STATEMENT OF OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT
As a requirement for graduation, all department majors must complete one of the research courses designated for their specific discipline. In each of these designated courses, majors will be required to complete a substantial research paper according to guidelines that are uniform across the department. The outcomes assessment process is designed to demonstrate student ability to use both primary and secondary source materials; to understand historical interpretation; to research effectively; to organize a large body of information in a meaningful way; to write clearly; to revise written work based on faculty input; and to discuss research results comfortably and intelligently before a wider audience. In keeping with standard College policy, all majors must earn a final grade of C or better in each designated research course. Should that minimum grade not be attained, the student will have to take another of the research course options to complete major requirements. Should the student earn a grade of C or better for the research component of the course but receive a final grade of D or F for the entire course, the Department will recognize that the research component of the major has been completed. The student will, however, have to take an approved substitute for the content component of the course to complete major requirements. Should a student fail the outcomes assessment portion of one of the designated courses but still manage to receive a final grade of C for the entire course, outcomes assessment activities must be repeated accorded to established departmental procedures. Results of the process each year are used to improve the department curriculum and strengthen course requirements, especially in the area of student research and writing.
OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT SENIOR RESEARCH PROJECTS
A GUIDE FOR STUDENTS
PURPOSE
Caldwell College has long required all graduates to complete a “capstone” senior project or experience as a final assessment of student performance. Over the years, the form that this experience has taken has changed – it has been a proctored examination, a thesis, a reflective essay, an oral presentation – but its goals have remained the same: to assess the extent to which the overall goals of our major programs (History, Social Studies, Political Science) have been achieved by each individual student major. This objective – known as “OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT” in higher education – is a task that nationwide accrediting groups and reformers of higher education have long been advocating. Caldwell College has consistently received high marks for having such a system in place. You as students should regard this requirement as a sign of the quality of the education that you have received. You should also view the project you are to complete as valuable experience should you choose to enter graduate school. In the world of work, there will be many situations where you will have a similar task to complete: a project to research, investigate and describe in written form.
The
outcomes assessment guide is also available for
download in PDF format.
OBJECTIVE
As disciplines, History, Social Studies and Political Science all aim
to teach students:
(1) How to read critically
(2) How to research and gather material
(3) How to analyze information
(4) How to draw meaningful conclusions
(5) How to make connections
(6) How to write clearly, logically and well.
The project you are being asked to do has the additional benefits of allowing you to further explore a content area in which you may have become interested, and of showing you that all good writing involves thoughtful refinement and revision over time.
THE PROJECT
Within the context of the required course, each major will be required to complete a substantial research paper on a topic related to the subject matter of the course and approved by the course instructor. Each project will conform to these guidelines and will proceed in stages that are uniform across the department. Exact dates for each submission will be determined by the individual course instructor and distributed to all students in writing at the beginning of each semester.
The stages of the project are:
1) Proposal
- Topic student is interested in pursuing;
- Tentative list of sources to be used.
2) Working Outline and Bibliography
3) Draft #1
4) Revision
5) Final Paper
- The end product must be a 15-20 page paper (text) with supporting materials.
- Paper must demonstrate the use of at least 7-8 sources.
6) Oral Presentation
Each student will make a 10-minute presentation of his/her work to a gathering of department faculty, other graduating seniors, and interested students. The presentation will explain:(a) The nature of the student’s work
(b) The research process, e.g. kinds of sources used
(c) What the student learned from conducting the research
(d) The value and importance of the topic
(e) Other avenues of research/further questions resulting from the student’s work.
N.B. Presentations of student research will take place on the second to last Friday of classes – the specific times of these gatherings will be determined at the beginning of each semester. Students are expected to come to campus during the assigned time to make oral presentations of their work. Only in extreme or unusual circumstances will a student be excused from this requirement. Students enrolled in an outcomes assessment course in the Fall semester should also set aside the last Friday of classes in case of inclement weather the previous week. In cases where a student cannot appear at the scheduled department gathering, alternate arrangements will be made for oral presentation of student work (e.g. videotaping, etc.) As a courtesy to fellow students, all majors enrolled in outcomes assessment courses are expected to remain in attendance for the duration of the scheduled department gathering at which their presentations are being made. Participation in informal discussion following student presentations is expected of all students.
DEPARTMENTAL ASSESSMENT
The review and evaluation of all senior research projects will be a shared responsibility of four members of the full-time department faculty. While the ultimate responsibility for the awarding of grades will rest with the instructor of the individual course involved, all four of the department faculty involved in outcomes assessment during a given semester will submit a written critique of each student’s project (both in it’s final written form and of the oral presentation). Such critiques will be submitted to the course instructor and will be taken into consideration in awarding the final grade for the project.
THE METHOD
The senior research project is an integral component of four department courses:
Hi 407 Colonial and Revolutionary America
Hi 430 The Contemporary World
Hi/Po 432 Contemporary Issues and Problems in World Politics
Hi 440 Recent America
Depending upon the individual major, each student is required to take one of these courses as part of overall major requirements. Ideally, this course should be taken during the senior year.
History Majors are required to take:
- Hi 407 Colonial and Revolutionary America
- or -- Hi 430 The Contemporary World
- or -- Hi 440 Recent America
Political Science Majors are required to take:
Social Studies Majors are required to take one of the research offerings:
Departmental involvement in the reading of projects and in the evaluation of oral presentations will serve as one means to assess the quality both of each cohort of graduates and of the departmental preparation being provided to them.
GRADING
1. The research project will be worth 50% of the final grade in each course. The proposal, the bibliography, and each of the first two drafts will each be worth 5% of the final grade, the final draft of the paper will be worth 20% of the grade, and the oral presentation will be worth 10%. The instructor of each course reserves the right to consider other factors (such as the student’s timeliness in meeting the deadline for the proposal, outline and draft stages of the project, and in keeping appointments) in assigning the final grade for the research component of the course.
2. In keeping with standard College policy, all majors must earn a final grade of “C” or better in each designated research course. Should that minimum grade not be attained, the student will have to take another of the designated research courses to complete major requirements. Should the student earn a grade of “C” or better for the research component of the course but receive a final grade of “D” or “F” for the entire course, the Department will recognize that the research component of the major has been completed. The student will, however, have to take an approved substitute for the content component of the course to complete major requirements.
3. Because each of the designated research courses also carries with it a recognized body of content information, it is recognized that students (both majors and non-majors) may choose to take one of these courses for reasons other than to fulfill the research component of the major. In such cases, the student will make this known to the instructor in writing at the very beginning of the semester. The student will be required to complete a major research project or another set of assignments that will be worth 50% of the final grade. The exact nature of these assignments will be at the discretion of the course instructor. This option should cover the situation described above, where a student has already fulfilled the department’s research requirement in a previous course.
4. In accordance with long-standing department policy, the Monsignor Joseph A. Brady Award will be given annually at Honors Convocation to the student who has completed the best senior research project during that academic year.
SCHEDULING
1. One of the department’s four designated research courses will be offered every semester (Fall and Spring) in both traditional and External Degree formats. Barring extreme circumstances, External Degree students will be expected to come to campus to present their research simultaneously with traditional students at the semester gathering scheduled for this purpose.
2. While students are encouraged to begin their research in the summer prior to enrolling in the senior research course, no such course will be offered during summer sessions.