Spring 2004 AISL Report

Shirley Johnson Prepost, Other, Observation measureNumber: 10 The results of the pre and posttest showed the student's scores increased from 5 to 53 points. With 18 students participating in both tests, the average increase was 20.7 points. One student that only improved his score by 5 points does not do well on tests but he did well on the rest of the requirements for the class. The other student that only increased 5 points was pressured to complete her courses because she was registered for too many credits and did not do well as she normally would. One student did not pass the final but did pass the class. He is educationally challenged and worked hard to pass. The other 17 passed the final with scores ranging from 70 to 96 points. The capstone project is a problem that covers everything covered in the class. It includes setting up a company, setting up the chart of accounts, items lists, customer, vendor, and employee lists, and inventory. The students entered all kinds of transactions including invoices, cash sales, credit memos, purchase orders, payroll and the reports that are required. Most student did well on the project. The ones that did not do as well were pressured for time and were not as careful with the transactions causing errors in their reports. Change the syllabus to allow more time for the capstone project and encourage students to keep up with the dates as scheduled for each requirement. I have the answer keys for each project in sheet protectors and in a three-ring binder. There are three different answer keys and they are available to students at all times. I have found that this improves the students' problem-solving skills because they can realize they have a mistake and try to correct it. I ask that they try to find the problem before asking for help. If they are stuck, I will then show them how to correct their mistake. Because the projects for several chapters build on each other, I could not keep up with the grading so this has proven beneficial and allows the students to move on with their work. I still grade these projects but other requirements of the class make up a larger portion of the grade. Most students are more aware of their mistakes and work harder to find and correct mistakes because they have access to the answer keys. This allows me time to work with each student independently and explain what mistakes they have made. Students are more aware of how computerized accounting works and integrates to the accounts needed without them having to manually enter the information. Students are more prepared to work in an office using a computerized accounting program.

Ted Smith valley, Prepost, , Interview, , say, Other, Experiential learning and Research Paper, Of the four (4) students enrolled in AQT-101200 for the Spring 2004 semester, 1 withdrew, 1 failed due to severe lack of attendence, and 2 others made significant progress in learning. Pre-test and Post-test scores increased significantly from 51% and 54% to 79% and 72% respectively. Interviews and classroom discussion also indicated that learning was achieved based on knowledgeable statements pertaining to industry and subject matter being made by students at the end of the semester vs. the beginning of the semester. None at this time. Daily classroom discussions, research paper, experiential learning activities at our fish-farm, field trips to other fish farms in the area, guest speakers from industry and traditional written examinations with multiple catagories in True + False questioning, Matching, Short Answer and Fill-In-The-Blank, and Essay questions. None to report at this tiem.

Pat Robbins , , , , , , Other, questionnaire, As a group students seem to be satisfied with the class and method of teaching. As a class, they enjoyed group projects and activities the most. Add more group work and another oral presentation. Lectures, videos, quizzes, tests, article reviews, and real-life applications to teach important points. Students love the true stories about the business world! The oral presentation was new for this semester, and most students liked it. However, I plan to change the requirements for this assignment for next semester.

Donna Meyerholz valley, , , , , , , ePrepost: Prepost, Student's scored 90% better on the post test than they did on the pre-test. Those students who showed gains of less than 75% could be directly attributed to their attendance records. All of the students who attended class at least 95% of the time obtained a minimimum of 80% gains over the course of the semester. Because the next time I teach this course will be over the summer months, I don't anticipate changing anything at this time. I made a major change in the curriculum for the Spring 2004 semester and I would like to monitor it's effect for another semester. The major change that has been made in the curriculum is the addition of the SAM assessment tool. It has been difficult for many of the students taking the CIS 118 course to feel confident in the use of the Microsoft Suite. I had tried reducing the number of assignments that were required for the course, but students seems to fall further behind. This semester I increased the number of required activities that needed to be completed. Students seemed to grasp more concepts with the increased expectations. The SAM program was benefitial in regards to measuring students comprehension of specific skills. This also allowed students to analyze a problem and troubleshoot methods of solving the problems. This question was answered in the current methods question. I saw measurable differences in performance and comprehension of concepts required in utilizing PC's.

Monica Falk prepost, One suggested change to make the students even more successful would be to have more modern personal computers in the lab. This would decrease the time students spent during operating system installations and rebooting. Other changes require more assessment before being determined. The combination of lectures, discussions, and hands-on exercises helped the students gain a good working knowledge of PC network configuration, operation and troubleshooting. Therefore, these aspects will continue to stay in place for this course. No previous assessment data compiled for this course.

Monica Falk valley, , , , , , , ePrepost: Prepost, Special Topics (CNG 275) is a new course requirement for the CNG program. The topic selection is at the discretion of the instructor. This semester the topic was Linux Administration. The course concentrated on Linux operating system installation, management, networking and troubleshooting. Both pre- and post-assessments were implemented for this course. A total of four students were enrolled during the semester. All students submitted the pre- and post-assessments. The course consisted of lectures, discussions, and hands-on exercises. The results of the pre-assessment ranged from a low of 20% to a high of 44% correct responses. The class average was 30% correct responses. The results of the post-assessment ranged from a low of 94% to a high of 100% correct responses. The class average was 96% correct responses. All students showed improvement in their knowledge of Linux operating system by the end of the course. The lowest percent of increase was 53% while the highest improvement was 80%. The class showed a 69% increase in knowledge on average. More assessment is required before determining any suggested changes to this course. The combination of lectures, hands-on exercises, and discussions helped the students gain a solid working knowledge of Linux operation system in both stand-alone and network environments. Therefore, these aspects will continue to stay in place for this course. No previous assessment compiled for this course.

Gayle Trujillo Graduating students show fear about not knowing everything but it an everchanging profession and we never will. There is excitment about leaving and going to work. Terminology and people skills show good improvement. Reading and comprehension in some still shows lower levels and will propose a threat to first time pass rate in state level. Overall all graduating have shown ability to succeed. Pre reading comprehension classes for some. A little more confidence installed in others. Keep up with current terminology. Supervised work on the public, repetitive lecture and written testing. Use of professional terminology only.

Patti Newman valley, , Prepost, Portfolio, , say, Other, Student feedback form, Students showed growth and gained competancy in the subject matter and their own attitudes. Only minor adjustments were suggested which I will consider, such as reviewing readings. (Time is the problem) Students appreciate the examples used in class + the resources brought in from the community Increased the requirements of the professional portfolio to increase the students' readiness for work.

Patti Newman

The students with limited prior experience have a harder time absorbing all of the information we cover about young children.

Offer an extra time for discussion with these students. I added a new book on major Early Childhood theorists. The students really liked it, so it will remain on the syllabus.

Patti Newman valley, , Prepost, , , : Portfolio, Other, Student feedback form, Students gained understanding from their experience at the Children's Garden and following a child for the semester. None. Only suggestion is to change the hours the class is held but the majority of the students cannot attend on anyother schedule. The portfolio changes attitude and knowledge about young children. This semester, I increased the number of grading sessions which improved the student's performance.

Sadie Brown This course focuses on nutrition, health and safety as key factors for optimal growth and development of young children. It includes nutrient knowledge, menu planning, food program participation, health practices, management and safety, planning and teaching appropriate activities and communication with families. It addresses the ages from prenatal through age 8. A total of twelve students were enrolled in this course; twelve students completed the pre-assessment, but only 11 students completed the post assessment. One student was in a car accident but choose to attempt to complete the course rather than withdrawing. She did not complete course assignments or the post-assessment. This course utilized Blackboard components for the first time, and the pre-post-assessment format I chose was a 50 question multiple-choice assessment prepared from the Blackboard question pool. Immediately upon completion of the pre-assessment, I felt the pre-assessment questions were too easy. The results of the pre and post assessments are as follows:

Assessment High  Low  Avg StdDv  Var
Pre          80   54   58    19  361
Post         96   64   73    10  100

All students showed improvement in their knowledge with the class average being a 15% increase.

Proposed changes include more careful selection of the multiple choice questions from the Blackboard assessment pool, reducing the number of nutrition activities planned and taught from two to one, allowing more time for instruction in the health and safety areas. I taught the nutrition chapters first this semester, allowing students more time to digest the information and apply it in the classroom. I will continue to teach the nutrition chapters first, but I feel more direct instruction, including power point presentations, discussion and application activities will improve post-assessment scores.

The textbook currently being used meets our needs well; a new edition will be available for the next class.

This is the first assessment for this course. As mentioned above, changing the order of presentation for the nutrition concepts first gave more time for students to do activities, projects and presentation in class about their experiences.

Patti Newman valley, , , , , Prepost, Other, Student feedback form, Students reported that all assignments were meaningful to them. Although they did not enjoy every assignment, they understood the purpose. They also realize there is more to learn to perform as a competent administrator. No changes are proposed since student performance and feedback confirm the validity of the course assignments. The students completed business plans, budgets, resource scans, group staff development projects and advocacy projects. Students enjoyed the hands on projects and although it was stressful, they reported learning from the group work about personal dynamics. This semester I added two quizes to "encourage" students to be more conscientious in completing the reading assignments. It worked! More students reported "liking" the textbook.

Deb Haverfield , , , , , , Other, Practical scenarios, At the beginning of the course 5% of students could successfully complete 2 of 5 practical stations. At the conclusion of the course 95% of students successfully completed 5 of 5 practical stations. The program will continue to increase lab time as allowed within the constraints of the program. In addition, vocabulary will be emphasized more, as many students could do the skills, but could not--in all cases--use appropriate medical terminology. Numerous lab hours with realistic scenarios have helped the success of our students. In addition, clinical time in the actual workplace have proved helpful. In recent years, due to assessment, clinicial time was increased.

Marti Jo Valdez Prepost The pre-test is given to show the student at what level they are on; the post-test is given to see how how much the student has gained during the semester. No changes as of the current semester. The testing part will definitely be kept in the curriculum.

Joe Ribaudo Prepost, Interview Pre-test provides instructor and student with information on the level of competencies students are currently able to perform. The post-test measures gain in each of the areas and is helpful in assessing areas where students will need extra help or reteaching of any part of the course. Interview assessment is very valuable in determining student comprehension of presented material. Most students are more comfortable discussing subjects and providing information verbally than they are writing information. I will investigate other ways of assessing students that may be more user friendly and provide more accurate information on the students in order for me to maximize my support in their learning. Reteaching any and all materials that students do not pass successfully with 77%. Presentation of testing materials either written, orally, or with hands on application to a minimum of 77%.

Genia Rasmussen valley, , , , , , , ePrepost: Prepost, This semester's class was comprised of 15 students. It was very exhilarating to see that everyone of the students had increased their scores by at least 20 points! Most of the math concepts were a review of what students had learned, but because it had been a while utilizing these skills they had to be refreshed on the steps of completing the problems. The coverage of the chapters during the semester allowed for this. They were all hardworking individuals that didn't slack off during the semester. As well, I feel that my explanations of math concepts and ways to remember concepts have been beneficial. Overall, I am encouraged by the results of the pre/post tests. Although we can always strive to improve to provide better courses. Probably the most beneficial ways to improve are through providing more visual aids--especially when discussing Geometry. While presenting Algebra, I have found that using varied colored pens on the Smartboard have made it a lot easier for students to follow along and know how the combine like terms and to separate the various steps that are needed to complete the problems. As well, providing strategies to deal with test anxiety have been beneficial. Many students do fabulous until the word "test" or "assessment" is mentioned. This seems to be an ongoing challenge. As from before, providing more visual aids make a big difference in assisting students to understand geometry. The changes made since the previous time seem to have helped many of the students. Students grasped the concept when they could visualize it.

JoAnn Crownover Prepost Pretest-Posttest was administered to the students. The students scored an average of 46% on the Pretest, and an average of 88% on the Posttest. I will reevaluate the questions next year to make sure that the content remains up to date and applicable to second year nursing students. changes: I will reevaluate the questions next year to make sure that the content remains up to date and applicable to second year nursing students. success: The students have expressed that they feel the teaching/learning strategies were effective. I used lecture/ powerpoint presentations with multiple pictures and visual aids. Much interaction and discussion was encouraged in this class.

Amanda Jojola Pre/Post Assessment Skills Competency Form The students were given a list of physical assessment skills. They were told at the begin of the semester to be honest in filling it out. They were to place a checkmark in one of four columns next to each skill. The columns were labeled: very comfortable, somewhat comfortable, not comfortable and never done. At the end of the semester, the same form was given to them to fill out again. When comparing the pre and post assessment forms, there was definitely knowledge gained. Whereas in the beginning, there were mostly checks on never done and not comfortable columns and now they are either very comfortable or somewhat comfortable. There were no marks on never done. I think the class went really well. I may make some changes with the way they deliver their physical assessment demonstrations. Hands on instruction. Video tapes. Practicum time. I think I need to make this form a little more measurable in order to evaluate my intended outcomes a little better.

Norm Williams Prepost, Interview, Other=Competency Sheets, Pre-test (written test) Average entry test scores were 31.2% Post-test scores averaged 96.4% Increase of 65.2% A welding skills test is also given. Students enter the class at all different skill levels, most can't strike an arc, some are better. Students complete a series of welds in each welding process and must reach an entry level of performance to industrial standards before moving to the next weld. In interviewing students some stated that they preferred to stay in their booths and weld to attain the skill levels desired, while others would like to do more fabrication work on the floor. Door to communication with students must remain open. Each student has a goal to reach and they are all different. Students must reach a skill level in each welding process that will allow them to become entry level welders. To do this I have a Skills Evaluation Sing-Off sheet. For each class taken they must complete a series of welds, and I evaulate and grade them daily as each required weld is completed.The evaluation system and consistant testing. I think that students need a short term goal that they can reach, so that they can see improvement on a daily basis, and see that they are improving. The sign-off sheets are working.