Students’ Integrated & Universal
Essential Education
‘SIUe Education’
Distribution Model for General Education
July 14, 2006
Marcus Agustin, Mathematics & Statistics
Mary Ann Boyd, School of Nursing
Belinda Carstens-Wickham, Foreign Languages & Literature
Thomas Foster, Physics and Office of Science & Mathematics Education
Melissa Dickson, Student, Physics and Secondary Education
Krzysztof Jarosz, Mathematics & Statistics
Jennifer Rehg, Anthropology
Cindy Scarsdale, Office of the Provost
Kimberly Shaw, Physics
Guiding Principles
• Improved flexibility for students, faculty, &
programs
• Competency in fundamental skills
• Exposure to diverse subjects & ways of
knowing
• Mechanisms for assessment & ‘quality
control’
Overview
• Foundations courses
• Breadth courses
• Cultures (diversity requirement)
• Total Courses/Credit Hours
(includes Freshman Seminar & IS)
– No overlap: 15 courses
– Max overlap: 11 courses
Foundations
• Written Fluency (2 courses)
– Eng 101; Eng 102 (theme-based)
• Logical Reasoning (1 course)
– LR 101
• Quantitative Literacy (1 course)
– QL 101
• Oral Communication (1 course)
Foundations
• May not overlap with other courses (possible
exception of Freshmen Seminar)
• Proficiency/Placement exams available to
satisfy some requirements
• Written Fluency, Quantitative Literacy,
Logical Reasoning completed in first 30 credit
hours
• Oral Communication completed in first 60
credit hours
Breadth Requirements
• Language & Communication (LC)
• Social Sciences (SS)
• Fine Arts (FA)
• Life & Earth Sciences (LES)
• Physical Sciences (PS)
• Human Experience, Literature, &
Philosophy (HELP)
Breadth Requirements
• Breadth areas themselves cannot overlap
• Allow overlap with major and minor courses
• May be taken at any time
• May be upper or lower division courses
Cultures
(diversity requirements)
• 1 course on U.S.A. cultures
• 1 course on international cultures
• Allow overlap with all requirements except
Foundations
BA vs. BS
• Bachelor of Arts:
• 8 courses in fine arts, humanities, or
communications (LC, FA, HELP)
• Includes minimum of 2 sequenced courses
in a foreign language
• Bachelor of Science:
• 8 courses in sciences (SS, PS, LES)
• Includes a minimum of 2 lab courses
Assessment & Quality Control
• University level administrative positions
and/or faculty committees for General
Education
• Proficiency/Placement exams available to
satisfy some Foundations courses
• Basic Skills Test as graduation requirement
(?)
Advantages
• Simplified guidelines for general education
• Strengthened focus on fundamental skills
• Increased exposure to diverse disciplines
• Improved system for ‘quality control’
• Clear and rigorous BA/BS distinction
In Progress…
• Content and structure of Logical Reasoning
course
• Content and structure of Oral Communication
course
• Recommendations for Freshmen Seminar
– Ethics component?
– Healthful Living component?
• Recommendations for IS
– Instructors from 2 Breadth areas
– Analytical reading and writing component
– 25 students per instructor
• Guidelines & application of
proficiency/placement exams, Basic Skills Test
• Structure of oversight for General Education