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General Education& Liberal Learning
PrinciplesofEffectivePractice
By Paul L. Gastonwith J. Elizabeth Clark, Ann S. Ferren, Peggy Maki, Terrel L. Rhodes, Karen Maitland Schilling, and Dwight Smith
AAC&Uistheleadingnationalassociationconcernedwiththequality,vital-ity,andpublicstandingofundergraduateliberaleducation.Itsmembersarecommittedtoextendingtheadvantagesofaliberaleducationtoallstudents,regardlessofacademicspecializationorintendedcareer.Foundedin1915,AAC&Unowcomprises1,200memberinstitutions--includingaccreditedpublicandprivatecollegesanduniversitiesofeverytypeandsize.
AAC&Ufunctionsasacatalystandfacilitator,forginglinksamongpresidents,administrators,andfacultymemberswhoareengagedininstitutionalandcurricularplanning.Itsmissionistoreinforcethecollectivecommitmenttoliberaleducationatboththenationalandlocallevelsandtohelpindividualinstitutionskeepthequalityofstudentlearningatthecoreoftheirworkastheyevolvetomeetneweconomicandsocialchallenges.
InformationaboutAAC&Umembership,programs,andpublicationscanbefoundatwww.aacu.org.
1818RStreet,NW|Washington,DC20009|202.387.3760|www.aacu.org
General Education& Liberal Learning
PrinciplesofEffectivePractice
By Paul L. Gastonwith J. Elizabeth Clark, Ann S. Ferren, Peggy Maki, Terrel L. Rhodes, Karen Maitland Schilling, and Dwight Smithh
1818RStreet,NWWashington,DC20009
Copyright2010bytheAssocationofAmericanCollegesandUniversities.Allrightsreserved.
ISBN978-0-911696-22-6
Table of Contents
Preface............................................................................................................................... .v
Acknowledgments............................................................................................................vii
Part One: General Education, Liberal Education Introduction.......................................................................................................................1 TerrelL.Rhodes
1.ImperativesforandDriversofChange........................................................................7
PaulL.Gaston
Part Two: General Education as Curricular Cornerstone
2.PrinciplesofStrongGeneralEducationPrograms....................................................17
PaulL.Gaston
Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
3.Intentionality................................................................................................................25
AnnS.Ferren
4.AlignmentwiththeMajors..........................................................................................33
KarenMaitlandSchillingandDwightSmith
5.EffectivePedagogy.......................................................................................................39 J.ElizabethClark
6.Assessment...................................................................................................................45 PeggyMaki
Part Four: Sustaining General Education Programs
7.InstitutionalCommitment..........................................................................................51
PaulL.Gaston
References........................................................................................................................59
AbouttheAuthor.............................................................................................................63
Preface
Preface
Oneofthefamiliar“ArkansasTraveler”episodesdescribesatouristaskingafarmeracrossthefencewhetherhehaslivedonthefarmallhislife.Thefarmerresponds,“notyet.”ThathomelybutwiserejoindermaypointtotherecoveryinourtimeofaviewofeducationfirstarticulatedbySocrates,thateffectiveteachingintendsnotthe“fillingofavessel”butthe“kindlingofaflame.”Learningisthecallingofalifetimeandalegacypassedontofuturegenerations.
InAmericanhighereducation,wehaveformorethanacenturyassignedamajorportionofthisnobleincendiarymissiontowhatwecall“general”education.Wenowmakethatclaimwithincreasingconfidence.Programsinformedbyvagueassumptionsabouttheimportanceof“breadth”havegivenwaytoprogramsreflectingfarhigherandmoreclearlyexpressedaspirations.AttheCollegeofWilliam&Mary,theaimofgen-eraleducationis“tohelpstudentsdevelopcriticaljudgment,imagination,andmoralautonomy.”SouthernMethodistUniversityseekstoeducatestudents“asworthyhumanbeingsandascitizens,first,andasteachers,lawyers,ministers,researchscientists,busi-nessmen,engineers,andsoon,second.”OklahomaStateUniversityseekstoprovideitsstudentswith“generalknowledge,skillsandattitudesconducivetolifelonglearninginacomplexsociety.”AndLoyolaUniversityMaryland“challenges”itsstudents“todeveloptheirinterests,intellects,outlooks,beliefs,andvalues.”
Strongprogramsbeginwithimpressivegoals.Butthereisalsoevidencethatwhatgeneraleducationprogramsaccomplishforstudentsoftenfallsshortofinstitutionalaspirations.Respondingtoconcernsaboutthisgap,theacademyhasmovedtodefineexpectationsmoreclearlyandtoframestrategiesforassessingtheiraccomplishment.Thepublicationin1994oftheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversities’Strong Foundations: Twelve Principles for Effective General Education Programs offeredaninflu-entialoverviewofthismovement.Thebookdescribedtwelveprinciplesthateffectivegeneraleducationprogramsembody,and,bysodoing,offeredarubricagainstwhichprogramsmightbemeasuredandthroughwhichprogramsmightbeimproved.
Whathashappenedsince1994promptsafreshperspective.Inlittlemorethanfifteenyears,aclearanddetailedstatementregardingliberallearningoutcomeshasemerged,andtheroleofgeneraleducationincontributingtosuchoutcomeshasbe-comemoreclearlyunderstood.Assessment,promptedinitiallybyexternalexpectations
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ofgreateraccountability,hasbecomeakeytoolinprogrammaticimprovement.Anepochalparadigmshiftfromfocusingonwhatistaughttofocusingonwhatislearnedcanbeobservedincoursesyllabi,instatementsofdepartmentaloutcomes,inrevisedac-creditationstandards,incriteriafortheevaluationoffaculty,andintextbooks.Technol-ogyhaschallengedpracticeandsupportedimprovement.Andthenecessitythatallthedisciplinescontributetotheofferingofaliberaleducationtoallstudentshasbecomeanevermorewidelysharedassumption.
Supportedandpromptedbytheprogressonthesebroadfrontswithintheacademy,manyinstitutionshavesince1994takenupthechallengeofgeneraleducationreformand,toafargreaterextentthaninthepast,manyhavesucceededinachievinggenuineprogress.Asaresult,therehasdevelopedaninstructivecommunityofpraxiscomple-mentingandinmanyinstancesadvancingourunderstanding.
Insum,highereducationhasbecome—andcontinuestobecome—moreinten-tionalwithrespecttotheendsandmeansofgeneraleducationandmorestrategicinitspursuitofthoseendsthroughinnovativemeans.InthetraditionofStrong Foundations,thisfreshoverviewseeksbothtocelebratethatprogressand,insodoing,tofurtherit.
—PaulL.Gaston
Acknowledgments vii
Acknowledgments
General Education and Liberal Learningembodiesrobustcollaboration.Thecurrentattentiontogeneraleducationandtheroleitplaysinundergraduateeducationpro-videdthecatalystforthisnewvolume,butthecontributorssoughtalsotobuildontheearlierAAC&UProjectonStrongFoundationsinGeneralEducationandthesubsequentpublicationofStrong Foundations: Twelve Principles for Effective General Education Programs. Hencethedirectorofthatproject,JerryGaff,andthechiefsynthesizerofthatpublication,KarenMaitlandSchilling,agreedtoprovideguidanceforthisnewpublication.AnnFerren,whoservedontheoriginalproject’sadvisoryboard,alsoagreedtocontributetotheconti-nuityofthemesandprinciplesforeffectivegeneraleducationprograms.Twocommunitycollegeleaders,J.ElizabethClarkandDwightSmith,broughtmuch-neededinsightandexpertiseoneducationalaimsandoutcomesfromthesectorofhighereducationwherehalfofAmericanstudentsbegintheirpostsecondaryeducationandoftencompletemuchoftheirgeneraleducation.PeggyMaki,aninternationalassessmentconsultant,contrib-utedthenationalandinternationalperspectiveontheevidenceofstudentlearningthatisemerginginsupportoftheeffectiveprinciplesandpracticesdescribedinthispublication.AndBarbaraWrightofferedvaluableinsightsfromthearenaofregionalaccreditationassociations,whichhaveinsistedthatcampusespayattentiontolearningoutcomesandas-sessmentoflearningforallstudentsthroughgeneraleducationprogramsandmajors.
AAC&U’sLauraDonnelly-Smithkeptthiscollaborativeeffortontrackandwasatten-tivetoahighpublicationstandard.Shemanagedtocoordinatetheworkofthecon-tributorsintheirfar-flunglocationsbothhereandinEurope,andultimatelycompletedtheeditingofthefinalmanuscript.DarbiBossman,AAC&U’sgraphicdesigner,ablydesignedthepublication.Ialsowishtothankthecampusesthatarehighlightedinthisvolumeforthecontinuingworkoftheirfacultyandstaffinestablishing,refining,andsustainingqualitygeneraleducationprogramsfortheirstudentsandinstitutions.With-outtheworkoftheseexemplars,andthemanyotherswecouldnotmentioninthesefewpages,generaleducationwouldnotmakeitsvibrantandcompellingcontributiontoundergraduateeducation.
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation 1
Part One: General Education, Liberal Education
Introductionterrel l. rhOdes
TheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversities’seminalworkongeneraleducation,Strong Foundations: Twelve Principles for Effective General Education Programs, openedwiththefollowingobservation:
AbroadgeneraleducationforundergraduatestudentsisanidealthathasguidedAmericancollegesanduniversitiessincetheirinception.Theearliestcollegesofferedauniformclassicaleducation,andthattraditioncontinueduntilthelatenineteenthandearlytwentiethcenturies.Thegrowthofscience,theexpansionandsubdivisionofknowledge,thedevelopmentofacademicdisciplines,andtheneedforspecial-izedworkers—theseandotherfactorscrackedtheuniformityandgaverisetodepthofstudyinaspecializationasadifferentideal.Sincethen,theidealsofbreadthanddepth,together,havebeenregardedasthedefiningelementsofqualityinbaccalaure-ateeducation.(AssociationofAmericanColleges1994,i)Thatvolumewaswrittenatatimeofrenewedinterestingeneraleducationandits
importanceinpreparingstudentsforsuccess.ItgrewfromsuchearlierAssociationofAmericanColleges1worksas Integrity in the College Curriculum (1985)andA New Vitality in General Education (1988).ThegroupthatpreparedStrong Foundationswaschargedwithidentifyingcriticalfactorsforsustainingeffectivegeneraleducationprogramsregardlessofthetypeofhighereducationinstitutionprovidingtheprogram.Severalna-tionaleducationalleadersandasetofrepresentativesfromseventeendiversecampusescombinedtheirexperienceingeneraleducationreformandidentifiedtwelveprinciplesforsuccessfulgeneraleducationprograms.
MuchhashappenedduringthefifteenyearssinceStrong Foundationswaspublished.Thiscurrentvolumereinforcestheearlierprinciplesthatwereidentifiedaspromotingeffectivegeneraleducationprograms,butalsoincorporatesnewerpracticesthathaveemergedintheinterveningyears.General Education and Liberal Learning: Principles of Effective Practicecomesatatimewhengeneraleducationagainisreceivingrenewedattention.Generaleducationisalsounderattackascampusesstrugglewitheconomicstressandpolicydemandsformorestudentstobeeducatedmorequickly.Severalstates,
1 TheAssociationofAmericanCollegesbecametheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversitiesin1995.
Terrel l. rhodes is vice president for quality, curriculum, and assessment at the Associa-tion of American Colleges and Universities.
2 General Education and Liberal Learning
includingNewYork,haveenteredintodiscussionsonencouragingmorehighschoolstudentstobegintakingcollegecoursesafterthetenthgrade,longbeforetheygraduatefromhighschool(Dillon2010).Othersareexploringwaystoreducethecredithoursrequiredforassociateandbaccalaureatedegreeprogramsbyreducingrequiredgeneraleducationcredits.
Atthesametime,wefindchiefacademicofficersreflectingtherenewedinterestinandattentiontogeneraleducationamongtheirfaculties.InarecentsurveyofAAC&Umemberinstitutions,56percentofchiefacademicofficersreportedthattheircampusesaredevotingmoreattentiontogeneraleducationthantheydidfiveyearsago.Only3per-centindicatedthattheyweredevotinglessattentiontogeneraleducationprograms(HartResearchAssociates2009,1).Andwhilefourinfivecampusescontinuetorelyuponthe“breadthanddepth”traditionforgeneraleducation,mostcampuseshavemodifiedthedistributionmodelwithmorerecentinnovations,suchaslearningcommunities,com-monintellectualexperiences,thematiccourses,upper-divisionrequirements,andunder-graduateresearch.Inaddition,seventy-eightpercentofinstitutionshaveacommonsetoflearningoutcomesinplace,andtwo-thirdsofcampuses,includingthosethatusemodi-fieddistributionmodels,reportthattheyhaveadopted“clearlearninggoals”fortheirgeneraleducationprograms(HartResearchAssociates2009,8–9).Ofthoseinstitutionswithcommonoutcomes,largepercentagesidentifyarangeofspecificareasofknowledgeandskillaspartoftheiroutcomelists(seefig.1).
Thenewerpedagogiesandpracticesbeingincorporatedintogeneraleducationprogramsacrossthecountrynotonlyreflectwhatfacultyandotheracademicprofes-
0 20 40 60 80 100
92%Humanities
91%
73%
87%
61%
49%
42%
Science
Social sciences
Global/world cultures
Mathematics
Technology
Diversity in U.S.
U.S. history
Languages
Sustainability
90%
87%
24%
0 20 40 60 80 100
99%Writing skills
95%
76%
88%
68%
66%
65%
Critical thinking
Quantitative reasoning
Oral communication
Intercultural skills
Civic engagement
Information literacy
Application of learning
Research skills
Integration of learning
91%
79%
63%
Ethical reasoning 75%
Areas of Knowledge Intellectual Skills/Ability
Figure 1: Areas of Knowledge/Intellectual Skill Addressed by Common Learning Outcomes
Proportionofinstitutionswithcampuswideoutcomessayingtheirsetofcommonlearninggoalsaddresseseachareaofknowledge.
Source:HartResearchAssociates2009.
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation 3
sionalsreportasimportantfociforteachingandlearning,butalsorepresentanemerg-ingconsensusamongemployerswhoreportonwhattheyseekincollegegraduates.TheeducationaloutcomesthatinitiallywereviewedasinnovativemarkersofundergraduateeducationwhentheyappearedinGreater Expectations: A New Vision for Learning as a Nation Goes to College (AssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversities2002),andthenlaterintheexpandedargumentarticulatingtheessentiallearningoutcomesandPrinciplesofExcellenceinCollege Learning for the New Global Century (AssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversities2007),havebecometheframeworkforlearninginalltypesoftwo-andfour-yearinstitutions.
Employersechothecallformoreemphasisoncollegelearningoutcomes.InarecentnationalsurveyconductedforAAC&U,employersindicatedthattwo-andfour-yearcollegesshouldbeplacingmoreemphasisonseveralkeylearningoutcomestoincreasegraduates’potentialtobesuccessful,contributingmembersoftoday’sglobalsociety(HartResearchAssociates2010).Thelearningaimsandoutcomesthatemployersperceivetobeinneedofincreasedfocusoncollegecampusesrangefromcommunica-tionskillstocriticalthinkingandcomplexproblemsolvingtoethicaldecisionmakingtoscientificliteracyandthereal-worldapplicationofknowledgeandskills.Oftheseventeenlearningoutcomestestedinthesurvey,amajorityofemployersthinkthatcollegesshouldplacemoreemphasisonfifteenofthem.Foreightoftheselearningoutcomes,fully70percentormoreofemployersthinkthatcollegesshouldplacemoreemphasisonthem.
Theareasinwhichemployersfeelthatcollegesmostneedtoincreasetheirfocusin-clude(1)writtenandoralcommunication,(2)criticalthinkingandanalyticalreasoning,(3)theapplicationofknowledgeandskillsinreal-worldsettings,(4)complexproblemsolvingandanalysis,(5)ethicaldecisionmaking,(6)teamworkskills,(7)innovationandcreativity,and(8)conceptsanddevelopmentsinscienceandtechnology(HartResearchAssociates2010,9).
Thedemandforbetter-preparedgraduateswithbroaderandhigher-levelskillsandabilitiesisnotdirectedsolelytotheeliteliberalartscollegesortopresearchuniversities.AnthonyCarnevaleatGeorgetownUniversity’sCenterforEducationandtheWorkforcesaidthat,“irrespectiveofcollegemajororinstitutionalselectivity,whatmatterstocareersuccessisstudents’developmentofabroadsetofcross-cuttingcapacities…”(CarnevaleandHumphreys2010).Eventhoughemployees’realearningshavedeclinedinthepastfewyears,theearningsadvantageofacollegedegreepersistsbasicallyunchangedwhencomparedtoindividualswithahighschooldiplomaorwithnosecondaryeducationcredential.Futurejobgrowthpromisestoincreasethistrend,sincemoreofthenewjobsprojectedforthecomingdecadeswillrequirepostsecondarylevelsofknowledgeandabilities.Carnevalefindsthatthemoreskillsandabilitiesthatarerequiredbythejob—reflectingthetypesoflearningoutcomesassociatedwitheffectivegeneraleducationpro-grams—thehighertheaverageearnings.Acrosstheboard,jobcategorynotwithstanding,thehigherthelevelofliberallearningrequiredbyajob,thehighertheearnings(CenterforEducationandtheWorkforce2009).
Atthesametime,policymakersinthiscountryareexploringwaystoacceleratecompletionofcollegedegreesbyshorteningthetimeandcreditsrequiredforcomple-
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tion.TheyarepayingattentiontotheBolognaProcessinEuropeandoftenreferenc-ingthethree-yearbaccalaureateprovidedinsomeothercountries.YetmanycountriesaroundtheworldareincreasinglylookingattheAmericanmodelofgeneraleducation(Gaston2010).Inmostoftheworld,postsecondaryeducationalsystemshavehistoricallyfocusedonthemajorwithnogeneraleducationcomponent,thusallowingstudentstocompleteabaccalaureatedegreeinthreeyears.Theglobalequivalentofgeneraleduca-tionwasconsideredsomethingtobeaccomplishedpriortopostsecondaryeducation.Inaddition,internationaltestsofstudentknowledge—liketheProgrammeforInterna-tionalStudentAssessmentexams—arepointedtoasevidencefortheEuropeanap-proach,becausetheresultshavecontinuedtorankEuropeanandAsianstudentsaheadofAmericanstudents.
AtthesametimethatmanyintheUnitedStatesareencouraginghighereducationtoemulateexistingEuropeanmodels,numerousinternationaleducatorsexpresstheopinionthatAmericangraduatesseemtobemoreinnovativethantheirownstudents,moreabletotransferknowledgeacrossdisciplinaryandconceptualboundaries,andmoreadeptatapplyingtheirknowledgetounscriptedproblemsandsituations.Eachyear,theAAC&UofficeandAAC&UmembercampusesarevisitedbydelegationsfromplacesliketheNetherlands,Japan,Taiwan,HongKong,andBulgaria,allofwhomwanttolearnmoreabouttheAmericansystemofhighereducation.Inparticular,theyexpresstheirbeliefthatthecombinationofgeneraleducationwiththemajoristheunderlying“secret”oftheinnovationandcreativitythattheyseeingraduatesofAmeri-cancollegesanduniversities—notjustinAmericanstudents,butintheirownstudentswhostudyintheUnitedStatesandreturntotheirhomecountries.ItisfascinatingthatjustassomepolicymakersandeducatorsinthiscountryareexploringwaystoreducegeneraleducationbecausetheywishtomimicthesuccessofEuropeaneducation,orbecauseofcostsavings,muchoftherestoftheworldisexploringhowtoincorporategeneraleducationintoitshighereducationsystems.Indeed,JapanandHongKongre-centlyhaveadoptedgeneraleducationoutcomesandrequirementsfortheirbaccalaure-atesystems.ChinaissendingleadershipteamsfromitstoptieruniversitiestotheUnitedStatestolearnhowtoincorporategeneraleducationand“liberalarts”emphasesinitsownuniversitycurricula.
Theconversationabouttheeffectivenessofgeneraleducationpartlyrevolvesaroundtheevidencesupportingthevalueofgeneraleducationlearning.Thetwelfthprincipleidentifiedin Strong Foundations—effectiveassessmentoflearningoutcomes—hasbecomeoneofthedrivingforcesinevaluatingandimprovingstudentachievementandinmoreeffectivelycommunicatingfindingstobothcampusandexternalaudiences.Faculty,accreditors,policymakers,andstudentsaredemandingtoseeevidenceofstudentlearning.Thegoodnewsisthatevidenceofstudentlearningisbeginningtobeaccumulatedandcommunicated.
OneofthemostwidelyrecognizedstudiesonstudentoutcomesandtheimpactofpedagogiesandpracticesonstudentlearningistheNationalSurveyofStudentEngage-ment(NSSE),originatedbyGeorgeKuhandnowdirectedbyAlexanderC.McCormick.ThelargenumberofinstitutionsusingtheNSSEandthenumberofyearsthatresponse
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation
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datahavebeencollectedhaveallowedcorrelationstobemadeamongthepracticesandpedagogiesusedinthecurriculaandthereportedgainsonmeasuresofstudentsuccess.Inbrief,studentswhohaveparticipateinwhatAAC&Uhascalled“high-impactpractices”(HIPs)—includingundergraduateresearch,first-yearexperiences,learningcommuni-ties,internshipsandcommunity-basedlearningexperiences,studyabroad,andcapstonecourses—exhibithigherratesofretentionandearnhighergradepointaveragesthanstu-dentswhoreportlessornoparticipationinHIPs.Inparticular,studentswhoreportearlyandmultipleparticipationinHIPsaremoreengagedintheirlearning—especiallythestudentswhocometocollegeleastpreparedforpostsecondaryeducation(Kuh2008).
BlaichandWise(2009)attheWabashCollegeCenterofInquiryfoundintheirnationalstudyofthefirstcollegeyearthatsomeofthesesamepractices—i.e.,learningcommunities,appliedlearning,andteamprojects—makeadifferenceinstudents’learn-ingoutcomes,butthatfewstudentshavetheopportunityintheirfirstyearofcollegetoparticipateinorexperiencethesepractices.Eventhoughthestudyfoundlittlegrowthamongcollegefreshmenonmanyoftheessentiallearningoutcomes,theevidencesug-geststhatwhenstudentsdoexperiencethepractices,thereisgrowthandlearningasaresult.
Thesefindingssupporttheneedtoincorporatethetypesofpracticesandprinciplesassociatedwitheffectivegeneraleducationprogramsidentifiedinthisvolumeintoanycampus’sprogrammaticstructure.Incorporationofthesepracticesandprinciplesintoacampus’sentirecurriculumandcocurriculumwouldappeartosupportenhancedstudentlearning.Indeed,theoften-heardassumptionthatmostofthebroadlearningaimsandoutcomesstudentsneedtoattainarethesolepurviewofgeneraleducationisrapidlydisappearing.Theessentiallearningourstudentsneedmustbepervasiveingeneraleducation,butthesamesetofskillsandabilitiesmustbemoredeeplyembeddedthroughoutthecurriculumandcocurriculum,becomingmoresophisticated,complex,andchallengingasstudentsmovethroughmajorprogrammaticstudy.Theunderlyingapproachtogeneraleducationlearningreflectedintheinoculationmodelofthelastcentury—ifstudentsneedtowrite,takeawritingcourse;ifstudentsneedethicalreason-ing,takeaphilosophycourse;ifstudentsneedglobalunderstanding,takeacoursewithaninternationalfocus—isnolongeradequate.Theresearchoncognitivedevelopment,deeplearning,andmasterysupportsthevalueofintentionalapproachestolearningthatareiterative,recurring,incremental,andprogressivelymorechallengingasstudentsmovethroughtheireducationalcareers.Therearebenefitstoapproachesthatprovidestudentswithmultipleopportunitiestoapplytheirlearningtonew,unscriptedproblems,andthatarescaffoldedinwaysthatallowstudentstodeveloptheirskillsandabilitiesinintentionalways.
Particularlyingeneraleducation,modernundergraduateeducationnecessitatesnewwaystothinkaboutandorganizeourapproachestoteachingandlearning.Nolongerdonearlyallstudentsbegintheirundergraduateeducationimmediatelyfollowinggradua-tionfromhighschool.Nolongerdostudentsattendasinglecollegefromtheirfirsttosenioryears.Themajorityattendmorethanonepostsecondaryinstitutionduringtheircollegecareers.Manyattendmultipleinstitutionsatthesametimewhentheyliveina
The underlying ap-proach to general
education learning reflected in the
inoculation model of the last century is no
longer adequate.
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regionwheremultipleinstitutionsarewithincloseproximity.Astechnologyallowsforonlinecoursesandprograms,studentslivinganywhereoftencanavailthemselvesofcoursesfromcollegesanduniversitiesaroundtheglobewhileattendingalocalinstitu-tionatthesametime.
Becausegeneraleducationprogramstypicallycontainthecoursesthataremostlikelytobeofferedbyallinstitutionsoronline,thechallengebecomesoneoforganizingundergraduateliberallearninginamannerthatrecognizesstudentattendancepatternsandallowsforlearningtobeengagedandfacilitatedacrossthemultitudeofcoursenames,numbers,andlocationsrepresentingthearrayofmethodsbywhichstudentsenroll.Campusesacrossthecountryarerespondingwiththeadoptionoflearningoutcomes,exemplifiedbyAAC&U’sLiberalEducationandAmerica’sPromise(LEAP)initiative,andthearticulationofsharedexpectationsforwhatstudentlearningshouldlooklikefortheseoutcomesasstudentsprogressthroughtheircareers(Rhodes2010).AAC&U’sValidAssessmentofLearninginUndergraduateEducation(VALUE)projecthasworkedwithcampusesnationwidetodevelopfifteenrubrics,eachfocusingononelearningoutcome,thatcanbeadaptedtomeetinstitutionalassessmentneeds.Thefocusforjudgingstudentlearningisshiftingfromthesimplelistingofcoursesandcreditsonatranscripttorecording,reporting,anddemonstratinglearningthroughtheworkourstudentsdointheirclassesandrelatedactivities—oftenorganizedwithinelectronicport-foliosthatcanbecarriedfromcampustocampusthroughoutastudent’scareer.Inthisway,learningcanberecognizedwhereveritoccurs,regardlessoftheformalboundariesthatmayseparatethelocusforlearning.
Thecurrentvolume, General Education and Liberal Learning,picksupontheworkofStrong Foundations ontheprinciplesofeffectivegeneraleducationprograms,incor-poratestheresearchandexpertisedevelopedduringtheinterveningfifteenyears,andrenewsthecommitmenttotheintentionalinstitutionalpractices,pedagogies,andprin-ciplesthatareassociatedwitheffectivegeneraleducationinthetwenty-firstcentury.Thecontributorshavecreatedaboldandvibrantframeworkwithinwhichindividualsandcampusescanexaminetheircurrentgeneraleducationprogramsandenvisionnewwaystoachieveenhancedstudentlearningthroughtheorganizationandimplementationofthismostimportantandfoundationalcomponentofundergraduateliberallearning:generaleducation.
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation
Chapter11
Imperatives for and Drivers of ChangePaul l. GastOn
Although an institution’s general education program cannot by itself ensure that students receive all the outcomes of a liberal education, a commitment to liberal education requires the support that only an effective general education program can offer.
Whatthewell-educatedcollegegraduateshouldknowandbeabletododevelopswithinseveralenvironments.Oneisthecurriculum,whichshouldincludeastronggen-eraleducationoffering,studyinthemajorthatreinforcestheaimsofgeneraleducation,andajudiciousselectionofelectives.Anotheristhecocurriculum.Theopportunitiesfoundthereforcommunityengagement,studentwork,andcampusleadershipcanofferapowerfulcontribution.Beyondthecurriculumaltogether,campuslifeandrecreation,studenthousing,andsociallifemayenhancetheoveralleducationalexperience.AformerpresidentofJamesMadisonUniversityonceobservedthatevencampusmain-tenanceandlandscapingshouldconveyarespectforscholarship(R.E.Carrier,pers.comm.).WhetherintheIvyLeague,communitycolleges,publiccomprehensiveuniver-sities,orprivateliberalartscolleges,liberaleducationatitsmostsubstantivereflectsaspectrumoflearningandexperience.
Thisoverviewofgeneraleducationandliberallearningfocusesonbutonepartofthematrixthatleadstoacollegeeducation—butitisacriticalpart.Byacknowledg-ingtheliberaleducationgoalsofhighereducationandexaminingcarefullythewaysinwhicheffectivegeneraleducationcanfurthersuchgoals,wecanclarifyprinciplesthatmayassistcollegesanduniversitiesinstrengtheninggeneraleducationandthusassuringmoreeffectiveliberaleducation.
Assuggestedintheintroduction,thefirstpromptforthispublicationliesina1994publicationbytheAssociationofAmericanColleges,Strong Foundations,acogentandsubstantiveplatformforconceiving,planning,andimplementingmoreef-fectivegeneraleducationprograms.Theslimvolumedrawsonbothinformedreflec-tionandawarenessofexemplarypracticeinpresenting“twelveprinciplesforeffectivegeneraleducationprograms”(AAC1994).Thepublicationprovedbothprescientandinfluential.Manyoftheprinciplesitsetforthremainrelevantandcompelling
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today,andtheyareevidentoncampuseswherethereisimprovementinprogramsofgeneraleducation.
ThesecondpromptwasGreaterExpectations,amajorinitiativetheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversitiesconductedbetween2000and2006,whicharticulat-edtheaimsandpurposesofatwenty-firstcenturyliberaleducation,identifiedinnova-tivemodelsthatimprovecampuspracticesandlearningforallundergraduatestudents,andadvocatedforacomprehensiveapproachtoreform.TheworkoftheGreaterExpec-tationsinitiativelaidthefoundationforAAC&U’scurrentinitiative,LiberalEducationandAmerica’sPromise(LEAP).In2007,theLEAPnationalreport,College Learning for the New Global Century,waspublished.TheLEAPreportprovidesthethirdprompt:aclearlystructuredstatementoutliningtheessentiallearningoutcomesofacollegeeducation(seefig.2).Manycollegesanduniversitieshavefoundinthisstatementaconvenientpointofdeparturefordiscussionsregardingthebaccalaureateandthevitalcontributionofgeneraleducationinofferingallstudentsthebenefitsofaliberaleduca-tion.Incorporatingmanyyearsofdeliberationanddrawingonawiderangeofauthori-tiesandgoodpractices,theessentiallearningoutcomesrepresentnothinglessthanthefirstwidelyacceptedstatementwithintheacademyofwhatstudentsshouldknowandbeabletodowhentheygraduatefromabaccalaureateprogramembodyingeffectivegeneraleducation(AAC&U2007,12).
Thethreepromptsforthisoverviewarecloselyrelated.WritinginStrong Founda-tions,JerryGaffciteda“heuristic”definitionofgeneraleducation:“theknowledge,skills,andattitudesthatallofususeandlivebyduringmostofourlives”(AAC1994,ii).Noonewouldarguewiththecontinuingrelevanceoftheseelementsastouchstonesforeffectivegeneraleducationandasassumptionsbehindaninstitution’smoreinclusiveliberaleducationaims.ItseemsfittingthereforethattheessentiallearningoutcomesAAC&UpromotesthroughLEAPstandon“strongfoundations”firstsetforthin1994andnoworganizedmorebroadlyintocriticaldomainsofknowledge,asfollows:
• knowledgeofhumanculturesandthephysicalandnaturalworld• intellectualandpracticalskills• personalandsocialresponsibility• integrativeandappliedlearning Theessentiallearningoutcomesareideallyadaptedtothechangingenvironment
ofhighereducationandrepresentaplatformonwhichstrategicprogrammaticreformcanbebuilt.Buttheoutcomesalsorepresentanimportantelementintheenvironment,astronginfluenceonmanyofthechangestakingplacewithinit,and,assuggestedabove,apromptforconsideringboththeattributesofacomprehensivecommitmenttoliberaleducationandthecrucialroleofgeneraleducationwithinthatcommitment.Hence,incontrastwiththeobserversinRobertFrost’senigmaticpoem“NeitherOutFarNorInDeep,”General Education and Liberal Learningwillboth“lookoutfar,”soastoacknowledgethecircumstancesemphasizingtheimportanceofofferingaliberaleducationtoallstudents,and“lookindeep”athowourunderstandingofeffectivegen-eraleducation,sovitaltoouroverallliberaleducationcommitment,isbecomingricher,moresubstantive,and,inanimportantsense,moreambitious.
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation
9
Whydoweseekthisbroadervisionnow?Importantchangesintheenvironmentofhighereducationhavetypicallyemergedgraduallyovertime—lotsoftime.Butincreas-ingly,highereducationisexperiencingdisruptiveratherthangradualformsofchange.TrendsglimpsedinStrong Foundationshaveaccelerated.Othertrendsofemergingsignificancehavebecomeincreasinglyinfluential.Andeffortstorespondtothesetrendsthroughanevolvingvisionofhowgeneraleducationcontributestooveralleducationalgoalshaveproducedastrongrecordofinnovation.Inordertounderstandmorefullywhythenewcenturycallsforafreshvisionofessentiallearningandtoappreciatewhathasbeenachievedinpursuitofthatvision,weshouldacknowledgesomeofthesetrendsandconsidertheirrelevanceforgeneraleducation.
Figure 2: Essential Learning Outcomes
Beginninginschool,andcontinuingatsuccessivelyhigherlevelsacrosstheircollegestudies,studentsshouldpreparefortwenty-first-centurychallengesbygaining:
Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural WorldThroughstudyinthesciencesandmathematics,socialsciences,humanities,histories,
languages,andtheartsFocusedbyengagementwithbigquestions,bothcontemporaryandenduring
Intellectual and Practical Skills, includingInquiryandanalysisCriticalandcreativethinkingWrittenandoralcommunicationQuantitativeliteracyInformationliteracyTeamworkandproblemsolvingPracticed extensively,acrossthecurriculum,inthecontextofprogressivelymorechallengingproblems,projects,andstandardsforperformance
Personal and Social Responsibility, includingCivicknowledgeandengagement—localandglobalInterculturalknowledgeandcompetenceEthicalreasoningandactionFoundationsandskillsforlifelonglearningAnchoredthroughactiveinvolvementwithdiversecommunitiesandreal-worldchallenges
Integrative and Applied Learning, includingSynthesisandadvancedaccomplishmentacrossgeneralandspecializedstudiesDemonstratedthroughtheapplicationofknowledge,skills,andresponsibilitiestonewsettingsandcomplexproblems
Source:AAC&U2007,12
10 General Education and Liberal Learning
The World Is Demanding MoreAsnotedabove,aneffectivegeneraleducationprogram—whetherintheformofacoherentprogramorexplicit,actionableexpectationsrequiringintentional,systematicresponse—cannotdoitall.Butthecontributionsgeneraleducationmakeshavecometoberecognizedasparticularlyrelevanttothedemandsofanewcentury.Astronggeneraleducationprogramprovidestheskills,traits,andawarenessthatsupportnotonlystrongbeginningsintheworldsofemploymentandservice,butalsothecapacityforgrowththatcharacterizesagilethinkers,enthusiasticlearners,andeffectiveteammembers.
Asexpectationsofcollegegraduateshaveevolved,thedemandsmadeofgeneraledu-cationhavenecessarilydevelopedaswell.WhileeffectiveprogramsofgeneraleducationshouldcontributesignificantlytoallthebroaddomainsofknowledgesetforthinCollege Learning for the New Global Century, suchprogramsaboveallensurethatstudentsexperi-encethewaysofknowingthatmustnotonlybegraspedbut“practicedextensively,acrossthecurriculum,inthecontextofprogressivelymorechallengingproblems,projects,andstandardsforperformance”(AAC&U2007,12).Theseincludeinquiryandanalysis,criti-calandcreativethinking,writtenandoralcommunication,quantitativeliteracy,informa-tionliteracy,teamwork,andproblemsolving.
Suchwaysofknowinghavealwaysbeenimportant,butthedemandsofthenewcenturyhaveexpressedasingularurgency.Neverbeforehastherebeensogreataneedforlearnedandadaptablecitizenscapableoftakingapartandunderstandingcomplexproblems,ofidentifyingreliabilityandauthorityamongthemanysourcesofinforma-tion,ofappreciatingthequantitativerealitiesthatmayliebeneaththesurface,ofthink-ingcreativelyaboutsolutions,ofcommunicatingto otherstheemergingresultsoftheirwork,andofworkingwith otherstobringsolutionstopractice.Inshort,whatgeneraleducationcanofferiswhatallstudentsneedtoliveinacomplexglobalsociety.
ThissenseofurgencyiswellcapturedintherecentrevisionofgeneraleducationattheUniversityofNebraska–Lincoln(UNL).“Achievement-CenteredEducation”seekstoofferstudentsopportunities“todevelopandtoapplyrelevantskills,knowledge,andsocialresponsibilitiesnomatterwhattheirmajorsorcareeraspirationsare.”Eachofthesecomponentsisarticulatedthroughdirect,active,assessableimperatives.Forinstance,insteadofofferingavagueaspirationthatstudentslearntowritewell,UNLexpressesthecommitmentthatitsstudentswill“writetexts,invariousforms,withanidentifiedpurpose,thatrespondtospecificaudienceneeds,incorporateresearchorexistingknowledge,anduseapplicabledocumentationandappropriateconventionsofformatorstructure.”Tofurthertheopportunitiesofferedforartsawareness,UNLassertsthatitsstudentswill“useknowledge,theories,ormethodsappropriatetotheartstounderstandtheircontextandsignificance.”Andratherthanfloatingthehopefulexpectationthatstudentswillsomehowfinditpossibletointegratetheirexperiencesindifferentrealmsofknowledge,UNLcallsonstudentsto“generateacreativeorschol-arlyproductthatrequiresbroadknowledge,appropriatetechnicalproficiency,informa-tioncollection,synthesis,interpretation,presentation,andreflection”(UniversityofNebraska–Lincoln2008).
Never before has there been so great a need
for learned and adaptable citizens
capable of taking apart and understanding complex problems.
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation
11
A Different Student BodyBeneathmanyearnesttwentieth-centurystatementsofgeneraleducationgoalslietwounstatedpremises:moststudentswillbeabletodevotetheirfullattentiontotheircollegeexperience,andmostwillcompletetheirgeneraleducationattheinstitutionfromwhichtheywillgraduate.Thisvisioncontinuestoinformmanygoalsstatements,butformanyinstitutionsandstudents,therealityisnowverydifferent.Asof2007,accordingtotheNationalCenterforEducationStatistics,“about46percentoffull-timeand81percentofpart-timecollegestudentsages16–24wereemployed”(U.S.DepartmentofEducation2009).
Studentsnowforthemostpartstudyparttimewhilebalancingtheireducationalgoalswiththenecessityofemployment.Andmanypart-timestudentsarefull-time workers.Whilethepercentageofcollegestudentswhoworkhasincreasedincrementally,theper-centageofstudentswhoworkfulltimewhileattendingcollegehasrisensharply,from5.6percentin1985to10.4percentasof2000(Orszag,Orszag,andWhitmore2001),andupto32.2percentin2007–8(U.S.DepartmentofEducation2008).Thosewhofollowthesetrendscloselynowdifferentiatebetween“studentswhowork”and“workerswhostudy.”Studentsareincreasinglymobileaswell,movingfromoneinstitutiontoanotherastheirneedsandlocationsdictate.Asof2006,17percentofundergraduatestudentstransferredfromoneinstitutiontoanotheratleastonetime,and2percenttransferredtwoorthreetimes(U.S.DepartmentofEducation2007).Thesepercentageswouldbeevenhigherifstudentswhocoenrolledinmorethanoneinstitutionatatimewereincluded.
Iftheacademyistomeetitsgoalofprovidingthebenefitsofessentialeducationtoallstudents,itmusttakeseriouslythesedemographicandculturalshifts.Thisisespeciallyimportantasinstitutionsstrivetoincreaseaccesstohighereducationandworktohelpstudentscompletethebaccalaureate.OneoftheimportantprinciplessetforthinStrong Foundations isthatacollegeoruniversitymustreachclarityonwhatitsgraduatesshouldknowandbeabletodo.Onlyinthatbroadercontextofpreparationforcareersandlife-longlearningcanthespecificgoalsforgeneraleducationmakesense.Butiffewerthanhalfofaninstitution’sgraduatesreceivetheirgeneraleducationattheinstitutionfromwhichtheyreceivethebaccalaureatedegree,whatcananinstitutiondotoensurethatallitsgraduatesmeetitsliberallearninggoals?
Diversity as a Critical Educational ValueOnlywithinthelastfifteenyearshassubstantiveresearch,acknowledgingwidelyacceptedmoralandculturalvalues,confirmedthewaysinwhichadiverselearningenvironmentsupportseffectiveeducation.Classroomswithavarietyofstudentandfacultyperspec-tivesinplay,supportedbyarichmultiplicityofcontentandmaterials,aredynamicandengaging.Asaresult,increasingaccesstoeducationanddiversifyingthefacultyremainnotonlyurgentsocialimperatives,butalsohaveemergedaspedagogicalnecessities.Inaddition,thepursuitofdiversityinthecurriculumhasencouragedamoreinclusiveun-derstandingofessentiallearningitself.Ascurricularchoiceshavemultiplied,abroaderopportunitytodevelopdistinctiveapproachestoglobalunderstanding,cross-cultural
12 General Education and Liberal Learning
competence,andsocialresponsibilityhasemphasizedtheimportanceofthoughtfulchoicesincurriculardesigntopromoteessentiallearning.
A1995AAC&Ustudy,Diversity in Higher Education,stilloffersausefulpointofdepartureforanappreciationofthisforcewithinthe“newenvironment.”Diversitymustbecome,inaword,“transformative”(Musil1995,62).Buttheemphasisofthe1995studyonsocialchange,whileentirelyappropriatetoandnecessaryforthecircumstancesitdocuments,suggestsalsoaprocessofgrowthwithinthisimperative.Earlyexperiencewith“diversitycourses”hasexpandedtoincludeconsiderationofthecurriculumasawholeandofhowitisofferedwithinanenablingenvironment.AmorerecentstudybyHuandKuhconcludesthatstudentswhoenjoythebenefitsofadiverselearningenvironmentregardthosebenefitsasdirectlyrelatedtotheireducational gains(HuandKuh2003).
Economic PressuresIssuesoffundinghavehadameasurableimpactonbothcollegestudentsandtheirin-stitutionsinthetwenty-firstcentury,andanyoneconcernedwithstrengtheninggeneraleducationmusttakesuchissuesintoaccount.Reductionsinstatesupportforpublicinstitutions,evenbeforetherecessionthatemergedin2007,promptedmanyinstitu-tionstoincreaseclasssizes,relymoreonpart-timefaculty,andmeasureanyinnovationintermsofcosteffectiveness.Privateinstitutionshavenotbeenimmunefromsuchpressuresandhavehadtomakedifficultchoicesamongsuchconcernsasfinancialaid,enhancedtechnology,andfacultysalaries.Reductionsinthevalueofendowmentsandeconomicpressurestoconstraintuitionhaveexertedsimilarpressures.Inthisenviron-ment,preservingfundingforfacultydevelopment,smallseminars,teamteaching,andundergraduateresearch,forexample,requiresthatastrongcasebemadebyfaculty.
Inturn,studentsandfamiliesfacedwithtuitionincreasesthathaveoutstrippedannualincreasesinthecostoflivinghavebecomefarmorepragmaticandurgentaboutwhytheyareseekinghighereducation.Professionalprogramsthatappeartopromisemoreimmediatejobplacementhavegreatappeal.Inthisenvironment,generaleduca-tioncanbevulnerable.Tostudentswhomustworklonghourstopaytuition,anyre-quirementsthatappearunrelatedortangentialtotheirvocationalambitionsmayappearsimplyasimpediments.
However,asweacknowledgetheeconomicforcesthatbearonstudents,teachers,andthecurriculumitself,wemustrespondtothemappropriatelyandavoidinjudicious,counter-productiveconcessions.Agreementonprinciplesofeffectivegeneraleduca-tion—and,morebroadly,onoverarchingliberaleducationgoals—shouldleadustoarticulatemoreforcefullytheconnectionsbetweengeneraleducationandsuccessinaturbulentglobaleconomy.Stronggeneraleducationprogramsenablestudentstopre-pareforandadapttouncertainty,torecognizeandrespondtoemergingopportunities,andtoexercisecreativitywhenothersarehunkeringdown.
Ofcourse,economicchallengescanpromotepositiveinnovationsaimedateffi-ciencyandeffectiveness,suchastheuseofcourse-managementsystemsandelectroniclibraryresources.Insomeinstitutions,budgetconstraintshavepromptedafreshclarity
Strong general education programs
enable students to prepare for and adapt
to uncertainty.
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation 13
astopriorities,areturnofthefocustostudentlearningandawayfromlessessentialoperations.Andmanystudentsbalancingworkandstudydounderstandthecontributiongeneraleducationmakestoprovidingthemwiththeskillsandcapacitiesthatemployersvalue.
Thebottomlineofthisbalancesheetisclear.Periodsofeconomicuncertaintycastintoevenhigherreliefthevaluesofliberallearning.Thosewhopayattentiontosuchvalueswillidentifyopportunitiesforinvestment—notretrenchment.
The Influence of TechnologyWhenStrong Foundationswaspublished,the“technology”ofchoiceforinstructionwastheoverheadprojector.Computerswerealreadyinwideuse,ofcourse,butthepotentialinfluenceoftheInternetwasonlybeginningtoemerge.Notuntil2000wouldBlack-board,Inc.,fileitspatentfor“Internet-basededucationsupportsystemsandmethods.”Wikipedia,nowtheworld’slargest(ifperhapsleastreliable)encyclopedia,wasfoundedin2001.Googlesearchesbeganlessthanadecadeago.Andtheavailabilityofsuchservicesthroughstandardwirelesstransmissionprotocols?Alsoatwenty-first-centuryphenomenon—andonethatspanstheglobe,linkingstudentsandfacultymembersnotonlytoimportantdatabutalsotooneanother.
Thesignificanceforlearningthroughtheseremarkabledevelopmentsisconspicu-ous.Facultymembersnowroutinelysupporttheirlectureswithprojectedcomputerslidesandothervisualmaterialsappropriatetovariedlearningstyles.Coursewaresystemsenablefacultymembersandstudentstofurthertheworkoftheclassroomthroughinformaldiscussion,throughpromptstoadditionalreading,andthroughopportunitiesforout-of-classcollaborativework.Classroomresponsemechanisms,e.g.,“clickers,”offerstrategiesforensuringsomedegreeofstudentparticipationeveninverylargecoursesections.Facultycanevenconnecttheirstudentsandcourseswithclassroomsabroadtopromoteinternationalperspectiveswithoutthecostsoftravel.Andelectronicportfoliosprovideanewlearningandassessmenttool.
Butthereisalsoasenseinwhichtechnology,specificallytheInternet,posesacrit-icalepistemologicalissueforgeneraleducation.Whentheinventionofprintingledintimetoaproliferationofpressesandpublications,scholarsfacedthenewchallengeofenablingtheirstudentstodiscriminatebetweenauthoritativeandunreliabletexts.Nowasimilarchallengehasarisen,asstudentsmustbeabletounderstandandapplycriteriafordeterminingthevalidityandobjectivityofsourcesfromreliable,somewhatreliable,anddeeplyunreliableproviders.FacultymustcautiontheirstudentsagainstuncriticalrelianceonWebresourcessuchasWikipedia,urgethatscholarlyresearchutilizemethodsbeyondGoogle,andworkwiththelibrarystafftoteachinformationliteracy.
Perhapsthegreatestchallengeisdistancelearning.Shouldgeneraleducationcours-esbeofferedonline,therebyforegoingtheintangiblebenefitsofclassroomcollegialityinfavorofstudentconvenienceandremunerativeenrollments?Asfacultyexperimentwiththisnewformat,manyhavelearnedhowtopreservethevalueofdiscussion,imme-
14 General Education and Liberal Learning
diatefeedback,andcoaching.Atthesametime,bothfacultyandstudentsconcedethatface-to-facelearninghasbenefits.Thus,manycampusesarestrivingforamixedmodelofdelivery.
The Assessment Imperative In1994itwouldhavebeendifficulttovisualizehowinfluentialandpervasivetheassess-mentofeducationaloutcomeswouldbecome.Theissueisnolongeroneprimarilyofaccountability—eventhoughsuchexpectationscontinuetoemerge.Rather,theprin-cipalvalueofassessmentlieswithinalargerpicture,asacomplementtothelearningoutcomesthatgivepurposeanddesigntogeneraleducation.
Becausewewillattendtoassessmentasan“effectivepractice”inpart3,andwilldosoatsomelength,itmaybeenoughtonoteherethepositiveinfluenceassessmenthashadwithinhighereducation.Properlyconceivedandimplemented,assessmentprovidesaproductivefocusonoverridingquestionsofpriority,forexample:
• Whatshouldstudentslearnandbeabletodo?• Howcanwemeasuremostusefullytheeffectivenessofprogramsandinstitutions
inassistingstudentstotheirrespectiveeducationalgains?• Whatcansuchmeasuresrevealtothosewhosupportstudentlearning—faculty
members,librarians,cocurricularleaders,administrators,andmanyothers—sothattheycandosomoreeffectively?
Tobesure,aheavy-handedautocraticefforttoimplementanassessmentprograminpursuitofpoorlyunderstoodinstitutionalconcernscanarouseresistance.Undertak-ingsthatconfusetheevaluativepotentialofassessmentwithitspotentialforsupportinginstitutionalstrengtheningmayalsorunaground.Preciselybecauseassessment,properlyconsidered,drivestotheheartofteachingandlearning,itsadaptationtoinstitutionalneedsmustbemanagedwithsensitivityandvision.
Somecommentatorsdescribean“accountabilityloop”—ausefulphraseifaccount-abilityisnotseensolelyasameansofattestingtocompliancewithminimalstandardsofadequacy.Ifaccountabilityisseenratherasameansbywhichaninstitutionremainsaccountabletoitself,toitsgoalsforstudentlearningandtheexpansionofknowledge,thenassessmentstandsasalynchpininacontinuingloopofqualityimprovementandasanemblemoftheacademy’sfreshcommitmenttoexamining,understanding,andincreasingitseffectiveness.
The Changing Roles of and Pressures on FacultyEarlyreviewsofthequalityofgeneraleducationprogramsfocusedprimarilyonthefacultywhotaughtthecoursesinthoseprograms.Morerecently,suchreviewshaveledtoconcernsabouttheefficacyofaprogramthatstandsalone.Educationcannottaketheformofasingleinoculation;itrequiresincremental“boostershots.”Earlyexposuretoimportantideas,skills,andvaluesiscritical,butrepeatedexposureprovidesimportantreinforcementandincreasingsophistication.Recenteffortsto“connect”generaleduca-
PartOne:GeneralEducation,LiberalEducation 15
tionwiththemajor,importantinthemselves,havethusyieldedanimportantinsight:allmembersofthefacultysharearesponsibilityfortheirstudents’liberallearning,andallhaveanimpact.Whethertheirdisciplinesareaccounting,history,ornursing,facultymembersatalllevelsofthecurriculumcanprovidereinforcementandpracticefortheirstudents’pursuitofliberallearningoutcomes.
Engagingfacultyinsharingresponsibilityforessentialoutcomesisnoteasy.Indeed,afacultymemberwhosededicationtoaparticulardisciplineadmitsnoacknowledgmentofasharedresponsibilityforliberallearningmayunderminethebroadlearninggoalstowhichaninstitutioniscommitted.Facultydevelopmentmaynotpersuadeallfacultytotakeanactiveinterestingeneraleducation,butcanbeeffectiveinhelpingfacultyappreciatetherolegeneraleducationplaysinsupportofthemajoroutcomes.Inpart4,whenwediscusshowthebenefitsofeffectivegeneraleducationmaybesustained,wewillconsidertheroleoffacultyacrosstheinstitutioninmoredetail,butforthepresentitbelongsinthisreviewofenvironmentalchangesthatdeserveourrecognition.
The New Learning EnvironmentThissurveyofchangingelementswithintheenvironmentofhighereducationhascoveredconsiderablegroundwithinashortspace.Aninfluentialnewconsensusoneducationaloutcomes,shiftingdemographicswithinthestudentbody,anincreasingappreciationfortheeducationalimportanceofdiversity,pressuresarisingfromdeclinesinfunding,theinfluenceoftechnology,theconsiderableexpansionoftheinfluenceofassessment,andagrowingrecognitionthatthefacultyandcurriculumasawholemusthelptoprovidethebenefitsofaliberaleducation—theseinfluencestakentogetherrep-resentapositiveenvironmentalshiftofseismicproportions.
Yetthereareotherenvironmentalelementsthatmighthavebeenexaminedaswell.Some,suchasthedesirableerosionofboundariesbetweenacademicofferingsandstu-dentlife,arementionedbelowinthediscussionofimportantprinciples.Others,suchastheinfluenceofnewapproachestoinstitutionalaccountingthatmayimposeincreased“productivity”demandsongeneraleducation,mustawaitanothervenue.Butwhatseemsabundantlyclearevenfromthisoverviewisthathighereducation—andgeneraleduca-tioninparticular—mustadaptinresponsibleandcreativewaystoachangedenviron-ment.Andthatiswhyclarityaboutthestrengthsidentifiedwithstronggeneraleducationprogramsiscritical.
PartTwo:GeneralEducationasCurricularCornerstone
Part twO: General Education as Curricular Cornerstone
Chapter21
Principles of Strong General Education Programs
Paul l. GastOn
General education programs that contribute significantly to liberal education outcomes em-body several principles. Programs that fall short can be strengthened by colleagues who observe and pursue such principles. In this chapter, we define such principles by paying attention to characteristics common to strong programs.
Whilestronggeneraleducationprogramsmaybehighlydistinctiveinsomeways,theytendalsotoexpressbroadlysharedprinciplesofgoodpractice.WhetherundertakenasaroadtriporasanInternetvoyage,atourofwidelyadmiredandoften-referencedprogramscanrevealsuchprinciplesandsuggestakindofmeasuringrod,orkanon,whichmaybeusefultoothers.Thischapterattendstofiveofthemostimportantofthefactorsthatap-peartosupportprogrammaticeffectiveness.
First,strongprogramsembodyandexpressaclearvisionforgeneraleducation,onegroundedinaninstitutionalcommitmenttothebenefitsofaliberaleducationforallstudents.Second,strongprogramsbenefitfrombroadunderstandingwithinthecollegeoruniversityoftheimportantrolesplayedingeneraleducationbyallinstitutionalconstituen-cies.Third,strongprogramscanpresentevidenceateverycurricularlevelofaconcernwitheffectivepedagogythatexpressesthepurposefulpursuitofexplicitlystatedlearningobjectives.Fourth,strongprogramsdemonstrateappreciationfortheroleofthecocur-riculuminenhancingandsustainingthegainsachievedintheclassroom.Finally,strongprogramsrequireandexpressstrongleadershipfrommanylevels.
Clarity of VisionIncallingforacommitmenttomakeexplicit“thepointofgeneraleducation,”Strong Foundationsestablishedafundamentalprinciple.Aneffectivegeneraleducationprogramnotonlyconveysits“point”butexplainswhyandhowitsparticularprioritieshavebeenchosen,howthedifferentelementsintheprogramcorrespondtothesepriorities,andhowitsstructurereflectsthosepriorities.Ideally,astudentshouldunderstandhowevery
17
18 General Education and Liberal Learning
classmeetingcontributestothelearninggoalsofeverycourseandhowcoursegoalsarerelatedtoprogrammaticgoals.
Soundprogramsdonotemergebyhappenstance.Theyexpressthedeliberatepursuitofadesignaimedatthatinstitution’svisionofawell-educatedgraduate.Forinstance,ifanaimoftheprogramisthatstudents“unifyandbringtogethertheirlearningacrosscourses,overtime,andbetweencurricularandcocurricularexperiences,”asattheUniversityofWisconsin–EauClaire,thestructureoftheprogrammustguidestudentsaccordinglysoastoensurethatsuchintegrationroutinelytakesplace.Similarly,programsthatemphasizelearningindepthmustdirectstudentsintoopportunitiesforrecursivelearning.Ifthepro-grampromisesthatstudentswilldevelopasenseofcivicresponsibility,itshouldleadstu-dentsintoappropriateactivities,reflection,andevaluation.Becausenogeneraleducationprogramcandoeverything,strongprogramsnecessarilyembodydifficultchoicesamongmanyappealingandworthyobjectives.Andtheyexplainthechoicesthathavebeenmadetostudentsandtothebroadercommunity.
Thatthismostbasicchallengeremainstobefulfilledonmanycampusesappearsbothinmusingswithininstitutionsandfromnationwidesurveys.Infact,manycampusesbegintheirreformeffortswhentheybecameawareofunfulfilledexpectations.TheprocessofgeneraleducationreformatNorthCarolinaStatebeganwithsomecandidadmissions:thecategoriesofofferingswithintheprogram,theobjectivesofthecategories,andthejustificationforcourseswithinthecategorieswere“unclear”(BrescianiandAndersonn.d.).Thus,thenewprogramimplementedinthesummerof2009hasclearobjectivesandoffersthemeanstoaccomplishthem.Acommitmentthatstudentslearntointegratedifferentdisciplinesnowappearsinanexplicitrequirementforinterdisciplinarystudy.
AnotherinstitutionthathasusedthereformofgeneraleducationtopromoteaclearerunderstandingofinstitutionalmissionistheUnitedStateMilitaryAcademyatWestPoint.12Consistentwithitsspecializedpurpose—theeducationofofficersfortheU.S.Army—WestPointhasrefineditsfocusonliberaleducationthroughanexpandedcorecurriculumandanemphasisoncurricularintegration.StudentsatWestPointcompleteathirty-coursegeneraleducationcorethatconstitutesalmost75percentoftheiracademicexperience.Whileacoreofthissizeisnotcommonamongcollegesanduniversities,WestPoint’smissionrequiresthatitsstudentsbebroadlyeducatedsothattheycanbecomeself-directedlearnerscapableofapplyingknowledgetonewsituations.Andsince2005,theacademy’sfocusonintegrativelearninghasledtoalinkingofhistoryandlanguagecoursestopromotethedeepexplorationofglobalconnections.Givenplanstointegratemoreoftheacademy’sthirteenacademicdepartments,theroleofintegrativelearningislikelytobecomeevenmorecharacteristicofWestPoint’smissioninthefuture.
Clarityofvisionneednotrequireachangeinaprogram,butmaybeachievedthroughrenewedcommitmentandcommunicationwithstudents.BrownUniversityrecentlyrevisited
2 Thisandmanyoftheotherexamplesofexemplarypracticeingeneraleducationdescribedinthispub-licationaredrawnfromfeaturestoriesoriginallypublishedinAAC&U’smonthlymemberpublication,AAC&U News.The AAC&U Newsarchivemaybeviewedonlineatwww.aacu.org/aacu_news/archives/archive10.cfm.
North CaroliNa State UNiverSity
raleigh, North CaroliNa
Looking Inward to Improve Intentionality
AtNorthCarolinaState,reform-ingthegeneraleducationpro-grammeantlookinginwardfirst:administratorsacknowledgedthatthecategoriesofofferingswithinthegeneraleducationprogram,theobjectivesofthecategories,andthejustificationforcourseswithinthecategorieswereallunclear.Asaresult,thenewprogram,implementedinthesummerof2009,setsexplicitexpectationsforstudents,anddetailshowtheywillintegratedifferentacademicdisciplinesthroughaninterdisciplinarystudyrequirement.
UNited StateS Military aCadeMy WeSt PoiNt, NeW york
An Interdisciplinary Core
AtWestPoint,studentscom-pleteathirty-coursegeneraleducationcorethatconstitutesalmost75percentoftheiracademicexperience.Whilecorerequirementsofthissizeareunusualatliberalartscol-leges,oneofWestPoint’smainacademicgoalsforstudentsisthattheybecomeself-directedlearnerscapableofapplyingknowledgetonewsituations.Thecorecoursesarehighlyinterdisciplinaryandincludeaspecialfocusonintegratingforeignlanguagewithhistoryandglobalstudies.
SaiNt loUiS CoMMUNity College SaiNt loUiS, MiSSoUri
Sound Preparation for a Four-Year Degree
AtallfourbranchesofSaintLouisCommunityCollege,studentsworkingtowardanas-sociateofartsdegreebeginwithacornerstonecoursethathelpsthemseethegoalsofgeneraleducationandhowtheyfitintothecollegeexperience.Then,inadditiontoskillscoursesinmathematicsandcommunica-tion,studentschoosefromthreecategories—artsandhumanities,socialandbehav-ioralscience,andscience—tobuildaforty-two-credit-hourgeneraleducationprogram.Studentscompletetheirgeneraleducationexperiencewithacapstonecoursethatincludesafinalprojectandpreparesthemtotransfertoafour-yearschool.StudentswhocompletetheentiregeneraleducationprogramareassuredthattheirgeneraleducationcreditswillbeacceptedatanyMissouripublicinstitution.
PartTwo:GeneralEducationasCurricularCornerstone 19
acurriculumlongnotableforitslackofspecificgeneraleducationrequirements.Workingwithinthistradition,ataskforceclarifiedtheinstitution’slearninggoalswithaneyetowardensuringthatBrownstudentsbecomeintentionallearnerswithaclearviewofwhattheyaretryingtoaccomplishthroughtheirstudies.Oneresultisastatement,“LiberalLearningatBrown,”thatdefinesspecificlearninggoalsstudentsareexpectedtoachievebeforegradua-tionandsuggestswaysthatstudentscanprogresstowardthesegoals—allwithoutmandatingspecificclassesordistributionrequirements(BrownOfficeoftheDeanoftheCollege2008).Otheroutcomesofthetaskforce’sworkincluderecommendationsforamorerobustadvis-ingprogramandforane-portfoliorequirementthatasksstudentstoreflectsystematicallyontheireducationalchoicesandtheintentionsbehindthem(Donnelly-Smith2008).
Intheseandmanyotherinstitutions,clearawarenessoftheimportantroleofgeneraleducationasacurricularcornerstoneconfersmanyadditionalbenefits.Students,faculty,andcocurriculardirectorscanfindbothdirectionandmotivationinasharedconviction.Theinstitutioncantellitsstorymorepersuasivelytopotentialstudents,newfaculty,anddonors.Andthegroundforcontinuousimprovementandadvancementoftheinstitutionissolid.
Commitment to CoherenceAlltoooften,generaleducationprograms“striveforeducationalcoherence”byfoistingontostudentstheresponsibilityforachievingit.Butaspart3willexploreinmoredetail,unlessthestructureoftheprogramandthefacultyteachingwithinitenablestudentstoun-derstandtherationalebehindtherequirementstheymustsatisfy,fewstudentsarelikelytoachievetheobjective.Afterreadingthroughthecatalogcopydescribinggeneraleducationathisinstitution,commentatorMarkBauerleinobservesthattherhetoricofcoherencedirectedatstudentsmayfallondeafears.Studentsarelikelytoregardan“array”ofgeneraleducationcourses“asmerelyabunchofrandom,disconnectedcoursesoutsidetheirmajor...abunchofheterogeneoushoopstopassthrough”(Bauerlein2009).
Bycontrast,BardCollegeleaveslittletochance.Principlesofcurricularcoherencefirstappearinathree-weekintensiveintroductiontotheliberalartsandsciences,areregularlyreinforcedthroughafirst-yearseminarprogram,andareembeddedinthecurriculumitself.Allfirst-yearstudentsatBardspendthethreeweekspriortothestartoffallsemes-terintheLanguageandThinkingProgram,inwhichsmallgroupsofstudents,undertheguidanceoffacultymembers,completereadings,discussions,andwritingprojectsthathelpthemunderstandthegoalsandintendedoutcomesofaBardeducation.Studentsthenpar-ticipateinyearlongfirst-yearseminarsthatintroducethe“importantintellectual,cultural,andartisticideasthatserveasabasisfortheliberalartseducation.”Inthesecondyear,aprogramcalledModerationrequiresstudentstoreflectontheireducationalexperienceastheymovetowardin-depthstudyoftheirmajor,andarequiredseniorcapstoneprojecttiestogetherfouryearsoflearning.
SaintLouisCommunityCollege’sapproachtogeneraleducationcouldofferanexampleofcurricularcoherencetomanyinstitutions.Studytowardtheassociateofartsdegreebeginswithacornerstonecoursethatintroducesprinciplesofcollegestudy—including“howtoex-ploreethicalchoices,understandandargueyourownpointofview,andunderstandtheargu-
20 General Education and Liberal Learning
mentsofothers.”Then,inadditiontoskillscoursesinmathematicsandcommunication,stu-dentschoosefromthreecategories—artsandhumanities,socialandbehavioralscience,andscience—tobuildaforty-two-credit-hourprogram.Studentscompletetheirgeneraleducationexperiencewithacapstonecourse“thathelpsbringallthedisciplinestogether”andprovidesaplatformfortransfertoabaccalaureateinstitution(SaintLouisCommunityCollege).
Dedication to Educating Responsible CitizensCollegesanduniversitiesthatbuildthebaccalaureatecurriculumaroundastronggeneraleducationcornerstonetypicallyexpressavisionofgeneraleducationthatembodiesbothrecognizedoutcomesandprogrammaticcharacteristicsthatsupportsuchoutcomes.Theseoutcomesmayexpressdifferentemphasesfromoneinstitutiontoanother,butincreas-inglytheyreflectthedevelopingconsensusexpressedintheessentiallearningoutcomesasarticulatedbyAAC&U.Theseneednotbefurthersummarizedhere,butthreeinparticulardeserveattention,astheyemphasizetheimportanceofabroadinstitutionalcommitmenttocommunityinmanyforms.Brieflystated,suchprinciplesincludeanappreciationfortheroleofgeneraleducationinfosteringasenseofsocialresponsibility,agrasponimportantexperientialdimensionsoflearningwithinandbeyondtheclassroom,andarecognitionoftheextenttowhicheffectivegeneraleducationmayfosterahealthieracademiccommunity.
Social ResponsibilityThediscussionofgeneraleducationthroughthepastfifteenyearshasmovedbeyondtheassumptionthatstrong“value-based”programs“teachsocialresponsibility”toamoreencompassingperspective:studentsshouldhavetheopportunitytodevelopwithinandbeyondtheclassroominformedandself-reflectivevaluesthatemphasizeagenerousunderstandingofcommunityandpersonalresponsibility.Assuggestedintheessentiallearningoutcomes,thatunderstandingshouldincludecivicknowledgeandengage-ment—localandglobal,interculturalknowledgeandcompetence,thecapacityforethicalreasoningandaction,andafoundationforlifelonglearning.
MichiganStateUniversity(MSU)seekstoachievethesecapacitiesthroughanap-proachthatwilleventuallyspanthefullbaccalaureatecurriculum.ACarnegie-designated“engageduniversity,”MSUhasdevelopedanongoingseriesofcollaborativecampusdia-loguesbasedontheexampleofthehistoricChautauquaInstitution.Theprogramoffersamodelforbuildingacultureofresponsibilitywithintheresidentialcollegesandhastwogoals:theexplorationofpersonal,social,andinstitutionalresponsibility,andthedevelop-mentofcoursesthataddressthelargersubjectofresponsibilityitself.Housedwithinsev-eralofMSU’sresidentialcolleges,theChautauquadialoguesbringtogethersmallgroupsofstudents,facultymembers,staffmembers,andguestsfordialogueaboutaspecifictopicatregularmeetingsoverthespanofasemester.RecentChautauquatopicshaveincludedsustainabilityandhumanrights;MartinLutherKingJr.,equality,andjustice;andcreativity,economicdevelopment,andethics.FacultymembersarecurrentlyusingtheChautauquamodeltoreframecapstonecoursesalreadyrequiredforundergraduatestudentsbyimbeddingwithinthemafocusonpersonalandsocialresponsibility.
MiChigaN State UNiverSity
eaSt laNSiNg, MiChigaN
Dialogues for Social Responsibility
MichiganStateUniversity(MSU)seeksforitsstudentstounderstandsocialrespon-sibilitythroughanapproachthatwilleventuallyspanthefullbaccalaureatecurricu-lum.InMSU’sTwenty-FirstCenturyChautauquaprogram,basedontheexampleofthehistoricChautauquaInstitu-tion,studentsparticipateinanongoingseriesofcollaborativecampusdialoguesontopicslikesustainabilityandhumanrights.Theprogram,housedwithintworesidentialcolleges,offersamodelforbuildingacultureofresponsibility,andcatalyzesthedevelopmentofcoursesthataddresstheresponsibilitymorebroadly.
21PartTwo:GeneralEducationasCurricularCornerstone
Experiential LearningAsStrong Foundationsproposed,generaleducationprogramscan“closethegapbetweenloftyprogramaspirationsandtheirlimitedroleintheformalcurriculum”bytakinggreateradvan-tageof“theextraordinaryresourcesforlearningthatalreadyexistinthevariedactivitiesinthedailylivesofstudents”(AAC1994).Strongprogramsdoincludeattentiontococurricularexperiences.Buttoanincreasingextent,effectiveprogramsofferopportunitiesforlearningthatnotonlycomplementthecurriculumbutalsoarehighlyintentional,intellectuallysub-stantive,closelylinkedtocurricularcontent,andrichincommunityengagement.
Amongtheimportantadvancesincocurricularlearningarewhatcanbecalled“living–learningcommunities,”“residentialcolleges,”orcollege-basedhousing.Someprogramsoperatewithreferencetoafirst-year-experienceprogramorincludefreshmaninterestgroups.Somemayexpressafocusonparticulardisciplines.Othersmayembodyabroadinterdisciplinaryfocusorcontributetocampusoutreach.Inanyevent,suchundertakingsservetoblurthedistinctionbetweentheclassroomandcampusexperiencesbyprovidingopportunitiesforlearninginbothvenues.
Asappreciationforthemeaningofa“practical”liberaleducationdevelopsoncam-puses,manyprogramsmakeanexplicitcommitmenttoengagementandpublicserviceinordertoturnideasintoactionandtheoryintopractice.AtOhioStateUniversity,forinstance,servicelearningisdefinedas“aformofexperientialeducationcharacterizedbystudentparticipationinanorganizedserviceactivitythatisconnectedtospecificlearningoutcomes,meetsidentifiedcommunityneeds,[and]providesstructuredtimeforstudentreflectionandconnectionoftheserviceexperiencetolearning”(OhioStateUniversity).AtMillsapsCollegeinMississippi,whichwasnamedin2008and2009tothePresident’sHigherEducationCommunityServiceHonorRoll,“studentsrecognizethatthereismoretolifethanjustconcentratingonthemselves.TheyareinterestedinservingothersandtheCollegeencouragesthisbylinkingclassestoneedsinthecommunitytofostergrowththroughservice”(MississippiEconomicCouncil2009).
Whilemuchoftheactivityinservicelearningfallswithinthedisciplines,theimplica-tionsforgeneraleducationarestriking.AtRhodesCollege,acommitmenttoexperientiallearning,evidentinitstraditionofcommunityservice,hasinformedimplementationofanewgeneraleducation“Foundations”curriculum.Insteadofdistributionrequirements,thecurriculumembodieselevenfoundationsofliberallearning,oneofwhichis“participa-tioninactivitiesthatbroadenconnectionsbetweentheclassroomandtheworld”(RhodesCollege2007).Thisfoundationrequiresthatstudentsparticipatein“outsidethegates”experientiallearningactivitiesandthattheyworkwithfacultytoconnecttheseactivitiestotheirclassroomlearning.Makingthiscommitmentevenmoreexplicit,startinginfallof2008,Rhodes’s“ScholarshipstoFellowships”initiativeconvertedallmeritscholarshipstofellowshipswithstructuredout-of-classexperientialcomponents.
Finally,thereisthetechnicaldimensionofout-of-classroomlearning.Supportivecoursedeliverysoftwarenowenablesclassmemberstosustaintheirdiscussionsbetweenclassmeetings,tocollaborateonscholarship,toconsultwithinstructorsandoneanother,andtomonitortheirperformance.Effectivegeneraleducationprogramsmakeeffectiveuseofsuchtechnologyto“reachbeyondtheclassroom”atallhoursoftheday.
rhodeS College
MeMPhiS, teNNeSSee
Connecting Experience with Classroom Learning
AtRhodes,thegeneraleduca-tioncurriculumisbuiltoneleven“foundations”ofliberallearning.Onefoundation,“par-ticipationinactivitiesthatbroadenconnectionsbetweentheclassroomandtheworld,”requiresstudentstocompleteexperientiallearningprojectswithinthecommunityandworkwithfacultymemberstoconnecttheprojectstotheirclassroomlearning.Inthefallof2008,thecollegealsotrans-formedallscholarshipsintofellowshipsthatincludestruc-turedout-of-classexperientialcomponents.
22 General Education and Liberal Learning
Academic CommunityThevisionsetforthinStrong Foundationsofastrongersenseofcommunityarisingfrom“faculty-studentinteraction”remainscompellingandshouldremainasapriority.Butthatpriorityhasgrownlargerintworespects.First,amoreinclusiveunderstandingoftheacademiccommunity,onethatseeksgreaterconsultationandcollaborationamongallelementswithinaninstitution,nowincludesnotonlythefacultyandstudents,butalsothoseengagedinstudentlife,inresidentialservices,inuniversityrelations,andincampusdesign.Ensuringproductiveinterchangeamongstudents,betweenstudentsandfaculty,andamongfacultyremainsattheheartofthiscommitment,ofcourse,andanenlargedun-derstandingofhowstudentslearnhaserodedthefamiliardistinctionbetween“academic”and“nonacademic.”
Second,ithasbecomeclearthatasenseofacademiccommunityrestsmostsecurelyonasharedcommitmenttoqualityandimprovement.The1994callforprograms“consciouslydesignedsothattheywillcontinuetoevolve”stilloffersanimportantreminderthatliberallearningandthewaysinwhichitisofferedcannotandshouldnotberegardedasfixed,butratherassubjecttocontinuingexaminationandtransformation.Andbecausesuchexaminationmustreflectthecommitmentofthecollegeoruniversityasawhole,programsshouldnotonly“evolve”butalsoreflecttheclearintentoftheacademiccommunityinbecomingprogressivelymoreeffective.
TheapproachofHostosCommunityCollege–CityUniversityofNewYorktogeneraleducationillustratesan“organic”approachtolearningthatcanstrengthenasenseofaca-demiccommunitythroughthedefinitionofeducationaloutcomestranscendingtheformalcurriculum.Havingintroducedanewgeneraleducationcurriculumbuiltaroundlearningcompetencies,thecollegein2007celebratedthe“YearofGeneralEducation”byexploringquestionssuchas,Whatdoesitmeantobehuman?Whatiscultureandhowdoweunder-standit?Howdowecrosslinguisticandculturalborders?Aseriesofminigrantsawardedtofacultymemberspromptedpedagogicalinnovationscalled“beautifulideas,”intendedtorefocusexistingcoursesaroundtheschool’scorelearningcompetencies.Throughouttheprocess,Hostosfacultyandadministratorshaveattemptedtoensurethatvoicesfromallpartsofthecollege—includingnonacademicstaff—areheard.Arecentcurricularmeet-ingonpreparationforagrantapplication,opentotheentirecollegecommunity,attractedbothfacultymembersandnonacademicstaffincludingcafeteriaworkers,electricians,andgroundsworkers.
Inordertosustainthepursuitof“anevolvingvision,”strongprogramsmeasuretheirprogressandreflectupontheresults.Theseimportantcommitmentsarenowviewedaslinksinabroaderrecurringcyclesupportingqualitativedevelopment.Therearemanyinterpretationsofthiscycle,butmostembodyatleastfiveelements:(1)clearstatementsofintendedlearningoutcomesassociatedwiththebaccalaureate,withthegeneraleducationprogram,withthevariousmajors,andwitheverycourseinthecurriculum;(2)theapplica-tionofappropriatemethodsformeasuringtheextenttowhichtheseoutcomesarebeingaccomplished;(3)interpretationoftheresultsofsuchmeasurements,leadingtorecom-mendationsformodificationsinexpectations,structures,ormeansofdelivery;(4)theimplementationofsuchrecommendations;and(5)theroutinerecommencementofthe
hoStoS CoMMUNity College–City UNiverSity of NeW york
BroNx, NeW york
Highlighting the Relevance of General Education
HostosCommunityCollegede-clared2007the“YearofGeneralEducation”andsought,throughmonthlyactivities,toemphasizehowgeneraleducationcompe-tenciesarerelevanttoallfacetsofacademicandcommunitylife.Administratorsalsoseektoensurethatallofthecollegecommunity’svoices—includingthoseofnonacademicstaff—areheard.Acurricularmeetingonpreparationforagrantapplication,opentotheentirecollegecommunity,attractednonacademicstaffincludingcafeteriaworkers,electricians,andgroundsworkers.
23PartTwo:GeneralEducationasCurricularCornerstone
cycle.Theobjectsofarasgeneraleducationisconcernedisclear:programsthatareincreas-inglyinviting,coherent,andeffective.Inpursuitofthisprinciple,thereisreallyonlyoneimportantquestion:isthegeneraleducationprogrambecomingprogressivelystronger?Inthesharedpursuitofthatquestionliesanimportantsourceofacademiccommunity.
Appreciation for the Educational Value of the CocurriculumThoseengagedineffectivegeneraleducationprogramsunderstandthatfacultymembersandthelearningtheysupportarenotsolelyresponsibleforitsoutcomes.Theyhavevaluablealliesamongthosewhoteachinthemajors,tobesure,buttheyhaveotherimportantalliesaswell.Formanystudents,vitallearningtakesplacenotonlyintheclassroomandlibrary,butalsoinstudentorganizations,inwork–studypositions,inresidencehalldiscussions,inintramuralathletics,incommunityengagement—theopportunitiestoreinforceessentiallearningoutcomesaremany.Eachofthesearenascanbevitaltoenhancingandsustaininggeneraleducationoutcomes.Residentialcampusesmayhaveanadvantageinpromotingengagement,butalltypesofcampuseswithbothfull-timeandpart-timestudentsareincreas-inglyawareoftheroleofcocurricularactivitiesinanoverallcultureofengagement.
Itshouldnotbesurprisingthatcollegesanduniversitiesofferingexemplaryprogramsingeneraleducationdemonstrateproportionateattentiontostudentexperiencesoutsidetheclassroom.Inlightofanexplicitboardoftrusteescommitmentto“people,programsandfacilitiesthatstrengthenacademicexcellenceineachofourschoolsandcolleges,”ataskforceoncampuslifeatWillametteUniversityobserves,“wearenotwell-servedifthevariouscollegeconstituenciesthinkintermsof‘academics’vs.sociallife”(WillametteUni-versity2001).Indeed,saysthereport,“totheextentthatweactasthoughacademicandsociallifearedistinctandevenantagonisticspheres,weundercutoureffortstoachievetherangeofobjectivesthatwehavesetineducatingourstudents.”Inresponse,thecam-pusdevelopedaplanforresidentialcommonscomplexes,acommunityoffraternityandsororityhouses,andanewstudentcenterdesignedtoencourageconsistentattentivenesstotheinstitution’seducationalobjectivesandhowtheymaybestbeservedthroughaco-curriculumoffering“asubstantialfacultypresence.”Theaimispreciselythatof“connect-ingthecurricularandcocurricularlivesofWillamettestudents”(WillametteUniversityOfficeofCampusLife).
Advancesincreatingconnectionarenotonlyforresidentialcampuses.Manyotherexamplesareappropriateforalltypesofcampusesandstudentbodies;culturalartsseries,internationalprograms,studentgovernment,leadershipacademies,opportunitiesforvolun-teerwork,artshows,andtheaterperformancesareallpartofcampuslife.
Someactivitiesaimforenrichment,whileothersdirectlyreinforceclassroomlearn-ing.Forexample,bothfacultymembersandstudentaffairsstaffmakeeffortstosupportstudentmedia,debatetournaments,ModelUnitedNations,undergraduateresearchconferences,andothertypesofprojectsthatrequiretheapplicationofclassroomlearn-inginnewvenues.Anumberofcampuses,suchastheUniversityofTexasatElPaso,goonestepfurtherbyprovidingstudentswithasupplementarytranscriptthatrecordstheircocurricularaccomplishments.
WillaMette UNiverSity
SaleM, oregoN
Making Cocurricular Life Connect
AdministratorsandtrusteesatWillametteUniversityrecog-nizedtheeducationalvalueofthecocurriculuminataskforcereportthatstated,“wearenotwell-servedifthevariouscollegeconstituenciesthinkintermsof‘academics’vs.sociallife.”Inplanningcampusrenovations,theuniversitydesigneditsKanekoresidentialcommonstoincludevarioushousingcommunitiesthataregovernedbytheirresidents,asignificantfacultypresence,andastudentcenterofferingfilms,alectureseries,andexperientiallearningactivitiestopromotestudentinvolvementbothinthecom-monsandinthelargerSalemcommunity.
24 General Education and Liberal Learning
Assessmentactivitiesalsohavebeguntofocusonthecocurriculum,andtheresultsrevealthatgeneraleducationgoalssuchasglobalunderstanding,aestheticappreciation,andoralcommunicationaredevelopedandreinforcedincocurricularactivities.Inshort,stronggeneraleducationprogramsacknowledgeandworkwiththecocurriculum.
Visionary Leadership Stronggeneraleducationprogramsbeginandendwiththefaculty.Buttheydonotcomeintobeingwithoutastuteleadershipatalllevels—administrators,facultymembers,students.ArecentAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversitiespublication,Revising General Education—and Avoiding the Potholes (GastonandGaff2009),makescleartheimportanceofadministrativeleaderswhoofferconspicuous,well-informedsupportandoffacultylead-erswhoworkastutelywithintheinstitution’spoliticalenvironment.Theengagementofstu-dentleadersincurricularreformcanprovideavaluableadditionaldimension.Consistentleadershipisnecessarytopromoterevisionsaswellastomaintainthecentralityandvitalityofgeneraleducation.
Effectivegeneraleducationthereforeembodiestworelatedprinciples.First,anycurricularreformeffortlikelytosucceedmustenjoythevisiblebackingoftheuniversity’sadministrativeleadership.Thiscantakemanyforms.Adequatefundingforthegeneraleducationofferingis,ofcourse,paramount,butawillingnesstoreassignfacultytimetocur-ricularpriorities,tosupportfacultytraveltoinstitutionswithmodelprograms,andtoinvestinfacultydevelopmentsendsastrongmessage.Second,facultyandstudentleadersmusttakethepoliticsofsuchreformseriouslybyplanningapproacheslikelytosecureapprovalfromtheircolleagues,byanticipatingandbridgingorcircumventinglikelypotholes,andbydedicatingthemselvestothenecessaryfollowthrough.Whilestrongacademicprogramsshouldbethe sine qua nonforattractingandmaintainingsupportthroughouttheaca-demiccommunity,thoseworkingwithinandcommittedtosuchprogramscannottakesuchsupportforgranted.Strategiestocultivatesuchsupportthrougheffectivecommunicationandtheengagementofimportantconstituenciesmustrepresentacontinuingpriorityforthosegenuinelyinterestedinbuildingandsustainingeffectivegeneraleducationprograms.
Thereisnoquestionthatittakestimetodevelopinterestandgarnersupportforchange.Thatapoliticandsavvyapproachcanbeaccomplishedwithreasonabledispatch,however,appearsintheprocessofgeneraleducationreformpursuedbytheUniversityofGeorgia.AtaskforceongeneraleducationandstudentlearningconvenedinSeptember2004reporteditsrecommendationselevenmonthslater,atwhichpointtheuniversitymobi-lizedtoimplementthem.Inthefollowingyear,asasubcommitteemetregularlytodevelopanewgeneraleducationframework,itregularlyshareddraftsofitswork,soughtinputfromthefaculty,andsponsoredforumsopentoallmembersoftheacademiccommunity.Inthefallof2006,justtwoyearsafterthetaskforcefirstconvened,theplanwasapprovedbytheuniversity’scurricularbody,itsgovernancebody,anditspresident.Coursessinceapprovedforofferinginthenewcorecurriculumarenowbeingtaught.
25PartThree:EffectivePracticesinGeneralEducation
Part three: Effective Practices in General Education
Chapter31
Intentionality ann s. Ferren
General education programs should suggest intentionality at every level: the program itself, its constituent elements (first-year programs, learning communities, capstone courses), and individual courses.
Inthesimplestpossibleterms,effectivegeneraleducationdependsoninstitutions,facultymembers,andstudentswhohaveaclearidearegardingwhatistobeaccom-plishedandadeliberateandrealisticapproachtoassuringthataccomplishmentinfactoccurs.
Themajorimpetusforreformofgeneraleducationsometwenty-fiveyearsagowastheclaimthatmostprogramslacked“coherence”andsharednowidelyagreed-uponcontentandskills(AAC1985).Muchoftheattentionfollowingthatcritiquefocusedonprescribing“whatstudentsshouldknow,”andsignificantdebatesaboutspecificcoursesandreadingssometimesovershadowedotherissues.Institutionswithcarefullystructuredprogramstaughtbyfull-timefacultyandfocusedonfirst-yearseminars,sequencedcores,andintegrativethemes—suchasColumbiaUniversityandSaintJoseph’sCollegeinIndi-ana—demonstratedthatgeneraleducationcouldbeacoherentandmemorablepartofastudent’seducation.
Butsomeprogramsregardedasexemplarycouldofferonlylimitedevidencethattheeducationalexperiencestheyofferedwereindeedsuperior.Strong Foundations (AAC1994)wasthefirstmulticampusstudythatteasedouttheelementsofeffectiveandsustainableprogramsandprovidedexamplesfrommanydifferentsizesandtypesofcampuses.Thestudydidnotclaimthataparticularstructuralelementorspecificcontentwasbetterthananother,butratherconfirmedtheimportanceoffacultyengagingincontinuousreflectivedialogueaboutthepurposesoftheprogram;workingtogethertostressconnectionsacrosscourses,skills,anddisciplines;anddevelopingbroadcommu-nitysupportandleadershiptosustainthevitalityofaprogram.
Reformeffortscontinuetobesupportedbyevidencethatstudentsbenefitfromin-tentionalstructures,sequencedlearning,goodadvising,engagingpedagogy,andregu-larassessment.Studiesofthestudentexperiencebegunintheearly1990sbyscholarssuchasRichardLightandGeorgeKuhhaveconfirmedthatalltypesofstudentsneed
Ann s. Ferren is provost at the American University in Bulgaria. She is the coauthor of LeadershipthroughCollaboration(Praeger, 2004).
26 General Education and Liberal Learning
guidanceintheireducationalplanningsothattheyexperienceaclearbeginning,middle,andculmination.Thustheterm“intentionality”hascometobeassociatedwithgeneraleducationprogramsthatdeliberatelyassiststudentsintheirtransitionfromsecondaryschooltocollegeandthenguidethemthroughincreasinglychalleng-ingcourseworkthatisconnectedtothemajorcourseofstudy,tococurricularexperi-ences,andtopersonalaspirations(AAC&U2002).
Themostrecentworkoncurricularimpacthasfurtherclarifiedthatlineardevelop-mentandstructurearenotenough.Norcanonecourseorexperiencebringthedesiredresults(AAC&U2005).Connectionsacrossdisciplinesarenecessarytoencourageanalyticandintegrativethinking.Collaborativeworkonreal-worldchallengesleadstocreativityandproblemsolving.Andmultipleopportunitiesforapplicationandpracticereinforcecollege-levellearningandthecapacitiesnecessaryforlifelonglearning.Ascampusesalignoutcomeswithstructuralandpedagogicalelements,itshouldnotbesurprisingthatmanyadvisingdocumentsarenolongerchecklistsofrequirementsbutflowchartsanddiagramsshowingrelationshipsamongcourseclusters,skills,andin-classandout-of-classexperiences.Thestudent?Atthecenter!
Studentsnowfarmoreoftenreceiveencouragementtobuildportfoliosoftheirlearningexperiencesaccordingtoaguidingschematicthatrepresentstheirbaccalaure-ateaims.Andcurricularmapsoutliningwhichcoursesintroduceaskillorknowledgearea,whichcoursesdevelopitfurther,andatwhatpointmasteryisexpectedcanenablebothfacultymembersandstudentstounderstandhowpartsarerelatedtothewhole.Ideally,advising,assessment,andstudentservicesarealsodesignedtohelpstudentsunderstandtheiroptionsincollege,theconnectionsamongtheirexperiences,andtheirprogresstowardlearningoutcomes.Inshort,intentionalityrepresentsafocusedefforttohelpstudentsbemoremindfulnotonlyofgeneraleducationbutofallaspectsofthecollegeexperience.
Intentionality Must Focus on Students Changesinourunderstandingofgeneraleducationhavenotcomeeasily.Becausefewfacultymembersreceivepreparationincurriculardesign,pedagogy,orlearningtheoryaspartoftheirgraduateeducation,theytendtorelyontheirownexperiencewithintheirowndisciplinesinorganizingandpresentingtheircourses.AsLattucaandStarkobserve(2009),itisnowonder,then,thatgeneraleducationreformtakessolong.Itisdifficulttocreateconsensuswhenfacultymemberscometothetablewithdifferentperspectives.Forexample,themathematicianthinksofcurriculaassequential,whereastheteacherofpoetrymayfindprerequisitesunimportant.Ageneraleducationplan-ninggroupthatincludesrepresentativesfrommanydisciplinesandcollegesmayfindthatreachingagreementonacommonsenseofcoherenceisachallenge.Theonlyprinciplesharedbythemembersmaybethedesireto“protectturf”orensurethatcertaincoursesareincludedintheproposedprogram.
Incontrast,whenfacultymembersintentionallydesigncurriculaaroundtheneedsofstudentsinthecontextofdevelopmentalandconstructivistlearningtheories,they
27Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
mayunderstandthatageneraleducationprogramguidedbydesiredoutcomes—suchasthosedefinedthroughthemultiyearworkoftheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversity’sLiberalEducationandAmerica’sPromiseproject—ispreferabletoaprogramwithbroaddistributionrequirements.Institutionsthatadoptoutcomes-directedprogramsaccepttheirrightfulresponsibilityforcoherenceandintegrationratherthansimplyassumethatstudentswillsomehowdrawtogetherthedisparateelementsoftheireducationalexperience.
Suchacceptanceofresponsibilityattheinstitutionallevelisespeciallyimportantgiventhebroaddiversityofstudentsandtheirneeds.Althoughthereislittleagreementastothecharacteristicsoftheso-called“millennialgeneration,”facultymemberscannotignorethegrowingimpactthatsocialnetworking,cellphonechatter,andTwitteringhasonrelationshipsandconceptsoftimeandspace.Thisgenerationofstudentshasbeendescribedasmulti-taskers,aspressuredtoachieve,asconfidentthattheyarespecial,asassertiveoftheirrights,andasfearfulofnotbelonging(StraussandHowe2003).Inaddition,aschapter1observed,studentsareincreasinglydiverseinage,background,culture,experience,andpreparation.Insuchacomplexenvironment,whiletheremaybeno“best”structurefortheelementsofgeneraleducation,“any”structurewillnotdo.Strongprograms—astheyreflectawarenessofstudents’identities,howtheyaccesstheprogram,andhowtheylearn—embodyinstitutionalintentinconnectingoptionsandexperiencesinmeaningfulwaysforaspecificcampusandspecificlearners.
The Importance of the First Year Thewidevarietyoffirst-year-experienceprogramsdemonstrateshowdifferentformatscanservedifferentpurposes.Somecampusesofferacritical-inquiryseminaronachal-lengingtopicsuchasclimatechangetoemphasizeforstudentsthetransitionfromhighschool–leveltocollege-levellearning.Othercampuseshelpstudentsformabondwiththeinstitutionbyusingsmallfirst-yearseminarstolinkadvisingandcoursework.Othersstressacademicandsocialdevelopmentbyencouragingstudentstoregisterforaclusterofcourseswithinafreshmaninterestgroup,asmallcommunitywithinthelargeruniver-sity.Increasingly,programsinitiatedtoeasetransitionandencouragepersistencehaveevolvedtoincludethelargerpurposeofhelpingstudentsdefinetheirgoalsfromtheoutsetandassumeresponsibilityforpursuingthem.Suchprogramsnolongerask,whatdowewantthemtoknowandbeabletodo?Theyaskinstead,whatdo theywanttoknowandbeabletodo?Thegoalistohelpstudentsbecomeintentionalabouttheirlearning.
Thefirstyearalsooffersimportantopportunitiesforstudentstoconnecttothelargercommunitybeyondtheclassroomandtheinstitution.Throughbothindividualchallengesandcollaborativeactivities,studentscometounderstandthemselvesmorefully,torecognizewhatcanbelearnedfromothers,toexperiencereciprocityandteamwork,andtotesttheirabilitytoovercomeparochialthinkingandrespecttheideasofothers.Tohelpachievetheseimportantoutcomes,elementssuchasservicelearning,volunteerwork,acontroversialspeakerseries,orintentionallydiverselearningandlivingarrangementsmaybeplannedforthefirstyear.Whilenotalwaysidentifiedasdirectly
28 General Education and Liberal Learning
linkedtogeneraleducation,suchstrategiescansupporttheaccomplishmentofgeneraleducationgoals.
Withinstronggeneraleducationprograms,effectivefirst-yearprogramsserveasathresholdtosustainedprogramming.UnlikecampusesdisappointedbyNationalSurveyofStudentEngagementfindingssuggestingadeclineinstudentengagementafterthefirstyear,institutionssuchasEvergreenStateCollege,AlvernoCollege,andWagnerCollegesustainahighlevelofinvolvementbyarticulatinghowexpectationsestablishedinthefirstyearwillbecontinuedthroughoutthesubsequentyearsofthecollegecareer.Assessmentactivitiesareusedtotrackeffectivenessattheendofeachyearrelativetobenchmarksestablishedforeachprogramobjective.Monitoringlearningsequencesthroughtranscriptanalysiscanalsorevealwhetherstudentsareexperiencingthegainsfromthecurriculumandcocurriculumthattheinstitutionseekstoensure.
Developing, Extending, and Mastering Transferable SkillsAtruismforgeneraleducationprogramsisthat“thewholeshouldbegreaterthanthesumoftheparts.”Yetcriticsoftheundergraduateexperiencefindinprogramsevidenceofagoodstartandastrongfinishbuta“muddleinthemiddle.”Intentionallydesignedprogramsaddressthisconcernbyframingwhatshouldhappennotjustinthefirstyearbutalsointhesecond,third,andfourthyears.Educationis,asitshouldbe,cumula-tive,withopportunitiesforreinforcementatmanystages.Ofcourse,forthattohappen,facultymembersneedtoworktogethersothattheirstudentscanintegratetheworktheydoandbuildonitfromcoursetocourseandyeartoyear.Forexample,FranklinPierceCollegeorganizesitsgeneraleducationrequirementssequentiallysothatallstudentstaketheminthesameorderinthefirstthreeyears.
Althoughweknowthatstudentslearnmosteffectivelyfrompractice,repetition,andmultipleexposures,thisidealcanbedifficulttoachieve.Ittakestimeandcommit-mentforfacultymemberstodesigncoursestogether,toaligntheirreadingsandwritingassignments,andtoincorporateopportunitiesforapplication,reflection,andreinforce-ment.Ithasalwaysbeeneasierjusttoadd—ratherthanintegrate—newelementstothecurriculum.Forexample,insteadofintegratingrace,class,gender,andcross-culturalconcernssystemicallywithinthecurriculum,manycampuseshavesimplyaddeddiversityandinternationalcourses.Andratherthanexpecteveryfacultymembertoteachwrittenandoralcommunicationskills,asacomprehensiveapproachwouldrequire,somecam-pusesaddwriting-intensivecoursestothedisciplines.Byavoidingtheobligationtoworkintentionallywithregardtothecurriculumasawhole,reformcommitteesmayavoidtheresistancethatmoresignificantchangecouldarouse.Butthey—andtheirstudents—willmisstheadvantagesthatfollowfromamoreholisticapproach.
Thechallengeofprovidingmultipleopportunitiestodevelopandreinforcelearn-ingisevengreaterforcampusesthatreceivetransferstudentswhowillmisssomeoftheimportantelementsatthedesiredstage,suchasthefirst-yearseminar.Otherstructuressuchasclusteredcourses,sequencedcourses,andlinkedcoursescanensurethatevenlatearrivalswillbenefitfromthoughtful,well-integratedcurricularchoices.American
29Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
Universityoffersatwo-coursesequenceineachofitsfiveModesofInquirytoallowgreaterstudyindepth,anapproachmodeledafterprerequisitesthatprovidethresholdstomajors.Similarly,CityUniversityofNewYork–BrooklynCollegeorganizesitsprogramintotwotiers,sothattransferstudentsenterattheappropriatelevelbasedontheirprevi-ouscreditsearned—perhapsforegoingalower-tiercourselikeShapingoftheModernWorld,buttakingaGlobalConnectionscourseintheuppertier,suchasTheDevelop-mentoftheSilkRoad.Throughsuchapproaches,transferstudentscanmorereadilymakeconnectionsbetweenwhattheyhavestudiedelsewhereandtheintentionalele-mentsoftheirnewacademicprogram.
Coherence In and Among Individual CoursesStudentswhoask,whyisn’tageneraleducationcoursejustgeneralinsteadofbeingsodifficult?failtounderstandtherelationshipofgeneraleducationtotheirothercourse-work.ArecentAAC&Usurveyofinstitutionsfoundthatonly42percentofrespondentsindicatedthat“almostalloramajority”ofstudentsunderstoodtheroleoftheirinstitu-tion’sstatedlearningoutcomes(HartResearchAssociates2009).Attemptingtoanswerthequestionbyrenamingtheprogramas“LiberalLearning”or“TheCore,”assomeinstitutionshavedone,maysendtherightmessagebutstillfallshortofintentionality.Strongprogramspayattentiontogoodpublicrelationswithstudents,tobesure,buttheyemphasizeaboveallstudentunderstandingofthescaffoldoflearningbuiltthroughasequenceofrelatedcoursesandcumulativeexperiences.
Ofcourse,forunderstandingtobecomepossible,thescaffoldingmustexist.Andintoomanycollegesanduniversities,thecurriculumreflectsnotadeliberatestructurebutanamalgamcreatedthroughaccretion.Thecoursecatalogthenserves,inLeeKne-felkamp’swell-knownphrase,asacampus“autobiography,”thelegacycreatedbyfacultymemberswhohavecomeandgoneovertheyears.Eveniftherearepoliciesgoverningtheremovalfromthecatalogofseldomofferedcoursesorarequirementthatsyllabimustbekeptcurrent,alackofintentionalitymayappearwhenaccreditingagenciesorinternalprogramreviewprocessesrequirethesystematicmappingofeducationaloutcomes.Insuchinstances,externalevaluatorsmaybeabletodetectidiosyncrasiesdif-ficultforthoseonacampustosee.Facultywhostriveforintentionalitywoulddowelltoreviewalloftheprevailingparadigms:assumptionsaboutprerequisites,whatcourseleveldesignationsandcoursenumberingssignify,andtheextenttowhichcourseworkloadsandoutcomesarealignedwiththeawardofcredits.
GeorgeKuh’sworkonlevelsofchallengeusingresultsfromtheNationalSurveyofStudentEngagementrevealedvaryingexpectationsacrossawidesampleofcampusesabouttheworkfacultyexpectedofstudents.Clearly,oneachcampus,studentswouldbenefitfromfacultymembersworkingtogethertoestablishsharedcriteria:Whatisthewritingexpectationina200-levelcourse?Howmuchreadingshouldstudentsdoinacourseatthefirstlevel?Whatmakesaspecialtopicscourse“advanced”?Toaddresssuchquestionsrequiresnotonlyanunderstandingofwhatquestionstoask,butalsoaframe-workfordealingwiththeanswers.Typically,astrongfacultydevelopmentprogramand
City UNiverSity of NeW york BrooklyN College
BrooklyN, NeW york
Integrating Transfer Students’ Experience
AtBrooklynCollege,thegeneraleducationprogramisarrangedintwotiers,sothattransferstudentsenterattheappropri-atelevelbasedontheirpreviouscreditsearned.Thisarrange-mentallowstransferstudentstomorereadilymakeconnectionsbetweenwhattheyhavelearnedatpreviousinstitutionsandtheintentionalelementsoftheirnewprogram.
30 General Education and Liberal Learning
well-designedprogramreviewprocessesarenecessaryconditionstosupportintentional-itywithinageneraleducationprogram,aswellasacrossthecurriculum.
AmoreambitiouseffortmodeledaftertheBolognaProcess,whichaimstoensurecomparablelearningoutcomesacrosstheEuropeanHigherEducationArea,hasbeentakingplaceundertheauspicesoftheLuminaFoundationinthreestates:Minnesota,Indiana,andUtah.There,facultymembersinselecteddisciplineshaveconvenedstate-widetoattempttoreachconsensusonlearningandcapabilitylevelsapplicabletotheirrespectivedisciplines.Theframeworksthatresultfromthisprocessareusedtoachievecomparabilityandtransparencyacrossinstitutionsorstates.Whilethis“tuning”processfocusesprimarilyonoutcomesofthemajor,skillssuchascriticalthinkingandoralandwrittencommunicationdrawnfromgeneraleducationalsoareessentialtoemployabilityandlifelonglearning.Perhapsinthefuture,somecombinationofnational,statewide,andcampuseffortswillenabletheacademytobeclearaboutwhatitseekstoaccomplishandintentionalabouthowit“intends”todoso.
Ascampusesmoreintentionallylinkgeneraleducationtothemajor,theystrength-enawarenessofaverticalspinerunningthroughthefouryearsofcollege.Forexample,theUniversityofHartfordusesasequencedbuilding-blockmodelinitsengineeringpro-gramtoaligngeneraleducationcourseswitheachstageofthemajor.Facultycollaborateacrosstheinvolveddisciplinesateachstepsothatstudentstakethegeneraleducationcoursesinapredictableorder,notatrandom,andcanbuilduponperspectivesandskillsfrompreviousyears.Anycampuscanbalancethedemandsofacumulativegeneraleducationprogramwiththoseofelectivesandthemajorbylookingforappropriateconnections.Thosethatcreatesuchalignmentsthroughoutthefour-yearbaccalaureatecurriculumnolongerencouragetheirstudentsto“getgeneraleducationoutoftheway”sothatseriousapplicationtothemajormaycommence.
Integrating Experiences and Outcomes in the Final Year Someyearsback,thehighereducationcommunitybegantoask,whatisspecialaboutthesenioryear?Howcanwehelpstudentsdrawtogethertheirexperiences,integratetheirlearning,andprepareforthetransitiontograduateschooloremployment?Manycampusesalreadyhadcapstoneexperienceswithinmajors,suchasaseniorthesisoraseniorseminar,butsuchcoursesoractivitieshadalimitedpurpose—forexample,determiningwhichstudentswouldgraduatewithhonors.Attentiontothecapstonehasnowbecomeanimportantelementinintentionalcurriculardesignandmayleadtobroaderandmoreinclusiveexpectations.Thestructureofsuchexperi-encesmaydiffer—andmayincludeaninternship,seniorproject,thesis,orseminarof-feredeithertoindividualsorgroups—butwithinintentionalcurricula,thegoalsnowtendtobefarbroader.Throughtheactivelearninginvolvedinaprojectorseminar,studentsworkwithfacultyassupervisorsormentorstogainanintegratedperspectiveontheirbaccalaureateexperienceasawhole.
Throughtheactivelearninginvolvedinaprojectorseminar,studentsworkwithfac-ultyassupervisorsormentorstogainanintegratedperspectiveontheirbaccalaureate
WorCeSter PolyteChNiC iNStitUte
WorCeSter, MaSSaChUSettS
Tackling Complex Real-World Problems
StudentsatWorcesterPoly-technicInstitutecompleteanInteractiveQualifyingProjectinthejuniororsenioryear,takingonatoughtechnologicalproblemwithhumanandsocialdimensions.Thestudentsworkininterdisciplinaryteams,oftenwithanexternalorganization,todevelopsolutionstoprob-lemsfacingdiversecommuni-ties.StudentscancompletetheprojectintheUnitedStatesoratoneoffourteeninternationalcenters,andmayworkonthetaskfulltimeforonesemester,oracrossthreetermsaspartofthestandardcourseload.
31Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
experienceasawhole.OneofthemostambitiousundertakingsisatWorcesterPolytech-nicInstitute,wheretheseniorInteractiveQualifyingProjectislinkedwithstudyabroad.Theprojectposesacomplextechnologicalproblemwithhumanandsocialdimensionsthatrequirestheintegrationofskillsandknowledgedevelopedinbothgeneraleduca-tionandthemajor.Studentsinterestedinstrengtheningtheirglobalperspectivecanchoosetoundertaketheprojectatoneoffourteeninternationalprojectcenters.
Althoughthemajorityofsuchsenior-yearexperiencesremaininthedomainofthemajor,anumberofcampuseshavedevelopedadiscretecapstoneorsenior-yearexperiencethatisidentifiedaspartoftheoverallliberallearningplan.WagnerCollegerequiresathirdlearningcommunityexperiencewithareflectivetutorialandprojectattheseniorleveltointegrateoutcomesfromthemajorwithliberallearningoutcomes.SaintJoseph’sCollegeinIndianacontinuesitsthematicseminarprogramintothesenioryeartostrengthenthecollege’soverallgoals.Somecampuses,suchastheUniversityofConnecticut,focusonthetransitionfromcollegetotheworkplaceandincludeanarrayofcurricularandcocurricularexperiences.Whatevertheapproachtaken,broaderatten-tiontoculminationandtransitioncancontributesignificantlytothecoherenceofthecurriculumandthepreparationofstudentsforemploymentorgraduatestudy.
Yetofallelementsofanintentionallydesignedgeneraleducationprogram,thesenior-yearexperienceasanintentionalelementofgeneraleducation—asopposedtothemajor—appearstobetheleastwidelyimplemented.Onereasonmaylieintheextenttowhichacapstoneexperiencecallsforadifferenttypeofinvolvementandcommitmentonthepartofstudentsandfacultymembers.Indeed,manyreportthatatotallydifferentrelationshipde-velopsastheyworktogetherinamentoringrelationshiponaresearchprojectorintegrativeseminar.Researchconfirmsthatthismentoringrelationshiphasadeepimpactonnotonlythestudents’learningbutalsotheirunderstandingofthemselvesaslearners.Studentswhoundertakeademandingprojectoftenreportafterwardthattheyhadnotbeenawareoftheircapacityforcollaborativeinvestigationofahighquality.Andafacultymemberwhosecollegialrelationshipwithastudentresultsinsubstantiveprojectoutcomesoraconferencepresenta-tioncontributessignificantlytothestudents’transitiontograduatestudyoremployment.
Integrating In-Class and Out-of-Class ExperiencesAscampusesrecognizethatoutcomesattributedtothebaccalaureatedegreearenotaccomplishedonlywithinacademicsettings,intentionalcollaborationamongacademicaffairs,studentaffairs,andotherconstituenciesleadstocooperativeprojectsthatservestudentlearning.Choosingabroadlyassignedbookorthemefortheacademicyear,holdingacampuswidelectureseries,schedulingclassmeetingsinresidencehalls,mountingcocurricularcommunity-basedprojectsthatextendthroughouttheyear—suchundertakingscaninvolvefacultymembers,staffmembers,andstudentsinintegratedin-classandout-of-classexperiences.Becausemoststudentsspendlessthan15percentoftheirwakinghoursinaclassroom,therearemanyhoursavailableforcocurricularactivi-ties,recreation,work,andotherresponsibilities.Strongprogramsareintentionalaboutofferinglinkagestostrengthentheoveralllearningexperience.
32 General Education and Liberal Learning
Tobesure,residentialcampuseshaveanadvantageinconnectingcocurricularexperiencestoclassroomlearning.Theresearchevidenceisclear.Themoreengagedandactiveastudentisinthecommunity,themorepowerfulthetotaleducationalexpe-rience.Evendemandingcommitmentstoworkortointercollegiateathleticsappeartoenhance—ratherthandetractfrom—liberalandprofessionallearning(Light2001).Asnotedinchapter1,workerswhostudy,asdistinctfromstudentswhowork,representamajorityonanincreasingnumberofcampuses.Thus,thechallengeforcampusesistomakeworkexperienceapartoftheguidededucationalplan.
Makingsuchconnectionsisfarmorechallengingforcommutercampusesandforinstitutionsthatenrollmanynontraditional-agedstudentswithmanyoff-campusrespon-sibilities.Manycommunitycollegesaretakingadvantageofportfolios,learningcommu-nities,andotherstructurestohelpstudentsandfacultymakestrongerconnections.
Oneapproachthatappearstoworkformanydifferenttypesofinstitutionsisthatofguidedcommunityengagement,thelinkingofacademicworkintheclassroomtopow-erfulout-of-classexperiences.TulaneUniversity,whichreneweditsfocusoncommunityinvolvementfollowingHurricaneKatrina,mandatesthatallstudentscompleteapublicservicerequirement,administeredbytheuniversity’sCenterforPublicService.Separat-edintotwosequentialparts,therequirementensuresthatstudentshavea“cumulativeandreflective”experience.Withintheirfirsttwoyears,studentsenrollinaservice-learn-ingclass,andduringthejuniororsenioryear,theycompleteafinalproject,whichcouldincludeanacademicservice-learninginternship,apublicservicehonorsthesisproject,oraservice-basedinternationalstudyabroadprogram(TulaneUniversity).
Inallsuchcases,studentswhocompletetheirworkinanoff-campussettingdeveloparelationshipwiththeirsupervisorandcolleaguesthatisquitedifferentfrommoston-campusrelationships.Indeed,onecommonthemefromfacultymembersandsupervi-sorswhotakepartinsuchprojectsisdeeprespectforwhatastudentcando.Studentscommentsimilarlyontheexhilarationarisingfromapplyingwhattheyhavelearnedintheclassroomtoissuesintherealworld.
The Common ThreadFromthedesignofthegeneraleducationprogramitself,tothealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajor,tofirst-yearandsenior-yearopportunitiesforintegrationandapplication,thesinglemostconspicuousdeterminantofqualitycanbesummarizedinasingleword:intentionality.Strongbaccalaureateprogramsdonotemergethroughaccretionyearbyyear.Liberallearningoutcomesarenotmetthroughprogramsthatsimplyevolve.Thehighcallingofofferingeducationandenablinglearningrequiresnothinglessthanthedeliberate,focusedattentionofallthoseinvolved.Toreachconsensusonintentandonthestrategiesthatwillenabletheaccomplishmentofthatintent—thatisthechallengecolleaguesshare.Anditistheirprofessionalresponsibilitytoshareitwitheachotherandtheirstudents.
tUlaNe UNiverSity
NeW orleaNS, loUiSiaNa
Service as a Way of Life
TulaneUniversityreneweditsfocusoncommunityinvolve-mentfollowingHurricaneKatrina,whichdevastatedtheuniversity’slocalcommunity.Studentsarenowmandatedtocompleteapublicserviceproject,whichisadministeredthroughtheuniversity’sCenterforPublicService.Therequire-mentspanstheentireeduca-tionalexperience,withstudentstakingservice-learningcourseswithinthefirsttwoyears,andcompletingafinalservice-learningproject,internship,orservice-basedstudyabroadexperienceduringthejuniororsenioryear.
33
Chapter41
Alignment with the Majors Karen Maitland schillinG and dwiGht sMith
General education programs, well aligned with majors, should express a comprehensive institutional commitment to the liberal education of all students by means of the entire curriculum.
IntheconcludingparagraphsofStrong Foundations,theauthorsassertedthatgeneraleducationhadatlast“comeofage.”Aligningthemselveswithhighereduca-tionleaders,theydescribedgeneraleducationas“botharichconceptandacontinuingideal”(AAC1994,57).Theevidenceinsupportofthisassertioncontinuestoaccumu-late.ThesurveyofAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversitiesmemberinstitu-tionsconductedbyHartResearchAssociates(2009)reportedthatamajorityofinstitu-tions(1)haveacommonsetofintendedlearningoutcomesfortheirundergraduatestudents;(2)haveidentifiedgeneraleducationasaninstitutionalpriority;and(3)areinsomestageofassessingormodifyingtheirgeneraleducationprogram.Moreover,studentlearningoutcomesidentifiedasimportantinanemployersurveyconductedforAAC&Uin2006mirrorcloselytheoutcomesthatinstitutionssaytheyintendfortheirgraduates(PeterD.HartResearchAssociates2007).Theseoverarchingcompetencies,suchascriticalthinkingorteamwork,arenowrecognizedbyemployersasofanimpor-tancecommensuratetothoseaccomplishedwithinthemajor.
Thatisthegoodnews.Whereconcernsariseisfromourawarenessthattheseout-comesarenotalwaysaccomplished.Indeed,theincreasingeffectivenessofassessmentoncollegecampuses,asdetailedinchapter6,hasdemonstratedtheimportanceofintegra-tionwithingeneraleducation,betweenageneraleducationandmajorprograms,andbetweenthecurriculumandthecocurriculum.Programsthatinvitestudentstochooseamongabewilderingvarietyofoptionswithoutrequiringeducationaldesignsthatarecoherent,integrative,andpragmaticarelikelytofaceachallengeindemonstratingmea-surableeducationalgains.Tothecontrary,asassessmenthashelpedusunderstandmoreaboutstudentlearning,ithasalsoshownusthatifourstudentsaretoachievetheliberallearningwepromise,themembersofacademymustcollaboratetoensuretheeffective-nessofboththecurriculumandthecocurriculum.
Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
KAren MAiTlAnd schilling is dean of the College of Arts and Science and professor of psychol-ogy at Miami University.
dwighT sMiTh is vice president of academic affairs at the County College of Morris in New Jersey.
34 General Education and Liberal Learning
Emerging Conceptions of the Scope of Liberal LearningTheauthorsofStrong Foundations commentedfavorablyonanemergingerosioninthehistoricaldistinctionbetweenbreadth,associatedtraditionallywithgeneraleducation,anddepth,associatedwithstudyinthemajor.Andwecontinuetoobserveinstrongprogramsthepreferenceforsynergyoverduality,theconcertedpursuitofbreadthwith depth,andtherecognitionthatstudywithingeneraleducationcanincludeadvanceddiscoveryandthatstudyinthemajorcanbefoundational.
Increasingly,facultymembersarerecognizingtheimportanceof“scaffolding”inthedesignofcurricula.Teachersofwritinghavelongarguedthatthecomplexskillsandcompetenciesrequiredbyanewcenturydeveloponlythroughincrementalempha-sis,butwehavecometorealizethatallessentiallearningdevelopsmostfullythroughworkthatiscumulative,integrative,andreflective.Similarly,quantitativeliteracy,oncerelegatedtofoundationcourses,shouldbedevelopedincrementallythroughoutmanycourses.Andresearch,onceexpectedonlyofmaturestudentsinadvancedcourses,nowappearsinmanyfirst-yearprograms.Datednotionsofspecificoutcomesattachedto“mycourse”for“mystudents”haveinstrongprogramsgivenwaytoemphasesonpartneringtoachieveacumulativeimpact.
Witnessthegrowingemphasisonliberallearninggoalsinsuchprofessionaleduca-tionprogramsasbusiness,engineering,andnursing.Indeed,programmaticaccreditorsintheseprofessionshavedefineddesiredoutcomesthatareoftencloselyalignedwithinstitutionalgeneraleducationgoals.Preciselybecauseofthislinkageofliberallearn-ingoutcomesandprofessionaloutcomes,theincreasingcareerorientationofstudentsnolongerweighsagainsttheirachievingthegoalsofliberallearning.Asaresult,facultyteachinginprofessionalprogramswhooncesawgeneraleducationasunrelatednowarelikelytoseeboththecoursesandcompetenciesasintegraltotheirgoals.Manydocu-mentthisintegrationintheiraccreditationself-studies.
Challenges and Supports for Comprehensive ProgramsEventhemostsalutaryinstitutionalcommitmentmustoperateintherealworld.Asobservedinchapter1,theeducationallandscapehaschangedandcontinuestochange,andmanyassumptionsserviceableenoughinthetwentiethcenturynolongerhold.Mostinstitutionstodaymustdealwitha“swirl”ofstudents.AsAdelman’s(1999)analysisofstudents’collegetranscriptssuggests,evena“traditional”studentlivinginanon-campusresidencehallmayattendclassoncampusinthemorning,addresstherequirementsofanasynchronouscourseofferedbyanonlineproviderintheafter-noon,anddriveacrosstownthateveningtotakeacommunitycollegecoursethatwillsatisfythehomeinstitution’sdegreerequirements.Becausemoreandmorestudentsnowcompletetheirgeneraleducationrequirementsatacommunitycollegeorsomeotherinstitutionbeforetransferringtotheinstitutionfromwhichtheywillseekthebaccalaureate,baccalaureateinstitutionsmustfocusonensuringthatalloftheirgrad-uatesenjoythebenefitofacoordinatedandintentionalapproachtowell-integratedlearninggoals.
Faculty teaching in professional programs who once saw general
education as unrelated now are
likely to see both the courses and
competencies as integral to their goals.
35Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
Since2000,Arkansas,California,Connecticut,Iowa,Louisiana,Maine,Missouri,Ne-vada,NewJersey,NewMexico,Oregon,Tennessee,Texas,Virginia,Utah,andWashingtonhaveenactedlawstofacilitatetheseamlesstransferofcreditbetweenpublicinstitutionsofhighereducation(B.Vandel,pers.comm.).FloridaandIllinoishavepreviouslyestablishedgeneraleducationarticulationrequirementsbetweentheirpublichighereducationinstitu-tions,andinFloridaevenprivateinstitutionshavetheopportunitytoparticipatevoluntarilyinthestate’scoursearticulationsystem.
InstatessuchasFlorida,Utah,andNewJersey,wheregeneraleducationcourserequire-mentsareprescribedaccordingtocurricularcategoriesandthenumberofcreditsforeach,theconversationaboutalignmentbetweengeneraleducationandthemajorhasmovedbe-yondasingleinstitutiontoallinstitutionswithinthestate.Thebroadlysharedresponsibilityforgeneraleducationandthestate-mandateddiscussionsamongfacultywithindisciplineswouldinalllikelihoodadvancethecauseofcoherenceandintentionalityinthepursuitofliberallearningforallstudentsifonlythestatewideapproacheswerenotbasedonverydatednotionsofgeneraleducation.Ingeneral,theseapproachesconvenefacultytofocusonprovidingbreadthofcontentatthefoundationallevel.Thealignmentofgeneraleduca-tionwithinstitutionalmission,theframingofstructuresthatrelategeneraleducationtothemajormoreclosely,theencouragementofinnovationinthejuxtapositionofthecurriculumandcocurriculum—suchopportunitiestomakesignificantadvancesintheeffectivenessofgeneraleducationsoastoensuretheadvantagesofliberallearningforallstudentsmaynotfindfertilesoilinlegislateduniformity.
Statewideagreementsbasedonconventionalassumptionsofthetwentiethcenturymayweighagainstreform,butwhensuchagreementsarewellinformedbyinnovativethinkingandgoodpracticetheycanexertapowerfulstimuluswithinhighereducation.Thereareotherhelpfulinitiativestoguideinstitutions.TheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUni-versities,throughitsLiberalEducationandAmerica’sPromiseinitiative,offersprogressivecounseltosystemarticulationeffortsbymovingtheconversationbeyondagreementontheequivalenceofinputstoconsensusonsharedoutcomesforstudentlearning.CurrenteffortsbytheTeagleFoundationtofosterconsensusonlearningoutcomesforstudentsinspecificmajorsalsoprovidemorecontemporarymodelsforalignmentandarticulationbetweengeneraleducationandthemajor.
Faculty Roles and ResponsibilitiesAnothertraditionalassumptionwithregardtocurriculumreviewandrevisionprocesseshasbeenthattheresponsibilityrestsprincipallywithfull-timefaculty.Butasobservedinchapter1,heretoocurrentrealitymayintrude.Recentanalysesindicatethat,in2007,thenumberoffull-timetenuredortenure-trackfacultyaccountedforjustover30percentofallfacultyoncampusesthroughoutthecountry(AmericanAssociationofUniversityProfessors2009).Asaconsequence,atmanyinstitutionsgeneraleducationcoursesareincreasinglythepurviewofnon-tenure-trackfaculty,adjuncts,“roadscholars”(whomayteachthreeorfourcoursesatthreeorfourdifferentinstitutions),andgradu-ateassistants.Somehighereducationinstitutionshaveevenoutsourcedtheteaching
36 General Education and Liberal Learning
ofgeneraleducationcoursestoonlineproviders.Insuchinstances,generaleducationreforminitiativesthatengageonlyfull-timetenuredandtenure-trackfacultymayfailtoincorporatetheimportantinsightsofthosemostdirectlyinvolvedintheprogram.
Arelatedissueappearsininstitutionalstandardsforawardingtenureorpromotiontofull-timefacultyandcontinuingthecontractsofadjunctandnon-tenure-trackinstruc-tors.Fromonecollegeoruniversitytoanother,wecanobserveconsiderablevariationinthevalueaccordedtotheteachingofgeneraleducationcoursesandtoparticipationinthereformandmaintenanceofgeneraleducationprograms.Aninstitutionalcom-mitmenttoexplicitgeneraleducationoutcomeswouldsuggestthathigh-qualityfacultyparticipationingeneraleducationwouldreceivefavorableattentioninthepromotionandtenureprocess,butthisisnotalwaysthecase.Infact,onelargestateuniversityinOhio,whichhadearlieradoptedabroaderdefinitionofscholarshiptosignalahighervalueplacedonparticipationincurriculardesignandimplementation,recentlyrevert-edtothetraditional“teaching/research/service”rubricsoastorestoreanoverridingemphasisonresearch.Becauseinstitutionalprioritiesareoftenstatedmostinfluentiallyinthelanguageofevaluativerubricsandcareerrewards,itisimportantthatinstitutionsdeterminedtoensureliberallearningoutcomesforallstudentsattemptsomedegreeofconsistencybetweentheendstheyseekandtheincentivestheyoffertothosemostresponsibleforachievingthoseends.
Student Preparedness and ExpectationsThewidevariationfoundinstudentpreparednessforcollegehasbeenwelldocument-ed.AtoneregionalcampusinNewMexico,fully95percentofmatriculatingstudentsareassignedtooneormoretransitionalcoursesthatmustbecompletedpriortocollege-levelstudy.However,asimportantascompetenceinwriting,mathematics,andothersubjectareasis,studentspreparedtodowellincollegealsorequireaclearunderstand-ingoftheexpectationsthatwillgreetthem,oftheliberallearningoutcomestheywillbeaskedtoaccomplish,andoftherelationshipofbothgeneraleducationandthemajortosuchoutcomes.StanfordUniversity’sBridgeProjectfoundthatfirst-generationstudents,especially,arelikelytoentercollegewithoutsuchawareness(Venezia,Kirst,andAntonio2004).Tomanyofthem,learningoutcomesforgeneraleducationandthemajormaybealienconcepts.Andtheexperiencethattheyhaveonceincollegemaytendtoreinforce,ratherthantemper,theirinsecurityanduncertainty.
Forinstance,nearlyallinstitutionsofhigherlearningidentifycompetenceinwrittencommunicationasoneoftheimportantliberallearningoutcomes.Butmoststu-dentsfirstencounterthisexpectationthroughoneortwocoursesincompositiontaughtthroughtheauspicesoftheEnglishdepartment.Andwhilemanyinstitutionsappeartoassumethatsuchfoundationalcourseswillpreparestudentsforthewritingtheywillbeaskedtodoinothercoursesandinthemajor,thestudentexperiencemaybequitedif-ferent.Differencesinpriority,instyle,andinconventionalformsarewidespreadamongthedisciplines.Intentionalprogramsprovideguidanceandseektoaligngeneraleduca-tionwiththemajor.Theyembodyattentiontothekindsofwritingassignmentsoffered
37Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
tobeginningstudentsaswellastothoseatadvancedstagesoftheirprograms.Andtheymakeclearthestandardsbywhichsuchassignmentsareevaluatedandthewaysinwhichevaluationsarecommunicated.
Toolslikecurriculummapsandscoringrubrics,suchasthosedescribedbyMaki(2004),maybehelpfultothecommunicationoflearningoutcomesthroughoutthegeneraleducationandmajorprograms.InstitutionssuchasMiamiDadeCollegehaveusedcurriculummappingtodocumentwherewithinthecurriculumlearningoutcomesareintroducedandreinforcedinboththegeneraleducationprogramandthemajors.Inshort,expectationsmustbemadeexplicittostudentsthroughoutthecurriculum,whetheringeneraleducationormajorcourses.
Alignment in the Context of Accreditation and Accountability DemandsTheextenttowhichtheessentiallearningoutcomesofliberaleducationareaccom-plishedthroughoutthegeneraleducationandmajorprogramscanbeilluminatedbyassessment.Thechallengeforconductingsuchassessmentistoobtainandinterpretin-formationthatwillinfactshedlightonhowwelltheoutcomesareaccomplishedoverallandnotjustinpartsofthecurriculum.Theinformationobtainedguidesthealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajorandacommitmenttocontinuousimprovement.
Alignmentalsostandsatthecenterofassessmentandaccountabilityrequirementsasdefinedforbothgeneraleducationandmajorprograms,aconvergenceseeninsharedexpectationsamongregionalandspecializedprogramaccreditors.Becausetheassess-mentoflearningoutcomes,suchaswrittencommunication,isencouragedorrequiredbybothtypesofaccreditors,facultymembersmusttakethisexpectationseriouslywhethertheyareengagedprincipallyingeneraleducationcoursesorinthosespecifictoamajor.Similarly,becausesomeaccreditors,suchasABET(engineeringandtechnol-ogy)andtheAssociationtoAdvanceCollegiateSchoolsofBusiness(business),expecttofindsomeevidenceofstudyindepthwithinthegeneraleducationcurriculum,facultymembershaveanotherstrongincentivetocollaborateongeneraleducationreformsthatservewellthealignmentofgeneraleducationwiththedisciplines.
Bothregionalandspecializedaccreditorsnowroutinelyauditprogramsandinstitu-tionsfortheircommitmenttobotheffectiveassessmentandtheuseofassessmentaspartofan“accountabilityloop”supportingacommitmenttocontinuousimprovement.Theirsharedinterestinthisindicatorofinstitutionalqualityrepresentsastrongincentiveforthoseconcernedwiththecloseralignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajor.
Alignment as Institutional Commitment Thealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajorisanimportantmeanstoanimportantend—butitis,finally,ameans.Theendliesinaninstitutionalcommitmenttoliberallearn-ingforallstudentsthroughanintentional,well-coordinatedcurriculum.Hence,discussionofalignmentmustinduecourseturntothoseinstitutionalcommitmentsrequiredforthemeanstothosenecessarytosecuretheend.
38 General Education and Liberal Learning
1. An institutional commitment to understanding students. Followingstudentsastheynavigatetheirwaythroughthecurriculumprovidestheopportunityforfacultyandadministratorstounderstandstudentexpectationsmorefullyandtogaugestudentpreparednessmoreaccurately.Forsomeinstitutions,theresultsmaybesurprising.Venerableassumptionsaboutthestudentbodymay,infact,havetogivewaytoamoreaccurateunderstandingofstudentswhospendlesstimeoncampusandmoretimeonthejob,andofstudentswhoaremorelikelytotransfer—bothintoandoutoftheinstitution.Thesefactorsnecessarilymakethealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajoramorecomplexundertaking.
2. An institutional commitment to systems of higher education. Becauseofdemograph-ic,economic,andsocialchangesreflectedinthestudentbody,andinsomecasesbecauseofchangesinstatelaw,thealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajormustservestudentswhotransferinandoutoftheinstitution.Hence,thechallengeisonethatinstitutionscannotaddressinisolation.Soundarticulationarrangementsamonginstitutionsandwithinstates,whichmustnecessarilyhelpdefinetherelation-shipbetweengeneraleducationandthemajor,thusdependonmutualrespectamongdifferenttypesofinstitutionsandtheirfacultyandadministrators.
3. An institutional commitment to the value of tenured and tenure-track faculty teach-ing general education courses. Inthefacultyhiring,promotion,andtenureprocess-es,aninstitutionshouldmakeexplicitthevalueitplacesontheteachingofgeneraleducation.Aninstitutioncommittedtoteachingalsowelcomesfacultyengagementinthescholarshipofteachingandlearning.Howeffectivelyafacultymemberteach-esgeneraleducationcoursesshouldrepresentanimportantfactorinfacultyreviews,whetherthefacultymemberistenured,tenuretrack,oradjunct.Andatemptationtooutsourcetheteachingofgeneraleducationcoursesshouldbeweighedagainsttheinstitution’scommitmenttothealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajor.
4. An institutional commitment to use assessment results to understand student achievement of essential outcomes, for the benefit of faculty, administrators, and students. Assessment,discussedlaterinthisvolumeinmoredetail,canservethealignmentofgeneraleducationandthemajorinseveralways—forexample,bymeasuringtheeffectivenessofalternatestructures,bygaugingthequalityofpreparationforspecificmajorsprovidedbygeneraleducation,andbycomparingstudentsuccessingeneraleducationwiththatinthemajor.Assessmentresultscanalsoenablestudentstoidentifytheirlearningstrengthsandtheiropportunitiesforimprovement,bothwithrespecttotheessentialoutcomesofliberallearningandwithrespecttooutcomesspecifictoparticularmajors.Moreover,whenaninstitu-tionembracesassessmentandaccountabilityreportingrequirementsinordertocommunicatemoreeffectivelywithprospectivestudentsaboutitsexpectations,studentsmayarrivemorefullypreparedtosucceed.
Offeringthebenefitsofliberaleducationinthisnewcenturytoallstudentswillchal-lengealltypesofhighereducationinstitutions.Thesecommitmentscanserveasaguidetowardtheinstitutionalfocusnecessarytoimprovestudentlearningingeneraleducationandinmajorprograms.
39Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
Chapter51
Effective Pedagogy J. elizabeth clarK
General education programs should incorporate effective pedagogies throughout their curricula, with particular focus on crossing disciplinary boundaries, putting students at the center of learning, and including reflective meaning-making exercises to ensure students understand their progress.
Facultymemberstodayoftenfindthemselvesonthedividebetweentwenty-first-centuryexpectationsandtwentieth-centuryconventionsandfacilities.TheremaybenobetterillustrationofthischallengethanMichaelWesch’sDigitalEthnographyprojectatKansasStateUniversity.Participatingstudentsdocumenttherealitiesoftheirliveswithvideocameras,filmingthewaytheyaccessinformationandlearn,theirlociforsocialandprofessionalinteractions,andtheirincreasingdependenceondigitaltechnology,whilesittingintheanonymousmoldedplasticseatsofatraditionallecturehall(Wesch2007).Asstudentsexaminedigitaltechnology,theyencounterboththelimitationsoftheirpres-enteducationalenvironmentsandtheeffectivepedagogiesthatcannowguidestudentlearning.Harnessingcurrenttechnologiestoengagestudentscholarsasco-inquirers,Wesch’spedagogicalapproachconfrontssquarelythedemandsoftoday’schangingglobalcommunity.Butheisinsomewaysanexception.Toooften,highereducationremainsunpreparedtoteachthosewhohavegrownupwithtechnologyandhavebeeneducatedinhighschoolslikethecityofPhiladelphia’sSchooloftheFuture,whichoffersaproject-basedcurriculumsupportedbyvirtualandface-to-faceinteractionsbetweenfacultymembersandstudents.
Crossing BoundariesIncreasingly,facultymembersarebeingaskedtoworkcollaborativelyacrossdisciplinestocreateenvironmentsthatembodytheinterdisciplinarityofknowledge.Clearly,globalproblemssuchaspandemics,naturaldisasters,andpoliticalcrisesmaybeaddressedonlythroughthesynergyofmultipledisciplines.Asfacultymemberspursueintegrativelearningacrossthecurriculum,theymovebeyondtheparadigmof“courseoutcomes”toanunderstandingofhowindividualcoursescontributetoalargereducationalwhole.
J. elizAbeTh clArK is professor of English at LaGuardia Com-munity College/City University of New York. Her most recent article in ComputersandComposition,“The Digital Imperative,” examines the use of educational technology, such as e-portfolios and blogs, in the writing classroom.
40 General Education and Liberal Learning
Itshouldnotthereforebesurprising,asMaryHuberandPatHutchingsdemonstrateinIntegrative Learning: Mapping the Terrain (2004),thatenablingundergraduatestoovercomecurricularfragmentationandconnecttheirlearning“isbecomingapriorityatmanycollegesanduniversities.”
OtterbeinCollegepreparesstudentsforaninterconnectedglobalcommunitythroughanintegrativestudiesprogramintendedtohelpthemusetheirlearningto“serveandshape[their]chosenresponsibilitiesinandtotheworld.”Byconnectingindividuallearningwithglobalandculturalknowledge,Otterbeinteacheskeyskillssuchasethics,publicengagement,socialresponsibility,criticalthinking,andinterculturalknowledgeasitprompts“intellectualcuriosityabouttheworldasitisandadeeperun-derstandingoftheglobalcondition”(OtterbeinCollege).
PortlandStateUniversity’scapstonecourseoffersanothermodelforintegrativelearningbyplacingstudentsoninterdisciplinaryteamstoapplywhattheyhavelearned“toarealchallengeemanatingfromthemetropolitancommunity”(PortlandStateUni-versity).RecentgroupprojectshaverangedfromthecreationofpublicserviceWebsitesaboutcoloncancerandmelanomatoenvironmentalprojectsexaminingtheeffectsofmotorvehiclesontheatmosphere.
BothOtterbein’sandPortlandState’sprogramsrelyonapedagogythatworksoutsideoftraditionaldisciplinaryboundariesandencouragesstudentstoexplorecon-nectionsbetweencourses,disciplines,andcocurricularexperiences.TheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversities’LiberalEducationandAmerica’sPromiseprojectreport(2007)andGeorgeKuh’sHigh-Impact Educational Practices (2008)offerotherexamplesofwaystoalignpedagogieswithdesiredoutcomes.
Putting Students at the Center of LearningNewpedagogiesplacestudentsatthecenteroflearning.Reflectingstandardsarticu-latedin Strong Foundations(AAC1994),effectiveclassroomsinvitestudentsaslearn-ers—notreceivers—byengagingtheminthediscoveryofnewknowledgeandenablingthemtoshowcasetheirbestwork.AtcollegesasdiverseasLaGuardiaCommunityCol-lege,ClemsonUniversity,SanFranciscoStateUniversity,theUniversityofMichigan,theUniversityofOregon,andVirginiaPolytechnicInstituteandStateUniversity,studentsdisplaytheirwork,arguefortheirfindings,andpublishportfolios—bothpaperandelec-tronic—thatdemonstrateconnectionsamongtheircourses,professionalgoals,cocur-ricularactivities,andacademicachievements.
Forherstudentsincoursessuchasenvironmentalscience,humanandphysicalge-ography,andenvironmentalscience,KarenKirkatMontanaStateUniversityadvocateshands-onexperiencesbecausetheynecessitatelearningthroughmultipledisciplinesandmodalities.Kirksaysthat“experience-basedlearningallowsstudentstoactuallylivetheexperiment.”Whetherthefocusisonlocalissuessuchaszoning,landuse,andlocalpoliticsoronglobalissuessuchasresourceextractionandgreenhouseemissions,experience-basedprojectsconfrontstudentswithdifferentlearningmodalitiesappropri-atetothematerialand,again,placethematthecenter(Kirk).
41Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
Facultymembersuseavarietyofmethodsinmanydifferentdisciplinestosupportstudentengagement.Asometimesbewilderingvarietyofapproacheshasevolvedtoin-cludereflection,fieldwork,studentresearch,interactivelectures,project-basedlearning,virtualworlds,games,simulations,visualization,labs,presentations,roleplaying,I-re-porterprojects,simulation-basedlearning,collaborativelearning,inquiry-basedprojects,Socraticquestioning,groupwork,andindependentresearch,butallhaveincommonadeterminationtoplacestudentsatthecenterofthelearningprocess.Manyofthesestandardpedagogiesarenowbeingenhancedwithnewtechnologies,updatingthemodeofdeliverybutnottheintentbehindthepedagogy.
Not Just Grades, But MeaningAtSt.LawrenceUniversityinafirst-yearprogram-course,studentswritereflectivejour-nalsand“advisingletters”asawaytofindadditionalmeaningintheirlearning.Theyarebynomeanssingular.AtAlvernoCollege,Rose-HulmanInstituteofTechnology,Kapi’olaniCommunityCollege,andSpelmanCollege—tonamejustafew—studentsdevelopportfoliosthatmakesuchlearningtransparentandthatsupportassessmentatthestudent,programmatic,andcollegelevels.Bydemonstratingtheircompetenciesindesignatedoutcomeareas,oftenreflectingontheirownprogressaslearners,studentsconsidertheirlearninginastructuredfashionandinthecontextofartifactsfromtheireducationalexperiences.Mostsignificantly,studentsmakemeaningfromtheirwork,reflectingontheirgrowthanddevelopment,notingsignificantaccomplishments.AAC&U’sworkonitsValidAssessmentofLearninginUndergraduateEducationproject13alsodemonstratesnewpotentialforinstitutionstocollaboratewithstudents,bybringingthemintoamultifacetedandrichdiscussionofcross-institutionallearningandassess-ment.Puttingstudentsatthecenteroftheirownlearningincludesinvitingthemintotherealmofassessment,encouragingthemtodocumentandreflectontheirgrowthasemergingscholarsandresearchersinthefield.
Digital Realities, Digital PedagogiesByexperimentingwithnewmedia,many“earlyadopter”facultymembersarecollaborat-inginthedevelopmentofadigitaleducationalculture.However,theireffortshavenotyetbeguntoaltersignificantlyourtraditionalexpectationsaboutclassrooms.Anincreas-ingmisalignmentbetweenthecurriculumandtheculturecandisadvantagestudentswhowillenterorganizationsdependentonnewtechnologies.Toooften,asWesch’sprojectdemonstrates,today’sclassroomsmayfailtopreparestudentsforaworldwherethedominanceofprint-textliteracyisincreasinglyunderchallenge.Facilitatorsofstronggeneraleducationprogramsunderstandtheneedtoreflectontraditionalparadigms,
3 AspartofAAC&U’sValidAssessmentofLearninginUndergraduateEducationproject,teamsoffacultyandotheracademicandstudentaffairsprofessionalsengagedinaniterativeprocessovereighteenmonthswhereintheygathered,analyzed,synthesized,andthendraftedinstitutional-levelrubrics(andrelatedmaterials)forfifteenoftheAAC&Uessentiallearningoutcomes.Theserubricsareavailableonlineatwww.aacu.org/value/rubrics.
alverNo College
MilWaUkee, WiSCoNSiN
Integrating Assessment in Learning
Alvernohasastrong“ability-basededucation”systemthatrequiresstudentstodemonstratecompetencyinaparticularareathroughassess-mentscollectedinalearningportfolio.Thecollegedoesnotusetraditionalassessmentslikeexams,andstudentstracktheirprogressthroughadigitalportfoliosystemthatincludesfeedbackfromprofessors,out-sideexperts,andpeers.Facultyfeedbackandstudents’ownreflectionontheirworkcreates“acontinuousprocessthatim-proveslearningandintegratesitwithassessment.”
42 General Education and Liberal Learning
fromcurriculumtocontenttostructuretopedagogy,sothattheymoreeffectivelypre-parestudentsfortheworldtheywillenterwhentheygraduate.
Supportivetechnologyinallclasses—fromcoursemanagementsystemstoe-port-foliostodigitalstoriestouseofmultimedia—shouldrepresentpartofalargerunder-standingofwhatitmeanstolearnandproduceknowledgeinthetwenty-firstcentury.Studentsneedtolearnbothhowtousethesetechnologicaltoolstogatherinformationandtoauthortheirownmultimodalworks.Institutionswithstronggeneraleducationprogramsconsiderwhatitmeanstoeducateandbeeducatedinanageofinformationthatpresentsradicalchallengestoanindustrial-eraeducationalmodel.
Aroundthecountry,variousinterdisciplinaryprojectshaveemergedtoexamineandexperimentwithemergingtechnologies.ProgramssuchastheUniversityofTexasatAustin’sComputerWritingandResearchLab,MichiganStateUniversity’sMediaIn-terfaceandNetworkDesignsLabandWritinginDigitalEnvironmentsResearchCenter,andtheUniversityofCalifornia-LosAngelesCenterforDigitalHumanitiesareforerun-nersinexploringadigitalcultureofcommunication.Moreover,asmorehighschoolsadapttheircurriculatothepossibilitiesofnewtechnologies,traditionalclassroomsinhighereducationmaybecomemoreandmoreremovedfromthepedagogicalpresent.
Inshort,stronggeneraleducationprogramstrackthecontinuingchangesintech-nology,weightheimplicationsofsuchchangesforpedagogy,adopttoolslikelytoproveusefulinthepresent,remainreceptivetotoolslikelytoproveusefulinthefuture,and,aboveall,maintainaconsistentfocusonstudents.
Providing Support for Pedagogical ChangeDespiteyearsofconsistentresearchontheefficacyofpedagogiesthatengagestudents,aglanceintomanyclassroomswillfindfacultymemberslecturing.Newpedagogieswinconvertsslowly.Technologycanthreatenthosewhofeelthemselvestobelessthanproficientinitsuse.Tocreategeneraleducationprogramsworthyoftoday’sstudentsrequiresimprovedsupportforfacultysothatallmayappreciatemorefullytheopportu-nitiesforlearningthatareemergingthroughintegrativepedagogyandtechnology.Andfacultymembersengagedinreengineeringtheirapproachtotheclassroommustbeencouragedtoreflectontheirexperienceandtosharethatexperiencewiththeirpeers.Professionalreflectioncancreatemoreengagedteaching,moreengagedlearners,andamoresophisticatedunderstandingofpedagogyinhighereducation.
Greaterattentiontowhatfacultyneedwillleadcampusesbeyondtheissueof“con-tinuingsupportforfaculty”broachedinStrong Foundationstothequestionof,whatistherightkindofsupport?Tobesure,opportunitiesforprofessionaldevelopment,theencouragementofinterdisciplinaryconversations,andthelikearecritical,bothfortheirownsakeandasanindicationofinstitutionalsupportforfacultygrowth.Butinstitutionsdeterminedtoprovideliberallearningtoallstudentsaseffectivelyandinvitinglyaspos-siblecannotrelysolelyonproviding“opportunities”forfacultydevelopment.Clearerexpectations,incentives,andheightenedaccountabilitycanallplayrolesinensuringthatfacultybecomeandremaincurrentwithregardtonewpedagogiesanddevelopingtools.
43Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
TheProfessorsoftheYearselectedbytheCarnegieFoundationfortheAdvance-mentofTeachingoftenembodyemergingprinciplesinundergraduateeducation.Whileteachingatverydifferentinstitutions,theseprofessorsshareacommitmenttoengagedpedagogiesandscholarlyresearchonteachingandlearning.Theirworkisamongthebestinthecountryastheyfindnewwaystosituateteachingandlearningattheheartoftheirresearchandtheirworkwithstudents.Theyseektobuildcommunitiesofac-tivepractitioners,introducingstudentstoresearchinthefieldandsolicitingtheirhelpinbuildingcommunal,collaborativeworkthatconcretelyassiststhelocalcommunity.Anothercommonfeatureoftheirengagedpedagogyistheabilitytoconnecttheoreti-calconceptstostudents’ownlives,providingthemwithacriticallensthroughwhichtoexaminetheirexperiencesandchoices.Thesefacultymembersarecomfortablewithinterdisciplinarity,borrowingaconceptfromonedisciplineandusingitinanother.Theyeffectivelychoosethebestpedagogyfortheparticularcourseorlesson,ratherthanbeinglimitedbytraditionalboundariesandconstraints.Aboveall,theseaward-winningfacultymembersconsistentlydemonstratetheirkeenabilityasreflectivepractitioners,seekingtolearnfromtheirownclassroomsandexperienceswithstudents.
SeveralinstitutionsaremodelingthekindsoffacultysupportthatleadtothekindsofteachingexemplifiedintheCarnegieProfessorsoftheYearprogram.Forinstance,OklahomaCityUniversityhaspilotedanovelapproachtofacultydevelopmentthroughitsPriddyFellowsstaffdevelopmentprogram,acollaborationbetweentheuniversity’sartscenteranditsCenterforExcellenceinTeachingandLearning.PriddyFellowsarese-lectedbasedontheirinterestinintegratingtheartsintotheirsubject-areateachingandparticipateinayearlongfacultydevelopmentprograminalearning-communitymodel.Fellowsattendaweeklongartsimmersionworkshopandmeetregularlytodiscusscom-monreadingsandtodeveloparts-integratedcurriculafortheirdisciplines.Byyear’send,eachfellowhaspreparedanewcourseintegratingartwithwhateverhisorherdisciplin-aryareamaybe.Similarly,atKentStateUniversity,MoultonScholarsfromthroughouttheuniversity’seight-campussystemregularlyconvenewithotherscholarsintheircohortforreflectiononpedagogicalissuesandforworkwithconsultantstodevelopcoursesrichinthecreativeuseoftechnology.Alumniofeachprogramconcurthatthelearningcom-munitymodelpromotesreflectionaboutteaching,encouragesinterdisciplinarycollabo-ration,andsupportstheassessmentofpedagogicaleffectiveness.
Award-winning faculty members consistently
demonstrate their keen ability as
reflective practitioners, seeking to learn from their own classrooms and experiences with
students.
45Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
Chapter61
Assessment PeGGy MaKi
General education programs should document their effectiveness and demonstrate a dynamic commitment to continuous improvement through the articulation of clear learning outcomes and assessment relative to such outcomes.
Coherentandintentionalgeneraleducationprogramstranslateaninstitution’slib-erallearningmissionintothefabricofinstitutionallifeandintothefabricofstudents’cumulativelearningovertime.Similarly,sharedunderstandingamongeducatorsandsharedunderstandingamongstudentsabouttheeducationalpurposesoftheirgeneraleducationcurriculumandtheirrelevancetolearninginamajorprogramofstudyareessential.Tosupportthesevitalcharacteristics,theperiodicassessmentofstudentworkmustbecomearhythmofinstitutionallife—awayofascertaininghowwellstudentsareprogressingtowardandthenachievinginstitutionalexpectationsforstudentlearning.Evidencethusobtainedregardingunderperformingprogramelementscanpromptcollaborativediscussion,leadingtowaystoimprovestudents’achievement.Likeeveryotherimportantpracticeineffectivegeneraleducation,assessmentisfocusedonstudents—onmakingtheirlearningricherandmoreeffective,andonhelpingthemsucceed.
Beginning with the EndsTranslatingageneraleducationmissionintothefabricofinstitutionallifebeginswheneducatorsworktogetheracrossaninstitutiontoarticulateasetoflearningoutcomestatements—sentencesthatdescribewhatstudentsshouldbeabletodemonstrate(1)asaresultoftheirgeneraleducationprogramofstudy,and(2)asaresultofintegrat-inggeneraleducationoutcomesintothedisciplinaryandinterdisciplinarycontextsoftheirmajorprograms.Outcomestatementsexplaintostudentswhataninstitutionexpectstheyshouldbeabletoachievebasedonthecoherentdesignofthegeneraleducationcurriculumandthealignmentofthatdesignwithmajorprogramsandthe
Peggy MAKi is an interna-tional education consultant specializing in the assessment of student learning, and a former senior scholar at the American Association for Higher Education. Her most recent books are AssessingforLearning:BuildingaSustain-ableCommitmentAcrosstheInstitution(Stylus, 2nd ed., 2010) and ComingtoTermswithAssessingStudentLearning(Stylus, 2010).
46 General Education and Liberal Learning
programsandservicesofferedinthecocurriculum.Iftheydonotshareanunder-standingoftheaimsofageneraleducationprogram,botheducatorsandstudentswilldevelopdifferentviewsofitssignificance.
Asnotedinchapter1,theAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversity’sLiberalEducationandAmerica’sPromiseinitiativehasidentifiedfourdomainsoflearningoutcomesstatements—knowledgeofhumancultureandthephysicalandnaturalworld;intellectualandpracticalskills;personalandsocialresponsibility;andintegrativeandappliedlearning—thatreflecttheaimsofliberallearningthroughoutU.S.higheredu-cationandthatthereforedrivethedesignandassessmentofgeneraleducation.Whenstitchedacrossstudents’livesoflearninginboththecurriculumandcocurriculum,suchoutcomesbecomeameasureforofferingtostudentsmultipleopportunitiesforthemtoapplyandbuildontheirlearning.
Forexample,aninstitution’sfocusonquantitativeliteracyasanoutcomeofgeneraleducationshouldappearagaininastudent’smajorprogramofstudyasadisciplinaryoutcome.Studentsshouldbeaskedtoapplyquantitativereasoningtosolveproblemsinhistory,thequantitativeskillsessentialtonursingshouldreceiveregularreinforcement,andjournalismstudentsshouldreceiveassignmentsrequiringthemtomakequantitativeanalyses.Torestructurestudents’viewofgeneraleducationas“somethingwehavetotake”or“somethingwehavetogetoutofthewaybeforewestudywhatisimportant—themajor,”BowlingGreenStateUniversity,forexample,hastranslateditsmissionintolearningoutcomestatementssothatstudentsdevelopacommonunderstandingofwhattheuniversityexpectsthemtolearn.Theseoutcomesarealsointegratedintostudents’majorprogramsofstudyandintothecocurriculum(StudentAchievementAssessmentCommittee,BowlingGreenStateUniversity2009).
Examininghowandwherestudentsfindopportunitiestolearn,practice,andreflectontheseoutcomesisanotherwayaninstitutiontranslatesgeneraleducationintothefabricofinstitutionallife.Curricularandcocurricularmapscanprovideavisualrepresentationbychartingthecourses,educationalexperiences,andwaysofteachingandlearningthatcontributetostudents’achievementoftheselearningoutcomes.Forphysics,asanexample,acurricularmapillustrateshowgeneraleducationoutcomesarewovenintoaphysicscurriculumandcontinuallyassessedsothatstudentscontinuetopracticeandachievegeneraleducationoutcomeswithinthemajor.Inshort,majorpro-gramsofstudyshouldofferstudentsopportunitiesovertimetotransfer,integrate,apply,andpracticetheirgeneraleducationoutcomes.
Chronologically Reinforcing General Education Outcomes throughout Undergraduate EducationOrientingstudentstogeneraleducationoutcomesandcontinuingtoconnectstudentstotheseoutcomesintheirmajorprogramsofstudycontributetostudents’ownershipofthiscorelearning,aswellastotheirdeepenedunderstandingoftherelevanceofgeneraleducation.First-yearexperiencesofferaninitialoccasiontoorientstudentstogeneraleducationlearningoutcomes.Chronologicalreinforcementoccursthroughthe
47
advisingprocessandthroughsyllabithatidentifyoutcomesspecificallyaddressedingen-eraleducationcoursesandincoursesinstudents’majors.Studentsneedtodevelopanunderstandingoftheseoutcomesovertime,butwithoutmultipleopportunitiestolearn,relearn,andpracticetheseoutcomes,theseexpectationsarenotlikelytobecomeapartoftheirenduringlearning.
Syllabirepresentthethreadsthatlinkstudentstogeneraleducationoutcomes.Specifically,eachsyllabusshoulddescribe:(1)learningoutcomesforacoursethatalignwithdepartmentorgeneraleducationoutcomes;(2)teaching/learningstrategiesthatpromoteeachlearningoutcome;and(3)chronologicalassignments(andmethodsofassessment)throughwhichstudentswilldemonstratetheirprogresstowardorachieve-mentofoutcomes.Thisformofintentionalreinforcementofgeneraleducationlearningoutcomesthroughoutallcourseskeepsstudentsconnectedtoandengagedwiththecur-riculumandcocurriculum.
Altogether,then,articulatinggeneraleducationlearningoutcomes,mappingthoseoutcomes,andthreadingthemacrosssyllabiservethreeimportantfunctions,whichareenumeratedbelow.
1. Theybuildunderstandingamongfacultyinadepartmentandprogramabouttheprogression,content,topics,pedagogy,andmodesofdeliverythatindividualfacultymembersusetofosteragreed-uponlearningoutcomes.Moreover,sucharticulationbuildsunderstandingacrossaninstitutionabouthowprogramsanddepartmentsfosterinstitution-leveloutcomes,suchastheircorecurriculumorgeneraleducationoutcomes—outcomesthataredesirableforgraduatesfromanyprogram.
2. Theyhelpstudentsunderstandovertimehow“thingsfittogether”acrosslearn-ingexperiencesinsideandoutsideoftheclassroom.Studentsshouldbeenabledtoarticulatethefruitsoftheirlearning,includingwhattheyhaveaccomplishedandwheretheyhavefallenshort.Andstudentsshouldbecomechronologicallyaccountableandresponsiblefordemonstratingdesiredoutcomesalongthecourseoftheireducationaljourneyaswellasattheendoftheirjourney.
3. Theyprovideexternalparties—suchasaccreditors,parents,ortransferinstitutions—evidenceofintentionalcurricularandcocurricularcommitmenttofosteringlevelsofagreed-uponoutcomes.
A Student-Centered Approach to AssessmentAcommitmenttodeepeningstudents’understandingoftherelevanceofgeneraleduca-tionoutcomesiscentraltoastudent-centeredapproach.Tothatend,stronggeneraleducationprogramsbuildinopportunitiesforstudentstoreflectontheirlearning,includingidentifyingstrengthsandweaknesses.Toassistthisprocess,effectivegeneraleducationprogramsdevelopandapplyscoringrubricsoruseexistingonessuchasthenationalrubricsdevelopedunderAAC&U’sValidAssessmentofLearninginUndergrad-uateEducationproject.Theseoffercriteriaofjudgmentthatfaculty,peers,andstudentsmayapplytotheirwork.
Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
48 General Education and Liberal Learning
Forexample,accompanyingtheworkstudentsproduceforanelectronicportfolio,self-reflectiveentriesshoulddescribehowparticularworksamplesrepresentachievementorprogresstowardtheinstitution’sgeneraleducationoutcomes.Self-reflectionreinforceslearningbyengaginglearnersinfocusedthinkingabouttheirunderstandingandmis-understanding.Inaddition,feedbackfrommultipleindividuals—facultymembers,staffmembers,peers,internshipadvisers,outsidereviewers,orrepresentativesfromaprofes-sion—providesstudentswithrealisticresponsestotheirwork,causingthemtoreflectfurtherontheirachievement.Bycontrast,limitedfeedback,coupledwithlittleopportu-nityforstudentstoself-reflectontheirdevelopmentorunderstanding,maycontributetosomestudents’inabilitytounderstandandattesttothelearningdescribedininstitutionaloutcomestatements.Andbecausedifferentindividualslearndifferentlyovertime,thelossoftheopportunityforreflectionisnoteasilymadeup.Someofthemostpowerfulassessmentmodelsforgeneraleducationoutcomesareflexibleandindividuallyoriented,allowingstudentstodemonstratetheirprogresswhentheyareready,ratherthanthroughtraditionalexams.AlvernoCollegehasawell-developed“ability-basededucation”systemthatrequiresdemonstrationsofstudentlearninginactionthroughcourse-basedandintegrativeassessmentscollectedinastudentportfolio.Facultyandexpertfeedback,aswellasstudents’ownreflectionsontheirlearning,help“createacontinuousprocessthatimproveslearningandintegratesitwithassessment”(AlvernoCollege).
Direct and Indirect Assessment to Ascertain the Efficacy of General EducationCurricularandcocurricularmapsnotonlyrepresenthowgeneraleducationintentionsarewovenintocoursesandothereducationalopportunities;theyalsoprovideaframe-workforcollecting,analyzing,andinterpretingstudentachievementalongthecon-tinuumofstudents’learningtoidentifypatternsofweaknessinstudentwork.Withoutperiodicevidence,wecanprovideonlyanecdotesaboutstudentlearningand“hope”thatlearningistakingplace.Evidenceofstudentlearningalongtheircontinuumoflearningisthusessential.
Moretothepoint,withoutdirectevidenceofstudents’learningrepresentedintheirworkorperformance,wecannotknowhoweffectiveourcollectiveeffortsare.Directevidenceconsistsofworkthatstudentsproducetodemonstratetheirprogresstowardorachievementofgeneraleducationoutcomes.Casestudies,tests,milestoneexaminations,performances,visualrepresentations,multimediaproducts,laboratoryreports,andcol-laborativeWebsites(suchasstudent-generatedwikis)representsomeexamplesofdirectmethods.
Incontrastwithclosed-endedtests,whichseekonlyyes-or-noresponses,educatorsmayuseopen-endedscoringrubricssuchasthosedevelopedunderAAC&U’sVALUEprojecttoidentifypatternsofstrengthandweaknessinstudentwork.Appliedchrono-logicallytosamplesofstudentwork,scoringrubricsidentifyhowwellstudentsareimprovingormakingprogressintheirlearningoridentifycontinuedobstaclesorchal-lengesstudentsface.
alverNo College
MilWaUkee, WiSCoNSiN
Integrating Assessment in Learning
Alvernohasastrong“ability-basededucation”systemthatrequiresstudentstodemonstratecompetencyinaparticularareathroughassess-mentscollectedinalearningportfolio.Thecollegedoesnotusetraditionalassessmentslikeexams,andstudentstracktheirprogressthroughadigitalportfoliosystemthatincludesfeedbackfromprofessors,out-sideexperts,andpeers.Facultyfeedbackandstudents’ownreflectionontheirworkcreates“acontinuousprocessthatim-proveslearningandintegratesitwithassessment.”
49
Forexample,ClarkeCollege,asmallCatholicliberalartscollegeinIowa,hasidenti-fiedthreepointsalongstudents’collegecareersatwhichtocollect,analyze,andinter-prettheachievementofgeneraleducationoutcomes:inaninitialcornerstonegeneraleducationcourse,atthemidpointinstudents’majorprogramsofstudy,andattheendpointwithinstudents’seniorcapstoneprojects.Documentingpatternsofstrengthandweaknessintheirstudents’achievementofoutcomesenablesfacultymemberstoidentifyalternativepedagogiesoreducationalpracticesintendedtoimprovestudentperfor-mance.
Learningfromstudentsabouthowtheyareexperiencingthegeneraleducationcur-riculumandhowtheyaremakingmeaningoftheircourseworkandeducationalexperi-enceisanessentialcomponentoftheassessmentprocessaswell.Indirectassessmentmethodscapturestudents’perceptionsoftheirlearningandtheefficacyofeducationalpractices.Bycomparingtheresultsofdirectmethodstoresultsofindirectmethods,suchassurveys,questionnaires,andinterviews,educatorscangainadeeperunderstandingofpatternsofstudentachievement.Forinstance,joiningtheresultsofanonlineques-tionnairethatasksstudentstoidentifytheeffectivenessofcomponentsoftheirgeneraleducationprogramwiththeresultsofsampledstudentworkmayshedvaluablelightonsuchpatterns.Inaddition,thecommitmenttoelicitingstudentresponsescaninitselfdemonstratethataninstitutionorprogramvaluesitslearners’perspectives.
Using Assessment Results to Improve Student LearningEducatorswhoofferstronggeneraleducationprogramsshareanopennesstolearn-ingabouttheeffectivenessofeducationalpracticesthroughtheassessmentprocess.Withoutthisopenness,recordingpatternsofstudentachievementcanbecomeanemptybureaucraticprocess.Determiningthat75percentofstudentshavesatisfactorilydemonstratedageneraleducationoutcomerepresentsacommitmenttoaccountability.Butacommitmenttoidentifyingpatternsofstrengthandweaknessinthat75percent,aswellasintheremaining25percent,andtodiscoveringthereasonsforthosepatternsrepresentsopennesstolearnmoreabouttheteaching/learningprocessandwaystoimproveit.
Byidentifyingmisunderstandings,misconceptions,flawedreasoning,oraninabilitytoapplypreviouslearninginnewcontexts,forinstance,analystscantrackpatternsofweaknessappearinginstudentwork.Havingidentifiedsuchpatternsandreachedsomeunderstandingastowhytheymayexist,educatorspositionthemselvestoconsiderwaystoimprovepedagogy,toreviseinstructionaldesign,ortomakemodificationsinthecurricu-lumdesign,eitherbydevelopingindigenousresponsesorbyidentifyingandadaptingsalutarypractices.Havingagreedonnecessarychanges,educatorscanthenimplementthemandassesstheirefficacy.
Asaruleofthumb,institutionswithstronggeneraleducationprogramswill1. identifyoneormorelearningoutcomestheywillassesseachyear;2. collectevidenceofstudents’progresstowardtheseoutcomes;3. applyscoringrubricsorothergaugesofworkagainstbenchmarks;
Part Three: Effective Practices in General Education
Clarke College
dUBUqUe, ioWa
Continuous Assessment
ClarkeCollegecollectsandanalyzestheachievementoflearningoutcomesatthreepointsinstudents’academicca-reers:inaninitialcornerstonegeneraleducationcourse,atthemidpointofstudents’majorprogram,andduringseniorcap-stoneprojects.Thisapproachnotonlyallowsfacultytoassessstudents’individualprogress,butalsoprovidesdataabouttheeffectivenessofpedagogi-calmethodsandpracticesandlendsitselftocontinuousim-provementattheprogramlevel.
50 General Education and Liberal Learning
4. identifypatternsofweaknessthatneedtobeaddressedthroughalternativewaysofteachingandlearning,instructionaldesign,modesofdelivery,andothereducationalpractices;
5. implementagreed-uponchanges;and6. reentertheassessmentcycletoascertainhowwellchangeshaveimproved
studentlearning.Asischaracteristicofprofessionalsinanyfield,competenteducatorspositionthemselvestobecomelearnersabouttheirwork.Theresultsoftheirinvestigationspositionthemtoidentifyneworimprovedwaystoteachorpositionstudentstolearn.Astronggeneraleducationprogram,then,buildsincyclesofinquiryabouttheefficacyofeducationalpractices.Thatis,itsrelevance,vitality,andefficacyareregularlyinvestigated.
51Part Four: Sustaining General Education Programs
Part FOur: Sustaining General Education Programs
Chapter71
Institutional Commitment Paul l. GastOn
General education programs that continue to grow in strength and effectiveness de-pend on the friendly scrutiny and dedicated support of faculty members, administrators, and the university community as a whole.
Effectivegeneraleducationprogramsarenotmachines.Theyareorganismsthatrequirenurturingiftheyaretoflourish.Theyreachmaturity;unlessattendedto,theygrowstale.Ifneglectedorignored,theygrowweak.Strongprograms,bycontrast,exemplifythebenefitsofcontinuingattention,strongsupport,andbroadlysharedresponsibility—theyaretaughtwithenergy,topicsarefresh,pedagogyisinnovative,andstudentsareengaged.Themosteffectiveprogramsexpressthreekeyassumptions.First,collegesanduniversitiesthatofferstronggeneraleducationprogramsinevitablyembodyacommitmenttotheholisticliberallearningofallstudents.Second,theirfacultymembers,whatevertheirdisciplineorcurricularfocus,embraceandpursueabroadlysharedcommitmenttoassuringthatallstudentsbenefitfromsuchaneduca-tion.Finally,manystrongcollegesanduniversitiesdiscoverwithinthesetwocommit-mentsasignalelementinthecharacteroftheirinstitutions,a“signature”thathelpstodefinewhotheyareandwhattheystandfor.
Liberal Learning without the SilosAnimportantemphasisofoursurveyhasbeengeneraleducation’scritical—butpartial—roleinassuringliberallearning.Acurriculumhasmanyparts,andallmustcontributetotheaccomplishmentofliberallearningobjectivesiftheyaretobemet.Butthe“parts”thatstudentsbringtotheireducationaremuchlessclearlydiscrete.Whileacademicprogramsmayreflectdivisionsbetweengeneraleducationandthemajorandamongthesciences,thehumanities,thearts,andthesocialsciences,students’experiencesandperspectivesarenotsimilarlydivided.Oratleasttheyshouldnotbe.Facilitatorsofstrongprogramscon-siderhowbesttoofferlearningthatisholistic,associative,andthoughtfullyintegrated.
AnewinitiativefromtheCollegeofLiberalArtsandSciencesatVillanovaUniversitywellexpressesthiscommitment.Referringtoan“interconnectedworld,”thecollege
52 General Education and Liberal Learning
hascreatedtheVillanovaCenterforLiberalEducation,“aninnovativeacademiccenterdedicatedtointerdisciplinaryteaching,research,andlearningintheliberalartsforundergraduatestudents.”SeekingtobringVillanovastudents“intoanongoingdialoguewithsomeoftheCollege’sfinestteacher–scholars,”thecenterisintendedto“provideavaluableforumforfacultytocontributetotheirprofession,inspirestudentstobecomemoreactiveandengagedparticipantsinthelearningprocess,andadvancetheimpor-tanceoftheliberalarts”(VillanovaCollegeofLiberalArtsandSciences).Bysodoing,thecenterextendstheuniversity’sCoreHumanitiesProgram,whichoffersrequiredcoursessuchasanAugustineandCultureseminarthatseekstointroducestudentsto“thelifeofthemind.”
Justasstronggeneraleducationprogramscanpromptgreaterawarenessofthetran-scendentvaluesofliberallearning,so,too,canaholisticapproachtoliberallearningdrawattentiontotheincreasingartificialityofdisciplinaryboundarieswithintheacad-emy.Studentsenteringcollegenowbringextensiveexperiencewithonlinedata,whichisprofoundlyassociative.Google“Lincoln”toresearchtheGettysburgAddressandyoumayfindyourselfwantingtolearnaboutauniversityinthesoutheastcornerofPennsyl-vaniacommittedtoinstructionthatis“holistic”andto“challengingstudentstoutilizealllevelsofcognition”through“holistic”instruction(LincolnUniversity2000).
AstheAssociationofAmericanCollegesandUniversitiesessentiallearningout-comesemphasize,thebroadergoalsofliberallearningcanfinallybeaccomplishedonlythroughintegrationandsynthesis.The“intellectualandpracticalskills”thatdenotealiberallyeducatedindividualmustbe“practicedextensivelyacross the curriculum.”Inte-grativelearningmustspan“generalandspecializedstudies.”Andasenseofpersonalandsocialresponsibilitymustarisethrough“activeinvolvementwithdiversecommunitiesandreal-worldchallenges”(AAC&U2007,12).Bringingtogetherallthesecriticalelementsrequiresleadershipatalllevelsthroughoutaninstitution.
Liberal Learning “Takes a University” Ourreviewoftheessentialelementsofstronggeneraleducationprogramsmust
includeanappreciationoftheroleplayedbytheindividualfacultymember—everyfacultymember,whateverthediscipline,whateverthecourseleveltaught—inmakingavailabletoallstudentsthebenefitsofliberallearning.Inshort,everymemberofthefaculty,whateverhisorherfieldofexpertise,contributestotheliberallearningofeverystudent.Forgoodorforill.Period.
Thisrecognitionappearsmostvividlyintheexamplesofthosefacultymemberswhoteachnotonlyparticularelementscharacteristicofaliberallearning,butalsothevaluesofliberallearningitself.Suchfacultymembersmaybefoundineverydisciplineandateverylevelofthecurriculum.Theyteachbypreceptandbyexample,throughtheirsyl-labi,theirconductoftheirclasses,theirwriting,eventheirbehavior,withinandbeyondthewallsoftheinstitution.
Butothermembersofthefacultymayofferadifferentlesson.Whiletheymaybeprincipled,knowledgeable,andprofessional,theymayoffertheirstudentsthepowerful
53Part Four: Sustaining General Education Programs
messagethattheinstitution’sliberallearninggoalsare,atbest,aharmlessdiversionand,atworst,ameaninglessdistraction.Unfortunately,asthesuperbstudybyformerHarvardPresidentDerekBok(2006)indicates,studentsaremostlikelytoexperiencesuchnega-tivecontributionstotheirliberallearningwithintheirmajors,intheirthirdandfourthyears,whentheytendtohavebecomemoreclearlyfocused,moreself-interested,andmorehighlymotivated.Iftheseniorfacultywhostudentsencounterduringthiscriticalperiodfailtoreinforcetheliberallearningvaluesintroducedthroughgeneraleducation,theyinevitablyunderminesuchvaluesandmayevenreversethebesteffortsofthosewhohaveearlierattemptedtoteachthem.WritingintheChronicle Review,StanleyN.Katzobserves,withthinlyveiledacrimony,“Ourresearchfacultymembershavelittleinterestinjoiningeffortstobuildcoreorgeneral-educationprograms,muchlessinteachinginthem.Moreover,canwebeconfidentthatthoseprizedfacultyrecruitsaresufficientlyliberallyeducatedtoparticipateingeneraleducation?”(2005,B6).
Yetwhethertheproblemisendemicwithinaninstitutionoratypical,thedamagetoliberallearningthatcanbedonebyanindifferent,hostile,orinappropriatelypreparedinstructorisconsiderable.Suchdamagecantakemanyforms.
Overtdisregardfortheaimsofliberallearningisperhapstheleastperiloustostudents.Theycanrecognizenarrowobsessionwhentheyseeit.Facultymemberswhoseauthorityandpersonalappealcamouflageanarrowandilliberalapproachtolearningrepresentafargreaterthreat.TheaccountingprofessorwhoneverreferstotheethicalissuesraisedbytheEnronscandal,ortothecontributionofdouble-entrybookkeepingtotheIndustrialRevolution,ortoJosephConrad’svisionofcompetentaccountingamidthehellofthe“HeartofDarkness”isofferingapowerfulperspectiveonliberallearn-ing:namely,thatitsvaluesareirrelevanttothematterathand.Similarly,aprofessorofnineteenth-centuryhistorywhofailstomentiontheimportancewithinhisperiodofnewaccountingtechniques,theimpactofeconomictheoryonpoliticalbalancesofpower,orthewaysinwhichtheIndustrialRevolutioninEnglandstimulatedanincreaseinsmallbusinessessendsthesamemessage:mydiscipline,asIunderstandandprofessit,iswhatmatters—isall thatmatters.
Tobesure,someprofessorsavoidethicalissuesorotherquestionsofvaluebecausetheylackconfidenceinaddressingissuesbeyondtheboundariesoftheirrespectivedisciplines.Othersmayholdthattheimportantadvancesintheirfieldsaredirectlyat-tributabletothefocusthatresultsfromspecialization.Stillothersmayclaimthattheirobligationtocoverandimpartabroadfieldofinformationprecludestheallocationofclasstimetomattersnotclearlyincludedinthesyllabus.
Eachoftheseconcernshassomemerit.Butinstitutionsthatpromisethebenefitsofaliberallearninghavearesponsibilitytoaddressthem.Thosewhoremainresolutelywithintheirdisciplinarysilosoutofasenseofprofessionalresponsibilityshouldberemindedthattheirresponsibilityincludesmodelingthebenefitsofliberallearning.Thatincludesawillingnesstoconsiderissuesandcontextsthatbearonthesubjectbeingtaught.Whenprofessorsavoidissuesofvalueorignoreperspectivesthatadddepth,lib-erallearningsuffers.Thosewhoattributetheproductivityoftheirdisciplinetoitsspeci-ficityshouldbeencouragedtoengageindialoguewithspecialistsinotherdisciplines.
The damage to liberal learning that can be
done by an indifferent, hostile, or
inappropriately prepared instructor is
considerable.
54 General Education and Liberal Learning
Whileimportantadvancesmaybeattributedtoacademicspecialization,collegesanduniversitiesthataspiretoprovidetheirstudentswithaliberallearningmustnotdependontheirstudentstocreateacoherenteducationalexperiencefromtheirencounterswithasuccessionofspecialists.Andthosewhoinsistthattheirobligationfor“coverage”requiresanunblinkingdeterminationtodeliverallthatisexpectedshouldbemadeacquaintedwiththeprofoundparadigmshiftinouracademicgeneration,fromafocusonthetechniquesofteachingtoanemphasisonfacilitating,confirming,andimprovinglearning.Ashasbecomeclear,thisshiftneednotleadtoneglectofcourseobjectives;tothecontrary,itrequirestheirclarification.Nordoesitignorethedevelopmentofcom-petenciesamongstudents;itensuresthatstudentsareinfactdevelopingcompetencies.And,mostimportantforthoseconcernedwithliberallearning,anemphasisonlearningratherthanteachingrespectsstudentsaswholeindividualswithanimpressivecapacityformakingconnections,drawinganalogies,andfindingassociations.
Moresubtle,andthereforeperhapsevenmoredamaging,maybethefacultymem-berwhoisunableorunwillingtomodeltheordinaryinterests,sympathies,ornativeawarenessoftheliberallyeducatedindividual.Astatewideleaderinlibrarysciencecon-venedameetingat10:00a.m.onSeptember11,2001,bywhichtimeitwasevidentthatacatastropheofunprecedentedproportionswastakingplace.Byhisresoluteinsistencethattheagendaforthedaybe“covered,”regardlessofwhatmightbehappeningintheworld,heofferedanindeliblelessonininsensitivityanddisproportion.Hefailedeventorealizetheparticularrelevanceforlibrariansintheunfoldingofthedisaster.Thereweresimilarstoriesfromclassroomsinmanyacollegeanduniversityatthetime,wheretheemphasisondeliveringthepreparedknowledgeoverwhelmedattentiontothemorepowerfullearningfromthatday.
Thebrightsideofthiscoinisthegoodnewsthatliesintheopportunityeverymem-beroftheacademiccommunityhastofurthertheliberallearningofstudents.Whatevertheirdiscipline,facultymembers,studentaffairsprofessionals,andindeedeveryonewithinaninstitutioncancontributetoitsliberallearninggoals.
Suchopportunitybeginsmostclearlywiththosecoursesmosttraditionallyassoci-atedwithliberallearning,thosethatdirectlyaddressbroadlyagreed-upongoalsfortwenty-first-centurylearning.Coursesaddressingthesegoalsmustofcoursebetaughteffectivelybyfacultymemberswhoembracethevaluesandvisiontheyexpress.Justbecauseacoursebelongstoacorecurriculumoffersnoguaranteethatitwillcontributetotheliberallearningofstudents;acourseinthefinearts,ortheology,orthedevelop-mentofWesterncivilizationmayoperatewithinaconfinedperspective,justasmayacourseinorganicchemistryorfinance.Similarly,acoursethatfallsoutsideofthecorecurriculummayofferauniquelyliberatingexperienceforsomestudents.
Ultimately,institutionsmustrecognizethattheofferingofeffectivecorecurriculumcoursesbyenlightenedanddedicatedfacultymembers,whethertheybetraditionallib-eralartscoursesornot,shouldbeonlyabeginning,forfacultymembershavearespon-sibilitytoteachthevaluesofliberallearningwhenevertheyteach,whatevertheyteach.Athoughtfullyplanned,discerning,andcoherentgeneraleducationprogram,whetherlimitedtothefirsttwoyearsofthecurriculumordistributedthroughoutthebaccalaure-
55Part Four: Sustaining General Education Programs
ate,cangoalongwaytowardsupportingfacultyeffectiveness.Butfacultymembersalsocreatelearning(orfailtodoso)bypursuingliberallearningobjectivesthroughcourseswithintheirdisciplines,bythebreadth(ornarrowness)oftheirintellectualinterests,bytheirenthusiasm(orlackofenthusiasm)forthelifeofthecollegeoruniversityasawhole,andbytheirintellectualengagement(orthelackofit)withdisciplinesotherthantheirown.
Eight Practical ApproachesWhatdoesthismeaninpracticalterms?Anyinstitutionintentonprovidingitsstudentswiththebenefitsofaliberallearningwilladdressthisquestioninitsownway.Butitispossibletosuggesteightpracticalstepsthatweasfacultymemberscantaketoensurethatasharedcommitmenttothevaluesofliberallearningmakesadifferenceforourstudents.
1. Break out of the silos. Wecanexpandourawarenessofthe“liberal”dimensionsofthecourseswithinourrespectivedisciplines,boththoseofferedwithinthecorecurriculumandthosereservedformajors.Muchexcitingscholarshipisap-pearingonthemarginsbetweenourareasofexpertise,butwemayhavetoseekoutthelesstraditionalvenuesinwhichitisappearinginordertofindit.Doingsowouldbeverymuchworthourwhile.Wearelikelytobecomebetterin-formed,moreenthusiastic,andmoreeffectiveeducators.Wemayevenbecomemoreexpertasspecialists.
2. Model commitment to general education with colleagues. Wecansharewithourstudentsandcolleaguesthefruitsofourliberallearningandencourageourcolleaguesandstudentstodothesame.AprofessorofEnglishwhocom-mentsinclass(orafacultymeeting)onarecentarticleinScientific American,aneconomistwhomentionsaperceptivereviewofaBruceSpringsteenconcert,orabiologistwhobeginsaclassonchlorophyllbyreading(orrecitingfrommemory)RobertFrost’s“NothingGoldCanStay”willcreateapositiveandindelibleimpressionwhilepromptinggenuinelearning.WalkerPercy,thenov-elistandessayist,onceobservedthatthemostprofoundlearningoccurswhenconventionalexpectationscollapse:thebiologystudentonedayfindsasonnettapedtoherlabtable,whiletheliteraturestudentreceivesasetofdissectingtoolsandadogfishsharkinapan.
3. Establish clear liberal education goals for each course.Weshouldestablishclearlearninggoals—includingliberallyeducativeones—foreachcoursethatweteach.Suchgoalsshouldbestatedexplicitlyinthesyllabus,inlessonoutlines,anddur-ingeachclassmeeting.AteacherofShakespearemightscheduleadiscussionofElizabethanscienceandfinance.AteacheroffinancemightwanttoreachouttoacolleaguetoshareadiscussionofThe Merchant of Venice.Ifthereareunavoid-ableconstraintsthatwillpreventouraddressingcertainliberaldimensionsofoursubjects,wecanatleastacknowledgethem,offerpointersforself-guidedstudy,andreferstudentstomoreinclusivecourses.
56 General Education and Liberal Learning
4. Be flexible and relevant. Wecanexerciselogisticalandintellectualflexibilitybyrespondingtoemergingissues,especiallywhentheyaregermanetowhatweareteaching,butoccasionallyevenwhentheyarenot.Someissuesaresocompellingthattoignoretheminanyclassroomistomakeoneselfperipheraltotheeduca-tionalprocess.Tsunamis,terroristattacks,orearthquakesarenotjustnewsworthydisastersbutarealsoopportunitiesforreflectiveresponse.
5. Allow students to own their learning. Wecanempowerourstudentsinthede-velopmentoftheirliberallearningbysharingtosomedegreetheownershipofourcourses.Ataminimum,wecanstructuresometimeineachclasssessionforstudentobservationsrelatedbutperhapstangentialtotheissuesformallysched-uledfordiscussion.Andwemightallowatleastoneortwoclasssessionsduringeachcourseforthepursuitofemphasesthatemergeinthecourseorthatstu-dentsaredefiningasemergent.AgiftedteacherofcalculusattheUniversityofTennesseeatChattanoogawoulddemonstrateeventonovicesthemathematicalunderpinningsofeverythingfromNolanRyan’scurveballtomissionsofthespaceshuttle.
6. Promote liberal learning in everyday life. Wecanpromoteopportunitiesforliberallearningoutsideoftheclassroom.Acquaintingourstudentswiththeeducationalandculturalopportunitiesoncampusandinthecommunitywouldbeastart.Shar-ingourownenthusiasmforparticularscheduledeventswouldbeevenmoreper-suasive.Andactuallyshowingupwouldbemosteffective.Thesociologyprofessorwhoattendsalectureonliquidcrystalphysicswillprobablylearnsomethingshedidnotknow.(Shemightalsoenjoystartlingascientificcolleaguebyherpresence.)Andherstudentswillprofitfromherexample.
7. Highlight relationships between topics and disciplines.Wecanseekopportuni-tieswithcolleagues,especiallythoseinotherdisciplines,todiscover,define,andhighlightrelationsamongthecoursesweareteaching.Theprocessofassociationitselfisliberallyeducative,anditshouldbeapparentthatthebroaderandmoreinterestingthecontexts,themorelikelyitisthatgenuinelearningwilltakeplace.Wecanalsoencourageourstudentstoextendoureffortsbyaskingdifficultques-tionsandbyvolunteeringtheirowndevelopingintellectualenthusiasms.
8. Exemplify engaged lifelong learning to students. Aboveall,asprivilegedmembersoftheacademy,wecanofferourselvesinallthatwedoasenergeticlearners.Wecanattendcoursesofferedbycolleagues.(IndianaUniversityonceencouragedthispracticebyofferingincentives.)Wecaninviteourcolleaguestoattendourcoursesandtoraisequestionswithus.Wecanaskcolleaguesandstudentsforreadingsuggestionsandreportbackonourexperiences.Wecanseekguestlecturersanddiscussants.Wecantakeahikeandreportonthefernsweidentified.WecanfollowtheinstructionsinScientific Americantoperformasimpleacousticalexperiment.Whateverourfieldorprimaryexpertise,aswesharewithourstudentsandcolleaguestherichnessofourintellectualexperi-ence,wemodelforthemthefruitsofaliberallearningand,aboveall,testifytoitsvalueinourlives.
57Part Four: Sustaining General Education Programs
Facultymemberswhoembraceinfullthevaluesofaliberallearningcanoffertheirstudentsanintenseandindelibleexperience.Theymayalsoapproachanidealthat,inalllikelihood,hasrarelybeenattained.Whatiscertainisthatifacollegeoruniversityistohonoritsstatedmissionofofferingaliberallearningtoitsstudents,theengagementofeverymemberofthefacultyisessential.
General Education as “Signature”Somecollegesanduniversitiesstillviewgeneraleducationasamandatetobefulfilledratherthanasanopportunitytobegraspedandturnedintoanadvantage.Faculty,stu-dents,andadvisersinsuchinstitutionstendtoagree:generaleducationisarequirementtobe“gottenoutoftheway”sothatseriousstudyinthemajormaybegin.
Butmanyothers,includingthosewhoseaccomplishmentsarecitedinthesepages,haveindeedgraspedtheopportunityofgeneraleducationreforminordertodevelopofferingsthatarecompellingforthefaculty,attractivetostudents,andcompetitiveinthehighereducationmarketplace.Inshort,exceptionalgeneraleducationprogramsdistin-guishinstitutionsandenablethemtodefinethemselvesmorefullyandmorepositively.AsStephenL.Trainor,formerdeanofundergraduatestudiesatSalveReginaUniversity,wrote,suchprogramscapture“thedistinctivemissionandessenceofaninstitution”(2004,16).Thebenefits—forstudentsuccess,facultyrecruitment,alumnisupport,pub-licawareness—canbeconsiderable.
Wehavenotedmanyoftheelementscharacteristicofeffectivegeneraleducationpro-grams,butafewadditionalexamplesofcurriculathatrepresentinstitutional“signatures”mayprovideanappropriateperorationtothisbriefsummonstoexcellence.
WemightwellbeginwithSalveReginaandthelessonsitsexperienceoffers.Deter-minedtoavoid“aleast-common-denominatormodeldesignedtooffendnoone”(Trainor2004,16),theuniversitysoughtconsensusforacounter-intuitiveprocessrelyingheavilyondefinitionof“theproblem,”strategiesfordrawingonfacultycreativity,rubricsforevaluat-ingalternatemodels,andtheidentificationandimplementationofthemostcompellingone.The“high-profile”resultoftheprocessisacoreofrequiredcoursesintendedto“fos-terdiscussionandlivelydebate”amonglearners“workingforaworldthatisharmonious,justandmerciful”(Trainor2004,17).OfferingswithinthecoreincluderequiredcoursessuchasWhatItMeanstoBeHuman;SeekingWisdom:FromWondertoJustice;andChristianityinDialoguewithWorldReligions.AcapstonecalledLivingWisdom,Contem-poraryChallengescapturestheessenceofacurriculumthatisdistinctive,clearlyalignedwiththevaluesoftheuniversity,andexpressiveofitsculture—inshort,a“signature.”
Ontheotherendofthehighereducationspectrum,alargepublicflagship,theUni-versityofMaryland,beganinthespringof2010tomovetowardasignatureprogrambyoffering“signaturecourses”accordingtoseveral“I”categories.Intendedasprecursorstoanew,distinctivegeneraleducationoffering,thenewcourses“aredesignedtoinvestigate significantissueswithimagination andintellect withabeliefthattheywillinspire futureinvestigationandprovideconcretemechanismstoimplement innovativeideas”(UniversityofMaryland2009).CoursesonsubjectsrangingfromShakespeare(ActingHuman)to
58 General Education and Liberal Learning
theChesapeakeBay(IntersectionofScience,Economics,andPolicy)tothethreatofasteroidimpact(CollisionsinSpace)aremeanttoofferstudents“notonlynewintel-lectualdomainstoexplorebutalsonewwaystothinkaboutcontemporaryproblemsliketheenergycrisisandageolddilemmaslikeecologicalsustainability”(UniversityofMaryland2009).
MichiganStateUniversity’sclaimtoa“signatureprogram”rests,inpart,onthreecentersforintegrativestudies,oneinartsandhumanities,oneingeneralscience,andoneinsocialscience.Throughthesecenters,studentspursuecourses“thatintegratemultiplewaysofknowingintoanenhancedappreciationofourhumanity,creativity,knowledge,andresponsibilitiesforourselvesandourworld”(MichiganStateUniversityCentersforIntegrativeStudies).Asamplingofthecoursetitlessuggeststhatthecreativeclaimsfortheprogramareexpressedthroughtheopportunitiesitoffers:HumanValuesandtheArtsandHumanities;MusicandSocietyintheModernWorld;RolesofLan-guageinSociety;VisionsoftheUniversity;ConceptsofRealitythroughPhysicalScience;Power,Authority,andExchange;andSocietyandtheIndividual.
In SumOtherexamplesofeffectivepracticecouldeasilybegiven.Butthepointismade.Oneimportantwaythatcollegesanduniversitiesmaydistinguishthemselvesandenhancetheircompetitivenessonmanystages—thatofpublicaccountability,thatofstudentrecruitment,andthatofalumnisupport,tonameafew—istoreachconsensusonthegoalsofliberallearningandtomoveintentionallytoaligntheirgeneraleducation,major,andcocur-ricularofferingswiththosegoals.Effectiveinstitutionsthenmeasurethequalityoftheirprogrammingthroughassiduousandcreativeassessment.And,mostimportant,theyusewhattheylearntomakethemselvesevenmoreeffective.
Buttheendofsucheffortsfinallytranscendsissuesofinstitutionalprominenceorcompetitiveness.Clarifyingthegoalsofliberallearningandstrengtheninggeneraleducationfinallyhasoneoverridingobjective:tosupportstudentsintheirlearningandtoenablethemtoachievesuccessfulcareersandsatisfyinglives.
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63About the Author
About the Author
Paul l. GastOn isTrusteesProfessoratKentStateUniversity,anappointmentthatcallsforteachingandresearchinatleasttwodifferentdisciplines—inhiscase,highereduca-tionandEnglishliterature.Heconcludedtwenty-fiveyearsasanacademicadministratorbyservingasprovostofKentStatefrom1999to2007.HeearnedthePhDandMAinEnglishfromtheUniversityofVirginia,wherehewasaWoodrowWilsonFellowandaDuPontFellow.Hehaswrittenextensivelyonsubjectsrangingfrominterartanalogies,thepoetryofGeorgeHerbert,andthefictionofWalkerPercy,toacademicstrategicplanning,theHigherEducationAct,andcomputer-dominatedfuturestrading.HismostrecentbooksareRevising General Education—And Avoiding the Potholes: A Guide for Cur-ricular Change (withJerryG.Gaff)(AAC&U,2009),andThe Challenge of Bologna: What United States Higher Education Has to Learn from Europe and Why It Matters That We Learn It(Stylus,2010).GastonhasservedonthefacultyoftheAAC&UInstituteonGeneralEducationsince2001andworksfrequentlyasaconsultanttocolleges,universities,andaccreditingassociations.