Weber State University   

Physics

Assessment Plan

May 15, 2001

The Department of Physics has established a Standing Committee on Assessment to carry out the department’s assessment plan. This committee will carry out a longitudinal survey of physics students (majors, minors, support, and General Education), tracking the performance and success of current and previous years’ students. The criteria for evaluating student performance and success will be based — as much as is practical — on established and recognized nationwide norms.

Activities in support of many of the assessment goals described below are already in place. The department will continue with these previously established activities, and has decided to initiate efforts with respect to several other items in its assessment plan. The following abbreviations will be used to identify the measures of student learning for each outcome:

Direct Measures:

WE = written exams (standardized or locally-developed)
OE = oral exams
LAB = laboratory activities
REP = reports/writing samples
CAP = capstone projects
IEX = inside examiners
CO = comparisons with external programs or standards
OEX = outside examiners
INT = internship experiences

Indirect Measures:

EI = exit interviews
GR = graduate school acceptance
JOB = job placement
PO = participant observation
FG = focus groups
PGS = survey of post-graduation success
JP = reported job performance

Outcome 1 "At graduation, Physics majors should have a thorough knowledge and comprehension of the core concepts of classical and modern physics."

Measures: Student grades to identify weaknesses in its curriculum [WE, OE, LAB, REP]. A comparison of WSU’s physics curriculum with the curricula of 1) physics programs in schools with a comparable student profile, and 2) the best physics programs. [CO]

Timetable: This outcome will be assessed on an annual basis by the Physics Department’s Assessment Committee. Student grades will take several years to accumulate reliable baseline data. The comparison of WSU’s curriculum was completed in 1998 as part of the semester conversion process, and it will repeated approximately every five years.

Outcome 2 "At graduation, physics majors should have a set of fundamental skills that can be applied to a variety of situations. These skills should include the following: a) presentation skills; b) laboratory skills; c) computer skills; and d) problem-solving skills.

Measures: The committee will analyze student grades and artifacts of student performance (written assignments, lab reports, senior presentation, etc.) to identify weaknesses in its curriculum [CAP, REP, LAB, WE, OE, PO].

Timetable: This assessment will be repeated annually, but will take several years to get started while sufficient baseline data are collected.

Outcome 3 "Physics majors should be adequately trained to apply their physics experience and knowledge to analyze new situations."

Measures: Student scores on the GRE Physics Exam (in comparison with nationwide results from the American Institute of Physics and the American Association of Physics Teachers). Student acceptance rates for graduate school and/or job placement/success in academic and industrial intern positions (in comparison with nationwide results from AIP, AAPT). Post-graduation student success in graduate school, industry, or teaching — in physics or otherwise — as established by questionnaires and interviews of graduates, employers, and graduate faculty. Additional instruments for assessing the outcomes are being developed and will be used to collect data on the immediate and long-term success of physics majors [JP, INT, PGS, OEX, GR, JOB].

Timetable: This annual assessment will be underway by the end of the 1999-2000 academic year.

Outcome 4 "All physics students (majors, minors, support, and Gen Ed students) should understand the nature of science.

Measures: Questionnaires, interviews, student focus groups. Where appropriate, the results of exams will be compared with nationwide averages [WE, OE, FG, EI, IEX].

Timetable: This assessment should be repeated every five years, beginning in 1999-2000.

Outcome 5. "General Education students should understand several core concepts of physics."

Measures: Hestenes Force Concept Inventory and/or the Hestenes Mechanics Baseline Test for Newton’s laws (pre- and post-tests) [WE, EI, IEX].

Timetable: This assessment should be repeated every five years, beginning in 1999-2000.

Outcome 6. "Physics Teaching majors and Elementary Teaching majors should have an appropriate knowledge of physics and a variety of teaching strategies to accommodate the multiple learning styles of their students."

Measures: Comparison of the WSU Physics Teaching major with the Utah State Core Curriculum. Classroom observation of student teachers, and interviews with physics teachers and pre-teachers. Job placement data. [CO, PO, EI, PGS, JOB]

Timetable: This assessment should be repeated every five years, beginning in 1999-2000.

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