Institute on General Education
Institute Curriculum
While the curriculum is revised each year based upon the stated needs of the participating institutions, the Institute typically includes the experiences described below.
- An opening plenary that places the work of the Institute in the context of national trends and the Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) initiative, as well as other plenaries that respond to particular topics.
- Concurrent sessions that elaborate the core curriculum tracks through concentration on specific aspects of the issues raised around general education reform.
- Private faculty consultations, an integral part of the curriculum, that allow teams to delve into important issues directly related to their project.
- Team time to provide teams the time to work together on their own project.
- Consultations with other campus teams to share issues and solutions.
- A formal curriculum organized around “tracks” – each a series of connected presentations that frame important aspects of general education reform.
The three general education tracks:
Track 1: The Process of General Education Change
The strength of a good idea does not guarantee its success. This track will help teams analyze campus dynamics, politics and culture, and relations with other internal and external entities. Together with a final session on implementation strategies, this track will focus on supporting your good ideas with strategic change processes.
Track 2: An Approach to Learning Improvement
Developing clear learning outcomes or expectations is a powerful first step to learning improvement. This track moves from goals into building curricula to achieve general education outcomes and follows with a look at pedagogies particularly effective for student learning and development.
Track 3: Assessment and Communication
Campuses need useful assessments of student learning to serve multiple purposes and that do not overburden faculty. Techniques and strategies for assessing liberal learning from course to program to institutional levels will be addressed, along with strategies for communicating how results are used in a variety of ways to demonstrate quality learning.
Concurrent sessions and/or consultations may also include the following, while ad hoc discussions can be organized in response to team requests:
- various models of general education
- integrative learning in general education
- diversity and its integral role in learning – here and in a global society
- community-based learning and learning communities in general education
- student intellectual development
- connecting general education to departmental majors
- faculty development as a strategy for improving general education
- allocating resources for general education
- e-portfolios: purposes and processes
- assessment rubrics for all liberal education outcomes
- issues of student transfer among institutions
| 
