This document outlines course-level outcomes measures that can be used by Change Agents in the SAGE 2YC program to assess the impact of educational changes made to geoscience courses. The measures focus on geoscience course enrollment, broadening participation, student success rates, progression along pathways, and collecting data by student subgroups. Change Agents are instructed to collect baseline data in Fall 2017/Spring 2018 and continue collecting annually to track changes over time. The goal is to use data to improve courses and share results.

1. Course-Level Outcomes Measures of SAGE 2YC
Webinar – March, 2018
Debra Bragg, Bragg & Associates
Heather Macdonald, College of William & Mary

2. SAGE 2YC Goals
Change Agents learn
from research
Change Agents make
changes in their own
practice
Change Agents share
what they are learning
with the geoscience
education community
• Build a national network of 2YC geoscience
faculty and administrators led by 2YC faculty
leaders, called Change Agents, who catalyze
change at multiple levels
• Implement high-impact, educational
practices that:
•Support the academic success of all
students
•Broaden participation
•Facilitate professional pathways in the
geosciences
• Investigate professional development
models that support the cycle of innovation
to improve geoscience education
Cycle of Innovation

3. Goals for Course Outcomes Measures
• Use course outcomes measures of your geoscience courses
and geoscience program(s) according to 3 project strands:
–Academic success
–Broadening participation
–Student pathways progression – transfer and careers
• Use course-level outcomes measures to improve your own
geoscience courses and programs

4. Participation
Geoscience Course
Enrollment
Broadening Participation in
Geoscience Courses
Course Success Outcomes
Success in Geoscience
Courses
Geoscience Course Success
by Student Sub-group
Pathways Progression Outcomes
Enrollment in Multiple
Geoscience Courses
Major in Geoscience Program
Snapshot of Outcomes Assessment Measures
optional

5. Our Approach
• Use Course Outcomes Measures Template, with instructions provided
by the SAGE evaluator, Debra Bragg
• As needed, connect to your college’s institutional research (IR) staff,
and engage college administration to help secure data
• Start the course outcomes measures in Fall 2017/Winter-Spring 2018
and continue to the end of the grant
• Explore your data and relate to your program action plan as part of
the June 2018 workshop
• Engage in your own local inquiry activities (Eric Baer & Debra Bragg)

6. Outcomes Measure: Geoscience Course Enrollment
Question: What is the enrollment in
geoscience courses, including courses
receiving an “educational change”, and
how does course enrollment change from
Fall 2017/Winter-Spring 2018 to the end of
the grant?
Measure: Term-by-term enrollment at
census date in geoscience courses,
including geoscience courses identified as
having received an “educational change”,
from Fall 2017/Winter-Spring 2018 to the
end of the grant.
Method
1. List geoscience courses
offered by your college
2. For each term, indicate
whether course is offered
and whether the course
has received an
“educational change”
3. For each geoscience
course offered, count the
total number of students
enrolled in each course at
census date.

7. Outcomes Measure: Broadening Participation in
Geoscience Courses
Question: What is the enrollment of
underrepresented student groups in
geoscience courses, and does
geoscience course enrollment by
underrepresented student groups
change from Fall 2017/Winter-Spring
2018 to the end of the grant?
Measure: Term-by-term geoscience
course enrollment by student sub-
group (e.g., gender, race, ethnicity).
Method
For each course and by term
offered, count students
affiliated within sub-groups by
gender, race, ethnicity, and
other demographic variables
(according to IPED definitions)
at census date.

8. Outcomes Measure: Success in Geoscience Courses
Question: How many students and
what percentage of students in
geoscience courses succeed, and does
course success change from Fall
2017/Winter-Spring 2018 to the end of
the grant?
Measure: Term-by-term geoscience
course completion with a grade of “C”
or higher.
Method
1. For each course and by
term, count the number of
students who completed
and passed the course with
a grade of “C” or higher.
2. Compute percentage of
students deemed
successful (#1) by the total
enrollment in same
geoscience course.

9. Outcomes Measure: Geoscience Course Success by
Student Sub-Group
Question: By sub-group, how
many students succeed in
geoscience courses, and does the
percentage of course enrollee
success change from Fall 2017/
Winter-Spring 2017 to the end of
the grant?
Measure: Term-by-term
geoscience course completion
with a grade of “C” or higher by
student sub-group.
Method
1. For course and by term, count
the number of students
within sub-groups who
completed and passed the
geoscience course with a
grade of “C” or higher.
2. Divide #1 by the total count of
students within sub-groups
who enrolled in the same
geoscience course.

10. Outcomes Measure: Pathways Progression
Question: How many students take
more than one geoscience course,
how many students major in
geoscience, and do these numbers
change from Fall 2017/Winter-Spring
2018 to the end of the grant?
Method:
• Student enrollment in more than
one geoscience course.
• Students with declared major in
geoscience.
1. By course and by term,
count the number of
students who enroll at
census date who have
enrolled in more than one
geoscience course.
2. By course and by term,
count the number of
students who enroll at
census data who are
declared geoscience majors.
Method
optional

11. Outcomes Measure: Pathways Progression by
Student Sub-Group
Question: How many students by
sub-group who take more than one
geoscience course and major in
geoscience? How do these numbers
change from Fall 2017/Winter-Spring
2018 to the end of the grant?
Method:
• Student sub-group enrollment in
more than one geoscience course.
• Student sub-group with declared
major in geoscience.
1. By course and by term, count
the number of students by
sub-group who enroll at
census date who have
enrolled in more than one
geoscience course.
2. By course and by term, count
the number of students by
sub-group who enroll at
census data who are declared
geoscience majors.
Method
optional

12. Timeline for Course Outcomes Measures Work
• March 2018: Distribute outcomes template (from D. Bragg)
• March – May 2018: Optional Q&A for Change Agents with Debra
Bragg, Eric Baer, and/or Heather Macdonald
• June 1, 2018: Change agents submit first data file using course
outcomes measures template
• June 19: Submit highlights of your data on participation and
success for discussion in the Cohort 2 virtual workshop (June 26)
• July -> Change agents conduct local inquiry, using and expanding on
these course outcomes measures

13. Questions?

14. Contacts
Debra Bragg: Bragg.Associates.Inc@gmail.com
Heather Macdonald: rhmacd@wm.edu
Eric Baer: Ebaer@highline.edu