• Guidelines, Formats and Criteria for Review of Assessment Plans



• Guidelines and Format for Submission of Annual Status Reports



• Assessment Definitions and Issues



• Assessment Infrastructure



• Time Line 1993-2003



• Principles of Good Practice in Assessment



• Problematic Issues in Assessment



• Types of Assessment at CSUSB



• 1994 Faculty Senate Resolution on Assessment



• Internet Assessment Links



• Assessment Funding



• Assessment Plans and Status Reports



• General Education Outcomes Assessment



• General Education Assessment Issues



• GE Basic Skills Goals and Objectives



• GE Breadth Areas Goals and Objectives



• Alignment Between the University General Education Policy and Student Learning Goals and Objectives



• Resources for GE Classes



• Assessment Archives



• Assessment Methods Used by Programs



• Uses of Assessment Results for Program Improvement



• CSU Trustee Action on Student Learning Outcomes Assessment

The following outcomes assessment goals and objectives for the four General Education Basic Skills areas (Written Communication, Oral Communication, Mathematics, and Critical Thinking) have been developed by the University General Education Outcomes Assessment Committee based on university-wide input from faculty, department chairs, and university, college and department GE, curriculum and outcomes assessment representatives over a two-year period.

General education is central to a university education, and its goal is to enhance students’ awareness of themselves in a complex universe, drawing upon multiple points of view. As a result of general education experience, students will acquire knowledge of diverse disciplinary and cultural perspectives and skill in comparing, contrasting, applying, and communicating effectively these perspectives in tasks considered appropriate to particular courses.

Basic skills in composition, oral communication, critical thinking, and mathematics are needed to express ideas easily and effectively, to understand and utilize quantitative data, and to think clearly in everyday settings. All basic skills courses have mutually reinforcing objectives to ensure that these skills are practiced and refined in many different contexts.

1. Discover and then develop a controlling idea for each writing project.



2. Select, organize, and relate ideas and develop them coherently.



3. Effectively use the basic structures and techniques of writing:



• at the word level, display control of diction, using language that is precise and varied and that demonstrates sensitivity to diversity (gender, culture, ethnicity, religion, disability, etc.)


• at the sentence level, display syntactic variety and control of language and mechanics.


• at the paragraph and essay levels, arrange ideas coherently, using a variety of rhetorical strategies such as narration, description, definition, illustration, summary, process analysis, division/classification, comparison/contrast, cause/effect, and argument/persuasion; also, use transitional devices to create a smooth flow between ideas.



4. Employ typical rhetorical techniques, such as openings, effective paragraphing, transitions, and closings.



5. Develop the judgment and flexibility to choose the rhetorical strategies, style, and level of language most appropriate to the audience, purpose, and genre of their writing.



6. Produce writing, including written work in their major discipline, that is focused on a clear thesis, that is well-reasoned, and that is supported with adequate details and appropriate evidence (when evidence is called for).



7. Produce writing, including written work in their major discipline, that is well organized and appropriately formatted, that is free of serious errors in grammar, mechanics, and usage, and that follows the conventions of standard written English.



8. Recognize that writing is an on-going process of evaluation and revision. In other words, accept feedback from others, learn to give constructive critiques, engage seriously in substantive revisions, and edit their own and others’ writing for global organization, style, and sentence-level accuracy.

1. Comprehend a writer’s message literally, inferentially, and analytically



2. Identify both stated and implied main ideas



3. Differentiate between main ideas and supporting details



4. Evaluate the persuasiveness/effectiveness of the supporting details



5. Distinguish between fact and opinion



6. Recognize the organizational structure of written material



7. Discern the style and tone of a writer



8. Abstract thoughts and ideas from reading material



9. Appreciate the value of reading as a source of lifelong learning, recreation, and intellectual enjoyment

1. Find, evaluate, and make suitable use of written sources, in particular by gaining familiarity with the library and with electronic resources



2. Evaluate the quality of materials that they have found for relevance to the topic, and coordinate these materials within the framework of their writing project.



3. Use the standard conventions for incorporating sources (including quotation, paraphrase, and summary) and appropriately citing research in their own writing.



4. Use writing as a medium for critical thinking, that is, for formulating thoughtful responses to reading material and for exploring their own ideas

1. Understand the basic rhetorical elements of oral communication, particularly audience analysis



2. Find and use effective supporting evidence for informative, persuasive, and argumentative presentations



3. Generate material for a public speech by identifying and researching main points of a presentation



4. Locate, retrieve, evaluate, and incorporate material appropriate to a presentation



5. Organize main and subordinate ideas in original oral messages



6. Evaluate with care and accuracy the relative merits of alternative or opposing arguments, interpretations, assumptions, and cultural values



7. Take into account the cultural contexts of oral communication, including differences in cultural styles and the ethics of communication

1. Deliver oral presentations clearly, confidently, and effectively in a variety of public communication settings



2. Speak effectively to the chosen purpose of the speaking engagement, whether it be to argue, inspire, generate emotion, or inform the listeners



3. Present ideas concisely



4. Use language that demonstrates sensitivity to diversity (gender, culture, ethnicity, religion, disability, etc.)



5. Use effective verbal and nonverbal delivery techniques; that is, employ language, voice, inflection, facial expression, gesture, and body language appropriate to the presentation and the audience



6. Effectively construct and incorporate visual aids (e.g., handouts, charts, technologies, etc.) to support ideas in presentations

1. Anticipate listeners’ needs, analyze their responses, and adapt communications accordingly (including specific adaptations that make communication accessible for disabled members of any audience)



2. Listen critically to the oral communications and speeches of others and summarize and evaluate their salient ideas



3. Understand and value differences in communication styles

1. Recognize argumentative discourse



2. Identify whether an argument appeals to reasoning or emotion.



3. Distinguish arguments from counterfeit modes of persuasion and propaganda.

1. Identify explicitly stated premises and assumptions in an argument



2. Identify unstated implications in an argument

1. Recognize inductive arguments.



2. Recognize deductive arguments.

1. Choose the appropriate criteria for evaluating arguments.



2. Use appropriate methods to identify valid argumentation (e.g., direct application of definitions, formal methods, informal argument forms).



3. Use appropriate methods to identify invalid reasoning (e.g., counterexamples, informal and/or formal fallacies).



4. Determine validity of arguments and be able to distinguish when evidence provides strong support for a conclusion and when it does not.

1. Identify good sources of information.



2. Distinguish fact from judgment, belief from knowledge.



3. Apply evaluations of sources to the evaluation of soundness.

1. Develop a clear thesis statement of appropriate scope.



2. Provide reasons from a variety of sources that support the thesis.



3. Organize the materials so that they adequately support the thesis.

1. Solve problems by applying algebraic, geometric, or analytic concepts appropriate to the mathematics basic skills course completed.



2. Translate verbal statements to and from mathematical expressions.

1. Critically evaluate quantitative information, and identify deceptive or erroneous information.

1. Effectively organize, summarize, and present information in quantitative forms such as tables, graphs, and formulas.



2. Use numerical, graphical, and symbolic information to support or criticize arguments and draw valid conclusions.

1. Identify examples of mathematical models from a variety of quantitative and non-quantitative disciplines.



2. Demonstrate ability to construct mathematical models in the context of other disciplines.