Our Polytechnic Identity: Executive Summary

The institutional proposal’s overarching theme, Our Polytechnic Identity, sparked a visionary, aspirational conversation during CPR. This conversation influenced Cal Poly’s strategic planning but, because of its aspirational nature, did not yield substantive measures of educational effectiveness. Consequently during EER, the leaders of the self-study chose to consider institutional identity through the lens of the three remaining themes, each of which is an essential aspect of that identity. Learn by Doing presents our signature pedagogy as an integrating concept in which all units and disciplines may be reflected. The Teacher-Scholar Model considers the transition between Cal Poly’s historically teaching-focused mission and the institution’s growing emphasis on scholarly activity. Integration and Student Learning examines how the university might intentionally connect disparate educational experiences by concentrating on the whole student rather than dividing student learning along bureaucratic lines. The ways in which the institution continues to grow and mature in these areas will define our comprehensive polytechnic identity in the twenty-first century.

As a whole, this chapter considers aspects of WASC Standard 2, Achieving Educational Objectives Through Core Functions, and Standard 3, Developing and Applying Resources and Organizational Structures to Ensure Sustainability. The Learn by Doing section investigates the university’s shared understanding of this form of active learning (CFR 2.5), its educational effectiveness (2.4, 2.6), and its impact on student recruitment and retention (2.10). The Teacher-Scholar Model section addresses the value of scholarship (2.8), its link to teaching and student learning (2.9), and the adequacy of information resources (3.6), as well as staff and faculty evaluation and development (3.3, 3.4). The Integration and Student Learning section examines the alignment and publication of learning objectives/outcomes at all levels (2.3), the effectiveness of the senior project as the capstone to an integrated course of study (2.2a), and the impact of the institution’s organizational structures (3.8).

Recommended Action Items

1. Continue to assess the educational effectiveness of Learn by Doing practices across campus by developing and implementing a university-wide rubric based on the working definition.
2. Encourage an explicit emphasis in program review on the connections between Learn by Doing, PLOs, planning, and budgeting.
3. Use Learn by Doing practices, perhaps through joint student, staff, and faculty research projects to assess the long-term career and personal benefits of Learn by Doing and develop its potential for recruiting and retaining students, staff, faculty, and administrators from under-represented groups.
4. Further define progress indicators for the teacher-scholar model, set targets, and assess progress toward their achievement.
5. Continue to work toward an electronic workflow solution to the problem of tracking RSCA more effectively through the RPT process; to provide more current data, consider requiring annual departmental reports.
6. Revise the program review guidelines to request both the documentation of RSCA at the program level and the assessment of its contribution to student learning.
7. Channel new funds to protect and expand access to scholarly and professional information through Kennedy Library.
8. Promote greater student and faculty participation in Digital Commons by developing a campus-wide policy to encourage students to submit their senior projects to Digital Commons and faculty members to retain their copyrights when publishing RSCA.
9. Establish a university-level RPT committee to ensure that RPT procedures and policies for each college reflect the teacher-scholar model as described in AS-725-11 and to provide consistent interpretation and implementation of RPT guidelines including the use of professional development plans across all colleges.
10. Encourage all programs to have PLOs contributing to each of the ULOs at some level.
11. Promote student metacognition by implementing an e-portfolio and revising the Senior Project Policy to include a written, reflective component.
12. Promote whole-student thinking across all divisions of the university.
    • Connect student learning to student development theory through the vehicle of programming in the Center for Teaching and Learning.
    • Leverage Learn by Doing by using high-impact practices to organize intentional student engagement and integrated learning experiences.
13. Foster respectful, sustained, inter-divisional collaboration by examining the leadership structure of the university and making changes to foster collaboration.