Using a SAAC EZ form completed during spring '12, this CAT documents improvements based upon suggestions in the original document (see attachment). For Fall '12, the grading rubric was revised, group formation was made earlier, and a group contract was added to the project based upon the document provided by a finished CAT titled "Increasing Group Accountability with a Contract". Results:
In Spring 2012 I participated in a district workshop on information literacy titled "Research Assignment Handouts: Essential Elements to Promote Student Success." I revised the handout for the group research & symposium assignment to better help students get started by suggesting resources, requiring help from a librarian, specifying which data bases to use, and providing more details about what consititutes plagiarism. I also revised the rubric to better reflect these items. I will qualitatively assess the quality of the student research and avoidance
Using SAAC’s EMCC General Education Abilities Matrix the residential librarians assessed 4 key Information Literacy competencies; Framing the Research Question, Accessing Sources, Evaluation of Information Resources and Create Original Work.
The librarians created a rubric which defined each of the 4 Information Literacy competencies and rated each on a clearly defined 3 level scale. Data was collected from 13 courses for a total of 24 sections. 346 students took part in the study.
EDU112 and MAT157 joined together for a Learning Community. In meeting course competencies for both courses, instructors developed then facilitated an Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) Project. Inquiry based learning starts with a team (in our case, partners), who have a legitimate, real-life inquiry into a situation where the solution is not readily apparent. It closely follows the model of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) but with required mathematical applications.
Students in EDU 230 questioned the extent to which discrimination exists at EMCC. They unanimously suggested this should be investigated. The author facilitated the process which included: survey creation, research into discrimination on college campuses, applying for Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval (and receiving it), and applying for the Student Conference (coincidentally about a month from the start of the project) and being accepted. Students went through ethical research (CITI) training.
Barkley (2010) suggests that having members of a group read and individually sign a contract regarding their participation and behavior in the group will improve interpersonal accountability. EDU222 students are required to collaborate and submit a group case study. At the conclusion of the project, they rate each of their group members on a variety of contributing characteristics (see "Member Rating" attachment).