GENERAL STUDIES ASSESSMENT PLAN
DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION
August 29, 2007
SECTION I: GENERAL STUDIES GOALS
OVERALL OBJECTIVES (JMC 100 and SPCH 100)Across the range of disciplines and courses offered, the General Studies Program is designed to develop and demonstrate the following abilities:
- the ability to locate and gather information,
- the capability for critical thinking, reasoning and analyzing,
- effective communication skills including the ability to read, speak and write effectively, using the materials, ideas, and discourse modes of specific academic areas,
- an understanding of the experiences and values of groups and cultures which have been historically under-represented.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE (SPCH 100)In addition to those objectives required of all General Studies courses, students will:
- demonstrate the ability to form and support a coherent position on an issue,
- demonstrate the ability to write and speak in a formal manner appropriate to the audience,
- demonstrate the ability to read, speak, and write "expressive" as well as "transactional" language i.e., to develop and understand the role of voice in communication as well as the message itself.
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT (JMC 100)
In addition to those objectives required of all General Studies courses, students will:
- demonstrate the ability to confront the complexities--physical, emotional, economic, and/or technological--of the contemporary world.
- demonstrate the development of skills, behaviors and problem solving strategies necessary to prevail in the contemporary world.
SECTION II: PARTICIPANTS
JMC 100 – students enrolled in JMC 100 during the fall and spring semesters. Typically, there are two sections scheduled in the fall and one section in the spring but the committee will need to confirm this each semester.
SPCH 100 – students enrolled in SPCH 100 during the fall and spring semesters. There are between 20 and 25 sections scheduled each fall and spring semester and each class has approximately 23 students.
SECTION III: EVALUATORS
JMC 100 – undergraduates in the Department of Communication’s Students in Mass Media (SIMM) honorary.
SPCH 100 – students on the University of Nebraska at Kearney Forensics team.
SECTION IV: PROCEDURES
JMC 100 – preferably, every student enrolled in JMC 100 should be escorted to the unit’s computer lab where they will complete on-line the Indirect Measures of Undergraduate Perceptions - JMC 100. The URL for the survey can be found on Opinio. Students can also be given the URL and asked to complete the survey on their own time but response rates are typically low when using this method.
A member of the General Studies Assessment committee needs to speak with the JMC 100 instructors before the start of each semester to identify a topic for essays. These papers are evaluated and used to estimate course success at achieving the General Studies goals. Undergraduates in the SIMM organization read the essays prepared by the JMC 100 students and the members of the honorary respond to the survey items on the Direct Measures of Undergraduate Perceptions - JMC 100.
SPCH 100 – preferably, every student enrolled in JMC 100 should be escorted to the unit’s computer lab where they will complete on-line the Indirect Measures of Undergraduate Perceptions - SPCH 100. The URL for the survey can be found on Opinio. Students can also be given the URL and asked to complete the survey on their own time but response rates are typically low when using this method.
A member of the unit’s General Studies Assessment committee needs to speak with SPCH 100 instructors about the tenth week of each semester to determine when oral presentations will be made. These presentations are evaluated and used to estimate course success at achieving the General Studies goals. Undergraduates on the UNK Forensics team are recruited to observe the in-class presentations and afterwards the team members respond to the survey items on the Direct Measures of Undergraduate Perceptions - SPCH 100.
2007