bulletin 8, 146)
MGMT 353 - Intermediate Statistics (Bulletin 8, 146)
MGMT 381 - Independent Research in Management I (Bulletin 8, 146)
PHIL 333 - Artificial Intelligence Problem (Bulletin 8, 146)
PLSC 312 - Government & Budgetary Priorities (Bulletin 8, 146)
PLSC 323 - Politics of Revolution (Bulletin 8, 146)
PSYC 379 - Human Factors & Ergonomics (Bulletin 8, 146)
Undergraduate Academic Policies, Core and Review Carlo Filice
Graduate Academic Affairs Dale Metz
Student Affairs Duane McPherson
Faculty Affairs James Mclean
Old Business
Resolution on Rational Tuition Plan
New Business
Assessment of General Education Plan (See below.)
Adjournment
The following Assessment Plan for the General Education Program has been developed in collaboration between the Assessment Planning Committee and the oversight committees of each General Education area in response the request of the SUNY Provost's Office General Education Assessment Review group.
Assessment of General Education
SUNY Geneseo
January, 2002
Introduction
The general education curriculum at SUNY Geneseo is organized into nine areas. Each area has its own oversight committee charged with approving eligible courses and implementing the assessment of learning outcomes. Prior to implementation, the General Education Committee will review and approve the learning outcomes developed by the separate area oversight committees, and the Assessment Planning Committee will review and approve the assessment plans developed by these committees.
The area oversight committees will submit their assessment reports to the Assessment Planning Committee. The APC will review the reports for suitability before forwarding them to the General Education Committee. The reports will include:
* Description of improvements/actions taken based on previous assessments
* The results of the current-year assessment
* Description of how current assessment results will be used for improvement
General education areas will be assessed on a 3-year cycle. In addition, the general education learning outcomes related to information management and oral competency will be assessed within majors, the results of which will be reported to the APC as part of the major’s program assessment.
2002-2003: Writing Seminar, Numeric & Symbolic Reasoning, Humanities
2003-2004: Social Science, Foreign Language, Fine Arts, Information Management
2004-2005: Natural Science, US History, Non-western Traditions, Oral Competency
The oversight committees all have chosen to use rubrics as their primary means of assessment. This method places responsibility for assessment at the committee level and is consistent with the current structure of general education at the College. In some cases the rubrics will be used by area assessment committees and in other cases they will be used in Primary Trait Analyses conducted by individual faculty members.
Areas Assessed in 2002-2003
Writing Seminar
Basic Communication-Writing Outcomes:
Ø Produce coherent texts within common college-level written forms
Ø Demonstrate the ability to revise and improve such texts
Critical Thinking Outcomes:
Ø Identify, analyze, and evaluate arguments as they occur in their own or others’ work
Ø Develop well-reasoned arguments
Assessment Methods:
1. A committee of faculty who teach Writing Seminar will apply a common rubric to a sample of 50 student papers randomly selected from all sections of the course.
2. Students who take Writing Seminar will be surveyed each semester.
Numeric and Symbolic Reasoning
Mathematics Outcome:
Ø Students will show competence in quantitative reasoning skills
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach N&SR courses will apply a common rubric to a set of exams in their course at some point during the semester. They will report the results to the N&SR Committee, which will aggregate the results for all courses in the area.
Humanities
Humanities Outcome:
Ø Demonstrate knowledge of the conventions and methods of at least one of the humanities in addition to those encompassed by other knowledge areas required by the General Education program
Western Civilization Outcomes:
Ø Demonstrate knowledge of the development of the distinctive features of the history, institutions, economy, society, culture, etc., of Western civilization
Ø Relate the development of Western civilization to that of other regions of the world
Assessment Method:
A committee of faculty who teach Humanities will apply a rubric to a sample of final exams randomly selected from all sections of Humanities courses.
Areas Assessed in 2003-2004
Social Science
Outcomes:
Ø Understanding of the methods social scientists use to explore social phenomena, including observation, hypothesis development, measurement and data collection, experimentation, evaluation of evidence, and employment of mathematical and
Ø Knowledge of major concepts, models and issues of at least one discipline in the social sciences
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach general education courses in Social Science will apply a common rubric to a set of exams or written assignments in their course. They will report the results to the Social Science Core Committee, which will aggregate the results for all courses in the area.
Foreign Language
Outcomes:
Ø Basic proficiency in the understanding and use of a foreign language
Ø Knowledge of the distinctive features of culture(s) associated with the language they are studying
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach a Foreign Language 201 course will apply a common rubric to a set of exams in their course at some point during the semester. They will report the results to the department assessment coordinator, who will aggregate the results for all FL 201 courses.
Fine Arts
Outcome:
Ø Understanding of at least one principal form of artistic expression and the creative process inherent therein
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach general education courses Fine Arts will apply a common rubric to a course assignment. They will report the results to the Fine Arts Core Committee, which will aggregate the results for all courses in the area.
Information Management, Basic Communication - Research
Information Management Outcomes:
Ø Perform the basic operations of personal computer use
Ø Understand and use basic research techniques
Ø Locate, evaluate and synthesize information from a variety of sources
Basic Communication - Research Outcome:
Ø Research a topic, develop an argument, and organize supporting details
Assessment Method:
Each major program will identify required courses in which these outcomes are taught. Faculty who teach these courses will apply a common rubric to a set of exams or papers in their course at some point during the semester. They will report the results to the department assessment coordinator, who will aggregate the results for all such courses in the department.
Areas Assessed in 2004-2005
US History
Outcomes:
Ø Knowledge of a basic narrative of American history: political, economic, social, and cultural, including knowledge of unity and diversity in American society
Ø Knowledge of common institutions in American society and how they have affected different groups
Ø Understanding of America’s evolving relationship with the rest of the world
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach courses that meet the US History Graduation Requirement will apply a common rubric to a set of exams or a written assignment in their course. They will report the results to the US History Graduation Requirement Committee, which will aggregate the results for all such courses for the year.
Non-western Traditions
Outcome:
Ø Knowledge of either a broad outline of world history, or the distinctive features of the history, institutions, economy, society, culture, etc., of one non-Western civilization
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach Non-western core courses will apply a common rubric to a set of exams or a written assignment in their course. They will report the results to the Non-western Traditions Graduation Requirement Committee, which will aggregate the results for all courses in the area.
Natural Science
Mathematics Outcome:
Ø Data analysis
Natural Science Outcomes:
Ø Understanding of the methods scientists use to explore natural phenomena, including observation, hypothesis development, measurement and data collection, experimentation, evaluation of evidence, and employment of mathematical analysis
Ø Application of scientific data, concepts, and models in one of the natural sciences
Assessment Method:
Faculty who teach general education courses in Natural Science will apply a common rubric to a set of questions embedded in final exams. Data analysis and application of scientific data will be assessed by applying a rubric to laboratory reports. Faculty will report the results to the Natural Science Core Committee, which will aggregate the results for all courses in the area.
Basic Communication - Oral Discourse
Outcomes:
Ø Develop proficiency in oral discourse
Ø Evaluate an oral presentation according to established criteria
Assessment Method:
Each major program will identify required courses in which these outcomes are taught. Faculty who teach these courses will apply a common rubric to an oral presentation assignment in their course at some point during the semester. They will report the results to the department assessment coordinator, who will aggregate the results for all such courses in the department.
Examples of two rubrics to be used for assessment are posted on the Geneseo assessment website, www.geneseo.edu/~assess, under Assessment Methods.