Submitted by Christa Walck May 23, 2013
Members:
Matt Seigel (HU)
Patricia Sotirin (HU)
Patricia Helsel (VPA, ex-officio)
Steve Walton (SS)
Tom Merz (SBE)
John Jaczczak (Physics)
Mark Gockenbach (Math)
Linda Nagel (SFRES)
Jean Kampe (Engineering Fundamentals)
Margaret Phillips (Library)
Theresa Jacques, Registrar (ex-officio)
Bonnie Gorman, Dean of Students (ex-officio)
Communication Committee
Patricia Sotirin, Chair & Council Member (HU)
Karla Kitalong (HU)
Jim DeClerck (ME-EM)
Emma Norman (SS)
Nina Mahmoudian (ME-EM)
Paul Charlesworth (Chemistry, Senate CPC)
Global Learning Committee
Sam Sweitz (SS), Chair & Global Issues Coordinator (SS)
Sandra Boschetto (HU) Modern Languages Coordinator
Kurt Paterson (Civil & Env Eng)
David Nitz (Physics)
Margaret Phillips (Library, Senate CPC), Council Member
Background. The General Education Council has oversight for the General Education
Program. In 2012-3, the Council was charged with continuing the reform of the program to support the University Student Learning Goals (USLGs) that were established in 2011.
The program currently consists of a four-course core and electives in Humanities/
Arts/Social Sciences (HASS), Math/Science (STEM), and co-curricular activities.
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In 2012, the University Senate approved a new General Education core to be implemented beginning fall 2013. The Council was charged with recommending changes to the program of General Education electives to align it with USLGs, and with developing a robust program of assessment for the General Education program. The
Senate also charged a Communication Committee and Global Learning Committee to develop recommendations for achieving the Communication and Global Literacy goals; these committees report to the General Education Council and the Senate. In addition to the USLGs, the Council needed to consider the proposed Michigan Common Core for transferability of 30 credits of general education among Michigan public universities.
In Spring 2013, Patricia Helsel representing Visual and Performing Arts and Bonnie
Gorman, Dean of Students, joined in Council deliberations as nonvoting members.
Implementing the Core.
• UN1015 Composition (3 cr) will replace UN2001 Composition. Karla Kitalong
(HU), Director of Composition, developed the new curriculum. The
Communication Committee developed Goal 5 rubrics for assessing written and oral communication and the Van Pelt & Opie Library developed Information
Literacy rubrics.
• UN1025 Global Issues (3 cr) will replace UN1002/3 World Cultures. Sam Sweitz
(SS) chaired the Global Issues faculty group that is developing the new course.
The Global Learning Committee developed a rubric to assess Global Literacy. In addition, a new Modern Language Option for this core course was approved.
• Humanities/Fine Arts - HUFA 2000 (3 cr). A list of courses was approved and preliminary rubrics were developed for Critical & Creative Thinking and Values &
Civic Engagement.
• Social & Behavioral Sciences - SBS 2000 (3 cr). A list of courses was approved and preliminary rubrics were developed for Global Literacy & Human Culture and
Values & Civic Engagement.
• Substitutions. A table of substitutions was developed for current students and transfer students to complete the core requirements. Academic Advising Council disseminated information to academic advisors.
• Faculty training. Faculty workshops were conducted in May 2013 and are planned for August 2013 to introduce the goals and rubrics for assessing goals that must be incorporated into the HUFA and SBS 2000 courses. An August 2013 workshop for Global Issues faculty is also planned.
Changes to USLGs expected to be achieved through General Education (aka “General
Education Goals”) . Three changes were recommended.
• Information Literacy would be a General Education goal only for the UN core courses and only to “Level 2: Developing.” Proficiency in Information Literacy
(Level 3) should be achieved in the degree programs, which would identify and assess Information Literacy requirements specific to their disciplines.
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• USLG 2 should be changed from Knowledge of Human Culture and the Physical and Natural World to Knowledge of the Physical and Natural World. Knowledge of Human Culture will be moved to Goal 3.
• USLG 3 Global Literacy should incorporate Knowledge of Human Culture.
USLGs expected to be achieved through General Education now include: #2 Knowledge of Physical and Natural World, #3 Global Literacy and Human Culture, #4 Critical &
Creative Thinking, #5 Communication, #6 Information Literacy (but only to Level 2), and
#8 Values & Civic Engagement.
It is recommended that a goal committee be established for each goal to further develop and refine the rubrics, to vet courses for the General Education distribution lists, and to assess student work in courses for achievement level of their associated
USLGs.
Rubrics to Assess USLGs expected to be achieved through General Education. The
Communications and Global Learning Committees developed rubrics for their goals.
Subgroups of the Council and additional faculty from the concerned disciplines developed draft rubrics for the remaining USLGs addressed by General Education for trial use in the HUFA/SBS 2000 courses in 2013-14. All rubrics were modeled on AAC&U
LEAP rubrics.
Reforming Distribution Requirements (12 cr) . The following changes in distribution requirements were recommended by a “HASS” subgroup and then approved by the full
Council:
• The name “HASS” would be dropped; faculty from any discipline could propose a distribution course. The name Proficiency was proposed to reinforce the idea that courses on the list should bring students to “Level 3: Proficient” in associated USLGs.
• Proficiency courses must be designed to achieve “Level 3: Proficient” for at least one, and at most two, of the following USLGs, which were identified as most critical and/or most difficult for degree programs to achieve: o
#3 Global Literacy and Human Culture
• o
#5 Communication o
#4 Critical/Creative Thinking o
#8 Values & Civic Engagement
As Gen Ed courses, Proficiency courses must be open to any student
• Any given course can be designated either STEM or Proficiency, but not both.
• Prerequisites for Proficiency courses are limited to Gen Ed Core courses.
• Rubrics for associated USLGs and opportunities for assessing student work must be incorporated into the syllabus of each Proficiency course.
• Courses on the Proficiency list would be subject to assessment procedures wherein random samples of student work from multiple courses would be
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assessed for each goal to determine whether the courses were achieving the goals.
The Council met with department chairs in Cognitive and Learning Science, Social
Sciences and Visual and Performing Arts in May 2013 to discuss these recommendations. The chairs expressed concern that a student’s choice of 2000 level courses would narrow their choice of Proficiency courses; conversely, specific prerequisites for Proficiency courses would limit a student’s ability to take the course if they had not taken the appropriate 2000 level course. The Council identified Economics and Psychology as the most likely disciplines where a specific 2000 level prereq would be necessary. A compromise was suggested that if a student wanted to take a
Proficiency course but had not completed the correct 2000 level course, that a student petition to take a third 2000 level course; it would then be up to the student to assure that they completed additional Proficiency courses that satisfied all four USLGs listed above.
These changes to the distribution courses, combined with the new core courses, align with the proposed recommendation (June 2013) for Transferability of Core College
Courses to include
• 1 course in English Composition
• 1 course in Communications or a second course in English Composition
• 2 courses in Social Sciences
• 2 courses in Humanities and Fine Arts
Reforming STEM Requirements (15 cr) . A STEM subgroup recommended changes to the Council, which then approved the following changes in STEM requirements:
• Math (4 cr) + 2 Science courses (7-8 cr) including one lab science + STEM (3-4 cr).
• A STEM rubric was developed.
• Lists of approved STEM Gen Ed Courses were developed; degree programs can designate specific courses.
These changes align with the proposed recommendation (June 2013) for Transferability of Core College Courses to include one course in Quantitative Reasoning and two courses in Natural Sciences including one with a laboratory course.
Timeline for General Education Reform. A proposal for reform would go to the Senate in fall 2013. If the reform is approved, lists of Proficiency courses would be approved in fall 2014 through the Binder Process and implemented in fall 2015.
Communication and Global Learning Committees. These committees were charged with developing rubrics for assessment, pathways for departments to achieve these goals by building on general education, and developing a workshop and Canvas Course for education and support. The Communication Committee presented a report to the
General Education Committee which included rubrics for written, oral and visual communication, and developed and conducted a workshop for faculty in spring 2013
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through the Center for Teaching and Learning to prepare departments to develop plans for assessing communication in their curricula in 2013-14. It is developing a Canvas
Course and will be prepared to support the 2013-14 university assessment focus on
Communication.
The Global Learning Committee presented a rubric for the proposed new Goal 3: Global
Literacy and Human Culture, which addressed both knowledge and engagement criteria.
It will continue its work in 2013-14 to prepare for supporting the 2014-15 university assessment focus on Global Literacy and Human Culture.
Infrastructure for General Education Assessment . The Council recommends the creation of Goal Committees for each USLG addressed by General Education. The charge to these committees would include the assessment of courses used to meet the USLGs, and the review/approval process for courses put forward as Proficiency courses. The chair of each committee would serve on the General Education Council.
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Each student must complete a core of four general education courses, as follows:
1.
COMPOSITION (3cr): UN1001 or UN1015
2.
GLOBAL LITERACY (3cr): World Cultures UN1002 or Global Issues UN 1025
3.
HUMANITIES/FINE ARTS (3cr) 4.
SOCIAL/BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE (3cr)
• Perspectives UN1001
• HUFA 2000 level courses
• Institutions 2002
• SBS 2000 level courses
HUMANITIES AND FINE ARTS (HUFA)
3 credits required
SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES (SBS)
3 credits required
FA2330 Art Appreciation
FA2520 Music Appreciation
FA2820 Theater Appreciation
HU2130 Introduction to Rhetoric
HU2501 American Experience in
Literature
HU2538 British Experience in
Literature
HU2700 Introduction to Philosophy
HU2820 Communication and Culture
HU2910 Language and Mind
EC2001 Principles of Economics
PSY2000 Introduction to Psychology
SS2100 World Peoples and Environments
SS2200 Prehistory and Archaeology
SS2400 Introduction to Human Geography
SS2500 Introduction to History: US to 1877
SS2501 Introduction to History: US since
1877
SS2502 Introduction to History: Europe to
1650
SS2503 Introduction to History: Europe since
1650
SS2504 Introduction to History: World to
1500
SS2505 Introduction to History: World since
1500
SS2600 American Government and Politics
SS 2700 Introduction to Sociology
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GOAL
3 Global
Level 2 Level 3 Prerequisites
UN1025 PROF Goal 3 Prereq UN1025 required
5 Communication UN1015
4 Critical/Creative
Thinking
HUFA 2000
STEM
PROF Goal 5 Prereq UN1015 required
PROF Goal 4 Department selects one of the following options for all faculty teaching the course: a.
A specific core course from the
HUFA 2000 b.
Any of the core courses from the
HUFA
8 Values & Civic
Engagement
HUFA 2000
SBS 2000 c.
NO prereq – if not, explain why a student does not need a HUFA 2000 course as a prereq
PROF Goal 8 Department selects one of the following options for all faculty teaching the course: a.
A specific core course from the
HUFA or SBS 2000 b.
Any of the core courses from the
HUFA or SBS 2000 c.
NO prereq – if not, explain why a student does not need a HUFA or
SBS 2000 course as a prereq
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University Student
Learning Goals
Emerging
Level 2
Proficient
Level 3**
Exemplary
Level 4
1 Disciplinary
2 Knowledge of Physical
& Natural World*
GEN ED
STEM
GEN ED
STEM
GEN ED
PROF 3 cr.
Achieved in all majors
Achieved in some majors
3 Human Culture &
Global Literacy*
4 Critical/Creative
Thinking*
7 Technology
GEN ED
UN1025
SBS 2000
GEN ED
HUFA 2000
STEM
5 Communication* GEN ED
UN1015
6 Information Literacy* GEN ED
UN1015
UN1025
GEN ED
PROF 3 cr.
GEN ED
PROF 3 cr
Achieved in all majors
Achieved in all majors
8 Values & Civic
Engagement*
GEN ED
SBS 2000
HUFA 2000
GEN ED
PROF 3 cr.
* These are also Gen Ed Learning Goals
** Majors are expected to provide opportunities to reinforce and practice all learning goals introduced by the Gen Ed Program. The Annual Assessment Report will ask degree programs to identify where in their programs this occurs and could be assessed.
BOLD = ALL STUDENTS HELD TO THIS STANDARD
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Group
CORE
USLG#
3 4 5 6 8
Level 2
Proficiency
USLG#
3 4 5 8
Level 3
STEM
USLG# 2 4
Course
UN1015 Composition
UN1025 Global Issues or Modern Language
Option
HU/FA 2000
SBS 2000
Courses that help students achieve level 3 for Learning Goals 3, 4, 5,
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CoCurricular FA, AF/AR, PE
Cr. USLG
3 5 Communication
6 Information Literacy
3 3 Human Culture & Global Literacy
6 Information Literacy
3 4 Critical/Creative Thinking
8 Values & Civic Engagement
3 3 Human Culture & Global Literacy
8 Values & Civic Engagement
12 3 Global Literacy & Human Culture
4 Critical/Creative Thinking
5 Communication
8 Values & Civic Engagement
Math 4 cr
Science 7-8 cr, 2 courses
(1 lab science)
STEM 3-4 cr
15
(3)
39
2 Knowledge of Physical/Natural
World
4 Critical/Creative Thinking
Proficiency courses: Students must take 12 cr. of courses that are designed to provide proficiency/level 3 competency in each of university student learning goals
3, 4, 5, and 8. Due to proposed Michigan Common Core requirements, one of these courses must be in “humanities or fine arts.”
Courses for these credits must meet the following criteria:
•
•
As GenEd courses, they must be open to any student
Any single course may meet at most two learning goals
•
•
Any given course can be either STEM or Proficiency, but not both.
The only prerequisites allowed are Gen Ed CORE courses (including SBS-
2000 or HUFA-2000)
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GENERAL EDUCATION PROGRAM 2015-6 with Michigan Common Core Requirements
Group
CORE
USLG #
3 4 5 6 8
Level 2
Proficiency
USLG #
3 4 5 8
Level 3
STEM
USLG #2 4
CoCurricular
Course
UN1015 Composition
UN1025 Global Issues or Modern Language
Option
HU/FA 2000
SBS 2000
Courses that help students achieve level 3 for Learning Goals 3, 4, 5,
8
Math 4 cr
Science 7-8 cr, 2 courses
(1 lab science)
STEM 3-4 cr
FA, AF/AR, PE
Cr. USLG
3 5 Communication
6 Information Literacy
3 3 Human Culture & Global Literacy
6 Information Literacy
3 4 Critical/Creative Thinking
8 Values & Civic Engagement
3 3 Human Culture & Global Literacy
8 Values & Civic Engagement
12
15
(3)
39
3 Global Literacy & Human Culture
4 Critical/Creative Thinking
5 Communication
8 Values & Civic Engagement
2 Knowledge of Physical/Natural
World
4 Critical/Creative Thinking
Michigan Common Core
1 course in English Composition
1 course in Social Sciences
1 course in Humanities/Fine Arts
2
2
2 nd nd nd
course in Social Sciences
course in Humanities/Fine Arts
course in
Communications/Composition
1 course in Quantitative Reasoning
2 courses in Natural Sciences including one with laboratory experience
30 credits
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