<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"><head><META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=us-ascii"><meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 14 (filtered medium)"><style><!--
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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:#1F497D'>On Behalf of Dr. Karen Schumaker:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>__<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Hi Everyone,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>The Curriculum Committee (Betsy Arnold, Mark Beilstein, Chieri Kubota, Shelley McMahon, Becky Mosher, Mike Ottman, Ravi Palanivelu, Tanya Quist, Dennis Ray, Karen Schumaker, Steve Smith, Bryan Wang, Ramin Yadegari) is developing a plan to assess undergraduate and graduate student learning as a source of knowledge for instructional and learning improvement. With this e-mail, I want to give you a progress report and ask for your input.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>We began our assessment activities with our undergraduate program and have focused on the four PLS core courses (240, Plant Biology, Steve Smith; 312, Animal and Plant Genetics, Dennis Ray; 359, Plant Cell Structure and Function, Ravi Palanivelu; 360, Plant Growth and Physiology, Becky Mosher) that all PLS undergraduate majors take. As part of our activities, we are updating the School web pages on the University of Arizona Assessment site (<a href="http://assessment.arizona.edu/">http://assessment.arizona.edu/</a>). We have written a paragraph for our general overview and one for our undergraduate program. We would like everyone to have the opportunity to participate in this activity, so we have included drafts of these paragraphs and would welcome your input before we put them on line. The instructors of the four courses have developed a list of learning outcomes that are included for your information. We know that all of you are carrying out assessment activities in your courses and encourage you to continue this important activity. It should be possible to expand our assessment activities in the future to integrate additional courses and outcomes, but for now we will just focus on the core courses. We are working on ways to assess undergraduate learning and have begun pre- and post-tests in the core courses and are developing methods to assess learning outcomes in the Senior Capstone and in student exit surveys. We are just beginning assessment activities for our graduate programs and will keep you updated in the coming weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Will you please take a look at the overview paragraphs and send me any suggestions and comments. If I don’t hear from you by Wednesday, February 1, I will assume that you approve the documents as written. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>I am happy to try to answer any questions. Best regards. Karen<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Karen Schumaker<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>School of Plant Sciences, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, and the BIO5 Institute<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>University of Arizona<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Contact information:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>School of Plant Sciences<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>303 Forbes Hall<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>1140 E. South Campus Drive<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>University of Arizona<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Tucson, AZ 85721-0036<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Phone: (520) 621-9635<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'>Fax: (520) 621-7186<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://ag.arizona.edu/research/schumaker/"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>http://ag.arizona.edu/research/schumaker/</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:#0033CC'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>