SUNY Potsdam Student Learning Outcomes Assessment Report (Revised 03/01/13)

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1 Department/Program Name: Psychology Date Submitted and Academic Year: 2014 Department/Program Mission Statement: "The SUNY Potsdam Psychology Department is firmly committed to providing a broad, liberal arts education for its majors. This involves teaching and mentoring activities that foster a basic understanding of research methods and psychological theory as well as exposure to a variety of areas and perspectives in the field of psychology. All four of Boyer's forms of scholarship are valued, though two of them in particular reflect the primary mission of the psychology department: teaching and discovery. Our majors should be able to critically evaluate psychological problems and realize that scientific inquiry is a dynamic and evolving process. Our faculty members see themselves first and foremost as teachers. It is hoped that a rigorous and diverse set of core courses, a carefully chosen selection of elective courses, an honors program, internship experiences, independent studies, seminars, interdisciplinary programming, and involvement in faculty research projects will equip our students with the intellectual, theoretical and applied skills necessary for advanced study or career opportunities in the field of psychology. Members of the faculty are also encouraged to engage the discipline beyond the classroom through research, community service, discipline related consulting, and as resources for the media and other community groups." Department Assessment Coordinator: Rick Williams Update on Action Plan(s) from prior year(s): Summary of Action Plans for upcoming Academic Year Add learning criteria on more psychology syllabi 2. Find a way to measure schools of thought separate from theories 3. Devise a measure to assess what jobs our graduates are getting 4. Revise senior exam for spring '15 Total Majors included in the assessment = 323 Term Papers = 446 Research Methods Pre Post = 46 Oral Communication = 17 Number of Students Course 85 Research Methods 14 Advanced Child Development 5 Honors Seminar 7 History of Psychology 18 Classic Psychology 92 Theories of Personality

2 82 Adolescent Psych 33 Cognitive Psych 10 Seminar in Psych Intended Student Learning Outcome #1 Psychology students will have the capacity to read, understand, evaluate, and engage psychological theories and research. Connection to Univ/Dept Mission We believe that our majors should be able to critically evaluate the psychological problems that are addressed by theory and research. With regard to the campus mission, we believe that psychological theories and research are a fundamental part of a liberal arts education. This is also reflected in the SA Gen Ed designator classes that are listed below. Links with other programs/departments Gen Ed Component Three courses within the major carry the SA Gen Ed designator: PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychology, PSYC 220 Child Development (and also the Honors section of PSYC 220) and PSYC 321 Psychology of Adolescence. These courses are taken by many students in Education, Crane, and from other departments in Arts & Sciences, as well as by psychology students. Related Courses STAT 100 (MATH 125) Introduction to Statistics is a required cognate course for all psychology students. Students are required to have completed this course before taking PSYC 300 Research Methods. Students must have an initial familiarity with statistical concepts in order to successfully complete the methods course. The evaluation of research relies heavily on an understanding of the statistical analyses that play a fundamental role in psychology research. Measurable Criteria and Assessment Methods Given the theoretical and empirical foundation of psychology, nearly all of the classes we teach have a substantial focus on psychological theory and research. This list includes: PSYC 100, 220, 300, 320, 321, 322, 330, 340, 350, 361, 364, 370, 375, 376, 377, 381, 383, 384, 385, 386, 390, 400, 493, and 494. Assessment Data Summary Results & Analysis

3 The data sources we use for this learning outcome are the annual senior exam and the annual term paper assessment report. This year, we report the term paper assessment. Term Papers (psychological analysis, understanding of theories, APA style) = 181 students/446 Papers (Advanced Child Development, Classic Psychology, Cognitive, Counseling, History of Psychology, Honors Seminar, Research Methods, Seminar in Psychology, Social Seminar, Theories of Personality). Term Paper Assessment Theories of Personality, Fall 2013 (47 students, 94 papers) # of papers Exceeded 38 (40%) Met31 32 (34%) Did Not Meet 25 (26%) Theories of Personality, Spring 2014 (45 students, 80 papers) # of papers Exceeded 26 (32%) Met 39 (49%) Did Not Meet 15 (19%) Adolescence (82 students, 164 papers) Exceeded 66 (40%) Met 59 (36%) Did Not Meet 39 (24%) Research Methods (39) Exceeded 7 (18%) Met 20 (51%) Approached 5 (13%) Did Not Meet 7 (18%) Cognitive Psych (33)

4 Exceeded 11 Met 19 Approached 1 Did Not Meet 2 Honors Seminar (5) Exceeded 5 Met 0 Did Not Meet 0 Classic Psych (18) Met or Exceeded 18 Did not Meet 0 Advanced Child Development (14) Met or Exceeded 14 Did not Meet 0 History of Psyc (7) Exceeded 6 Met 0 Did Not Meet 1 Seminar in Psychology (10 students/6 completed) Exceeded 4 Met 1 Did Not Meet 1 All term papers combined: Exceeded Expectations (score of 90 to 100) = 181 (41%) Met Expectations (score of 70 to 89) = 169 (38%) Approached Expectations (score of 60 69) = 6 (1%) Did Not Meet Expectations = 90 (20%) Application of Results/Action Plan for Improving Student Achievement

5 These results show that a majority of students were able to read, understand, and communicate psychological theories and research. Summary: A large percentage of our students performed well on the term papers. This showed that they were able to read, understand, and communicate psychological theories and research. Analysis: We added a lot more term papers this year including more with lower division students. The analysis certainly showed this large number of papers, as expected, significantly increased the percentage of students who did not meet expectations. Still, a majority of students showed very good or excellent performance. Intended Student Learning Outcome #2 Psychology students will be familiar with multiple theoretical schools of thought in the field, both past and current. The connection between this learning outcome and the department mission statement is clear. In it, we state directly that a central part of our mission is to teach these concepts to our students, both in the classroom and beyond its confines. With regard to the campus mission, we believe that psychological theories and research are a fundamental part of a liberal arts education. Measurable Criteria and Assessment Methods (What data were collected and how? What unique assessment activities were used to measure student achievement?) The following courses cover various schools of thought in the field of psychology: PSYC 100, 220, 320, 321, 350, 364, 370, 375, and 400. Results & Analysis This student learning outcome is assessed via the term paper assessment report, as well as by the senior exam. We reported those results under Outcome #1. It was clear that the vast majority of students were able to discuss varied theoretical approaches. We will continue to work on a system that will allow us to separate out the schools of thought from the psychological theories. Intended Student Learning Outcome #3

6 Psychology students will be able to communicate their analyses of this material in an effective fashion, be it oral or written. Although it is not explicitly stated in the department s mission statement, students ability to communicate their analyses of the material they have learned in their classes is crucial to their success in the field. Many of our courses involve a written or spoken component. With regard to the campus mission statement, we believe that effective communication skills are a central part of all academic programs. Links with other programs/departments Gen Ed Component Three courses in the major carry Gen Ed designators that are relevant to this student learning outcome. PSYC 300 Research Methods carries a WI designator. PSYC 320 Advanced Child Development, PSYC 493 Psychology Seminar (Stillwell s section), Classic Psychology, and PSYC 494 Honors Seminar all carry the SI designator. Measurable Criteria and Assessment Methods Our courses that involve either written or oral communication as part of the requirements are: PSYC 300, 320, 340, 364, 370, 380, 390, 400, 493, and 494. We measured this outcome with the term paper assessment and those results are reported under Outcome #4. We assessed Oral communication by examining the two seminar courses last year. We defined the outcomes slightly differently in each course. Results & Analysis Oral Assessment Honors Seminar (5) Exceeded 2 Met 3 Did Not Meet 0 History of Psychology (7 students) Exceeded 5 Met 1 Approached 1 Did Not Meet 0 Seminar in Psychology (10 students/6 completed) Exceeded 9 Met 1

7 Did Not Meet 0 Overall Results for Oral Communication: History of Psychology, Social Seminar & Honors Seminar Exceeded Expectations 16 = 73% Met Expectations 5 = 23% Approached Expectations 1 = 5% Did Not Meet Expectations 0 = 0% Application of Results/Action Plan for Improving Student Achievement These data show that almost all of the students met or exceeded expectations this year in their oral communication. Intended Student Learning Outcome #4 Psychology students will be able to effectively use APA style in their writing. Measurable Criteria and Assessment Method(s) Although it is not explicitly stated in the department s mission statement, students ability to use APA style effectively is crucial to their success as psychology majors. Many of our courses include instruction in APA style as part of their content and require students to make use of APA style in their writing. With regard to the campus mission statement, although APA style is, for the most part, discipline specific, effective communication skills are a central part of all academic programs. The courses that include assignments involving the effective use of APA style are: PSYC 300, 364, 390, 400, 493, 494, and 496. Results & Analysis APA Style Assessment We examined the acquisition of information concerning APA writing style from our Research Methods courses. We gave pre post tests to methods students this year to assess prior knowledge and learning of APA style. Research Methods Pre Post Pre Post One section (29)

8 Second section (17) Class specific t tests showed statistically significant improvements from pretest to posttest scores for all sections. The majority of students were able to learn APA style by the end of the semester. History of Psychology (7 students) All showed significant improvement between the initial draft and their final paper and met expectations. Social Seminar (10 students/5 completed the paper) All students showed significant improvement and met expectations but still showed room for improvement. Honors Seminar (5) All students met or exceeded expectations for APA style. Application of Results/Action Plan for Improving Student Achievement These results show that our students are learning and using APA style in a consistent manner. APA Style issues noted this year: paper organization, headings, sub headings, and citations (in text and in reference section). Where Our Graduates are Going Although technically not one of our four Student Learning Outcomes, we kept track of where our students went for graduate school. These are the schools as of August 2013: University of Nevada, Reno, Ph.D. Applied Social Psychology Alfred University, Psy.D. in School Psychology SUNY Albany, Masters in Business Administration Hofstra, Masters Art Therapy Canisius, Masters in Student Personnel SUNY Oswego Masters in Counseling Queens College, Masters in School Psychology SUNY Buffalo, Masters in Social Work Loyola University (MD), Masters in Counseling

9 University of Oklahoma, Masters in Social Work and Marriage & Family Counseling Nazareth, Masters in Art Therapy (2 students) St. Lawrence University, Masters in Mental Health Counseling North Carolina A&T, Masters of C.I.S. Analysis: We had another successful year for graduate school acceptances. Overall Application of Results/Action Plan for Improvement We will be meeting this semester to discuss the assessment results. On the agenda will be the following: 1) should we assess some outcomes on a periodic basis so we don't get burnt out? 2) should we change or modify any assessment outcomes? 3) should we develop an assessment for jobs?