Assessment
Currently assessment in the Department of Geography focuses on the following major areas:
Revision of course offerings
After reviewing Departmental goals and objectives for student learning, the entire curriculum (course offerings) in the Department of Geography has been reviewed, revised, and rewritten. The new curriculum has past the College Curriculum Committee and will go into effect in the Fall of 2009.
Revision of concentration flow sheets
Again based on concern for student learning outcomes, all of the concentration flow sheets have been revised. A major change is that now all concentrations have a common core of Geography Classes.
Numerical level of individual courses
In addition to revising the entire curriculum, courses have been renumbered to reflect their academic level. Students now take more upper-level classes before graduating with a degree in geography.
Testing student assessment in core courses
We are now experimenting with different methods of assessing student learning in our core geography classes. We are focusing on pre and post testing methods.
Future Assessment Work
The Department holds an assessment retreat each semester and our recent retreats have focused on “mapping the curriculum” and discussing the possibility of a Capstone course or the use of Portfolios for assessment.
