General Education Requirement "G" - Global Awareness

General Education Curriculum
As approved by the General Education Committee on 10/27/04

Description:

Courses in this category will examine one (or more) culture(s) of the contemporary world outside the United States of America, exploring history, social practices, art, literature, economics, politics, sciences, religions, professional practices, and/or other aspects of cultural experience.

Study will involve comparing aspects of other culture(s) to aspects of American culture and experience, to promote understanding of the nature and causes of cultural differences, as well as a sense of how global communities are connected through common human experiences.

The Global Awareness (G) requirement is designed to help students better understand the world beyond familiar borders, culturally and geographically, and to improve students' knowledge of the global issues that link different peoples and places.

Goals:

Students will learn:

• about one (or more) specific cultures and places outside the United States
• the terms and practices by which that culture identifies itself
• how American experience and practice compares with or relates to that of the focus culture
• what human experiences connect and/or divide American experience and the experience of the focus culture

Objectives:

Students will be able to:

• identify the geographies of place associated with the focus culture
• describe the ways in which the focus culture identifies itself through practices and experiences distinct from those of other cultures and/or times
• compare the focus culture with American culture, both practically and conceptually
• understand some of the global concerns that connect world communities, and the nature and causes of different cultural responses to them

Assessment:

Students' performance of the objectives of the G requirement of the General Education Program will be assessed by:

1. a core writing assignment (or assignments) common to all Gen Ed G courses and involving concepts and terms common to all G offerings and/or
2. objective, short-answer examination(s) of student's knowledge of appropriate geographies, histories, concepts, terms, etc.

The assessment instrument(s) will:

• ascertain students' understanding of global geography by comparing their knowledge at different stages of learning in the course
• require students to define a focus culture by articulating its signal practices, viewpoints, histories, contributions, problems, etc.
• require students to relate this culture to American culture by understanding how the values and practices of the culture work within larger global contexts