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Curricular goals
We conceptualize curricular goals in terms of knowledge of theory and empirical findings in various subfields of psychology, skills in research methods and data analysis, and values.
We developed 10 specific goals—that our students
1) develop a knowledge base of psychology (KNOWLEDGE)
2) develop expertise in using research methods of psychology (KNOWLEDGE, SKILL)
3) develop critical thinking skills for the consumption and interpretation of academic and nonacademic knowledge (SKILL)
4) learn how to apply psychology to real world problems (SKILL)
5) be able to conduct an ethical analysis of research and conduct research in an ethical fashion (VALUE)
6) demonstrate informational and technological literacy (SKILL)
7) communicate effectively in writing and speaking (SKILL)
8) demonstrate independence and intellectual maturity in the production of knowledge for academic and nonacademic communities (SKILL)
9) show an understanding of the significance of psychological research (KNOWLEDGE, VALUE)
10) develop an understanding of the sociocultural context of psychology (KNOWLEDGE, VALUE)
Our goals overlap in large measure with the goals for undergraduate education in psychology developed by the American Psychological Association. We differ from the APA goals in our splitting APA’s single “critical thinking” goal into several parts: our Goals 3 and 8 emphasize the interpretation and production of knowledge, respectively, and Goal 9 emphasizes sophistication in evaluating the theoretical and practical importance of research. We did not include APA goals relating to personal development and career planning.
Learning Outcomes and Assessment
We continued to examine our senior exercise (PSYC 185 and 191), considering which of the curricular goals are the focus of the senior exercise and identifying specific markers of student attainment of those goals. Table 2 at the end of the report contains our analysis. The table shows the specific learning outcomes we wish our seniors to achieve in the Fall or Spring portion of the exercise. Also on this table are assessment rubrics (0 to 2 scales) on which we plan to rate seniors’ mastery of each of the outcomes. As you will note, an underlying dimension of the assessment scale is the level of independence students have achieved.
Our overall goal with assessing the senior exercise is not to evaluate individual students’ theses. Rather, we intend to look across students at the level of expertise we observe in each of the target areas in order to identify areas of strength and weakness in their collective preparation for the thesis. If we identify areas of weakness, we can then devise ways to strengthen student preparation either before senior year or in the Fall semester of senior year.
Assessment of Psychology Department Senior Exercise (PSYC 185 and 191)
|
Department Goal
|
Specific Learning
Outcomes
(Fall or Spring
Semester)
|
Assessment Rubrics
|
|
Goal #2. Develop
expertise in using research methods of psychology (knowledge, skill)*
|
1. Selects appropriate
measures for the study; reliable and valid survey instruments, experimental
stimuli, interview or observation protocol with rationale and psychometric
data (Fall)
2. Plans appropriate
data analysis, include section describing plan for data analysis (Fall)
|
0 = proposal is missing
measures or data analysis plan; unclear about how to find measures or
statistics to use
1 = proposal includes
measures and required statistics with rationale but depends on advisor for
one or both
2 = proposal includes
all measures/required statistics with good justification, chosen
independently
|
|
Goal #3. Develop
critical thinking skills for the consumption and interpretation of academic
knowledge (skill)*
|
1. Can criticize
findings and conclusions in reports of research incorporated in literature
review (Fall)
2. Can compare findings
of different studies critically; can relate findings to more general
hypotheses and find contradictions (Fall)
3. Can offer alternative
interpretations of findings and suggest ways of testing them (Fall)
|
0 = Thesis plan takes
results of previous studies at face value; does not consider alternatives or
criticisms; reviews research without criticism or critical comparisons with
other studies.
1 = Critically assesses
studies but does not develop a research plan that grows out of criticisms;
research plan would only confirm previous theoretical positions, not test
them.
2 = Plan is based on
critical analysis of previous studies and motivated by theory or
contradictions between studies on the topic
|
|
Goal #5. Ethical
analysis and conduct of research (knowledge, value, skill)
|
1. Completes on-line
training in ethical research methods with human subjects and present online
certification of completion to PSYC 185 instructor. Find computer-based
training course for students, follow the link on the NIH Office of Human
Subject Review main site map for office of human subject review:
http://www.nihtraining.com/ohsrsite/sitemap.html
2. Brings internal IRB
materials to thesis advisor, to file in Dept (IRB form, consent forms,
debrief) (Spring)
|
0 = fails to complete
online course; fails to deliver IRB materials
1 = completes online
course but fails to deliver IRB materials or produces inadequate consent
form
2 = completes online
course and brings fully developed IRB packet
|
|
Goal #6. Informational
and technological literacy (skill) |
1. Uses PSYCInfo or
PubMed to conduct comprehensive search of the literature for thesis proposal
(Fall)
2. Contacts Librarian
(Meg Garrett) for help if necessary (Fall)
3. Finds appropriate
instruments for study (Fall)
4. Uses Survey Monkey if
needed for data collection (Spring)
5. Uses SPSS to analyze
and display data appropriately (Spring)
|
0 = unable to use search
tools, instruments, or SPSS effectively
1 = literature search is
only partial, instruments are inappropriate or SPSS skills are inadequate
2 = literature search is
comprehensive, instruments are appropriate, SPSS skill is up to par
|
|
Goal #7. Effective
written and oral communication (skill) |
1. demonstrate effective
writing skill including organization and clarity of expression, correct
grammar, engaging style, and APA format (Fall, Spring)
2. demonstrate effective
oral presentation, including organization, clarity of expression, engaging
style (Fall, Spring)
3. ability to critique
other students’ written work and oral presentations (Fall)
4. respond to verbal
questions about thesis with technical language (Spring)
|
0 = written presentation
is disorganized, does not conform to APA style, has grammatical errors; ppt
presentation lacks critical information/data displays
1= written presentation
is relatively clear, APA style nearly accurate, ppt presentation has most of
the necessary information; makes supportive comments on others’ work
2 = written work is
clear, engaging, stylistically correct; ppt presentation is concise and
engaging; makes critical comments on others’ work
|
|
Goal #8. Independence
and intellectual maturity in the production of knowledge for academic and
nonacademic audiences (knowledge, skill)
|
1. Select appropriate
thesis topic in an area of interest (Fall)
2. Generate appropriate
hypotheses from what is already known, with meaningful rationale (Fall)
3. Engage in high-level
discussion in response to faculty questions about thesis project during oral
presentation (Spring)
|
0 = thesis topic is
poorly worked through, not situated in past literature, unable to respond to
faculty questions
1 = thesis topic is
adequately situated in past research, accomplished without extensive advisor
assistance, answers questions factually
2 = thesis question
responds to the literature, answers to questions are incisive, thoughtful
|
|
Goal #9. Understand the
significance of psychological research
|
1. In proposal and
thesis, discuss the theoretical and applied importance of proposed research
in the context of theory and research in the chosen field (Fall)
2. In thesis and oral
presentation, articulate theoretical and applied significance of findings
from own research (Spring) |
0 = Unable to articulate
rationale/importance of findings
1 = Developed a
rationale for the study, addressed to some extent the theoretical or applied
importance of findings
2 = Work contains a
sophisticated rationale for study hypotheses that references the literature,
and a thoughtful discussion of the importance of student’s research findings
|
*
Not all faculty require students to develop study methodology (Goal #2) in the
Fall Semester. Instead, some faculty ask students to concentrate exclusively on
the literature review and development of the research question (Goal #3). Thus,
a more fine-grained rubric for assessing the literature review portion of the
thesis was also developed for use in the Fall semester portion of the Senior
Exercise, as follows:
|
Goal #3. Develop
critical thinking skills for the consumption and interpretation of academic
knowledge (skill)*
|
Literature review
includes:
1.
coherent framework and outline
that organizes the paper
2.
comprehensive coverage of the
literature
3.
theoretical and conceptual
approaches
4.
appropriate critique of
studies, recognizing strengths and weaknesses
5.
implications and conclusions
from studies; clear how they fit in the narrative thread
6.
conclusions for each section
and for the review overall |
0 = Inadequate
1 = Good, but room for
improvement
2 = Very good
|
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