Curricular Change

Integrating Assessment and Faculty Development to Lead

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Muhlenberg CollegePresenters• Sharon Albert, Senior Lecturer, Religion Studies,

Co-coordinator of Integrative Learning • Kathleen Harring, Provost, Professor, Psychology • Kimberly Heiman, Senior Lecturer, Biology,

Co-Coordinator of Integrative Learning • Linda McGuire, Professor, Mathematics, Director, Faculty Center for Teaching

General Education Revision: Backstory

- 2013 adoption of revised curriculum - First significant revision since 1989- Integrative learning as core element in response

to assessment data- Less success at this than our peer institutions

Photo From: Muhlenberg Website

Curricular Revision: The Dawn of a Living Curriculum

Adopt new General

Education Curriculum

Pilot new curricular element: Clusters

Assess Cluster effectiveness

Fully implement

Clusters

Faculty development workshop

Funding to support new course development

Assessment findings reported to Faculty

Faculty development workshop

Clusters

Signature element of the 2013 curricular revision

• Two linked courses

• Taken during Sophomore year

• Common student cohort

• Some shared learning goals & assignments

• Challenges• Limited student choice

• Logistically difficult to implement

Fall 2017(BIO 129)

Fall 2017(PSY 180)

Faculty Development for Clusters

• May workshops

• Informal “Check-in” conversations during AY• Funding to support new course development• Assessment findings reported to Faculty

Photo From: Muhlenberg Website

Cluster Assessment Findings

- Correlation of “Clusters” and integrative learning not explicit in the curriculum- no common language, definition, or learning goals

- Evidence of improvement in students’ integrative learning - less visible due to lack of “integrative learning” language

- Faculty & student reported significant scheduling issues

- Early implementation course needs met, but deep concern about long-term sustainability

Transforming Clusters into theIntegrative Learning (IL) Requirement

Faculty vote to change Cluster requirement

2016/2017 APC leads Integrative Learning revisionFaculty adopt criteria for IL experiences

Faculty adopt IL definition and learning goals

APC retreat

APC & CC retreatAAC&U

Institute to develop action plan

IL coordinator position established

Presentation and discussion at every faculty meeting

Informal discussions and outreach by IL co-coordinators

Focus groups FCT workshops

Defining Integrative Learning Approved by Faculty, January 2017

• Makes connections that combine disparate perspectives.

• Applies multiple ways of knowing to concepts and experiences.

• Empowers students to solve problems and address questions in more comprehensive ways.

Picture from: https://www.slideshare.net/Amberagd/integrative-learning

At MuhlenbergIntegrative Learning is not mastered but constantly develops and is honed. The Integrative Learning curricular requirement provides opportunities for intentionally and collaboratively cultivating this way of thinking.

Photos From Muhlenberg Website

Faculty Development & Engagement

• Focus groups• Presentation and discussion at every faculty meeting• Informal discussions and outreach by IL co-coordinators• Faculty Center for Teaching workshops

Photos From Muhlenberg Website

Implementing Integrative Learning

Our Action Plan for this year includes:

• Increased visibility & communication of IL

• Ensuring student understanding of and investment in IL

• Engaging with all key stakeholders

• Faculty development

• Promoting and supporting integrative research and teaching

Photo From: Muhlenberg Website

Why It Worked

1) Support, advocacy, leadership coming from the highest level

2) Informal assessment and individual faculty perceptions taken

seriously

3) Developed the developers

4) Collecting feedback and educating community about

requirement → happening simultaneously

We now have a Living Curriculum responsive to

assessment and linked to faculty development.

For Discussion

• What is one important curricular challenge on your campus that has been identified through assessment?

• What faculty development opportunities can you create to address this curricular challenge?

• How can you ensure that all Faculty know their voices have been heard?

Reflecting Back

Briefly:

• What is the one best idea you’ve heard in this session?

• What is the most important thing you’ve learned from the discussion?

AAC&U 2018: General Education and Assessment: Foundations for Democracy

February 15, 2018, 3:45-4:45pm

Integrating Assessment and Faculty Development

to Lead Curricular Change

Our Definition of Integrative Learning

Integrative learning enables students to make connections that combine disparate disciplinary, methodological,

ideological, or epistemological perspectives. Integrative learning entails applying multiple ways of knowing to

concepts and experiences. Effective integrated learning empowers students to recognize and solve problems,

address existing questions, and ask new ones in more comprehensive ways.

Integrative Learning is not mastered but constantly develops and is honed in many ways. At Muhlenberg, the

Integrative Learning curricular requirement provides opportunities for intentionally cultivating this way of thinking

in collaborative environments and communities.

Academic Learning Goals for Integrative Learning

Muhlenberg graduates will be able to:

1. Understand relationships among various ways of knowing, and recognize the strengths and limitations of

different approaches for comprehending phenomena.

2. Use diverse perspectives and their vocabularies to intentionally recognize and solve problems, address

existing questions, and ask new questions.

3. Adapt and apply various perspectives developed in other contexts to new situations, while realizing the

strengths and limitations of these different approaches.

4. Communicate the value of an integrative perspective.

Experiences that qualify for the IL designation will be rostered as courses and will be graded. Students will

normally fulfill their IL requirement after their first semester and by the end of their Junior year.

Criteria for IL designation

IL designations will be granted based on alignment of the experience’s content with Muhlenberg’s Academic

Program Goals and Learning Outcomes for Integrative Learning and must meet the following criteria:

The experience will:

1. Teach how to incorporate and integrate at least two different perspectives (e.g., disciplinary,

methodological, ideological, or epistemological) as a core focus of the experience. The incorporation and

integration of these perspectives should be sustained throughout the experience. [Learning goals 1, 2]

2. Include graded projects/assignments sustained throughout the experience that adapt and apply the

integration between at least two different perspectives (e.g., disciplinary, methodological, ideological, or

epistemological methods). This might be one ongoing or a series of smaller assignments. [Learning goal 3]

3. Involve critical reflection of students’ learning and understanding of integrative learning skills. [Learning

goal 4]

4. Be sustained over the equivalent of at least one semester.

AAC&U 2018: General Education and Assessment: Foundations for Democracy

February 15, 2018, 3:45-4:45pm

Muhlenberg College

Integrating Assessment and Faculty Development

to Lead Curricular Change

Questions for Discussion

What is one important curricular challenge on your campus that has been identified through

assessment?

What faculty development opportunities can you create to address this curricular challenge?

How can you ensure that all Faculty know their voices have been heard?

Presenters:

Sharon Albert, Senior Lecturer, Religion Studies, Co-Coordinator of Integrative Learning

Kathleen Harring, Provost, Professor, Psychology

Kimberly Heiman, Senior Lecturer, Biology, Co-Coordinator of Integrative Learning

Linda McGuire, Professor, Mathematics, Director, Faculty Center for Teaching