Department of English CSU Northridge

Contact Information:
Contact Information:
Robert G. Noreen, Chair
Tel: (818) 677-3434
Fax: (818) 677-3872
Email: robert.noreen@csun.edu

April 24, 1997

TO:	Roberta Madison Academic Planning
FROM:	John Clendenning Chair, Assessment Committee Department of English
SUBJECT:	Assessing the Undergraduate English Major

 

After two years of earnest and productive work, I am pleased to report that the CSUN Department of English has approved a detailed assessment policy. Enclosed you will find a copy of this policy entitled "Assessing the Undergraduate English Major." While some features of this document will require further elaboration, it provides the basis for effective assessment of our core program. We now need to develop parallel policies for assessing the department’s master's degree program, as well as our participation in service areas, such as general education, developmental writing, and liberal studies.

The document submitted will be implemented as a pilot program this semester, so we will be able to share preliminary data next fall. Full implementation-- involving junior-level and senior-level assessment of the English Major program--is anticipated by the end of the next academic year, 1997-98.

cc Louanne Kennedy, Provost

Margaret Fieweger, Assoc. V. P. for Undergraduate Studies

Jorge Garcia, Dean, College of Humanities

Approved as policy, 4/18/97, with the understanding that the Assessment Committee will continue to develop assessment policies and will submit these to the department for further consideration in 1997-98. Department of English California State University, Northridge

 

 

ASSESSlNG THE UNDERGRADUATE ENGLISH MAJOR

Expected Outcomes for the Northridge Graduate with a B.A. in English

The Department of English subscribes to the following outcomes as the fundamental goals of undergraduate instruction in English. Students who graduate with a major in English will achieve high levels of competence in these areas.

• Ability to write effective expository prose
• Ability to articulate clear interpretations of literary texts
• Knowledge of the history of British and American literatures
• Knowledge of and ability to apply literary theory
• Knowledge of the cultural diversity of literatures

 

Definitions

While assessment includes traditional forms of evaluation and testing, it is a much broader concept. Assessment is the systematic observation and judgment of student performance on the basis of explicit criteria. It is the means by which academic units define their goals and by which interested parties (teachers, students, administrators, and other stakeholders) are able to determine the success of academic programs in meeting stated objectives or outcomes. An outcome is an expectation of what a student should know or be able to do. Outcomes must be clearly stated and made public. Unlike exit testing, assessment is an interactive process, integral to learning, that extends throughout the academic environment, with resulting frequent and meaningful feedback to both faculty and students. Assessment involves a variety of activities, including, but not limited to, instructor evaluation of student learning. Other modes of assessment are student assessment of other students' performance, student self-assessment, and departmental self- studies. Assessment often involves group presentations, reading journals, portfolios, and other innovative teaching methodologies.

Assessing the Outcomes of the Literature Option

The five fundamental competencies of the English Major listed above will be assessed according to the following criteria.

Expository Writing (Ability to write effective expository prose)

Student writing will be assessed through evaluation of written essays in all courses. These essays will contain clear, coherently organized, defensible, substantial ideas. The writing will demonstrate competency in the conventions of edited Standard English, including freedom from distracting spelling and punctuation. Writers will employ varied diction and fluent syntax. Students will be capable of generating topics, producing rough drafts, revising their work, collaborating with editors and readers of their work, and putting their work into final copy for formal presentation. Students will develop a personal voice and a sense of style; they will know the place of style in writing and evaluating writing, the importance of understanding and addressing an audience, the means of persuasion, including argumentation, Iogic, and evidence. Students will be able to recognize well-written texts and to advise their peers on how to improve their work. Students will be aware of the range of materials available in libraries. They will be competent researchers and learn to document their sources responsibly. Advanced students will know how to use the tools of the modern technological writing environment, including word processing, information networks, and data bases. Graduates will demonstrate the ability to write well-researched essays on literary topics informed by a knowledge of critical theory and its applications.

Interpretation of Texts

(Ability to articulate clear interpretations of literary texts)

The ability to articulate clear interpretations of literary texts will be assessed in all literature courses, especially the senior seminars, in courses concerned with writing about literature, and (in the case of Credential Option students) in the oral interview for student teaching. Students will know the process of constructing valid interpretations and will demonstrate the ability to initiate an analysis of a poem, a work of fiction, and a drama. Students will be able to read literature critically and analytically with an appreciation of how elements of form--such as diction, tone, syntax, sound, rhythm, figures, structure, etc.-- contribute to meaning. Students will develop into discriminating readers and exercise responsible critical judgment. Students will participate in the discourse of the discipline of English and accurately employ the vocabulary of the field. Students will employ literature in the service of self-discovery and understanding contemporary society.

Literary History

(Knowledge of the History of British and American Literatures)

Knowledge of the history of British and American Literatures will be assessed in lower-division survey courses, upper-division survey courses, the senior seminars, genre studies, minority literatures, and special topics courses. Students will know literature in historical, social, and theoretical contexts. Students will be able to identify the major literary eras from the medieval period to the present, the styles, the issues and underlying philosophies that characterize these movements, the major writers, and the major literary texts in American and British literature. In addition, students will demonstrate a clear in- depth knowledge of at least two literary periods in England and one period in America, as well as an in-depth knowledge of an important theme, a major writer or literary movement. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the process of forming literary canons and determining aesthetic values.

Literary Theory (Knowledge of and ability to apply literary theory)

Competence in literary theory will be assessed in a course on major critical theories, in other upper-division courses in literature, and in courses on the theory of fiction and poetry. Students will know the history of critical thought about literature, from Plato to the present, and be able to apply this theoretical knowledge to the interpretation of individual works.

Cultural Diversity (Knowledge of the cultural diversity of literatures)

Knowledge of the cultural diversity of literatures will be assessed in courses concerned with minority literatures, gender studies and multicultural issues, as well as other literature courses that address these subjects and issues. Students will know a range of writers, literary works and movements, representing diverse and often marginalized cultural voices. Included are women writers, images of women in literature, African-American writers, Latino writers, Asian-American writers, Native American Indian writers, Jewish- American writers, gay and lesbian writers.

Special Outcomes for English Major Options

• Literature. Students graduating in the Literature Option will be expected to achieve high levels in the five basic outcomes listed above.
• Credential. Students graduating in the Credential Option will be expected to meet the following special outcomes in addition to the five basic outcomes listed above.

1. Knowledge of the nature and structure of the English language and its place among human languages.

2. Knowledge of and ability to apply rhetorical theory.

3. Ability to participate in discourse pertaining to the disciplines of English.

• Honors. Students graduating in the Honors Option will be expected to meet the following special outcomes in addition to the five basic outcomes listed above.

1. Ability to work as independent scholars.

2. Ability to engage in academic discussion and dialogue.

• Creative Writing. Students graduating in the Creative Writing Option will be expected to meet the special outcomes in addition to the five basic outcomes listed above.

Creative Writing students should:

1. Demonstrate improvement in creative writing techniques: the use of figurative language, clarity in expression of ideas, voices, and images, variation in syntax and diction, and strategies for invention and revision.

2. Demonstrate familiarity and proficiency with a variety of poetic and/or narrative forms.

3. Develop critical vocabularies for discussing their own work and that of other writers.

4. Demonstrate familiarity with contemporary literature and literary publications.

Formal Assessment Procedures

• The Assessment Committee will be a standing committee.

Assessment will be a continuing concern in the future. Consequently the department chair will appoint each year an Assessment Committee. Its charge will include (1) serving as a channel of communication by distributing pertinent information to faculty, students, and other stakeholders; (2) monitoring assessment procedures; (3) recommending revisions of the outcomes assessment policies when relevant; (4) recommending revisions of the English Major when assessment data indicate a need for change. From data collected through the assessment process, the Committee will also produce an annual report on the state of the English Major Program. The Chair of the Assessment Committee will serve as the Liaison between the English Department and the Office of Academic Planning.

• The Department of English will publish its list of expected outcomes.

Departmentally approved outcomes for the B.A Major in English will be made public. They will be submitted to the Dean of Humanities and through that office to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. Outcomes and assessment procedures should be published in each issue of the University Catalog. All faculty members in the department will receive a current list of these outcomes and they will be urged to distribute it with their syllabi in relevant courses. Part of each semester should be spent discussing outcomes assessment procedures with students in class. From time to time the department should discuss outcomes assessment in committees and in general meetings; when appropriate these policies and procedures should be revised and updated.

• English faculty will participate in assessment.

Instructors in courses relevant to the undergraduate English Major will devise and administer appropriate assessment instruments according to the approved expected outcomes. Instructors are encouraged to develop additional outcomes specifically tailored to their courses.

Methods for applying the above will include the following:

• Junior-level assessment for English Majors

In order to assure a solid foundation for the English Major and to improve student progress through the Program, a formal junior-level assessment of all English Majors will be instituted in connection with English 355, Writing About Literature. Faculty teaching this course will confer in order to develop syllabi that meet departmentally approved objectives and enable students to interpret poetry, fiction, and drama. The Assessment Committee, in consultation with the faculty teaching English 355, will develop a one-page form for the junior-level assessment. [See English 355 Assessment Instrument attached.] Instructors in the course will complete the form at the end of the semester. A copy will be given to the students, a copy will be placed in their departmental files, and a copy will be forwarded to the Assessment Committee. The junior-level assessment form will become an aid in the process of academic advisement. These assessment forms will also provide data for an annual report on the state of the English Major Program prepared by the Assessment Committee.

Special Junior-Level Assessments for English Major Options

Credential. During the junior year each student will complete a self- assessment form before meeting with a faculty advisor, probably a member of the Credential Option Committee. [See self-assessment form attached.] This assessment form would be designed to incorporate eight outcomes, five for all English majors and the three special outcomes for all Credential Option Majors.

Creative Writing. After completing either English 308, 309, 310 or equivalent, students will establish a portfolio with a writing sample (5 pages of prose or script or 3 poems) and a self-assessment form. Faculty will evaluate student progress and a faculty assessment form will be added to the portfolio.

Senior-level Assessment for English Majors. The oversight committees for each of the options within the English Major will develop procedures for assessing both the students and the program at the senior level.

Credential. Students will review their junior-level assessments and note any changes in their performance since their junior year. A revised Credential Interview and a revised evaluation form will be used in the formal assessment of student achievement.

Creative Writing. After completing the senior seminar for the Creative Writing Option, students will: (A) submit a culminating writing sample (5 pages of prose or script or 3 poems) to their portfolio, and (B) fill out a self- evaluation form. Faculty will evaluate student progress and a faculty assessment form will be added to the portfolio. Creative Writing students will be held to the same standards that apply to all English majors. However, these students will be assessed by the Creative Writing faculty for the material in their portfolios. Any further assessment of Creative Writing students will be accomplished by faculty other than Creative Writing faculty.

The Assessment Committee, in consultation with the English Major Option Committees (Literature, Honors, Credential, and Creative Writing), will develop forms for the senior-level assessment. Instructors supervising student work will complete these forms at the end of the semester. A copy will be given to students, a copy will be placed in their departmental files, and a copy will be forwarded to the Assessment Committee. The senior-level assessment, along with the rest of the students’ academic record, will provide data for letters of recommendation. These assessment forms will also provide the Assessment Committee with data for its annual report on the state of the English Major Program.

TO: Prospective English Teachers

FROM: Credential Option Committee

CSUN Department of English

 

Please complete this self-assessment form by indicating your strengths and weaknesses in the following areas. Return the completed from to the Coordinator of the Credential Option with a recent representative sample of your writing.

 

Part One. Before completing the self-assessment, please submit the following personal data:

Class Standing: Junior_____Senior______Graduate______

Transfer from another institution? _____________________________

Total number of units _________

GPA in English _________

Overall GPA ________

Check if you have completed (or are enrolled in) any of the following CSUN English courses: 302___ 355___ 406___ 428___ 429___ 436___ 495___

Other courses that may contribute importantly to your future as an English teacher in the secondary schools? _______________________________

_____________________________________________________________

 

Part Two: Self-Assessment. Please assess yourself in each category and, when appropriate, make a comment.

1. Writing Ability.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

 

 

2. Critical Reading Ability.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

3. Knowledge of Literary History.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

 

 

4. Knowledge of Literary Theory and Ability to Apply.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

 

 

5. Knowledge of Culturally Diverse Literatures.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

 

 

6. Knowledge of the Nature and Structure of the English Language.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

 

 

7. Knowledge of Rhetorical Theory and Ability to Apply.

Strong___ Satisfactory___ Need to Improve___

Comment:

 

8. How can the Northridge English Credential Option Program prepare you to become an effective teacher of English?

Memorandum

Department of English

California State University, Northridge

May 5,1997

TO: English 355 Faculty

FROM: John Clendenning

Chair, Assessment Committee

FROM: Junior-Level Assessment of the English Major Program

 

On April 18, the Department of English approved an assessment policy that

(1) states the expected outcomes of our English Majors, and (2) provides guidelines for both junior-level and senior-level assessment. As part of the policy for the junior-level English Major Program, the department has designated English 355 as a course which will provide assessment data. The department also determined that a pilot program be initiated at the end of Spring 1997 so that preliminary data can be collected and analyzed.

I am enclosing copies of the English 355 Assessment Instrument which has been approved for this purpose. Please complete one assessment form for each of your students and return the packet to me at the end of the semester. Every effort has been made to streamline the process, ensuring that assessment can be effective without becoming a burden. You should be able to complete all forms in less than an hour.

The results of this survey will not be used to evaluate you as a teacher in this course, nor will the data be used to assess students individually. We are interested in program assessment–i.e., discovering how well our students on the average meet our objectives after having taken English 355. Consequently, there is no need for you to identify students by name or to identify yourself as the instructor.

We also plan to assess the process and to improve it over the years. It would be helpful, therefore, to know how this process worked for you. Any responses and/or suggestions for improvement will be welcome.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Distribution: A. Arthur, R. Chianese, J. Peters, A. White, T. Wolfe.

Committee: J. Athey, R. Chianese, J. Clendenning, G. Larson, R. Noreen,

C. Spector.

Student Name_________________ Student ID#________

Total Units Completed___________ Date______________

Junior Level Assessment Form for use by both the Student and Faculty

(Circle either Student or Faculty) (CSUN Department of English 1-98)

Assess performance in each area:

4=Excellent, 3 = very good, 2 = adequate, 1 = needs to improve: NA= not appropriate

A. English 355: Critical Reading and Writing Skills 4 3 2 1 N/A

1. Interpret literary texts ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

2. Analyze how elements of form shape theme ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

in fiction, poetry and drama

3. Devise and defend a thesis about the meaning ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

of a literary work

4. Write rhetorically effective and technically ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

proficient expository prose

5. Conduct, use and document literary research ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

B. Other Areas

I can/or the Student can demonstrate familiarity with

6. British and American literary history ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

7. Critical theory and its applications ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

8. Culturally diverse literatures ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

C. General

I have/or the Student has Strongly agree agree disagree

9. A facility for comprehending literature and ______ ______ ______

10. A commitment to academic study ______ ______ ______

Comments on English 355: How well do you think you are prepared to proceed with the rest of your major?

 

 

 

Faculty Assessor___________________________

Student Self-Assessor___________________________

M E M O R A N D U M
College of Humanities
Office of the Dean

DATE: October 8, 1997

TO: Roberta Madison

Assessment Coordinator
Undergraduate Studies
FROM: John Clendenning
Interim Associate Dean
SUBJECT: Junior-Level Assessment of the English Major Program

 

Enclosed you will find the result of the first phase of formal assessment of the English Major Program.

English 355, Writing About Literature, is required of all English majors. In Spring 1997 the Assessment Committee of the Department of English devised an Assessment instrument (enclosed) which was approved by the department. Copies of the instrument were distributed to the instructors in five sections in May with directions as to how the forms should be completed. Four of the five instructors returned the completed forms - one for each of their students. The one instructor who did not participate explained that he felt the form was not appropriate and needed revision.

In this assessment we did not identify students. As indicated in the memo to English 355 faculty (5-5-97) I noted that we are interested in program assessment. However, in future assessments we will identify students and return the results to them as helpful feedback during the course of the semester.

The data collected from the four sections - a total of 76 students - are preliminary and therefore only very tentative conclusions can be justified. Giving this caveat its due weight, I offer the following observations.

1. Three of the four instructors assessed their students in areas 4 and 5. One instructor, however, felt these areas are not applicable. It would seem that there is disagreement among the faculty in this course as to the importance of writing that involves research and documentation.

2. Two of the four instructors assessed their students in areas 7, 8 and 9. The other two, however, concluded that these areas are not central to the objectives of this course. The department might want to consider the relevance of knowledge of literary history, literary theory, and cultural diversity to English 355.

3. The greatest variation in the data suggests differences in the expectations of instructors. For example, the differences between Sections 2 and 3 in Areas 1, 2, and 3 seem to reflect different standards. The department might want to discuss the meaning of the terms "Outstanding," "Satisfactory", and "Needs to Improve," and to adopt common standards of evaluation.

4. Looking at the totals, I conclude that instructors are satisfied with student achievement in English 355. A high percentage of students perform at the level of "Outstanding" or Satisfactory." For the most part, fewer than 20% of the students are identified as "Needs to Improve."

XC Robert Noreen, Chair

Department of English

Jorge Garcia, Dean

College of Humanities

 

JC/lk

 

 

SECTION 1 - 18 STUDENTS
	1		2		3		N/A
	OUTSTANDING		SATISFACTORY		NEEDS TO IMPROVE		NOT APPLICABLE
AREA	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
1	6	33.3	4	22.2	8	44.4
2	7	38.8	7	38.8	4	22.2
3	6	33.3	2	11.1	10	55.5
4	6	33.3	5	27.7	7	38.8
5	6	33.3	4	22.2	8	44.4
6	7	38.8	4	22.2	7	38.8
7							18	100
8							18	100
9			2	11.1	1	5.5	15	83.3
10	8	44.4	7	38.8	3	16.6
SECTION 2 26 STUDENTS
	1		2		3		N/A
	OUTSTANDING		SATISFACTORY		NEEDS TO IMPROVE		NOT APPLICABLE
AREA	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
1	15	57.7	8	30.8	3	11.5
2	15	57.7	8	30.8	3	11.5
3	14	53.8	9	34.6	3	11.5
4	5	19.2	19	73.1	2	7.7
5	6	23.1	18	69.2	2	7.7
6	9	34.6	13	50	4	15.4
7					26	100
8	5	19.2	17	65.4	4	15.4
9	12	46.2	14	53.8
10	12	46.2	14	53.8
SECTION 3 18 STUDENTS
	1		2		3		N/A
	OUTSTANDING		SATISFACTORY		NEEDS TO IMPROVE		NOT APPLICABLE
AREA	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
1	1	5.5	12	66.6	5	27.8
2			13	72.2	5	27.8
3	1	5.5	10	55.5	7	38.9
4							18	100
5							18	100
6	1	5.5	9	50	8	44.4
7							18	100
8							18	100
9							18	100
10	1	5.5	17	94.4
SECTION 4 14 STUDENTS
	1		2		3		N/A
	OUTSTANDING		SATISFACTORY		NEEDS TO IMPROVE		NOT APPLICABLE
AREA	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
1	3	21.4	10	71.4	1	7.1
2	2	14.2	11	78.6	1	7.1
3	2	14.2	11	78.6	1	7.1
4	4	28.6	8	57.1	2	14.2
5	4	28.6	9	64.4	1	7.1
6	5	35.7	5	35.7	4	28.6
7			10	71.4	4	28.6
8			11	78.6	3	21.4
9	3	21.4	6	42.9	2	14.2
10	10	71.4	4	28.6
TOTAL OF 4 SECTIONS 76 STUDENTS
	1		2		3		N/A
	OUTSTANDING		SATISFACTORY		NEEDS TO IMPROVE		NOT APPLICABLE
AREA	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
1	25	32.9	34	44.7	17	22.4
2	24	31.6	39	51.1	13	17.1
3	23	30.3	32	42.1	21	27.6
4	15	19.7(24.6)*	32	42.1(55.2)*	11	14.5(20)*	18	23.7
5	16	21.1(27.6)*	31	40.8(53.4)*	11	14.5(20)*	18	23.7
6	22	28.9	31	40.8	23	30.3
7			10	13.2	4	5.3	62	81.6
8	5	6.6	28	36.8	7	9.2	36	47.4
9	15	19.7	22	28.9	3	3.9	36	47.4
10	31	40.8	42	55.3	3	3.9
* Bracketed percentage reflects the assessments after the N/A's have been taken out.