Goals and Outcomes in CSU Anthropology Departments

1.0  Program characteristics agreed upon by conference participants
We agreed upon the following general points regarding the structure and characteristics of a good anthropology program and the ensuing assessment of the program:

1. A commitment to a program that is based in sub-fields of anthropology: cultural anthropology, biological anthropology, archaeology, with inclusion of material from linguistic anthropology.
    
2. That our programs provide: a) a common set of specific anthropological skills and knowledge, and b) general skills and knowledge that all students should have upon their graduation (see below for an outline).
    
3. Assessment should be modeled on a basic notion of the student, who works with other students (a collaborative process), acquiring skills and knowledge (via instruction and training), allowing the student to gain an understanding of: a) how to collect, analyze, and manage data, b) how to present the data in different forms (written, oral, multimedia), and c) how to apply the knowledge and skills beyond the boundaries of the academic world to become a better problem-solver, a better citizen, and life-long learner.
    
4. That these common skills and knowledge be taught in programs that are differentiated so as to meet specific community needs and to reflect faculty expertise and interest in order to provide richer opportunities for meeting diverse student needs.

2.0  What skills and knowledge should be gained by students in the anthropology program?
We divided student learning outcomes into three categories: anthropological skills, general skills, and anthropological knowledge.

2.1  Anthropology programs provide the following discipline-specific skills to our students.
The discipline of anthropology provides specific skills that are essential to today's students and to society.

1. ability to use complex data about human biological and cultural diversity
2. ability to employ comparative approach/ability to make meaningful cross-cultural comparisons
3. ability to use a systems approach to analyze complex data and solve real problems from a holistic perspective
4. ability to use databases to answer anthropological questions
5. ability to analyze biocultural systems in a temporal context
6. ability to collect appropriate data, and to analyze and interpret it

2.2  General skills students should acquire from taking coursework in anthropology.
Anthropology courses also provide discipline-independent skills that are recognized by the CSU as fundamental to the mission of higher education.

1. critical thinking skills
2. data collection, management, analysis, and interpretation
3. communication skills:  written, oral, and visual (multimedia) presentations
4. computer skills to support inquiry
5. library skills to support inquiry
6. use of information technologies
7. problem formulation, problem-solving, and ability to apply problem-solving techniques to real life problems
8. ability to synthesize complex information
9. ability to use skills to continue the learning process after graduation

 

Anthropological knowledge that students should acquire as part of their coursework in anthropology.
Both anthropological skills and discipline-independent skills rest upon anthropological knowledge that in turn supports flexible life-long learning.

1. recognition and awareness of cultural diversity through time and space  (geographically, pre-historically, and historically)
2. a working knowledge of human biological diversity
3. an understanding of human origins from  an evolutionary perspective
4. how to apply knowledge (of the above) to human social, biological, and environmental problems
5. knowledge of the history of the discipline (theoretical approaches) and how these are reflected in current anthropological practices

3.0  Statements of Student Learning Outcomes
After outlining the goals and objectives of an anthropology program, we realized that we were able to move to a discussion of how we are to determine whether students meet those objectives.  We focused our attention on the degree to which we can (or would be able to in the future) produce evidence that our students are getting what we want them to get from our programs.  There are already mechanisms in place to help us assess; other assessment techniques were also proposed for future use.  The points below are thus divided into two categories: 1) what we are currently doing and can modify further for use as assessment tools, and 2) what we recommend as particularly appropriate as assessment techniques for future implementation in our anthropology programs.

What we currently do that tests students' abilities to perform their skills and demonstrate knowledge, and thus allows us to assess our program's success:

1. collaborative projects
2. research exercises and term projects
3. lab work, etc.
4. capstone courses
5. The explicit list of the skills and knowledge we seek to accomplish as departments, and in individual courses, is listed on our course syllabi.

3.2  What we want to do more of in the future:

1. Use course matrixes; a table that serves as a visual representation of which skills and knowledge are accomplished in each department's courses
2. Use student-generated portfolios to evaluate the success of our programs in meeting the goals we set for ourselves  (See plans for future directions as a step towards using portfolios in the assessment process.)
3. Track our graduates as a way to interview them about the ways in which they use their anthropology degrees and what value the degree has for them several years after graduating.