Katie King and Paul Fromson, associate professors of psychology, have had their proposal accepted for presentation at the Eastern Teaching of Psychology Conference, hosted by James Madison University, June 29-30. Their work is titled: “Tedious, challenging, and thoroughly enjoyable: The value of self-assessment of student learning outcomes in a senior capstone course.”
In their paper, King and Fromson discuss an assessment strategy used in their Senior Seminar classes as part of the department’s overall assessment efforts. The strategy has not only yielded information about students’ sense of mastery of content and skills in the major, but has also opened a process of self-reflection and discussion among senior Psychology majors as they assess what they have gained from their coursework and where they still need to grow as they face the transition from college to their lives as young adults. Further ways of inviting students into the assessment process are encouraged.