STUDENT LEARNING ASSESSMENT PROGRAM
SUMMARY FORM AY 2013-2014
Degree and
Program Name:
Submitted By:
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PART ONE
What are the learning objectives? / How, where, and when are they assessed? / What are the expectations? / What are the results? / Committee/ person responsible? How are results shared?1. In the area of technical theatre:
a. Students will be able to
read, draft, and understand
basic theatre drawings.
b. Students will be able to
construct the basic
elements used in
contemporary stage design.
c. Students will develop a
working knowledge of the
tools used in contemporary
theatre
d. Students will have an
understanding of the basic
principles of light.
e. Students will have an
understanding of how to
hang, focus, and maintain
lighting instruments
commonly used in the
theatre
f. Students will have an
understanding of the
control of light in the
theatre.
g. Students will have an
understanding of the
collaborative relationship
between designers and
directors
h. Students will have a basic
understanding of how
garments are constructed.
i. Students will have an
understanding of fashion as
it relates to theatrical
performance.
j. Students will be able to
do the necessary the
necessary research for the
preparation and execution
of a concept for a scenic or
costume design. They will
be able to effectively
communicate – both orally
and in writing – the results
of that research and the
development of said
concept. / 1. In the area of technical theatre, direct assessment measures include:
· Review of a portfolio of the student’s technical work (scenic, lighting, costuming, sound, stage management) Portfolios are composed by technical theatre concentrators, and are collected and assessed as per the area professors’ rubrics at multiple points in the curriculum, beginning in the student’s freshman year. Collection occurs in courses such as THA 2220: Theatre Seminar I, THA 3257: Graphics II/CAD, THA 3434: Basic Theatrical Design, THA 3357: Scenic Design, THA 3360: Stage Lighting, and THA 3358: Design and History of Costume. In addition, courses in the Theatre Production Topics series and in Advanced Design implement this type of review.
· Review of a student’s work in the “Hands-On Theatre” (practicum) courses, THA 2001: HOT Costuming I, THA 2002: HOT Scenic/Lighting I, THA 30011/30012/30013/30014: HOT Advanced Costuming I-IV, and THA 30021/30022/30023/30024: HOT Advanced Scenic Lighting I-IV. Work in these courses involves serving as a crewmember on a show and/or working a defined number of shop hours. In the Advanced courses, students are expected to take on more responsibility (i.e., serving as crew head, working independently on a construction project, etc.) The work is typically assessed orally as per the rubrics determined by the design area professors. Students may take these courses at any point during their curriculum, but must successfully complete the lower level courses before they can advance to the upper level. At minimum, a THA minor, regardless of concentration, must take the lower division HOT courses in Scenic/Lighting and in Costuming. Narrative evaluations are archived by the design area professors (David Wolski, Karen Eisenhour, and Nick Shaw). The Assessment Committee plans to analyze trends yearly.
· Advanced Design. Students who have completed the basic technical courses, plus a minimum of one design course, may apply to design set, lights, costumes, and/or sound for one of the Theatre Arts productions. Students submit a resume and portfolio, and are selected by the design area faculty. Students in this stage of the design curriculum are expected to work with the director and other designers in production meetings to develop a concept based on a thorough analysis of the play, prepare and present a research based on that concept for production, prepare working drawings/renderings as needed per design area, and successfully complete the execution of the design. Evaluation of the student’s work is done throughout the process both as oral critique and written narrative, and is archived by the design area professors.
ACTF Participation. In the technical area, students are encouraged to participate in the American College Theater Festival on two levels: in the realized design category, and in the project category. Whenever possible, productions with student designers are entered in the American College Theater Festival. An outside adjudicator does an oral and written response to the production work after attending a performance of the play. The student designer is then invited to present the work at the Regional Festival held in January. Students put together a poster presentation of the design work, and are given a time to explain and defend their choices to a panel of judges. The student receives both oral critiques and written responses to their work. In the project category, students in a design course who are deemed sufficiently skilled are encouraged to enter their work in the ACTF Regional festival. Again, the students prepare a poster presentation of design work based off of one of six approved plays, give an oral defense of the work to a panel of judges and receive oral and written feedback to the work. Written responses from ACTF respondents are archived in the Theatre Arts office. / 1. In the area of technical theatre, the expectations of the direct assessment measures as outlined in column two are:
· Portfolios: By the end of their senior year, technical/design concentrators are expected to have composed a portfolio of their technical and design work that is concise, clear, and descriptive, as appropriate to the professional standards of the field. Following our NAST visit, we will be implementing a new format during 2013-2014 that is explained below.
· HOT (practicum) evaluations: All THA minors are expected to meet or surpass the rubric expectations for the technical work in the areas of scenic/lighting and costuming.
· Advanced Design: Students interested in the Tech/Design field and who have met the course requirements may be selected to design one of the Departmental productions. They are expected to complete and submit working drawings, renderings, etc. and oversee the realization of the design work. Appropriate documentation of the work is also included in the student’s final portfolio.
· ACTF Participation: Students who participate in either the realized production competition or the project competition are expected to develop a poster presentation of their work which includes:
1. A written discussion of the concept of the play
2. Evidence of research
3. Preliminary sketches
4. Finalized design
Students are expected to
give an oral presentation
and defense of their work
to a panel of judges at the
Regional ACTF Festival.
In addition, all students
who participate in ACTF
are asked to submit
reflective journal of their
experiences at the festival,
with particular attention
paid to the design
response. These are
archived in the Theatre
Arts office. / 1. In the area of technical theatre, the results of the direct assessment measures as outlined in column two are:
· Portfolios: Minors are encouraged to submit a portfolio similar to that of majors in a tech/design emphasis
· HOT (practicum) evaluations: In order to successfully complete the curriculum, it is required to meet or exceed rubric expectations. If a student fails to meet said expectations in a given HOT course, s/he must repeat that course.
· Advanced Design: Students in Advanced Design must meet or exceed all expectations, or they will be removed from the project.
ACTF Participation: This is currently a non-graded project, but for the past three years, participation has been supported through departmental funding, as well as a grant from the Honors College. Students selected to present, but do not do so due to lack of preparation and/or commitment, and/or students who fail to submit the reflective journal are not eligible for funding for future events. / 1. In the area of technical theatre, Prof. David Wolski and Prof. Nicholas Shaw are primarily responsible for assessing technical work in the areas of scenic, lighting, sound design, and stage management. Prof. Karen Eisenhour is primarily responsible for assessing technical work in the costuming area. Results are communicated to Prof. J. Kevin Doolen, Chair, and are disseminated to the faculty as appropriate to the needs of the program. Selection of students for Advanced Design assignments are made by the relevant design faculty, as is student participation in the design competitions at ACTF. ACTF participants are also evaluated by outside adjudicators.
2..In the area of performance/directing:
a. Students will understand basic acting technique.
b. Students will understand the importance of movement in performance.
c. Students will understand period style and movement as it relates to performance.
d. Students will have a knowledge of the history of acting and the development of contemporary acting techniques.
e. Students will understand the workings of the human voice.
f. Students will understand the role of director in the contemporary theatre.
g. Students will be able to analyze play scripts for production.
h. Students will develop the ability to communicate with other artists in the field.
Students will be able to do the necessary research for the preparation and execution of a role or for the direction of a script. They will be able to effectively communicate – both orally and in writing – the results of that research and the progress of the role’s development. / 2.In the area of performance/directing, direct assessment measures include:
· Performance Journals: Students are introduced to the performance journal in the Basic Acting Class, and are encouraged to keep journals as they progress through the Advanced Acting courses, and for each production in which they are cast.
· Evaluation of auditions: All performance concentrators are required to audition for the production season, and all other concentrators are strongly encouraged to audition. Auditions are required in THA 2220: Theatre Seminar I, THA 2244: Basic Acting, and THA 3348: Auditioning (which is taught on a rotating basis).
· Review of work in the “Hands-On Theatre (practicum) course: THA 2000 (HOT Performance I) is required of all THA minors, regardless of concentration. THA 30001/30002/ 30003/30004 (HOT Advanced Performance I-IV) can be used to fulfill the Advanced practicum requirement, and are generally taken by all performance concentrators. Students my take these at any point in the curriculum. Work in these courses involves development and completion of a role(s) in the Departmental Production Program. As with the Technical practicums, students must successfully complete each course before they are allowed to move on to the next level. Written and/or oral assessments of performance are given throughout the rehearsal process by the director of each production. When requested, a post mortem review is also given.
ACTF Participation: Approximately 50% of the production season is entered in the American College Theater Festival. For each entered production, an outside respondent attends a performance and conducts a talkback with the students involved. Student actors are encouraged to ask for feedback both during and immediately following the talkback. A written response is also submitted and is archived in the Theatre Arts office. In addition to the onsite response, 1-2 actors are chosen to participate in the Regional Festival’s Irene Ryan Acting competition. These students work with partners, and present scenes and monologues at the yearly conference. Students are evaluated by a panel of judges, with approximately 10% of all competitors moving on to the semi-final round. Each round is judged by a different set of judges, and an oral response is provided following each round of the competition. In AY 2011-2012, we had eligible show entered in the competition, and had eight actors compete. Since directing is also part of our performance area, we routinely enter any student-directed production in ACTF. The student directors receive both oral and written feedback from the outside respondent. / 2.In the area of performance/directing, the expectations of the direct assessment measures as outlined in column two are:
· Performance Journals: Students’ performance journals are expected to document fundamental acting principles in early course/production work, with the focus on such items as memorization, character development, blocking issues, etc. and progress as the students take on more complex and detailed roles.
· Evaluation of auditions: The expectation is that a comparison of auditions from first semester freshman year to second semester junior year will show a maturation in the choice of material, the understanding of audience, and the use of voice and movement in the audition.
· HOT (practicum) evaluations: All THA minors are expected to meet or surpass the rubric expectations for performance work.
· ACTF Participation: Students are expected to develop two contrasting scenes plus a monologue, following the regulations outlined by KC/ACTF for the Irene Ryan competition. Students are expected to work with a faculty mentor, who provides feedback and coaching throughout the process. Students are expected to attend the feedback sessions following each round of the competition, and, if not selected, to attend the performance of the Finalists at the festival. In addition, all students
who participate in ACTF
are asked to submit
reflective journal of their
experiences at the festival,
with particular attention
paid to the acting
responses, performances,
and workshops. These
journals are archived in
the Theatre Arts office. / 2.In the area of performance/directing, the results of the direct assessment measures as outlined in column two are:
· Performance Journals:
The performance journal is in the early stages of implementation. Students are introduced to this in the Beginning Acting class, but recent changes in faculty have made the practice inconsistent. The plan is to re-emphasize the importance of the journal in the next AY.
· Evaluation of auditions: Following our NAST visit and response, the new format, outlined below, was implemented 2013-2014.
· HOT (practicum) evaluations: In order to successfully complete the curriculum, it is required to meet or exceed rubric expectations. If a student fails to meet said expectations in a given HOT course, s/he must repeat that course.
· ACTF Participation: This is currently a non-graded project, but for the past several years, participation has been supported through departmental funding, as well as a grant from the Honors College and/or College of Arts and Humanities. Students selected to present, but do not do so due to lack of preparation and/or commitment, and/or students who fail to submit the reflective journal are not eligible for funding for future events. This year the department was unable to attend due to a snow storm making travel unsafe. / 2.In the area of performance/directing, there is a division according to assessment measure: