Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 72.46
Liaison Paul Mathisen
Submission Date May 22, 2020
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Worcester Polytechnic Institute
AC-6: Sustainability Literacy Assessment

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Paul Mathisen
Dir. of Sustainability & Assoc. Prof
Civil & Environmental Engineering
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution conduct an assessment of the sustainability literacy of its students (i.e. an assessment focused on student knowledge of sustainability topics and challenges)?:
Yes

Which of the following best describes the literacy assessment? The assessment is administered to::
The entire (or predominate) student body, directly or by representative sample

Which of the following best describes the structure of the assessment? The assessment is administered as a::
Pre- and post-assessment to the same cohort or to representative samples in both a pre- and post-test

A copy of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment(s):
A sample of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment or the website URL where the assessment tool may be found:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/109TPrbnQtibU6MQRpwQI85UlzKdOuyBezffYGUCmh68/edit example of questions: what are the three aspects of sustainability? what emits the most CO2 per unit of energy of the following? Which of the following is not a sustainable practice? What is the most common definition of sustainable development?

A brief description of how the literacy assessment was developed and/or when it was adopted:
Literacy assessment began in 2017 as the Office of Sustainability sought to determine the level of knowledge of all incoming students, and also to measure the level of knowledge at the end of the academic year of all staff and students. The survey was developed using general questions that would measure one's knowledge of sustainability. as well as using questions to measure the respondents feelings about sustainability.

A brief description of how a representative sample was reached (if applicable) and how the assessment(s) were administered :
Literacy assessment is sent to all incoming freshmen in August and to all students, staff, and faculty in April. Assessment is sent via email.

A brief summary of results from the literacy assessment(s), including a description of any measurable changes over time:
Results of the survey have been compared from fall 2017 until fall 2019. Comparison shows a slow but steady increase in knowledge about sustainability topics as well as an indication of behavior change on the part of the respondent. For example, respondents have improved scores on activities that increase our carbon footprint. As an example of behavior change< respondents indicate that they are more likely to consider their behavior and the impacts on climate change over time.

Optional Fields 

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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