1. “The unexamined life is not worth living”
- Socrates
Student Learning Outcomes
Assessment at
Berkeley City College

2. Five Assessments
This is a demonstration of five SLO
assessments at BCC during Spring
semester, 2009; they involved very
different departments using different
kinds of measures.

3. Biology 1B SLO
Biology 1B used one very comprehensive SLO, which was
linked to many of BCC’s institutional outcomes:
Students will
accurately explain biological concepts, including the
endosymbiotic theory, genetic drift, macroevolutionary topics,
Darwin's theories, ecology, biodiversity, and anatomy and
physiology of plants
Institutional Outcomes:
Communication, Computational Skills, Critical Thinking,
Information Competency

4. Biology 1B
Assessment Plan
The assessment tool was a comprehensive final exam:
Details/Description: Final Exam
Acceptable Target: 70% correct for each question
Ideal Target: 90% correct for each question
Implementation Plan (timeline):
Final Exam will be scored and analyzed on 6/1/09
Action plan will be finalized during summer, 2009
Key/Responsible Personnel:
★Pieter de Haan, Biology 1B instructor

5. Biology 1B Findings
Assessment Tool:
The final exam has 100 points.
The exam consists of 62 multiple choice questions and 8 short answer questions; these questions address
the areas outlined in the SLO.
Analysis:
Most of the questions were answered correctly, meeting the acceptable target and approaching the ideal
target. However, the following questions -- listed by topic and question # -- were missed by 50% or more
of the students:
Linnaeus + classification (1)
Natural Selection (6)
Natural Selection (7)
Natural Selection (8)
Polyploidy (26)
Outgroup Analysis (Cladistics) (32)
Origin of Angiosperms (34)
Miller and Urey Experiment (40)
Endosymbiosis (43)
Fungi (45)
Most of the open questions were answered correctly, except question 3:
Question 3 deals with the topic of endosymbiosis
Results:
Acceptable Target Achievement: Met for Most Questions
Ideal Target Achievement : Approaching

6. Biology 1B
Action Plan
Action details:
The curriculum will be redesigned to provide more
focus on the following topics:
Linnaeus classification
Natural Selection
Polyploidy
Outgroup Analysis
Miller and Urey Experiment
Endosymbiosis
Fungi
Implementation Plan (timeline):
Fall, 2009 - curriculum redesign

7. Business 10 - SLO’s
The Business 10 instructors developed three SLO’s for this
class, as follows:
Students will
apply legal and ethical principles in business decision making.
Institutional Outcomes: Ethics and Personal Responsibility
obtain and properly cite information related to the profession, using
traditional and electronic sources
Institutional Outcomes: Communication, Computational Skills,
Critical Thinking
analyze a business situation and recommend a solution or plan for
improvement.
Institutional Outcomes: Communication, Critical Thinking

8. Business 10 Assessment Plan
Measure: Case study analysis of business scenarios
Details/Description:
The rubric which the Business department has developed for this assessment will be applied
to a random selection of 33% of the research papers in Business 10.
Scorers will work together on all of the essays, discussing and calibrating scores.
The department will use findings concerning these scores to improve instruction.
Acceptable Target: 67% will achieve scores of 3 or 4.
Ideal Target: 90% will achieve scores of 3 or 4.
Implementation Plan (timeline): Spring 2009 essays collected
Spring 2009 assessment completed
Summer 2009 findings evaluated
Summer 2009 plans developed
Key/Responsible Personnel: Business 10 instructors:
★ Jayne Matthews
★ Mary Kay Buckley
★ Sharon Garrett

9. Business 10 Assessment Data
100%
75%
50%
Score of 4
Score of 3
Score of 2
25%
Score of 1
0%
Main Issue Legal Principles Ethical Prin. Solution Analysis Research
main issue legal prin ethical pr solution analysis id research
score of 1 0 2 0 1 7
score of 2 0 2 0 2 0
score of 3 10 9 19 11 8
score of 4 20 17 11 16 15
score of 1 0% 7% 0% 3% 23%
score of 2 0% 7% 0% 7% 0%
score of 3 33% 30% 63% 37% 27%
score of 4 66% 57% 37% 53% 50%

10. Business 10 Findings
Summary of Findings:
In all areas, student achievement was at the acceptable level (67%), as
defined by the department.
Student achievement was at or above the ideal level (90%) in identification of
the main issue, identification of relevant ethical situations, and analysis of
solutions.
Fewer students (87%) were able to identify relevant legal principles, and only
77% accurately identified or properly cited additional outside research.
Results:
Acceptable Target Achievement: Exceeded
Ideal Target Achievement : Approaching

11. Business 10 Action Plan
Recommendations/Action Plan:
We will assign additional case studies and/or exercises to allow students more
practice in the areas of identifying legal principles and identifying/citing
research sources.
At least one section will focus on assigning at least one additional case study,
and at least one section will focus on having students complete exercises in
these areas.
The department will meet at the end of the semester to discuss student
progress in these areas.
Implementation Plan (timeline):
2009-10 school year - add case studies/exercises to curriculum
Spring 2010 - analyze outcomes
Please note that the Business 10 instructors created an Action Plan in
such a way that they will be able to get information about which method
of improving the curriculum will be more effective.

12. ESL 21A (Writing 5) SLO’s
Students will
write clear and effective, well organized, well developed, well edited, and logically
sound sentences, paragraphs, and essays, citing sources appropriately
Institutional Outcomes: Communication
apply active reading strategies to comprehend, critically analyze, and explain ideas in
texts
Institutional Outcomes: Communication, Critical Thinking

13. ESL 21A (Writing 5)
Assessment Plan
Details/Description:
Six readers assessed a sample of 41 essays which responded to readings, randomly
selected from all sections of ESL Writing 3, 4, 5, and 6 classes.
Each essay was read by three raters, whose scores were compared; discrepancies
were reread.
Writing 5 students' scores were compared to scores of students in other ESL writing
classes.
Acceptable Target: 60% or more achieve scores of 3 or higher in all areas
Ideal Target: 70% or more achieve scores of 3 or higher in all areas
Implementation Plan (timeline):
fall, 2008 -- students write essays
late fall, 2008 -- essays are collected and scored
spring, 2009 -- department reviews results and recommends plan
Key/Responsible Personnel:
★ESL faculty

14. ESL 21A Findings
100%
75%
% with scores of 3 or 4
50%
25%
0%
Focus Reading Comp. Development Organization Vocabulary Sentence Struc. Grammar Mechanics

15. ESL 21A Analysis of Findings
Summary of Findings:
In all areas, at least 60% of Writing 5 students received scores above 3, thus meeting
the acceptable goal; in most areas, 70% or more received scores above 3.
In area C (development), 60% of students received scores above 3, and the average
score was 3.6, the lowest for all areas.
In area G (grammar), 60% received scores above 3, and the average score was 4.
It is interesting to note that students in Writing 5 scored lower in area C
(development) than students in Writing 3 or 4, both in terms of how many students
received scores of 2 or 3 and in terms of average scores.
Students scored consistently higher in area G (grammar), as they moved from
Writing 3 to Writing 6 (ranging from 30% with scores of 4 or 5 to 100%).
It may be that as students applied their knowledge in areas such as grammar and
vocabulary (in which the scores consistently improved as well), they took more time
to write less, and were thus unable to develop their essays to the extent that they
had before.
Results:
Acceptable Target Achievement: Exceeded
Ideal Target Achievement : Approaching

16. 5.0
5.0
ESL Writing Classes
3.7
3.7
Data - Grammar
2.5
2.5
1.2
1.2
Percent Scoring 4 (Adequate) or 5 (Strong)
100
75
50
25
0
Writing 3 (30%) Writing 4 (55%) Writing 5 (60%) Writing 6 (100%)

17. ESL 21A Action Plan
Recommendations/Action Plan
develop ESL grammar course that focuses on proofreading/editing
add exercises in paragraph development to the ESL 21A curriculum
add several opportunities for students to practice in-class writing in ESL 21A
Implementation Plan (timeline):
fall, 2009 - design curriculum changes
fall, 2009 - bring ESL grammar course to curriculum committee
spring 2010 - implement curriculum changes

18. MMART 200 Student Learning Outcomes
The student will be able to:
Name and describe the function of the basic parts of a
computer; troubleshoot simple software and hardware
problems and get help online.
Create, name, rename, save, organize, archive and delete
digital multimedia files (photo, music, video, and project
files).
Create multimedia presentations that include photos, audio,
and video using the native multimedia tools that are part of
Apple’s OSX (iWork & iLife ).

19. MMART 200 SLO Assessment Plan
Measure: Weekly Tasks
Details/Description:
Resumé using Pages
Slide shows with music using iPhoto, iTunes, and Keynote
Video piece using iMovie and iDVD
Website using iWeb
Song using GarageBand
Practical Review using all the skills learned during the term
Acceptable Target: 70 % of students demonstrate competency
or better in all weekly tasks
Ideal Target: 90 % of students demonstrate competency or
better in all weekly tasks
Implementation Plan (timeline): Assessment Round 1 will be
done during Fall 2010
Key/Responsible Personnel: Hannah Chauvet

20. MMART 200 -- Analyzing the Results
The Multimedia Arts instructor who analyzed the results for her
class looked at the data she collected in two different ways before
she found a way of looking at it that yielded meaningful results.
Please note the final chart in this section, an analysis of
attendance (listed as “Individual Students Results based on 22
students who received a grade and did not withdraw”) on a
spreadsheet which shows students’ grades chronologically; this
clearly shows that attendance is an extremely significant factor in
student success. Marilyn Sargent, the College Researcher, has
helped all of us analyze our reports in meaningful ways. In
addition, the MMART 200 instructor showed great creativity in
finding a way to make her assessment data useful. This
instructor is still developing her action plan, which will include
making assignments available on the web to mitigate the effect of
students having to miss class.

21. MMART 200 SLO Assessment Rubric
Competency Not displayed(0) Beginning(1) Adequate(2) Strong(3)
Resumé using Pages No resumé handed in Short resumé, minimal use Adequate resumé, good Excellent resumé, extensive
of Pages templates and use of Pages templates and and creative use of Pages
text tools text tools Templates and text tools
Slideshow using Keynote No slideshow handed No music, minimal use of Background music added, Excellent slide show, creative
or iPhoto in transitions and other good use of transitions and use of background music and
slideshow tools other slideshow tools transitions and other
slideshow tools
iTunes Playlist burned as No CD handed in Audio CD turned in Audio CD has one or more Audio CD turned in has 3 or
Audio CD cuts from at least two more cuts from 3 or more
albums albums
Video edited in iMovie & No movie created Minimal use of iMovie Adequate use of iMovie Excellent and creative use of
authored to DVD in iDVD editing tools; several clips editing tools; 1 or more iMovie editing tools; 3 or
joined together; no transitions; opening and more transitions; opening and
transition; no credits; no closing text credits; closing text credits;
sound track soundtrack music added soundtrack music added
Website using iWeb No website created Minimal use of iWeb tools; Adequate use of iWeb tools; Excellent and creative use of
welcome page only a welcome page, an album iWeb tools; a welcome page,
page and a movie page an album page; a movie page
and a Podcast page
GarageBand Song or No song or podcast Minimal use of Adequate use of Excellent and creative use of
Podcast created GarageBand tools; if GarageBand tools; if GarageBand tools; if
Podcast uses existing Podcast, recorded own Podcast, recorded own
audio; if song uses 1-3 audio; if song uses 4-6 audio; if song uses 7 or more
tracks; no volume or tracks; some volume tracks; both volume and
panning adjustments adjustments panning adjustments
Review Project covering No Review Project Review Project turned in; Review Project turned in; Review Project turned in;
Pages, Keynote, iPhoto, turned in needs help in 3 or more needs help in 1-2 areas to needs no help to complete
iTunes, iWeb, & iMovie areas to complete work complete work work

22. MMART 200 SLO Assessment Findings
Summary of Number of Students at each Competency Level for each Assessment Measure
Competency Not Beginning(1 Adequate(2) Strong(3) Total Adequate
displayed(0) ) + Strong /
Total
Resumé 0 0 1 21 22 100.00%
Slideshow 2 0 4 16 22 90.91%
Audio CD 3 0 5 14 22 86.36%
Video/DVD 4 1 4 13 22 77.27%
Website 5 1 4 12 22 72.73%
Song/Podcast 5 2 1 14 22 68.18%
Review Project 6 1 3 12 22 68.18%

23. MMART 200 SLO Assessment Findings
Number of Students Achieving Various Levels of Competency
30.0
22.5
15.0
7.5
0
Resumé Slideshow Audio CD Video/DVD Website Song/Podcast Review Project

24. MMART 200 - SPRING 2009
Individual Students Results based on 22 students who received a grade and did not withdraw
Student # Resume Slideshow Audio CD Video/DVD Website Song/Podcast Review Class Hours
Project
1(RA) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
2(AB) 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 65
3(SC) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
4(RG) 3 2 2 3 3 3 2 65
5(MH) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
6(IH) 3 2 2 1 2 3 2 45
7(AJ) 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 45
8(LK) 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 72
9(SL) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
10(JL) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
11(ZL) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
12(JM) 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 40
13(DM) 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 30
14(BM) 3 3 3 2 2 3 3 65
15(AN) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
16(NP) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
17(AR) 3 3 3 2 2 2 3 65
18(IR) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 35
19(DS) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 35
20(JS) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 72
21(CT) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 65
22(AT) 3 3 3 2 2 1 0 65

25. Spanish 1B SLO’s
Students will
use grammar and vocabulary to demonstrate communicative competence
in the Spanish language
Institutional Outcomes: Communication
interpret Spanish-language texts according to their cultural, literary, and/or
linguistic content
Institutional Outcomes: Critical Thinking

26. Spanish 1B Assessment plan
Measure: Essay
Details/Description:
Each student wrote an essay responding to a reading in the textbook having to do with Spanish
culture.
These were evaluated by a team of three Spanish 1B instructors, who applied the rubric they had
created, ensuring that their scores matched in every case.
The rubric had a four point scale and looked at seven areas: response -- articulation/grammar,
verbs, vocabulary, language comprehension, grammar, general competency, and historical origins.
The instructors met to analyze the results for each area of the rubric.
Acceptable Target: more than 50% adequate or strong in all areas
Ideal Target: more than 70% adequate or strong in all areas
Implementation Plan (timeline):
Fall 2008 -- SLO assessment administered and papers collected
April 2009 -- essays rated by evaluators (Spanish 1B faculty)
April 2009 -- results analyzed by evaluators and recommendations made
Key/Responsible Personnel:
★ Gabriela Pisano
★ Spanish 1B faculty

27. Spanish 1B Data Analysis
Spanish 1B SLO Assessment Data
100%
75%
50%
Score of 4
Score of 3
Score of 2
Score of 1
25%
0%
Art/Grammar Verbs Vocabulary Comprehension Grammar General Historical Orig.

28. Spanish 1B Findings
Summary of Findings:
All 63 students in this assessment significantly exceeded the acceptable target.
In addition, they exceeded the ideal target in the four areas related to comprehension: language
comprehension (81% adequate or strong) grammar (71%), general competency (81%), and
historical origins (81%).
In the first three areas -- response/articulation and grammar (54%), verbs (54%), and vocabulary
(62%) -- which are related to production of Spanish, they did not score quite as well.
This is in keeping with what is known about the development of new language skills, but there may
be ways to bolster student's language acquisition to address these findings.
Results:
Acceptable Target Achievement: Exceeded
Ideal Target Achievement : Approaching

29. Spanish 1B Action Plan
Action details:
make needed adjustments to the Spanish 1A course outline, so that it
reflects additional paragraph writing, with an emphasis on vocabulary
development and verbs.
Implementation Plan (timeline):
Fall 2009 -- update course outline
Fall 2009 -- work with Spanish 1A faculty to develop curriculum changes

30. “One who dares to teach
must never cease to learn.”
- Anonymous