Revamp the Miami Plan: A Proposal

1. Revamp the Miami Plan: A Proposal Julia Engelbrecht ENG 315

2. What I’ll Cover • Overview • Current Situation • Proposal Plan • Budget • Conclusion

3. Overview The Miami Plan for Liberal Education requires students to enroll in 33 to 36 credit hours cover disciplines ranging from natural and biological science to fine arts. According to the Miami University Liberal Education website, the Miami Plan “is designed to to help students understand and creatively transform human culture and society by giving students the tools to ask questions, examine assumptions, exchange views with others, and become a better global citizen.”

4. Current Situation: Why This Matters • Students feel unfulfilled academically with the required courses. • Decrease in GPA from courses that are too challenging • Courses that are “Easy A’s” • Too many requirements • “As a humanities major, I am still required to take additional humanities classes just to fulfill the Miami Plan, despite the large amount I already take.” - Cory Madsen, senior American Studies Major

5. But, there is still a need for liberal arts • More than 9 in 10 want those they hire to demonstrate ethical judgment and integrity; intercultural skills; and the capacity for continued new learning. • More than three-fourths of employers want more emphasis on: critical thinking, complex problem-solving, written and oral communication, and applied knowledge in real-world settings. • Nearly three-fourths would recommend this kind of education to a young person they know as the best way to prepare for success in today's global economy. (Huffington Post)

7. Proposal for Action: The Plan • Step 1: Evaluate how the plan can better students • Step 2: Create a liberal art requirement based on student course of study, while continuing to meet objectives of thinking critically, understanding contexts, engaging with other learners, and reflecting and acting. • Step 3: Implement new plan to further study of liberal education and effectively create a lasting impression on students.

8. Step 1: Evaluate the Plan • Evaluating the number of credit hours and requirements. • Recognizing that a liberal arts education continues to be an important part of a college degree. • “Many graduates in more practical fields may find their skills outdated within five to 10 years, but liberal arts students have the chance to invest in skills such as writing that will be useful to them throughout their careers.” – Danielle Moss Lee, CEO of Harlem Activities Fund.

9. Step 2: Creating A New Plan • Implement liberal arts values in all learning settings. • Placing equal yet minimal emphasis on all areas of study. • Example: Requiring a smaller amount of science classes for humanities majors. • Focusing the plan on individual programs. • Examples: • COM 143 satisfies a humanities requirement. • JRN 412 satisfies the quantitative requirement.

10. Step 3: Implement the New Plan • Phase into the new liberal arts plan for education.

11. Conclusion • Creating a new plan for students would: • Continue to encourage students to engage and learn using the principles of thinking critically, understanding contexts, engaging with other learners, and reflecting and acting. • Build a foundation of courses in conjunction with the student’s program of study. • Use these tactics to influence students in the future.

12. Sources - www.muohio.edu/liberal-ed Driscoll, E. (2012, January 27). What is a liberal arts degree worth today?. Retrieved from http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/2012/01/27/what-is-liberal-arts-degree-worth-these-days/ Ebersole, J. (2013, September 19). Is an education in the liberal arts important?. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-john-ebersole/is-an-education-in-the-li_b_3949704.html