University of Nebraska Kearney

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    Attachment, May 6, 2004

    Proposed General Studies Assessment Schedule

    Approximate Date Year X Year X + 1
    April/May Initial Contact with Department  
    Summer Preliminary work on assessment device and procedures  
    Early Fall Finalize Process, Select Courses  
    Nov/Dec Collect data  
    Jan - Mar Analyze data  
    Spring Break Preliminary Report  
    April Report to Departments by the Director  
    April/May GSC Meeting Full Report distributed to GSC for Review Initial Contact with Department
    Summer Review Data Preliminary work on assessment device and procedures
    Aug/Sept Finalize Action Plan based on Data from Year X Finalize Process, Select Courses
    October 1 Assessment Report Deadline  
    Nov/Dec   Collect data
    Jan-Mar   Analyze data
    Spring Break   Preliminary Report
    April   Report to Departments by the Director
    April/May GSC Meeting   Full Report distributed to GSC for Review
    Summer   Review Data
    Aug/Sept   Finalize Action Plan based on Data from Year X
    October 1   Assessment Report Deadline

     

      General Studies Schedule
    Date Recommendation
      Recommendation #1: the University should develop and publicize a more comprehensive rationale for the General Studies Program structure, purpose, and student learning outcomes.
    Sent to CFAH for review & proposal, 4-8-04 Recommendation #2: the University should make several immediate modifications to the General Studies Program that will enhance student learning.
    1. requiring students to complete English 101 and 102 during the first two years.
    Sent to CFAH for review & proposal, 4-8-04 Recommendation #2: the University should make several immediate modifications to the General Studies Program that will enhance student learning.
    1. adding foreign language as a strand of the Humanities category.
      Recommendation #2: the University should make several immediate modifications to the General Studies Program that will enhance student learning.
    1. encouraging departments to limit the size of their classes
      Recommendation #2: the University should make several immediate modifications to the General Studies Program that will enhance student learning.
    1. adding upper level courses to the GSP.
    GS Director and CTE Director develop a workshop to address, 5-6-04 Recommendation #2: the University should make several immediate modifications to the General Studies Program that will enhance student learning.
    1. encouraging faculty to make connections between their GSP courses and classes in other academic disciplines.
      Recommendation #2: the University should make several immediate modifications to the General Studies Program that will enhance student learning.
    1. resolving the future of Category VIII: Capstone Course.
     
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. is a liberal education best achieved via a small number of courses focusing on the most fundamental aspects of academic disciplines? Or is a liberal education more likely to be realized by offering students multiple options to meet the individual GSP requirements?
    Sent to CFAH for review & proposal, 4-8-04
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. why is philosophy the sole discipline within the Humanities category that students may avoid? Students are currently required to complete Humanities' course work in literature, aesthetics, and history -- but not in philosophy. What are the justifications for marginalizing philosophy in this manner?
     
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. why is economics the sole discipline within the Social and Behavioral Sciences category that students may not avoid?
     
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. why are the structures of the Humanities and Social and Behavioral Sciences categories different? On a related note to points #2 and 3 above, why are choices in Humanities prescribed, but not so in the Social and Behavioral Sciences category?
     
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. why are most of the GSP categories arranged according to "perspectives," but the Natural Sciences category is structured by "department?"
    Sent to CFAH for review & proposal, 4-8-04
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. why is the historical perspective considered part of the Humanities category when the Department of History is housed in the College of Natural and Social Sciences?
     
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      1. why are some areas of the GSP under the control of a specific department while others are not?
      Governance & Assessment, Recommendations IV - VII
    Considered and accepted, 4-8-04, Director will report
    1. Structure of the GSP: Issues to be Studied
      • Recommendation #8: the University should emphasize the importance of advising in the General Studies Program.
    Considered and rejected, 4-8-04 Recommendation #9:
    the University should reconsider the name of the General Studies Program.