An assessment activity was not performed for the 2016-2017 academic year because data collected for this time period was largely inadequate. Compared to the 2015 - 2016 assessment year, not only was the number of classes participating reduced, the number of usable submissions from most classes was dramatically reduced.

Submissions from Cultural Anthropology, English Composition I, and Speech Communications were few in number with many lacking the final bibliographies needed to compare the initial sources considered on the Research Tracker with those actually used by the student in their final submission of their research project. Fall 2016 submissions from Anatomy & Physiology were skewed by a group work method which allowed for multiple Research Trackers to be submitted for a single final Bibliography.

With these issues, and the fact that we had very few English Composition I submissions that we might have used to compare to the previous year’s analysis, it did not seem that we had collected enough for an adequate data analysis.

In lieu of data analysis the Librarians, working with Terry Patterson, Curriculum Assessment Technology Specialist, established a Criteria for Source Evaluation and a Rubric for Source Evaluation. Using the new Assessment options available through Blackboard Terry translated the Rubric for Source Evaluation from an Excel document into a form in Blackboard that we will hopefully begin to use for evaluating Research Trackers and/or Bibliographies within the Blackboard Learning Management system itself.

The Librarians will continue working to expand the implementation of the Research Tracker in classes and work with Terry Patterson to establish a method to collect evidence from a wider variety of classes within the Blackboard Learning Management system. Norming sessions to establish source evaluation baselines among the Librarians are planned for the Fall 2017 semester with a pilot program to evaluate Research Trackers and/or Bibliographies in Blackboard scheduled for the Spring 2018 semester.