General Education Essentials: Civic Engagement, Diversity, and Global Learning General Education &...

General Education Essentials: Civic Engagement, Diversity, and

Global LearningGeneral Education & Assessment Conference

Friday, February 18

Atlanta, GA

Presenters:

Dr. Daniel Hiroyuki Teraguchi, Associate Director and Research Associate, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Global Initiatives, AAC&U

Dr. Caryn McTighe Musil, Senior Vice President, AAC&U

Flow of Presentation

I. Big Liberal Education Picture

II. Trends in GenEd

III. Intellectual Links between Diversity, Civic, and Global Learning

Greater Expectations: 5 Key Educational Outcomes

1. strong analytical, communication, quantitative, and information skills

2. deep understanding of and hands-on experience with the inquiry practices of disciplines that explore the natural, social, and cultural realms

3. intercultural knowledge and collaborative problem-solving skills

4. a proactive sense of responsibility for individual, civic, and social choices

5. habits of mind that foster integrative thinking and the ability to transfer skills and knowledge from one setting to another


1. strong analytical, communication, quantitative, and information skillsachieved and demonstrated through learning in a range of fields, settings, and media, and through advanced studies in one or more areas of concentration

2. deep understanding of and hands-on experience with the inquiry practices of disciplines that explore the natural, social, and cultural realmsachieved and demonstrated through studies that build conceptual knowledge by engaging learners in concepts and modes of inquiry that are basic to the natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, and arts


3. intercultural knowledge and collaborative problem-solving skillsacieved and demonstrated in a variety of collaborative contexts (classroom, community-based, international, and online) that prepare students both for democratic citizenship and for work

4. a proactive sense of responsibility for individual, civic, and social choicesachieved and demonstrated through forms of learning that connect knowledge, skills, values, and public action, and through reflection on students’ own role and responsibilities in social and civic contexts

5. habits of mind that foster integrative thinking and the ability to transfer skills and knowledge from one setting to anotherachieved and demonstrated through advanced research and/or creative projects in which students take the primary responsibility for framing questions, carrying out an analysis, and producing work of substantial complexity and quality

Our Students Best Work

Student Learning &

Engagement

Integrative Thinking

Intercultural knowledge & Collaborative

Problem-Solving Skills

Responsibility

Communication Skills

Modes of Inquiry – Critical Thinking

Student Learning Outcomes

Creating the Intentional LearnerEmpowered, Responsible, and Informed

Student Development

Architecture/ Structures


Reflection/ Development

Co-Curricular Life

Community Engagement

GenEd

Major

Culminating Project

Structure Student Development


Reflection/ Development

Co-Curricular Life

Community Engagement

GenEd

Major

Structure Student Development

Civic Global

Div

Culminating Project

Structure of Gen Ed Programs

Intro CoursesServe as the foundation for student learning in general education programs

Sequential CoursesA program of study that enable students to integrate and synthesize material from courses in both the major and general education courses and from co-curricular experiences.

Capstone CoursesBringing theory to practice and assessing general education’s effectiveness

Structure of Gen Ed ProgramsInnovations

Intro CoursesFirst Year ExperiencesLearning Communities

Sequential CoursesUndergraduate ResearchStudy Abroad

Capstone CoursesPortfoliosInternships

What Happens When Diversity, Civic, and Global are Not Part of this Experience

Intro CoursesFirst Year ExperiencesLearning Communities

Sequential CoursesUndergraduate ResearchField-Based Learning

Capstone CoursesPortfoliosInternships

Diversity, Civic, and Global LearningIndividual Benefits

• Enhanced critical & complex thinking (Gurin Report, 1999)• Preparation to live and work in a diverse society and complex

diversity (Gurin Report, 1999; Bowen & Bok, 1998)• Greater academic success and decreases in prejudicial

attitudes (DiversityWorks, Smith,1997)• Advancement of leadership skills through deeper

understanding of themselves in order to know how they are seen by others, which leads to a modification of their behaviors and attitudes to encourage a spirit of openness and connection with others (Antonio, 2001; Komives et al., 1998)

• Greater engagement in life long learning of understanding people and cultures in order to develop a more democratic community and equitable society (Milem, 2003)

Diversity, Civic, and Global LearningInstitutional Benefits

• Higher Levels of Student Persistence (Kuh, 2003; Milem, 2003; Chang, 1999; Astin, 1993)

• Greater satisfaction with the college experience (AAC&U’s Diversity Works, 1997)

• Higher Levels of Academic Excellence (AAC&U, 2004; Ancheta, 2003; Milem, 2003)

• Preparation of students for a diverse society and workforce (Gurin Report, 1999)

Diversity, Civic, and Global LearningCurriculum Benefits

• Several studies confirm that students acquire cognitively complex skills and cultural understanding through content and pedagogy designed to make the most of the diversity in the classroom. (Adams and Zhou-McGovern, 1994 and A. M. Ortiz, 1995)

• Several studies reveal that women’s studies courses encourage more debate among students than other kinds of courses and, in fact, increase friendships between men and women in the classes. (Musil, Courage to Question,1992)

• Ethnic studies prepare and educate all students for an increasingly diverse society by discussing issues of race and ethnicity throughout their courses to reduce racial tension and change racial attitudes (Hurtado, 1992; Milem, 1994)

Diversity, Civic, and Global LearningSocietal Benefits

• Greater civic engagement and social responsibility (AAC&U, 2004; Milem, 2003)

• Students gain a deeper knowledge of, debate about, and practice of democracy (AAC&U, 2004; Milem, 2003)

• Higher levels of service in community/civic organizations (Milem, 2003)

• Greater equity in society (Milem, 2003)Also visit: U Michigan’s Diverse Democracy Project at

www.umich.edu/~divdemo/index.html

Diversity and Global LearningEconomic & Business Benefits

(Milem, 2003)• Better problem solving abilities

• Higher levels of creativity & innovation

• Cultivation of workforce with greater levels of cross-cultural competence

Magic Box

• Civic

• Global

• Diversity

Democratic Outcomes

Ability to See Multiple Perspectives

Conflict Enhances Democracy

Importance of Social Action Engagement

Background Characteristics

Pre-college Socialization

Institutional Characteristics and Climate

College Interaction with Diverse Peers

Curricular/Co-Curricular Context

Societal Influences

Diverse Democracy Project(http://www.umich.edu/~divdemo/index.html)

Influence of Pre-college and College Variables on Democratic Outcomes

Example - St. Edwards University(www.stedwards.edu/admssns/gened.htm)

The six required courses, designed to help students develop a balanced understanding and appreciation for their own and other cultures, are as follows:

– Freshman Year- “The Human Experience”

– Sophomore Year- “American Experience” & “American Dilemmas”

– Junior Year- “The Identity of the West” & “Contemporary World Issues”

– Senior Year- “Capstone Course”

Example - St. Edwards UniversityThe American ExperienceThe purpose of this course is to examine gender, race, ethnic status and social class in experience throughout the country's history. The course places individual and group experience within the social, economic, and political context of various eras, exploring group differences in experience and perspective as well as the ideals and values of American civic culture.American DilemmasThis course presents the principles and methods of economics, sociology and political science to analyze current social problems.The Identity of the WestThe course deals with major developments in the history of the West which have made Western culture influential in the world.Contemporary World IssuesThe course consists of two seven-week modules, each dealing with a crucial issue in world affairs in different non-Western areas of the world. The two modules are linked thematically to ensure continuity.

Example – San Jose State U.Self, Society, & Equality in the U.S.

Student Learning GoalsStudy the interrelationship of individuals, racial groups, and cultural groups to understand and appreciate issues of diversity, equality, and structured inequality in the U.S., its institutions, and its cultures

Outcomes• Describe how religions, gender, ethnic, racial, class, sexual

orientation, disability, and/or age identity are shaped by cultural and societal influences in contexts of equality and inequality

Describe historical, social, political, and economic processes producing diversity, equality, and structured inequalities in the U.S.

Describe social actions by religious, gender, ethnic, racial, class, sexual orientation, disability, and/or age groups leading to greater equality and social justice in the U.S.

Recognize and appreciate constructive interactions between people from different cultural, racial, and ethnic groups in the U.S.

Example – San Jose State U.Culture, Civilization, & Global Understanding Student Learning Goals Give students an appreciation for human expression in different

cultures and an understanding of how that expression has developed over time in different cultures.

Increase students’ understanding of how other cultural traditions have influenced American culture and society, as well as how cultures in general develop distinctive features and interact with other cultures

Outcomes Compare systematically the ideas, values, images, cultural artifacts,

economic structures, technological developments, or attitudes of people from different societies

Identify the historical context of ideas and cultural practices and their dynamic relations to other historical contexts

Explain how a culture changes in response to internal and external pressures

Engagement is Key (Chang, 1996)

Engagement with racially and ethnically diverse students and faculty leads to high levels of:

Retention

Intellectual Self-Confidence

Social Self-Confidence

Satisfaction with College

American Pluralism and the Meaning of Citizenship

1. Experience, Identity, and Aspiration: The study of one’s own particular inherited and constructed traditions, identity communities, and significant questions, in their complexity

2. United States Pluralism and the Pursuits of Justice: An extended and comparative exploration of diverse peoples in this society, with significant attention to their differing experiences of United States democracy and the pursuits—sometimes successful, sometimes frustrated—of equal opportunity

3. Experiences in Justice Seeking: Encounters with systemic constraints on the development of human potential in the United States and experiences in community-based efforts to articulate principles of justice, expand opportunity, and redress inequities.

4. Multiplicity and Relational Pluralism in Majors, Concentrations, and Programs: Extensive participation in forms of learning that foster sustained exploration of and deliberation about contested issues important in particular communities of inquiry and practice

American Council on EducationFindings on Internationalization on U.S.

Campuses

Among incoming college students:

• More than 70 percent believe it is important for colleges and universities to offer international experiences and opportunities

• Almost 60 percent express a strong preference to study or work abroad for a semester

• 83 percent believe it is important for colleges and universities to offer opportunities to interact with students from other countries

• During the 2001-02 Academic year 20% of students at comprehensive universities took just one international course

• 45% of students took no international courses

Example – Wagner College(http://www.wagner.edu/wagnerplan/)

The Wagner Plan for the Practical Liberal ArtsThe Wagner Plan incorporates our longstanding commitment to the liberal arts, experiential learning and interdisciplinary education with our geographical location and enduring bond with New York City.

Under The Wagner Plan, students complete a liberal arts core program and a major, totaling 36 units/courses. As part of these requirements, students complete three Learning Communities (LC's)-one in the first year, one during the intermediate years, and one in the senior year in the major.

Example – Wagner College

The First Year Program •First year students enroll in interdisciplinary clusters of courses organized around a common theme called Learning Communities•LCs link directly to field experience based upon the theme of the Learning Community.

The Intermediate Years•During the second and third years of the Wagner Plan, students select an Intermediate Learning Community (ILC)•By combining two courses in different fields through the ILC students begin to see in significant ways the connections between disciplines

The Senior Program•The Senior Learning Community consists of two classes, a substantive course which explores issues within the field of study, and a field-based internship or applied learning component such as a significant original research project. •Students enroll in a Reflective Tutorial to discuss their experiences combining fieldwork with course work with other students

Liberal Education, Fall 2002Pedagogy And Political (Dis)Engagement

K. Edward Spiezio

• 85 percent of undergraduates expressed agreement with the following statement: "I feel like I need more practical information about politics before I get involved."

• Approximately 85 percent of undergraduates felt that "community volunteering" was better than "political engagement" as a way of solving community problems

• Existing pedagogies tend to promote service learning rather than political engagement

• This tends to lead to either political disengagement or very limited forms of political participation among students

• Community service and service learning experiences grounded in one content area (e.g. ethics) will not necessarily promote the acquisition of knowledge and skills relevant to other content areas (e.g. politics)

• to use experiential education as a tool to promote political engagement experiences must be explicitly and directly embedded in curricular offerings whose content is dedicated to the art of political participation

Liberal Education, Fall 2002Pedagogy And Political (Dis)Engagement

K. Edward Spiezio

An effective curricular design should feature a learning environment that would enable students to:

• learn the basic strategies and tactics of political activism, complemented perhaps with an understanding of the fundamentals of applied policy analysis.

• interact with practitioners who have chosen public administration, or politically meaningful forms of public service more generally, as a vocation.

• network with student-based organizations and citizen-based interest groups that are politically active in various issue-areas.

• experience political processes directly through placements in community-based institutions and organizations that deal with applied policy issues.

Outcomes Of College For High School And College Students

Top Tier OutcomesMaturity and ability to succeed on one’s own

Time-management skills

Strong work habits

Self-discipline

Teamwork skills and ability to get along with different types of people

Challenge: students don’t readily link these outcomes to the college curriculum


Middle Tier OutcomesTangible business skills and specific expertise in field of focusCritical thinking skills Communication skillsProblem-solving skills and analytical abilityExposure to business worldLeadership skills


Bottom Tier OutcomesValues, principles, ethics

Tolerance and respect for different cultural backgrounds

Competency in computer skills

Expanded cultural and global awareness and sensitivity

Civic responsibility and orientation toward public service

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