Common Assessment Practices It is perhaps a truism to say that what constitutes good practice in assessing Women’s Studies is good assessment practice in general. For example, in Students at the Center, Pat Hutchings summarizes key questions for assessment that would work well for almost any discipline:
Jack Meacham, Chair of Psychology at SUNY-Buffalo has written an excellent brief guide to assessing multicultural courses. “Assessing Diversity Courses: Tips and Tools” is sensitive to some of the distinguishing features of such courses. For example, he suggests frequent informal assessments so instructors can gauge what and whether silent students are learning. He offers statements that can be included in standard course evaluation documents so instructors can understand how students use what they learn about multiculturalism, and he suggests a strategy which I have found successful with graduate students—making assessment a course project, involving students in designing strategies for evaluating the class. Meacham’s “tips and tools” are applicable to Women’s Studies courses, just as the questions posed by Pat Hutchings remain pertinent today. A review of current assessment plans and reports (for web addresses, see the list of plans in Appendix B) reveals that the range of techniques adopted consists primarily of those used by the schools participating in The Courage to Question study as well as some of the strategies recommended by Meacham. See Table 4. Women’s Studies assessment strategies As course software programs such as Blackboard become increasingly prevalent, Women’s Studies programs may consider allowing faculty to submit individual course sites for review as if they were teaching portfolios. Do assignments and handouts reflect course goals? If there is a discussion area, do student comments reflect learning of key concepts? Moreover, many other academic programs are beginning to survey alumni employers with the graduates’ consent. This approach would be helpful in finding out exactly which of the skills learned in Women’s Studies courses are most beneficial in the workplace. Table 4. Women’s Studies assessment strategies
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Index to this Study
QUESTIONS FOR A NEW CENTURY:WOMEN’S STUDIES AND INTEGRATIVE LEARNING - Downloads
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Program Administration & Development
Twice annual member publication Official journal of NWSA Syllabi Collections, Program Admin Handbook and more Graduate Guide to Women's and Gender Studies Free resource for students considering graduate work in Women's/Gender Studies Directory Includes: Click here to visit the PA&D webpages and resources The Program Administration and Development Committee (PA&D) is a standing committee in NWSA specifically designed to represent the interests and needs of administrators of women's studies programs and departments to the Governing Council of NWSA and to assist NWSA in meeting the needs of women's administrators and their departments and programs. The PA&D webpages offer a wealth of free downloadable resources for NWSA members. These include: Defining Women's Scholarship What Programs Need Shared Development Documents including course development, climate issues and surveys, service learning guides and evaluations and much more. Click here to visit the PA&D webpages and resources. Click here to visit the Women's Center pages and resources. Women's Centers have representation on the NWSA Governing Council as a standing committee. This is more than a symbolic recognition of the important role that women's centers play in feminist education. The Center webpages offer a wealth of free downloadable resources for NWSA members. Administration Resources And More... Click here to visit the Women's Center pages and resources. NWSA has many initiatives in development and ongoing. Current initiatives include: NWSA is partnering with the National Organization for Research (NORC) at the University of Chicago to collect data on the field of women’s studies nationally. The WoCLP is designed to increase the number of women of color students and faculty within the field of women’s studies and, consequently, to have an impact on the levels of participation and power by women of color in the PA&D, NWSA, and in the field of women’s studies as a whole. About the Field Professional Development Calls for Papers for Publications Program Administration & Development Pedagogical Resources The site contains several interactive areas for NWSA members. General Areas >>Update your contact information<< Add a Student to your Institutional Membership Submit your book to the database Submit your video to the database Sent tenure, promotion, awards, and retirement news Governance This section includes
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QUESTIONS FOR A NEW CENTURY:WOMEN’S STUDIES AND INTEGRATIVE LEARNING
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