Department of Environment & Society

In AY 2002-03, the first year of its existence, the ENVS Department formulated four broad learning goals and 35 learning outcomes for its students in three categories, i.e., behaviors or attitudes, skills and abilities, and knowledge (Table 1).   These goals and outcomes were a direct outgrowth of the department’s newly articulated vision and mission.  The department then constructed a survey to be administered in all ENVS courses near the end of the term that asked students to rate the degree to which each of the 35 learning outcomes was met, with scores ranging from 1 (not at all successful) to 5 (very successful) (Table 2).   It was explained to the students that our objective was to compare ENVS courses to ensure that all learning outcomes were being met somewhere in the curriculum.   They were further informed that the survey should not be confused with a traditional course or instructor evaluation, but rather should be viewed as a tool to help us review our entire departmental curriculum.  Thus, it was perfectly acceptable to rate some learning outcomes as “not at all” being met for a particular course. The survey was also administered to the instructor in each course.  It was pilot tested in AY 2003-04, and fully implemented in AY 2004-05.  The results from the AY 2004-05 survey were summarized in tables and figures, with particular attention paid to those learning outcomes that received low scores or exhibited large gaps in scores between student and instructor ratings.  The results of the survey were discussed at the department’s annual retreat in August 2005, and recommendations made on changes to the curriculum as deemed appropriate.
 
In the same time frame, we developed a similar survey to be administered to our graduating students near the end of their last term in the program (Table 3).  However, unlike the survey of students in individual courses, graduating students were asked to rate each learning outcome both in terms of how important they thought it was for their degree program, and how successful their program curriculum was in meeting this outcome.  The results of the survey were summarized in table and figure form, with special attention paid to those learning outcomes that scored high in importance, but low in the extent to which they were being met by the curriculum.
 
The survey of graduating students at the undergraduate level was followed up with focus group interviews during final exam week.  The interviews typically involved three to four students, preferably from the same degree program, and focused on the four broad learning goals for students noted above.  They were also asked what could be done to improve those learning outcomes that they identified in the written survey as important, but not very well met by their curriculum.  Finally, they were asked what classes they thought were not particularly valuable or useful for their future careers, and how these classes might be modified to render them more valuable or useful.  At the onset of the interviews, students were informed that their comments would remain anonymous and would be compiled with those of students from other focus groups for presentation to the faculty at its annual departmental retreat in August, with the intent of using the results to improve the curriculum.
 
Graduate students were interviewed individually and asked only two questions, i.e., (1) what did you particularly like about your educational experience at USU and therefore would like to see maintained or enhanced even more, and (2) where do you think the greatest opportunities for improvement reside?  The results were likewise summarized anonymously and presented to the faculty for discussion at its departmental retreat.

The department also offers a capstone course (ENVS 5000) on “Collaborative Problem Solving for Environment and Natural Resources,” required of all its undergraduate majors except certain emphases in the Geography degree program.   The course addresses a real problem or issue that is being faced by some entity, typically a natural resource agency, on a specific tract of land. 
Results are presented in both oral and written form to a public audience.  An evaluation of the results of the course by the students and instructors, as well as the sponsoring entity and others attending the final oral presentation by the students or reading the final report, is used to modify the course to make it as comprehensive as possible relative to student learning outcomes.

 Table 1. Learning goals and outcomes for Department of Environment and Society students.

 

Goals

Instill in students the desire to lead purposeful lives

Be able to analyze complex, real-world problems

Understand and integrate ideas from the ecological, social, and physical sciences

Increase student’s desire to be life-long learners

Instill in students the desire to lead purposeful lives

Objectives

Behavior or Attitudes

Exhibit professionalism

Adhere to ethical principles

Identify future NR/E problems or concerns

Engage in processes of scientific discovery

Participate in public debate and social change

Have a sense of civic responsibility

Skills/Abilities

Analyze complex, real world problems

Think logically and critically

Think creatively

Employ scientific reasoning and methods

Find, evaluate, and use appropriate information resources

Utilize current information technologies

Analyze problems at different spatial scales

Communicate effectively in writing

Communicate verbally

Communicate visually

Work cooperatively in teams or small groups

Work cooperatively in large groups or organizations

Respect interdisciplinary diversity

Respect cultural diversity

Integrate social, biological, and physical science knowledge in NR/E problem solving

Knowledge

Social science

Biological or ecological science

Physical science

Economic Science

NR/E policies

NR/E management issues or problems

NR/E policies and issues in the Intermountain West

International NR/E policies and issues

Communication skills

Conflict management skills

Mathematical or statistical skills

Computer skills

Identification, inventory, mapping, classification, and monitoring techniques in your area of specialization

Table 2. Survey of Course Learning Outcomes Given to All Students in ENVS Courses.

Survey of Course Learning Outcomes for ENVS Students

Course No. _________ Course Title: ___________________________________________

Term ______________ Instructor: _____________________________________________

I am a Freshman ˜ Sophomore ˜ Junior ˜ Senior ˜

My major is (example: Geography) _________________________________________________

ENVS Department faculty have many learning objectives for our students. The purpose of this survey is to obtain student input about learning outcomes so that we may compare ENVS courses to ensure that all the learning objectives are being met somewhere in the curriculum. This is not a traditional course or instructor evaluation–it is a tool to help us review our entire departmental curriculum.

Instructions

On a scale of 1 to 5, rate the extent to which you feel this course contributes to the following learning outcomes. Please read the list carefully. Courses are designed to focus on some outcomes but not all of them, so a response of 1 or 2 on several items is not necessarily a “bad” thing. (Also, note that NR/E = “natural resource and environmental”)

Learning Outcomes	1 Not at all	2 A little	3 Some-what	4 Quite a lot	5 Very Much
Behavior or Attitudes: As a result of this course, I will be more likely to . . .
Exhibit professionalism
Adhere to ethical principles
Identify future NR/E problems or concerns
Address important NR/E problems
Engage in processes of scientific discovery
Participate in public debate and social change
Have a sense of civic responsibility
Skills/abilities–This course has improved my ability to . . .
Analyze complex, real world problems
Think logically and critically
Think creatively
Employ scientific reasoning and methods
Find, evaluate, and use appropriate information resources
Utilize current information technologies
Analyze problems at different spatial scales
Communicate effectively in writing
Learning Outcomes	1 Not at all	2 A little	3 Some-what	4 Quite a lot	5 Very Much
Communicate verbally
Communicate visually
Work cooperatively in teams or small groups
Work cooperatively in large groups or organizations
Respect interdisciplinary diversity
Respect cultural diversity
Integrate social, biological, and physical science knowledge in NR/E problem solving
Knowledge–This course contributed to my understanding of . . .
Social science
Biological or ecological science
Physical science
Economics
NR/E policies
NR/E management issues or problems
NR/E policies and issues in the Intermountain West
National NR/E policies and issues
International NR/E policies and issues
Communication skills
Conflict management skills
Mathematical or statistical skills
Computer skills
Identification, inventory, mapping, classification, and monitoring techniques in your area of specialization

Do you have any other comments about what you learned in this course, such as learning outcomes that are not part of the course that you think should be included or emphasized more?

Table 3. Survey of Course Learning Outcomes Given to Graduating ENVS Students.

Exit Survey for ENVS Graduating Students

As you know, we are just completing our 2^nd year as a new department, and the faculty are very interested in knowing what we are doing well, what we are not doing so well, and how we can better meet students’ expectations and the faculty’s goals for this department. This survey is designed to provide us with students’ input and recommendations for improvement.

This review will be a two-step process. First, please complete this anonymous survey and return it to the ENVS Department Office. Then we will ask a random selection of students to do group interviews with the Department Head or other faculty as follow up to the survey.

Thank you for your help!