Spring Break
Wabash study participants take next round of surveys
Lindsay Lorenz
Issue date: 3/31/09 Section: News
03/31/09 -Last night more than 70 University of Rhode Island freshmen filled the seats of Edwards Auditorium to participate in the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education.
The study, open exclusively to freshmen, requires participants take a battery of surveys during their first two semesters and one during their senior year to assess their opinions, abilities and experiences at URI in comparison to 48 other participating colleges and universities.
Offered through URI's Office of Student Learning, Outcomes Assessment, and Accreditation, taking this survey keys the university into how the student educational experience can be improved. According to the study's Web site, the surveys are "a longitudinal study which investigates critical factors that affect the student outcomes of a liberal arts education through both institutional and student data."
"We want to find out the overarching student experience at the University of Rhode Island," graduate assistant Kristen Weissinger said. "The main thing we tried to stress on the students last year is that they're leaving a legacy," Weissinger added.
Students who submit data allow URI to use the information to tailor the learning experience for future students, making it most effective.
The surveys take most students less than an hour to complete and gathers information about student's political stances, well-being, critical thinking and moral judgment abilities, as well as demographic statistics about students' backgrounds and high school experiences. In addition, it gages their perception of faculty, diversity and educational practices at the university.
Data from 2007's freshmen concludes that compared to nine other large universities, URI students are more likely to give presentations in class and prepare multiple drafts, but do less reading and writing. Comparatively, more URI students have participated in diversity events or workshops than those at similar universities.
The study, open exclusively to freshmen, requires participants take a battery of surveys during their first two semesters and one during their senior year to assess their opinions, abilities and experiences at URI in comparison to 48 other participating colleges and universities.
Offered through URI's Office of Student Learning, Outcomes Assessment, and Accreditation, taking this survey keys the university into how the student educational experience can be improved. According to the study's Web site, the surveys are "a longitudinal study which investigates critical factors that affect the student outcomes of a liberal arts education through both institutional and student data."
"We want to find out the overarching student experience at the University of Rhode Island," graduate assistant Kristen Weissinger said. "The main thing we tried to stress on the students last year is that they're leaving a legacy," Weissinger added.
Students who submit data allow URI to use the information to tailor the learning experience for future students, making it most effective.
The surveys take most students less than an hour to complete and gathers information about student's political stances, well-being, critical thinking and moral judgment abilities, as well as demographic statistics about students' backgrounds and high school experiences. In addition, it gages their perception of faculty, diversity and educational practices at the university.
Data from 2007's freshmen concludes that compared to nine other large universities, URI students are more likely to give presentations in class and prepare multiple drafts, but do less reading and writing. Comparatively, more URI students have participated in diversity events or workshops than those at similar universities.
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