Annual Assessment Report

Academic Year: 2016-2017
Department: Education
Program(s): Curriculum and Instruction, EdD

1. What Was Done

Curriculum and Instruction doctoral candidates must complete two key components in their efforts toward successful degree completion. The first is the comprehensive exam written and oral defense. And the second key milestone is the defense of the dissertation. Based on the Curriculum and Instruction program’s assessment plan, it is these two key milestones that we have evaluated for this report.

2. What Data Were Collected

We collected 1) doctoral level comprehensive exam written and oral pass rates; 2) and dissertation defense pass rates.

3. What Was Learned

  1. During the 2016-2017 academic year, all students who completed their comprehensive exams passed those exams. In the Fall semester 2016, five of five students successfully completed and passed both of their oral and written comprehensive exams. And in the Spring semester 2017, twelve of twelve students successfully completed and passed both of their oral and written comprehensive exams.
  2. Equal success was evidenced with students defending their dissertations. In the Fall semester 2016, three EdD candidates successfully defended their dissertations. In the Spring semester 2017, five students successfully defended their dissertation. And lastly, in the summer of 2017, one EdD candidate successfully defended their dissertation.
  3. The Curriculum and Instruction program has a long history of successfully preparing our students for their doctoral work, which is largely attributed to the how we work closely with them as advisors and instructors. Additionally, faculty do not allow candidates to advance to oral and written and comprehensive exams, or defend their dissertations, unless they are well- prepared to advance to those stages in their doctoral studies.
  4. Despite all students passing their comprehensive exam oral and written defenses, some students continue to be challenged with the precision of understanding needed for advanced educational research.

4. How We Responded

  1. A plan is being developed to continue encouraging an active trajectory toward completion for our doctoral students. Faculty are currently engaged in policy discussions regarding specific comprehensive exam policies and how many dissertations credits students can complete prior to completion of their comprehensive exams.
  2. We have continued our efforts toward a substantive curriculum mapping process that includes a more deliberate calendar for when our research courses are being offered. This has helped our students more effectively plan their programs of study, as they know what courses will be taught when.
  3. For the EdD, we continue to discuss ow we can better prepare our students for the comprehensive exam written and oral defenses. As stated, students occasionally struggle with the research portion of the defense. To address this need, we have implemented a plan requiring students to take all Research Courses: EDU 602 (Educational Statistics II), EDCI 506 (Applied Educational research), EDU 610 (Qualitative Educational Research), and EDU 607 (Quantitative Educational Research).