Presented at the 3rd Annual Best Practices In Assessment Poster Competition Contact Information : Molly M. Jameson, Ph.D. Department of Psychology Michael L. Raulin, Ph.D. Department of Psychology Psychology Department Student Learning Outcomes: LO1: Students will discriminate amongst the fundamental psychological concepts. LO2: Students will demonstrate the ability to clearly communicate using APA style. L03: Students will evaluate research using professionally accepted criteria. LO4: Students will devise solutions to real life problems by applying psychological concepts. LO5: Students will interpret topics and discussions related to human diversity. Programmatic and Curricular Changes Modifying Research Methods/Statistics sequence to include laboratory component with emphasis on scientific writing Discussion amongst faculty regarding possible scientific writing laboratory course development Conclusions Using writing maps completed by faculty stimulated reflection, fruitful discussion, and valuable curriculum changes. Figure 1 Evidence and Findings Majority of faculty report including writing assignments in courses across the curriculum that focus on LO2 & LO3 Specifically examining courses that focus on LO2 & 3 shows a variety of assignments: Journal article summary, laboratory reports, literature review, research proposal Faculty report providing practice, feedback, and multiple steps/drafts; few faculty report providing formal instruction on LO 2 & 3 Faculty also report expectations of student writing that follow an appropriate developmental trajectory (see Figure 1 below) The direct measure of LO3, a standardized test in which we assess graduating seniors in six psychology domains, shows our students score at the 49 th percentile in research and statistics; while comparable to national norms, this is our students’ lowest performing domain Background Psychology is a field based in scientific exploration and communication While the Psychology Department faculty is committed to this foundation, we have not historically evaluated how well we teach our students to write or their scientific writing ability We used faculty writing maps as an indirect measure of how students evaluate research using professionally accepted criteria Goal of Project To assess the effectiveness of the psychology curriculum in teaching students how to evaluate research and communicate using professionally accepted criteria (i.e., APA style). Assessment Methods Faculty/instructors voluntarily completed writing map using General Education writing map as template (Response rate: 87% TT faculty, 100% term faculty, 30% adjunct faculty) Provided information regarding: Types of scientific writing assignments used in classes Whether or not they provide direct instruction, give feedback, give practice, and/or give writing assignments in steps Expectations of student performance on scientific writing Writing Curriculum Maps Indicate Strengths and Areas of Improvement in Psychology Curriculum Molly M. Jameson, Kristen N. Osiniak, & Michael L. Raulin Youngstown State University—Department of Psychology