Academic gains made by Carthage students in top 8 percent nationwide

March 21, 2011

The academic gains made by Carthage students from their freshman to senior years place Carthage among the top 8 percent nationwide of colleges and universities using the Collegiate Learning Assessment.

The CLA is a national tool administered at institutions across the country to assess student learning by measuring four higher order skills: critical thinking, analytical reasoning, problem solving, and written communication.

The gains shown by Carthage students in these areas were higher than gains shown by students at 92 percent of participating institutions. The results testify to the value provided by a Carthage education.

"Our students are progressing further throughout their four years here at Carthage than students are progressing at all but 8 percent of other institutions using this assessment," said Brad Andrews, senior vice president for academic resources.

Top 8 percent

The CLA provides institutions with results both absolute and adjusted for entering academic ability. When adjusted for entering academic ability, first-year students at Carthage performed higher than 32 percent of comparison institutions. Seniors performed higher than 86 percent of comparison institutions. The difference between those scores gives Carthage a value added score of 92, well above the national average.

Dana Garrigan, director of assessment at Carthage and an associate professor of biology, said the CLA results are a testament to the strength of the Carthage liberal arts curriculum — a curriculum that emphasizes writing in every major, interdisciplinary study, critical reading and thinking, and hands-on learning through research and other projects.

The results also speak to the dedication of the faculty, Mr. Andrews said. "We have a superb faculty — very accomplished with stellar credentials — who are here at a small, undergraduate college focused on teaching because they love sharing their research and passions with undergraduate students."

Programs such as Western Heritage and the Carthage Symposium further the College's curricular goals, Mr. Andrews continued. The writing-intensive Western Heritage Program requires every Carthage student to spend two semesters studying the history of Western thought. Carthage Symposia — courses team-taught by faculty from different disciplines — challenge students to explore a topic through the lenses of two completely different fields. All students are required to create a senior thesis, so they graduate having produced an original academic work that is research- or creativity-based.

"That marriage of engaged students, passionate faculty members, and an intentional and rigorous curriculum results in the best kind of learning," Mr. Andrews said. "It's learning that empowers students."

"There is something about being at Carthage, and working with faculty in the way that students work with faculty here, that intellectually transforms students," said Provost Julio Rivera. "What these CLA results tell me is that we get good students, and we graduate even better students. When students leave Carthage, they leave transformed."

About the CLA
Designed to measure an institution's contribution

Carthage, along with 191 other institutions, administered the CLA during the 2008-2009 academic year. Approximately 100 first-year students took the test in fall 2008, and approximately 100 seniors took the test in spring 2009.

Students taking the test complete tasks that require them to analyze complex materials. Their written responses are graded to assess their abilities to think critically, reason analytically, solve problems, and communicate clearly and cogently. The CLA then compares the performance of first-year students with that of seniors to measure an institution's contribution, or value added, to the development of those competencies.

"The value added score is a measure of institutional effectiveness in working with students over the four years that they are enrolled here," explained Prof. Garrigan. "We score better than 92 percent of comparison institutions.

"That's the number we're really excited about," Prof. Garrigan continued. "It represents that wherever we start with our students, we've had great success in helping them develop their abilities to a really high level."

The Collegiate Learning Assessment

The CLA measures four higher order skills: critical thinking, analytical reasoning, problem solving, and written communication.

The gain made by Carthage students from the freshman to the senior year was higher than 92 percent of institutions nationally.

First-Year Students

32

adjusted percentile rank

After adjusting for entering academic ability, first-year students at Carthage performed higher than 32 percent of comparison institutions.

Seniors

86

adjusted percentile rank

After adjusting for entering academic ability, seniors performed higher than 86 percent of comparison institutions.

Value Added

92

adjusted percentile rank

The difference in performance between seniors and first-year students at Carthage was higher than 92 percent of comparison institutions.