Evaluating Learning

Student Assessment

In addition to the non-traditional assignments mentioned in the Pedagogical Methodologies section, the following, traditional assessment strategies were used to evaluate student understanding of course material.

Individual research paper: Each student will complete an individual research paper on a topic related to his or her group project. This paper will be completed in three stages-a proposal, a preliminary draft, and a revised final paper. See separate handout describing the requirements and grading for this assignment. We will conduct a workshop to help you prepare the final paper.

Email accounts: You must have an active email account that you can check frequently for messages from us or from other students in the class. We will set up a email list or group email to facilitate exchange of information, including questions and further discussion about issues raised in class and by readings, to post notices of good information sites, or to provide information about optional field trips or upcoming community events and activities.

In-class quizzes: Throughout the semester, students will complete individual and group quizzes to check progress on mastering the major concepts and facts presented and on applying them to address important migration topics. These will usually be short answer questions, but may also include brief essay questions over any aspect of the course, from scholarly readings and lectures to learning in the field. You will be allowed to drop one quiz grade. However, if you miss a quiz, it will automatically constitute your "dropped" grade and no points will be recorded for additional missing quizzes.

Final exam: Students will be given comprehensive questions about the course to prepare as a final, take-home exam. Students are encouraged to discuss the questions with their peers and with faculty, but must formulate and write answers to the questions individually.

Course Assessment

Course evaluation: In order to help the instructors improve the quality of this learning community for the future, students must complete the NCC course evaluation (in addition to the GMU faculty/course evaluation). These evaluations will be handed to the NCC Office Manager who will ensure that they are not available to the instructors until after grades have been assigned. Any student who does not complete the NCC course evaluation will earn an Incomplete grade for the course.