SPRING 2015 SLO/PLO/ILO ASSESSMENT REPORT

Date: 6/23/2015

Name of Person Reporting: Par Mohammadian, Mike Reynolds

Name of Department and/or Discipline: Life Sciences

  1. a. List thecourses/certificates/programsyour discipline/department assessed in the Spring 2015semester.

SLOs:

Human Biological Evolution; Anthropology 101 (3 sections)

Human Language and Communication; Anthropology 104 (2 sections)

Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft; Anthropology 121 (1 section)

Introduction to Biology (BIO003) (4 sections)

ILOs (Information Competency):

Introduction to Human Physiology 001 (2 sections)

General Microbiology 020 (2 sections)

General Biology 1 (BIO006) (1 section)

General Biology II (BIO007) (1 section)

b. For each one, indicate whether the benchmark (standard for student success) was reached.

SLOs:

Anthropology Courses: The benchmark was achieved in all assessments. Overall, instructors were satisfied with the student performance and recommended minor changes. One instructor requested more funds to purchase videos and models to use in the classrooms. To better capture all criteria a revision of the rubrics is recommended. The recommendation will be forwarded to the Chair of the Social Sciences Department since this discipline will be moved to this Department starting July 1, 2015.

Two SLOs were also revised and approved by the curriculum committee. They have been entered in the online SLO system under Fall 2015. This information was communicated to the Chair of the Social Sciences Department.

BIO003 Courses: Overall the benchmark was reached for all SLOs with the exception of solving genetic problems (in three sections) and graphing (in one section). The instructors recommended additional activities in the classroom and labs to improve these outcomes.

ILOs (Information Competency):

Physiology 1:In one section, the scores were slightly below the benchmark. The instructor indicated that some students decided not to include any references and it made it difficult to use the rubric. Also, a closer collaboration with the library was suggested to create more hands-on and web-based APA workshops.

BIO006 and 007: The benchmark was achieved for all criteria. The instructor recommended the help of STEM tutors to assist students in some concepts.

Microbiology 020: The benchmark was achieved in all criteria with the exception of “Ethics”. The instructor recommended close collaboration with the STEM tutors and the library.

  1. Summarizethemajorassessment results for courses/programs in your area.

See 1b.

  1. Summarize what changes have been made or are planned to be made as a result of the assessments.

See 1b.

  1. Follow up on previous assessments:
    (1) If an SLO was assessed previously, compare the results with the earlier assessments:

(a)Have the recommended changes been implemented?

Anthropology courses: One major change was the addition of the English 028 course as a prerequisite, which contributed to a better outcome.

BIO003 courses: The final lab exam that is used to assess the SLOs is revised every year based on these outcomes. The outcomesstill indicate issues that are related to the genetic problems despite additional practice.

ILO:The ILOs were assessed using a different rubric (different compared to previous semesters) and therefore making it difficult to compare the outcomes. However, overall it was indicated that the assistance of STEM tutors and a close collaboration with the library are essential tools for a better outcome.

(b) Has the follow-up textbox been filled in on the SLO online system?

Yes. There is however a problem with the SLO online system that creates a follow-up box immediately after the report is submitted. The follow-up report should be created the following semesters after the changes were implemented.

Those courses that are not taught by the same instructors or not offered every semester do not have completed follow-up reports. Also, some instructors prefer to implement the changes over three semesters and the follow-up report is completed after three semesters.

To prevent any confusion it is recommended to include the follow-up section right in the report instead of having an additional box.

(2) How have the findings led to improved student learning?

Overall, the changes have contributed to a better outcome.

  1. Have the results of your assessments been shared and discussed among the members of your program? (Provide dates and any minutes of meetings as evidence. Please also post relevant minutes in the Department Notes section of the SLO Online system.)

This semester the SLO assessments were discussed at all department meetings(Life Science website: and via email (attached) on a regular basis. This semester we hold an SLO specific meeting ( under SLO specific meeting) to discuss all issues related to assessments and analysis. Major outcomes are listed in this online document.

  1. Have the results of your assessments been shared and discussed with members of your advisory committee (if vocational program)?

NA

  1. What resource requests are planned as a result of the assessments?

Offering of STEM tutoring services is an essential component contributing to the student success.

  1. Have the assessment results been posted on the online system?

Yes, all assessments are posted online.

Challenges:

The challenges related to the online SLO system listed last semester have not been resolved:

1)Default number of assessments automatically assesses 10 or 1/3 of the student population. Instructors, if not realized, only assess the minimum number of students. It is recommended to change the default number to the maximum number of students enrolled in the class to provide a thorough and correct analysis of the performance of all enrolled students. The data can also be used for disaggregated data analysis.

2)Once a report is submitted a revision cannot be performed without deleting the entire report. It is requested to make the report edible if corrections are to be made.

3)It would be beneficial to include the Follow-ups in the SLO assessment page. It would be easier to complete the report while assessing the SLOs and compare them to the previous assessments in the main page.

Thank you!

1

Life Science Dept.