Assessment of Student Learning: Estudios Chicana/o Cultivating Critical Cultural Thinking

Summary: In recent years, academic programs have increasingly documented student learning. For many, this practice of measuring and analyzing student learning outcomes continues as an elusive endeavor fraught with resentment and misgiving. This article describes the development of a student learning assessment plan for the University of Wyoming's Chicano Studies Program. An initial program assessment facilitated the development of a faculty agreed-upon mission, goals, and learning outcomes. A summative course embedded assessment strategy provides direct evidence for determining student learning achievement. Student exit interviews provide additional evidence suggesting that Chicana/o Studies curricula help in cultivating a critical cultural thinking framework oriented toward social justice and activism. Current anti-immigrant and anti-Latina/o sentiments provide the context for a discussion of the study's implications.