Direct Measures
Students will develop a portfolio in consultation with their international studies director during the student's first year as an International Studies major. The portfolio will contain the following: a proposed course of study for a major in international studies, samples of writings by the students related to a specific international topic or international issues, a list of venues or meetings attended, comments about informal meetings they have had with international students, comments about articles they have read in the local news media and other items that the student and adviser agreed upon adding to the portfolio. Students must read thirty articles per year from a list of periodicals they will select during the portfolio development stage. They must then keep a journal of comments on the articles they read. In the journal they will be Instructed also to make running comments about international issues they find confusing or particularly interesting. The portfolio will be presented to the international studies advisor and the international studies committee each semester to check progress of each student and to give suggestions concerning items that might be lacking in the portfolio. It will be used as a point of departure for the capstone course.
Students must present their portfolio within the first two weeks of the capstone class. The course Instructor, the international studies adviser, and the international studies committee will review the portfolios and make recommendations to the students .
Objective
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Participants
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Evaluators
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2, 3, 5, 6, 7
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all students
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course Instructor, adviser, committee
Portfolio Rubric
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In the students' final semester they will register for a capstone course. The final for the capstone course will be a rigorous and integrative senior project that will demonstrate a fundamental and comprehensive understanding of global issues and of the international dimension of an area of the students' interest.
The international studies committee and the professor will assess the capstone course by completing the checklist that will be distributed at the beginning of the project presentation.
Objective
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Participants
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Evaluators
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1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7
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all students
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capstone course Instructor and international studies committee using
Capstone Project Rubric
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Indirect Measures
Since many of the goals try to get at attitude and change in values, a pre and post survey will be administered. The pre survey will be sent via e-mail during the student's first year in the program. The post survey will be given as part of the capstone course.
Objective
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Participants
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Evaluators
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1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7
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all students using Survey
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International Education Program Committee
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The questionnaire is a post only questionnaire that will be administered after graduation and read by the program director and the international studies committee.
Objective
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Participants
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Evaluators
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1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7
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graduating students using Questionnaire
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International Education Program Committee
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Supplemental Assessment
Students with a major in International Studies are required to enroll for one course in Modern Languages taught entirely in the language of Instruction. Usually that course is a course on Civilization. Oral proficiency will be measured by the student receiving the grade of C or better in the course that is taught in the student's chosen modern language.
Objective
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Participants
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Evaluators
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8
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all students
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Language course Instructor
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Assessment of Assessment Process
Results of the assessment will be recorded annually and discussed with the international studies committee. The Director of the program in consultation with the international studies committee will evaluate the assessment plan by combining the portfolio, the survey and the questionnaire to see if each is obtaining the desired information.