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46Assessment of MESHThe purpose of MESH is to increase student learning for Health Science students in understanding theapplication of mathematical concepts. Implementing the Health Science mathematics course, ALMA1000, and redesigning the Health Science curriculum should accomplish the goal of MESH.To assess the effectiveness of the QEP strategies, a comprehensive Assessment Plan was developed. TheAssessment Plan includes both summative and formative assessments. These assessments will be usedto demonstrate the effectiveness of the MESH strategies in improving student learning.Baseline DataBaseline data will be gathered by giving the ALMA 1000 pre-test and CAT to all degree and diplomaHealth Science students who begin their program in Fall 2012 and Spring 2013. This student populationsampling will not have taken ALMA 1000, will not have been exposed to any of the effects of the facultydevelopment strategies, and will not have experienced many of the factors of attrition. This data willalso be collected for the Fall 2012 and Spring 2013 ALMA 1000 pilot groups.Baseline data will also be collected from all Health Science students taking capstone courses during fall2012 and Spring 2013 through the administration of the ALMA 1000 Pre-/Post-test and CAT. Attritionrates are high in STC’s Health Science programs. So, students taking capstone courses are considered“successful” students. The scores of these students will be used to set benchmarks for prospectivestudents who will take ALMA 1000. If these benchmarks are met by the end of ALMA 1000, students’success rates in the Health Science programs should improve. If needed for future research, thisbaseline data will provide a pool of information for “successful” students who have not been exposed toALMA 1000 or any of the effects of the Health Science curriculum redesign.Effectiveness of ALMA 1000At the beginning of each ALMA1000 course, the ALMA 1000 Pretest and CAT will be administered. Also,the student learning outcomes will be listed on the syllabus and reviewed with each class.A similar post-test and the CAT assessment will be given at course end as a summative assessment. Thisassessment data will provide specific feedback on the effectiveness of ALMA 1000 for student learningand understanding the application of mathematical concepts. This data, along with feedback fromstudent course evaluations, will be used to update the ALMA 1000 course to continuously improvestudent learning. The ALMA 1000 pre-/post-test will also be given in the program capstone course andthen compared to the results collected at the end of ALMA 1000. This data will be an indirect measureof the effectiveness of the Health Science curriculum redesign.Effectiveness of Health Science Curriculum RedesignThe CAT will be given to all diploma and degree Health Science program students during their programcapstone course. These CAT assessments compared to the CAT results collected at the end of ALMA1000 should provide feedback concerning any problem solving abilities gained through the HealthPage 46