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General Education At Widener

General Education At Widener. Scott Van Bramer – A&S Sue Greenberg - SBA. Purpose Statement: Approved by Faculty Council November 2006.

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General Education At Widener

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  1. General Education At Widener Scott Van Bramer – A&S Sue Greenberg - SBA Admissions

  2. Purpose Statement: Approved by Faculty Council November 2006 • Widener University cultivates critical, creative, and independent thinking to develop undergraduateswho demonstrate intellectual integrity, civic engagement and potential for leadership. • General education promotes awareness and synthesis of different strategies of knowing, questioning, and understanding. • Through the integration of experiences both inside and outside the classroom, students learn to act as responsible citizens and to pursue knowledge beyond the boundaries of the university. Admissions

  3. Distribution Requirements: 12 Credits in each • Humanities: art history, English, history, humanities, modern language, music, philosophy. • Science and Mathematics: biology, chemistry computer science, earth and space science, environmental science, mathematics, physics, and selected economics and psychology courses. • Social Science: anthropology, criminal justice, government and politics, communications studies, psychology, sociology, and selected economics courses Admissions

  4. We take your education personally – GenEd courses…. • are important components of the educational requirements identified by the accreditors of the professional programs • frequently serve as foundations for courses within the majors • contribute significantly to students’ ultimate success by developing intellectual qualities, cognitive (thinking) strategies,, and practical skills (NSSE study) • are taught by knowledgeable faculty Admissions

  5. Professional accreditation requires general education • ABET (Engineering) • AACSB (Business) • Nursing • Education • Social Work • Hospitality Management Admissions

  6. Engineering Chem 145 & 147 General Chemistry ASC 400 Values Seminar Business ANTH 105 Cultural Anthropology PRWR 215 Effective Communication PHIL 352 Business Ethics Nursing CHEM 105 General Organic and Biochemistry PSY 105 Introduction to Psychology Elementary Education ENGL 101 Composition and Critical Thought HIST 121 & 122 Growth of American Civilization Social Work BIOL 101 Principles of Biological Systems ANTH 105 Cultural Anthropology Hospitality Management ML Elementary Modern Language PRWR 215 Effective Communication School Requirements – Examples of specific GenEd courses required for majors: Admissions

  7. NSSE Data: Communication and Integration Admissions

  8. NSSE Data: Developmental Admissions

  9. NSSE Data: General Education Admissions

  10. NSSE Highlights • The greatest contributions of a Widener education for freshmen and seniors were in the areas of thinking critically and analytically, writing clearly and effectively, and acquiring a broad general education. Over 80% of the freshmen and seniors said their Widener education contributed “quite a bit” or “very much” in these areas. In addition, about 83% of the seniors said their Widener education contributed “quite a bit” or “very much” in terms of acquiring job or work-related knowledge and skills (see Table 3). Admissions

  11. NSSE Highlights • Freshmen at Widener were more likely than freshmen from the other NSSE institutions to say that their collegiate experience has contributed substantially in the area of writing clearly and effectively, 81% compared to 71%. Admissions

  12. NSSE Highlights • The freshmen at Widener reported spending more time in a typical 7-day week preparing for class than freshmen at similar institutions. In addition, Widener freshmen wrote more papers or reports between 5 and 19 pages than other freshmen and were more likely to say that their coursework during the freshman year emphasized “making judgments about the value of information, arguments, or methods” and “applying theories or concepts to practical problems or new situations.” Admissions

  13. NSSE Highlights • Seniors at Widener wrote significantly more papers or reports than seniors at comparable institutions. In addition, Widener seniors were more likely to say that their coursework emphasized the synthesis and organization of ideas, information, or experiences into new, more complex interpretations and relationships. Admissions

  14. Writing Requirements • Freshman Composition • Writing Enriched Courses (4) • Multiple writing assignments • Revisions • 25 page minimum • 25 students per class • Distribution and Majors Courses • Writing Samples Admissions

  15. Faculty • Approximately 75% of 100 and 200 level A&S courses are taught by full time faculty. • No graduate students teaching general education courses. • Most adjuncts have a PhD in the field Admissions

  16. Goals: A liberally educated person possesses knowledge beyond the boundaries of a chosen field of discipline and sustains a desire to pursue learning after leaving the university’s environment. • Students communicate effectively. • Students use quantitative methods effectively. • Students understand the world from multiple perspectives. • Students cultivate an awareness of themselves and their role within the human community. • Students cultivate an awareness of their relationship to the natural world. • Students understand ethical theories and how to apply them personally and professionally. • Students understand and apply methods of inquiry and interpretation. • Students think critically. Admissions

  17. Association of American Colleges and Universities “Liberal Education” • A philosophy of education that empowers individuals, liberates the mind from ignorance, and cultivates social responsibility. Characterized by challenging encounters with important issues, and more a way of studying than specific content, liberal education can occur at all types of colleges and universities. "General Education" (cf. below) and an expectation of in-depth study in at least one field normally comprise liberal education.1 Admissions

  18. General Education Network • Ways of Being - Growing and flourishing of the intellectual qualities of a liberally educated person • Ways of Knowing - Awareness and synthesis of different cognitive strategies of knowing, questioning, and understanding • Ways of Doing - Development and strengthening of the practicalskills needed to be fully engaged in lifelong Admissions

  19. Ways of Being: • Quality One: Possesses knowledge beyond the boundaries of a chosen field or discipline • Quality Two: Sustains a desire to pursue learning after leaving the university’s environment. • Quality Three: Cultivates an awareness of his/her place within the larger community Admissions

  20. Ways of Knowing: • Strategy One: Understands the world around him/her from multiple perspectives. • Strategy Two: Has a consciousness of the wider human condition. • Strategy Three: Knows how to know. Admissions

  21. Ways of Doing: • Skill One: Uses written and oral communication effectively • Skill Two: Manifests quantitative competency • Skill Three: Accesses and evaluates information from a range of sources • Skill Four: Thinks critically • Skill Five: Possessesdepth, rigor, and discipline of thinking and learning Admissions

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