Annual Discipline Assessment Criteria. Proposed Assessment Plan for the MFA in Creative Writing

Transcription

1 Annual Discipline Assessment Criteria Proposed Assessment Plan for the MFA in Creative Writing The purpose of the annual discipline assessment is to evaluate student learning in the discipline and to promote dialogue about student learning and program planning among discipline faculty. Disciplines will prepare an annual assessment report showing direct evidence of student learning in accordance with the discipline s learning objectives and goals. This report must be in written format, submitted electronically. Discipline assessment reports are to be submitted and/or discussed with the Academic Vice President of his/her designee by May 15 th of the academic year. The framework for the discipline assessment report follows: 1. Intended Learning Outcomes: List the intended student learning outcomes for your discipline. These may be the same as previous year, or amended as the program matures and is informed by prior assessment results. Provide a copy of the Plan for the Upcoming Year (#3) submitted the previous academic year. Western State College s MFA in Creative Writing has developed assessment strategies and guidelines for assessing the effectiveness of the program by following guidelines established by the Association of Writers and Writing Program s document, AWP Hallmarks of an Effective Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing. The assessment described below represents a strong commitment to clearly delineated student outcomes and measurements of these outcomes on a regular basis in order to strengthen the program. The AWP document cites the following structure for such programs: Tutorial low-residency programs typically involve two main components: residency and tutorial. During the residency, students attend intensive workshops, lectures, panel discussions, seminars, and literary readings. At the residency, a student also develops a reading list and study-plan for the upcoming semester. During the tutorial, students work one-on-one with a faculty mentor who guides the student s study of literature and craft; the mentor provides written commentary on the student s work. Tutorials address themselves to two general goals: o Development of each student s creative work and writing skills. There is a regularly scheduled exchange in which the student submits original creative work, critical responses to reading assignments, and responses to the mentor s critiques and advice about that work. These exchanges are called packets. o Development of each student s analytical reading skills in individually tailored instruction in craft, literature, aesthetics, and criticism. After the student and mentor establish a challenging reading list of literary works

2 and texts on the craft of writing, the student regularly submits critical papers for the mentor s commentary. (Hallmark 5) The AWP Hallmarks document also encourages low-residency programs to include the following: Challenging Tutorial Assignments. Over the course of the typical [semester] tutorial a student will do the following: read at least ten books (or their equivalent) produce craft-based analytical writing in every packet draft and revise at least 3 to 5 stories, or a novella, or equivalent sections of a novel; or 15 to 20 poems; or 3 to 5 pieces of nonfiction, or equivalent sections of a book. A typical packet from the student will include: new and/or revised creative work a bibliography of the reading the student has completed critical analysis of the reading responses to directions and questions posed by the tutor in the previous exchange of Packets. (Hallmark 3) TUTORIAL COMPONENT OF THE CURRICULUM Western s low-residency program has developed the following rubric to address learning outcomes for MFA students in tutorial classes: Creative Writing Tutorial Evaluation Criteria Student Demonstrates knowledge of and ability to work within the conventions of the literary work. Demonstrates appropriate use of narrative or poetic elements. Demonstrates formal characteristics appropriate to purpose and audience. Demonstrates innovation in form and/or content. Conventions of genre Student s 1. Writing demonstrates competence in structure and content expectations of the selected genre. 2. Writing demonstrates competence in tone and style of selected genre. 3. Writing demonstrates competence in format expected by industry standards (editors/publishers) of selected genre. Narrative or Poetic Elements Student s 1. Writing establishes effective narrative or poetic elements. Fiction: plot, character, setting, point of view, and dialog Poetry: line breaks, rhythm of language, tropes, imagery, and diction Drama: action, dialog, 3-and 4-part story, character development 2. Writing establishes effective theme. 3. Writing establishes effective pacing (narration and exposition).

3 Formal Characteristics Student s 1. Writing establishes effective overall shape and structure to achieve purpose of the writing. 2. Writing demonstrates effective rhetorical use of sentence variety, transitions, and tropes. 3. Writing establishes effective and conventional mechanics and spelling. Innovation in Form and/or Content Student s 1. Writing explores ways to write beyond expected genre conventions. 2. Writing explores ways to write beyond expected narrative elements. 3. Writing explores ways to break conventions of mechanics effectively. Analytical Writing Assessment for Tutorial Courses For analytical writing about assigned readings faculty will use the following criteria for assessing student learning outcomes: Student learning Demonstrates ability to formulate and execute an analytical project. Demonstrates ability to enter into conversation with criticism and/or theorists. Demonstrates coherence in over-all organization and structure. Demonstrates appropriate use of syntax, grammar, and style. Critical Writing Outcomes Evaluation Criteria: Analytical project 1. The analytical writing has a complex thesis supported with textual evidence. 2. The analytical writing demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of the texts it analyzes. 3. The analytical writing demonstrates ability to select appropriate quotations and analyze them. Conversation with other critics and/or theorists 1. The analytical writing positions itself within critical conversation. 2. The analytical writing appropriately analyzes and employs primary and secondary sources. 3. The analytical writing demonstrates that the student has selected appropriate research materials. Coherence 1. The analytical writing follows logically. 2. The analytical writing has appropriate introduction and conclusion and demonstrates coherent relationships between paragraphs. 3. The structure of analytical writing conforms to standard generic conventions of a critical paper. Style, syntax, and grammar

4 1. The syntax is appropriate to audience and purpose. 2. The analytical writing has few sentence-level errors. 3. The analytical writing correctly employs attention to assigned style guides. RESIDENCY COMPONENT OF THE CURRICULUM AWP gives the following advice for residency courses in our case, occurring for two weeks each summer for three consecutive summers: Residencies address themselves to three general goals: o Broadening and deepening each student s knowledge of diverse artistic sensibilities. This is provided by lectures, panel discussions, and seminars on canonized and contemporary literary authors, by the study of literary criticism and theory, by writing workshops, and by a reading series of faculty, students, and visiting authors. o Developing a literary community that provides students with peer review, encouragement, and criticism. This is provided in workshops and seminars and in informal discussions outside of classes. o Educating students about publishing and editing by regularly bringing magazine and book publishers, editors, and agents to residencies for panel discussions and informal conferences with students. RUBRIC FOR RESIDENCY COURSES Western s low-residency program has developed the following rubric to address learning activities and outcomes for MFA students in residency sessions: Creative Writing Tutorial Evaluation Criteria Student Broadens and deepens knowledge of diverse artistic sensibilities Develops a sense of literary community. Becomes knowledgeable about publishing and editing practices. Broadened, Deepened Knowledge of Diverse Artistic Sensibilities Student 1. Attends lectures, panel discussions and seminars. 2. Student studies literary criticism and theory. 3. Student attends reading series. Opportunity to Develop Literary Community Student 1. Attends critique sessions with peer review. 2. Has opportunity to attend seminars and workshops. 3. Has opportunity to participate in scheduled informal discussions outside classes. Opportunity to Become Knowledgeable about Publishing and Editing Student

5 1. Attends sessions about publishing and editing. 2. Attends panel discussions with publishers, editors, and agents. 3. Has opportunity to interact during informal conferences with other students about publishing. 2. Assessment, Evaluation, and Improvement Results Describe the activities and/or methods for assessing the goals and objectives listed in #1. Examples of this could include one or more of the following: Updating your progress on long term goals related to student learning from the most recent program review. Aligning student learning goals with courses in your discipline. Describing how assessment tools in specific courses meet student learning goals. Analyzing results from student learning surveys and other assessment tools. Using the AWP recommended practices, faculty will use the student outcome criteria listed in the previous section of this report to teach tutorial classes, and students will know that these criteria are the outcomes they are expected to perform. The degree to which faculty effectively teach to and measure these outcomes as well as the degree to which students understand and master these criteria will become the basis of program assessment. The institution has a site license for the Zoomerang electronic survey protocol, through which students will be asked to evaluate to what extent the program has met these criteria. And through Blackboard, the program s software to deliver the tutorial component of the program, students will be able to evaluate individual courses for their success in addressing the student learning outcomes. Faculty will also be asked to participate in semesterly review of the success of the curriculum in addressing these criteria, and each summer, faculty will meet to review and evaluate both courses and program curriculum in terms of these criteria for the tutorial component of the program. Further, both concentration coordinators and program director will meet each summer to assess input from students for participating faculty, input from faculty themselves, and records of work during the previous two semesters of tutorial classes backed up on Blackboard. Tutorial classes will use packets submitted by students to mentor faculty, which faculty will respond to with commentary and feedback based upon the following recommendations by AWP: A typical packet from the tutor or mentor will include: a holistic critique of the student s creative work and suggestions for new and substantially revised work

6 a return of the student s manuscripts with marginalia and line-specific suggestions comments on the student s critical analysis of reading assignments suggestions for related reading, especially books that provide models of craft pertinent to the student s particular ambitions and style of writing individualized instruction about specific aspects of craft (Hallmark 4) AWP makes the following recommendation for frequency of exchanges of packets, which Western s MFA program will also use as its guideline: Frequent Exchange of Packets. When a student works with a mentor by exchanging packets, clear guidelines are provided for regularly scheduled exchanges and substantive critical feedback from the mentor. Packets are exchanged between student and tutor approximately every four weeks. For a tutorial period roughly equivalent to six months, students should receive feedback from their mentors a minimum of five times. (Hallmark 4) Our MFA program will use Western s institutional semester calendar to mark the boundaries for commencing and ending tutorial terms, and this four-and-a-half month semester will allow for five such exchanges in intervals of every three weeks. Provide an analysis of student learning using the activities and/or methods described above. What do faculty consider to be an acceptable level of performance? (Please include grading criteria and an example of corresponding student work in electronic form.) Assessment Measurement Criteria for Creative Writing in Tutorials Evaluation is as follows Conventions Narrative and/or Poetic Elements Formal Characteristics Innovation Numerical values for each category are assigned based on the following: Point Range: Five points student demonstrated complete mastery of the criterion Four Points student demonstrated solid mastery, but with occasional flaws Three Points student demonstrated working with the criterion, but has not mastered it Two points student used the criterion, but ineffectively or incorrectly One point student showed little evidence of using or understanding the criterion Zero points the criterion is absent in the work

7 Assessment Measurement Criteria for Analytic Writing in Tutorials Evaluation is as follows Analytic Project Conversation with Criticism Coherence Style, Syntax, Grammar Numerical values for each category are assigned based on the following: Point Range: Five points student demonstrated complete mastery of the criterion Four Points student demonstrated solid mastery, but with occasional flaws Three Points student demonstrated working with the criterion, but has not mastered it Two points student used the criterion, but ineffectively or incorrectly One point student showed little evidence of using or understanding the criterion Zero points the criterion is absent in the work Assessment Measurement Criteria for Summer Residencies We will ask residency participants to use the following to assess the effectiveness of summer programming in providing developed opportunities in these areas: Evaluation for Broadened Artistic Sensibilities Literary Community Publishing/Editing Numerical values for each category are assigned based on the following: Point Range: Five points program provides fully developed opportunity Four Points program provides strong opportunities, but with some development still required Three Points program works to provide opportunity, but has not mastered it Two points student provides some evidence of the opportunity, but with much yet to do One point program shows little evidence of the desired opportunity Zero points the opportunity is absent from the program 3. Plan for the Upcoming Year

8 Describe what the focus areas will be and any changes you will make for student learning during the next academic year based on the strengths and weaknesses revealed by the analyses described in #2. This will be the first year of implementation. 4. Capstone Experience Describe how the discipline Capstone Experience addresses Western s four capstone criteria: Engagement with issues, challenges, ethical considerations, problem solving techniques, methods of deliberating and making decisions, proofs, and methods of communicating characteristics. The capstone project for each concentration will engage with the issues and problem solving techniques inherent in artistic media in this case, the verbal arts. In particular, the capstone projects will address contemporary methods of communicating as a result of fast paced and evolutionary responses to new methods of delivery and dissemination, such as Web and Pod casts, YouTube, blogs, and intellectual property issues for performative and verbal property. Ability to write discipline specific formats evaluated by the faculty for complexity of understanding, as well as content, organization, clarity of expression, and correctness. This criterion is the very essence of an MFA in Creative Writing, where discipline specific formats for publishable fiction, poetry, and screenwriting are tantamount, with commensurate focus and attention to complexity of understanding, as well as content, organization, clarity of expression, and correctness. Ability to deliver oral presentations evaluated for the complexity of understanding, as well as content, organization, clarity of expression, and fluency of presentation. The final summer residency requires MFA candidates to showcase and present capstone projects to faculty, ongoing students, invited professionals, and the public. Demonstrate of General Education essential skills as they pertain to the discipline. As a graduate program, and therefore area of specialization, the MFA in Creative Writing is not involved in the undergraduate General Studies mission. Provide an analysis of student learning in the Capstone Experience.

9 What do faculty consider to be an acceptable level of performance? (Please include grading criteria and an example of corresponding student work in electronic form.) Using the criteria listed above in Section 2 of this report, the faculty will consider consistent work at C or below as unacceptable for continuation in the program. What did the performance level of students reveal regarding what students know and understand? N/A since the program is forthcoming. What changes, if any, to promote student learning will faculty members make as a result of the student performance levels? The assessment strategies outlined above will serve as the measures for determining the ongoing success of the program. The program director and concentration coordinators will meet twice a year to review data and make adjustments to improve the program. The assessment data will culminate in briefings and evaluation reviews for faculty and curriculum. Further, both tutorial and residency faculty will meet for an entire week prior to the commencement of the summer residency for in-service training, during which time, all faculty, the coordinators, and the program director will evaluate and fine-tune the curriculum and assess the success of the effectiveness of the program. Some questions you may want to consider as you prepare your report: Did you make any changes in assessment this year? Were your changes effective? What do faculty consider to be an acceptable level of performance on learning outcomes? What did the performance level of students reveal regarding what students know and understand? What changes, if any, to promote student learning will faculty members make as a result of current student performance levels?