ACADEMIC PROGRAMASSESSMENT PLAN
This form was designed to assist programs in writing a complete assessment plan. If you choose not to use this form, please submit your plan in the order of the checklist at the end of this document. If some aspect of your program’s plan is in development or not yet developed, indicate that in the respective section. For guidance and examples, refer to the Assessment Plan GUIDE or send an email to .
Program Name: Communication Sciences and Disorders Ph.D. Program
SKIM Program? Yes☐No☒ For a list of programs covered by SKIM, see GUIDE.
Disciplinary Accrediting Body (if applicable): Arkansas Department of Higher Education (ADHE)
Department Name: Audiology and Speech Pathology
Date Submitted: April 30, 2018
Submitted by: Betholyn Gentry(Name)
(501) 569-8913; (Phone & Email)
Section 1. Program or Departmental Mission Statement.
Your program’s student learning goals should tie to your mission. Please state your department’s or program’s mission.
The Arkansas Consortium for the PhD in Communication Sciences and Disorders is the only program in the state which culminates in a Doctor of Philosophy degree (Ph.D.) in Communication Sciences and Disorders. It was designed in response to both state and national shortages of doctoral prepared faculty members at institutions of higher education. For this reason a “teacher-scholar” model of training is utilized.At a departmental level, the program is housed on two campuses: the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology, and the University of Central Arkansas, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders.
The program is supported by three state institutions of higher education: the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR), the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), and the University of Central Arkansas (UCA). The program designated the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences as the “host” institution. As the host institution for the program, UAMS is responsible for applications for admission, student transcripts, and processing federal student financial loan applications.
The mission of the Ph.D. program is to develop students' intellectual curiosity and abilities so that they desire to discover and disseminate knowledge. This in turn will benefit persons with communication disorders, their families and the community as a whole, while encouraging a lifelong desire to learn. The overall goal of the program is to prepare high-quality scholar-teachers who 1) will engage in research to expand the knowledge base in communication sciences and disorders and 2) will educate the audiologists and speech pathologists of the future.
Section 2. Student Learning Goals for Academic Program.
List all student learning goals (“At the end of this program, students will be able to…”) for the academic program identified above, and—if your program is covered by SKIM—how the SKIM goals map to your program goals. If you prefer to provide the list as an appendix, type “See appendix” in box below and attach appendix to this document. For guidance on writing measurable student learning goals and for a list of the SKIM goals, please see the GUIDE.
At the end of the Ph.D. program in Communication Sciences and Disorders:1) The student will display competence in teaching by exhibiting refined communication skills and knowledge of the subject matter; by promoting critical thinking and lifelong learning; by organizing and managing course elements; by implementing a variety of media and technology and by being sensitive to individual student circumstances.
2) Students will display competence in research, grant writing and in their specialty area by demonstrating research skills and disseminating information; by writing and submitting a grant; and by disseminating information in their specialty area.
Section 3. Curriculum Map.
Attach a map of your program’s curriculum (electives and required courses) that shows where each outcome is taught. There is no one way to structure a curriculum map; for templates, which can also serve as examples, please see the GUIDE.
Section 4. Assessment Methods.
Complete the following table to indicate how each student learning goal will be assessed (add more rows if needed). A list of common assessment methodscan be found in the GUIDE.
Student Learning Goal / Assessment Method or Learning Activity/Artifact / Course in Which Learning Activity or Assessment Takes Place / Alignment with SKIM goal(s) or disciplinary accrediting body goal(s)1.The student will display competence in teaching by exhibiting refined communication skills and knowledge of the subject matter; by promoting critical thinking and lifelong learning; by organizing and managing course elements; by implementing a variety of media and technology and by being sensitive to individual student circumstances. / Course grades
Course evaluations
Capstone Examintion / Teaching Internship
Teaching Pedagogy / NA
2.Students will display competence in research, grant writing and in their specialty area by demonstrating research skills and disseminating information; by writing and submitting a grant; and by disseminating information in their specialty area. / Course Grade
Course Evaluations
Capstone Examination / Research Project
Advanced Research Methods
Grant Writing Internship
Grant Writing
Supervison Internship
Supervision Pedagogy
Dissertation
Docoral Seminars / NA
3.
4.
5.
Section 5. Assessment Cycle Timeline.
Indicate in the table below when assessment data from each student learning goal will be analyzed (add more rows if needed). It is assumed that artifact collection and continuous improvement efforts will be ongoing.
Length of assessment cycle: 5 years (See plan in this section)
Arkansas Consortium for the Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSDPHD)
Five-Year Assessment Plan
The five-year assessment plan for the CSDPHD between the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and the University of Central Arkansas is explained below. The doctoral program assessment plan includes changing the focus of assessment each year following a five-year cycle. This is the beginning of a new five-year cycle for the CSDPHD program.
First Year Assessment Plan (2018): The first year of the five-year cycle involves gathering data related to assessment of the doctoral program admissions, curriculum and faculty. This assessment process includes: reviewing the admissions policy (number of applications completed, average GRE scores of applicants, and average GPA of applicants); reviewing the curriculum (student feedback, and accrediting agency feedback when available); reviewing faculty effectiveness (student course evaluations when available, student scholarship). These data will be utilized to evaluate program effectiveness and help determine if the program is attracting high quality students. Results from this data can be used for program improvement and decision-making and will be included in the report for next year.
Second Year Assessments (2019): During the second year of the five-year cycle assessment efforts for the doctoral program will focus on assessment of doctoral student teaching. Assessment efforts for the doctoral program will include data reported for doctoral student teaching evaluations including course and clinical evaluations, and Ph.D. Graduate Exit Surveys when available. These data will be used to determine if the doctoral students are competent in teaching by evaluating their communication skills and knowledge of the subject matter; their critical thinking skills, their organization and course management skills and their ability to utilized media and technology in the classroom.
Third Year Assessments (2020): During the third year of the five-year cycle assessment efforts for the doctoral program will focus on assessment of doctoral student scholarship. Assessment efforts for the doctoral program will include data reported from candidacy examinations, dissertation completion rate (when available), and doctoral students grant funding rate and Ph.D. Graduate Exit Surveys (when available). These data will be used to determine how well the program is meeting the goal of producing students who are competent in research, grant writing and in their specialty area.
Fourth Assessment Year (2021): During the fourth year of the five-year cycle the doctoral program assessment will involve examination of the assessment feedback loop. The CSDPHD assessment committee will examine the effectiveness of the current plan and determine if any actions have been taken as a result of feedback from the assessment plan. This information will be disseminated to the intercampus committee for feedback on any necessary changes to the assessment process. Additionally, data from the newly implemented annual evaluations of doctoral students will be collated and reported.
Fifth Year Assessment (2022): During the fifth year of the five-year cycle the focus of assessment will again shift to evaluating the program philosophy, mission and goals. Review of the program philosophy, mission and goals will include examining the employment of students in academic settings; surveys of former students; student exit interviews; Ph.D. Graduate Exit Surveys; and student performance as teachers, researchers, and grant writers.
CSDPHD Assessment Plan
Arkansas Consortium for the Ph.D. in Communication Sciences and Disorders
Five-Year Assessment Plan (2018-2022)
Assessment Tool CycleReport Year
Assessment of program admissions, curriculum and faculty Year 1 2018
Admissions Report Data yearly
Recruitment Report As Needed
Student Scholarship Data yearly
Faculty Scholarship Data yearly
Student Feedback Data yearly
Assessment of doctoral student teaching Year 2 2019
Teaching Evaluation 2 years
Clinical Evaluation 2 years
Ph.D. Graduate Exit Survey 2 years
Assessment of doctoral student scholarship Year 3 2020
Candidacy Examination 3 years
Dissertation completion rate 3 years
Student grant writing 3 years
Ph.D. Graduate Exit Survey 3 years
Assessment of the D{feedback loop Year 4 2021
Ph.D. Student Annual Evaluation 4 years
Ph.D. Student Self Evaluation 4 years
Assessment of the program philosophy, mission and goals Year 5 2022
Review current assessment plan 5 years
Review overall success of the program 5 years
Best practices state that assessment cycles vary between 3-5 years; if your assessment cycle is longer than 5 years, explain why.
Date for next review of assessment plan: 2022
(typically at the end of a cycle, unless a need for revision arises before)
- The student will display competence in teaching by exhibiting refined communication skills and knowledge of the subject matter; by promoting critical thinking and lifelong learning; by organizing and managing course elements; by implementing a variety of media and technology and by being sensitive to individual student circumstances.
- Students will display competence in research, grant writing and in their specialty area by demonstrating research skills and disseminating information; by writing and submitting a grant; and by disseminating information in their specialty area.
Section 6. Continuous Improvement Process.
Document the process your program will use for implementing changes to improve curriculum, student support and assessment practices based on assessment findings.
The consortium Ph.D. teacher/scholar model provides doctoral students with several opportunities to practice firsthand, teaching, doing research, providing supervision and writing grants. We will continue to meet as an intercampus faculty to monitor these skills and make recommendations accordingly.We will also continue to follow the current program philosophy mission and goals as stated in our current assessment plan. Additionally, students and employers will continue to have an opportunity each year to provide feedback regarding the Ph.D. program and the quality of our students.Section 7. Stakeholder Involvement/Communication Plan.
Who are the stakeholders in your program, and how will they be involved in your assessment process? How will they learn about your assessment results and continuous improvement? For more information on involvement and communication with stakeholders, see the GUIDE.
Our unique consortium Ph.D. program is a model of intercampus cooperation and commitment to providing the next generation of researchers and educators in the discipline of communication sciences and disorders. The major stakeholders for our Ph.D. consortium include: three universities, faculty, students, employers and working graduates. The faculty as a whole has distinguished themselves in publications and presentations and we will continue to document these successes. As more students graduate from our program we will be able to assess our performance in meeting the needs of these primary stakeholders.Doctoral students are important stakeholders in our doctoral program. All students are given the opportunity to complete the Student Feedback Form and evaluate the opportunities for teaching, research, supervision and grant writing in the program. These data will be reviewed in years to come for trends that may require our attention.
The administrations on all three consortium campuses are important stakeholders in the consortium doctoral program. They have an obligation to support the program, provide student stipends and fulfill financial obligations promised when the program was started. Hopefully more funding for student stipends will be available in the future.
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