Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment

Introduction

UCORE’s Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] courses provide a common foundational first-year experience that prepares students to understand the world around them using historical approaches, sources, and modes of communication. [ROOT] courses advance designator student learning outcomes associated with five of the WSU Undergraduate Learning Goals (Critical Thinking, Information Literacy, Written Communication, Diversity, and Integrative Learning) by asking students to explore and understand the historical and global roots of various issues facing the world today. Incoming first-year students complete HISTORY 105 to satisfy [ROOT], while HISTORY 305 is intended for transfer students that need to fulfill the [ROOT] requirement.

Assessment

Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment is intended to provide [ROOT] faculty with information for program improvement, as well as gauge student learning on [ROOT] designator learning outcomes for UCORE general education assessment. In fall 2023, [ROOT] instructors completed a pilot assessment report to provide an assessment of student achievement of [ROOT] designator learning outcomes in their course (direct measure, using faculty expert judgement). For the fall 2023 pilot, the [ROOT] assessment report form focused on two designator learning outcomes (Information Literacy and Written Communication). The Roots of Contemporary Issues program, in collaboration with the Office of Assessment for Curricular Effectiveness (ACE), coordinated the assessment, reporting, and data analysis for this [ROOT] Assessment pilot.

Note: In AY2021-22 and AY2022-23, [ROOT] faculty worked to develop and test this new process for direct assessment. [ROOT] Assessment previously included the Final Papers Assessment (aligned with Critical Thinking, Information Literacy, and Integrative Learning) and the Diversity & Inequality Papers Assessment (aligned with Diversity and Written Communication), where [ROOT] faculty evaluated a random sample of student’s papers from all campuses using a faculty-developed rubric.

Evidence of Student Learning

Results of Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment are compiled to provide a summary of student achievement of [ROOT] designator learning outcomes. Click on the links below to explore recent results of Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment. For more summaries of results from Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment, see Results of [ROOT] Assessment.)

Assessing Student Learning in First-Year Experience Courses: Fall 2023 [ROOT] Pilot Assessment Results As reported in the Fall 2023 [ROOT] Pilot Assessment Summary of Key Evidence for UCORE (PDF), pilot assessment results indicated that that, on average, 63% of students met or exceeded expectations on the [ROOT] designator learning outcome performance criteria associated with Information Literacy. Additionally, on average, 70% of students met or exceeded expectations on the […]
Information Literacy, Integrative Learning, and Critical Thinking Achievement at the First-Year Level: AY 2020-21 Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Final Papers Assessment Results As reported in the AY 2020-21 [ROOT] Final Papers Assessment Summary of Key Evidence for UCORE (PDF), assessment results indicated that, on average, 78% of first-year students met or exceeded expectations at the first-year undergraduate level at the end of their UCORE first-year experience [ROOT] course on rubric outcomes related to Information Literacy. Additionally, 88% […]
Diversity and Written Communication Achievement at the First-Year Level: AY 2019-20 Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Diversity & Inequality Papers Assessment Results As reported in the AY 2019-20 [ROOT] Diversity & Inequality Papers Assessment Summary of Key Evidence for UCORE (PDF), assessment results indicated that, on average, 75% of first-year students met or exceeded expectations at the first-year undergraduate level at the end of their UCORE first-year experience [ROOT] course on rubric outcomes related to Diversity. Additionally, […]

Uses of Assessment

Visual depiction of the NILOA Transparency Framework Use of Student Learning Evidence Component.

The Roots of Contemporary Issues Steering Committee and program faculty review results of Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment and suggest actions for improved assessment or use to inform decision-making. The Roots of Contemporary Issues program also works closely with the WSU Libraries’ research services librarians to use assessment to develop and refine information literacy curricula. For more information about this partnership, see Research Services Librarians Conduct and Use Information Literacy Assessment.

Below are some examples of how student learning evidence from Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] Assessment contributes to decision-making intended to support student learning and quality undergraduate education.

Final Papers Assessment Project Participation Influences Teaching and Learning in UCORE First-Year Experience [ROOT] Courses Participation in assessment offers ways for faculty to think about student learning in the curriculum and about how to support it most effectively in their own classes. For example, rubric use and participation in norming sessions can deepen a common understanding of program goals among faculty, and, over time, can help focus instruction and improve […]
Using Final Papers Assessment Project Results to Improve UCORE First-Year Experience [ROOT] Courses The Final Papers Assessment Project results provide Roots of Contemporary Issues [ROOT] faculty with information about students’ grasp of program outcomes. In this way, rubric scores from student papers evaluated by program faculty can be used to direct and improve instruction.