Assessment Plan for the Biology Degree
Division of Natural Sciences
St. Norbert College

I. St. Norbert College Mission Statement
II. Biology Discipline Mission Statement
III. Student Learning Outcomes
IV. Sources of Evidence
V. Means of Analysis
VI. Summary of Data Analysis
VII. Action Steps

I. St. Norbert College Mission Statement
     The Mission of St. Norbert College is to provide a superior education that is “personally, intellectually, and spiritually challenging.” (St. Norbert College 2001-2003 Catalogue, pg. 10.)

II. Biology Discipline Mission Statement
     The Biology major aims to provide an education that is personally and intellectually challenging with knowledge in various areas of biology as a foundation.

III. Student Learning Outcomes
     As a result of completing a major in biology at St. Norbert College, students should be able to:
     1. Demonstrate knowledge of cellular biology, molecular biology and             genetics; organismal biology; and population biology.
     2. Demonstrate an ability to think critically and solve a problem.
     3. Write and speak clearly using scientific terminology.
     4. Gain acceptance to graduate or professional school and successfully             complete post-baccalaureate degrees.

Educational experiences for attaining each goal:
     1. Complete courses required for the Biomedical Sciences             Concentration or General Biology Concentration.
     2. Participate in a research project that includes giving a final             presentation.

IV. Sources of Evidence
     1. Incoming freshman and seniors that have declared biology as a             major are required to sit for the MFT exam. Content areas of             weakness and strength are identified and changes are made in             courses to strengthen content exposure in weak areas.
     2. The MFT category called analytical skills is analyzed to measure a             student’s ability to think critically and problem solve.
     3. Students are required to submit a portfolio that includes examples of             scientific writing and the powerpoint or poster from an oral             presentation. This data, along with evaluations of student’s oral             presentations given as part of a course requirement will be             evaluated to determine whether or not students are able to write             and speak clearly using scientific terminology.
     4. Graduates are tracked. The major is considered to have successfully             prepared students for graduate and professional school (medical,             dental, etc.) if students gain admission to these programs and             successfully complete post-baccalaureate degrees. The discipline             tracks the success of its graduates via personal communication,             questionnaires, and feedback from various professional programs             and graduate schools.

VI. Summary of Data Analysis
   Spring 2004 findings.
     1. Seniors continue to score higher than the freshmen when MFT             results are compared. The most significant “gains” are in the areas             of: biochemistry (78 percentile higher), cell structure (70             percentile higher), and molecular biology/genetics (70 percentile             gain). The least significant gains are in : organismal biology (18             percentile gain) due to the freshmen having a strong background             in this content area as a result of high school preparation.
     2. Seniors continue to score highest in the following content areas:             biochemistry, cell structure, molecular biology/genetics, animal
            biology, and plant biology. These scores are at or above the 80th
            percentile.
     3. Seniors score low in population genetics/evolution (in the 30th             percentile) and score in the 75th percentile in ecology and             analytical skills. This means that nationally, 60% and 25%,             respectively, of seniors completing the MFT are scoring higher             than our seniors.
     4. Seniors continue to show improved scores on the MFT relative to             freshmen in the category of analytical skills. May 2004 seniors             scored in the 75th percentile, moving up from the 50th percentile             freshman year. This reflects an increased ability to think critically.
     5. Focus groups conducted in spring 2003 revealed that group work in lab             and field experience helped students to be better prepared for             research experience.
     6. Graduates of the biology major program report back that several             courses helped to prepare them well for medical school, including:             molecular and cellular biology, microbiology, and human anatomy             and histology.
     7. Graduates of the biology major program report back that a research             experience is key to success in graduate school.

VII. Action Steps
     1. The discipline revised the major program to include two separate             tracks: The Biomedical Sciences Track (for pre-health profession             students) and the Traditional Biology major track. The Biomedical             Sciences track does not include ecology and botany and these             content areas are to be followed for students in both tracks to see             what the ramifications of this curricular change may be. This             decision was based on results of the MFT that revealed low scores             in ecology compared to the cellular level biology categories and a             preliminary assessment of our program from project kaleidoscope             (PKAL) consultants. PKAL consultants suggested that the current             biology program is too broad (e.g. trying to serve too many             different types of student) and could be improved by adding some             focus.
     2. The discipline has decided to add a portfolio to graduation             requirements for biology majors. The goal is to assess writing and             oral communication skills as well as breadth of experience.             Current sophomores will be apprised of this new requirement and             asked to start saving material for their portfolio.
     3. The discipline has decided to survey graduates of the biology major             every two years, some survey questions have been developed.
     4. The low score in population biology (55 percentile) was discussed.             Students do show a gain of 50 percentile. That is a significant             improvement, but does not match gain in other content areas.             Currently, students are exposed to concepts in population biology             primarily in the second semester freshmen year, general biology             II course. There are no plans to make any changes to address this             low score at this time. The focus for now is to document changes             that correlate to the establishment of two areas of concentration             within the major.