General Education Committee Annual Report, 2012-2013
Membership
Term End
2013
2015
2014
2015
Member
Nadia White (chair)
Hayden Ausland
Susanne Caro
Linda Frey
Department
Journalism
MCLL
Mansfield Library
History
Contact Info
nadia.white@umontana.edu
hayden.ausland@mso.umt.edu
Susanne.caro@umontana.edu
linda.frey@mso.umt.edu
2015
Kimberly Reiser
Kim.Reiser@umontana.edu
2015
2015
2015
2015
2015
Lilian Calderon
Frank Rosensweig
Khaled Hutharly
James Randall
Robert Baker
Applied Arts &
Science
Biomedical Science
DBS
Anthropology
Music
English
lilian.calderon@mso.umt.edu
Frank.Rosenzweig@mso.umt.edu
khaled.huthaily@umontana.edu
James.randall@umontana.edu
robert1.baker@umontana.edu
Student Members
Tucker Squires
tucker.squires@umontana.edu
Additional Representatives (Ex-Officio)
Ed Johnson, Registrar (or designee)
Edwin.johnson@mso.umt.edu
Regular attendee
Sue Bradford
Applied Arts &
Science
Sue.Bradford@mso.umt.edu
General Education Course Review
The General Education Committee reviewed eight proposed courses for general education
groups and 16 one-time only experimental general education courses. Most of these were for
the Global Leadership Initiative. The consent agenda is appended. During the review
subcommittee members also consider whether the criteria and learning outcomes still meet the
goals of the general education program. The Global & Indigenous and American & European
Perspectives definitions as well as criteria and learning outcomes require some attention given the
difficulties with the course reviews.
The four-year rolling review of Ethics, Expressive Arts, and Social Science courses began last spring and
continued this fall. Any revisions to the course list are effective fall 2014. The rolling review consent
agenda was presented to the Faculty Senate in December. Late forms came in for two courses at the
Missoula College (BGEN 105 and TASK 160S) as well as CHEM 302E. The Missoula College courses were
reviewed and approved for Social Science. CHEM 302E failed to meet the criteria. A new instructor is
taking over the class and will revise its contents in consultation with a member of the subcommittee on
the ethics designation. That class will be re-reviewed in the fall. Camie will create a calendar of
curriculum deadlines that will be posted to the website for reference.
This spring the review of Mathematics, Historical and Cultural Studies, and Natural Science was
conducted. Courses approved in 2010 or later were exempt from the review and programs were given
a one-year grace period.
Courses
Existing
Submitted
Exempt
Approved
Mathematics
7+
exam
7 + exam
Historical &
Cultural
52
34
5
33
Science
63
57
1
43
Followup
pending
Not
approved
Will
contact to
submit in
the fall
1
13
7 + exam
3
13
Consideration of difficulties with the criteria and learning outcomes for Indigenous &
Global and American & European Groups
Challenges encountered during the routine review of the Global/International and Western/European
perspectives triggered a review of both the categories and their respective criteria by the The Working
Group on Indigenous & Global and American & European.
After research and discussion, the group recommended a range of options for consideration during the
2013=14 academic year. Those recommendations summarized the pros and cons for each option and
included:
Option 1: Eliminate category
Option 2: Fix criteria and learning goals with minor changes to clarify criteria
Option 3: Realign Group with other groups to address overlap with other areas and clarify alignment of
groups with MUS core.
Option 4: Review entire General Education Framework
Board of Regents General Education Council
Chair White attended the BOR General Education Council meeting in Helena and discussed revisions to
the MUS Core courses.
Language Requirement Issue
At the request of ASCRC the General Education Committee spent several months discussing the
possibility of using incentives to encourage more undergraduate students to enroll in foreign
language classes. A variety of incentives were considered and found to be problematic – some
appeared unfeasible, others were undesirable and even threatened to inadvertently reduce the
number of students taking language classes. Ultimately, the committee found that the study of a
foreign language is a distinguishing feature of a liberal arts education. It unanimously affirmed and
clarified its earlier recommendation with new language:
Effective autumn semester of 2015, undergraduate students must fulfill the general
education modern and classical language requirement unless enrolled in a program of study
requiring more than 48 credits leading to a first baccalaureate degree. Credits for the
program of study include all requirements for the primary major including options and
designated pre-requisite courses. General education courses, even those specifically required
by the major, do not count toward the credit cap.
The committee further suggested that The University could help more of its students succeed in
foreign language by supporting foreign language instruction and instructors at the K-12 level; by
creating a greater variety of course configurations for satisfying the language requirement; and by
more clearly articulating to all students the importance of foreign language study in today’s global
marketplace of ideas. A broad sampling of incentive-based proposals were included in the
committee’s report to ASCRC, along with rationale for their disqualification.
General Education Consent Agenda, 12/6/12
New or One-time-only approvals
Mathematical Literacy (Group II)
Mathematics
M 118
Literary and Artistic Studies (Group V)
Mathematics for Music Enthusiasts
English
ENCR 110L
Montana Writers Live
MCLL
MCLL 191
Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality in Cotemporary
Latin American Literature and Film
Historical and Cultural (Group VI )
Anthropology
ANTY 241
Cultures and Civilizations: Peoples and
Environments
Social Sciences (Group VII)
Communication
Studies
COMM 191
Can Giving Change the World? Engaging Social
Responsibility through Philanthropy
CSD
CSD 191
Diversity in Communication / Service Learning
Political Science
PSCI 191
Political Regimes and Society
Educational
Leadership
EDLD 291
Special Topics in Educational Leadership: Leadership
for a Diverse World.
Sociology
SOCI 191
Who am I? Identity and Our Social World
Sociology
SOCI 191
Privation in the Land of Plenty: Hunger and
Homelessness in the U.S. / Service Learning