Spring 2013 Course SLO Review

HIST 45 - LGBT History in the United States - Stage 5 - Ruth Mahaney

Assessment

Assessment Methods	Analysis of exam, quiz, or homework items linked to specific SLOs Assignments based on rubrics (such as essays, projects, and performances) Pre & post surveys or tests
Assessment Description	Students submitted essays describing the lives and survival techniques of queer folks in the first seventy five years of the twentieth century, from various classes, races, and communities within the United States. Students completed and pre-test the first day of class, with 20 matching questions listing various people, events, and dates of importance in LGBT history. The same test was administered again the last week of class. Students submitted essays explaining the concepts of essentialism and social construction as they apply to history.
Learning Outcomes	A. Demonstrate familiarity with the existence of lesbians and gay men throughout the history of the United States, and the strategies they used for survival. D. Identify the major personalities, groups, and events involved in the gay/lesbian/bisexual movements for social change, and the basic programs of reforms proposed. B. Explain the terms "social construction" and "essentialism" as they apply to the lesbian/gay history.
Number of Sections	1
Number of Instructors	1
Number of Students	32

Data Analysis

Data Shared With	Faculty and staff within our department Faculty and staff from related programs/departments Faculty and staff from other colleges
Data Sharing Methods	Face-to-face meetings
Data Summary	80% of the students submitted essays which showed superior understanding of the survival strategies of GLBT folks in the early 20th Century. 75% of students successfully matched at least 16 the 20 people, dates, etc with their proper descriptions on the post-test. Most of the students had been unable to give the correct answers on the pre-test. Only 5 students had shown knowledge of more than 2 or 3 on the pre-test. Only 25% of the students could explain the concepts of essentialism and social construction.
Analysis Summary	I was extremely pleased with the students' grasp of both learning objective A and D. I feel that these teaching methods and assessment tools are revealing effective results. I plan to continue with the same methods. For learning objective B, I do not feel that students understood these concepts very clearly.
Next Steps Planned	For learning objective B, I will look for some better reading assignments to explain the concepts of essentialism and social construction. I will revise my lecture on this subject. And I will create a better question which will help students to be able to use these concepts.
Learning Outcomes	Refer to previous answers.

Changes

Details	I wrote dates and names on the board, I did oral quizzes each class utilizing repetition of names, events, and dates. I asked students for examples of survival techniques for any period or community we were discussing. We discussed these concepts in class frequently.
Learning Outcomes	Both learning objectives A and D.

Tentative Future Plans

Term	Fall 2013
Activities	Assessment (measurement) of outcomes Analysis and discussion of assessment data and next steps
More Details	I am revising the section of the course that explains theoretical approaches of essentialism and social construction.

SLO Details Storage Location

HARD COPY - In my personal filing system (my office)

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