Faculty are being asked to vote on four aspects of the Recommendations made by the Gen Ed Task Force in January, as modified through discussions held around campus this spring: two sets of Principles for Reform, a revised Purpose, and revised Objectives. While curricular issues have been discussed this spring, separate proposals for curricular change will continue to be developed and discussed in the coming year with votes on curricular changes proposed to begin in April 2006. The Principles, Purpose, and Objectives will help to set the framework for these continuing curricular discussions. At the same time, it is expected that further refinements in the Principles, Purpose, and Objectives may occur in response to the development of curricular changes. This month's vote does NOT lock us into any particular curricular model.

• Principles that guide the process of reform:
  Principle A: Reform must reflect what the faculty believe in and can teach with passion, commitment, and intentionality.
  Principle B: Change should be incremental and based on campus-wide dialogue.
  Principle C: We should maintain and build on current MU strengths.
  Principle D: Reform must be well understood by as many members of the University community as possible.
  Principle E: Increased emphasis on Gen Ed must be accompanied by increased administrative and resource support.
  Principle F: Reform should be informed by meaningful evaluation.

  VOTE --> I accept Principles A-F ___ Yes ___ No

• Reform of Gen Ed at MU should be characterized by:
  Principle 1: Clear Purpose, that is well understood by all members of the university community and that is consistent with the MU mission and the specific learning needs of MU students.
  Principle 2: Intentional Alignment of the objectives, curricular structure, and assessment with the purpose of Gen Ed, the mission of this University, and the learning needs of our students.
  Principle 3: Coherence and connections between Gen Ed and majors.
  Principle 4: Intellectual Richness, setting appropriately high expectations for students' engagement that develop as students progress through their academic programs.
  Principle 5: Academic Community Reaching beyond the Classroom, fostering interactions between and among students, faculty, and the larger University community.
  Principle 6: Simplicity and flexibility, promoting ease of understanding and greater choice in meeting the Gen Ed requirements.

  VOTE --> I accept Principles A-F ___ Yes ___ No

• New Purpose statement for Gen Ed:

  Consistent with Millersville University's mission to "promote intellectual development through an exemplary liberal arts based education," the purpose of General Education is to provide breadth of knowledge as a balance and complement to the depth provided by the major. General Education is designed to provide a coherent, well-rounded educational experience that assures the acquisition of lifelong values and competencies, including critical thinking, information literacy, personal wellness, ways of knowing across a variety of disciplines, and an appreciation for cultural and academic diversity. These are necessary for the holistic development of our graduates so that they may become responsible citizens in a democracy that exists within an increasingly complex global society.

  VOTE --> I accept Principles A-F ___ Yes ___ No

• New Objectives for Gen Ed:
  The General Education Program prepares graduates who meet all of the following objectives.

  Foundations for Critical Thinking and Life-Long Learning

  1. Students will:
     1. generate, express, and revise ideas for personal, career, and civic communication.
     2. present ideas formally in spoken, written, and media forms.
     3. find appropriate sources of information, evaluate the information, and integrate it into a final product.
     4. demonstrate general knowledge and an appreciation for physical and psychological well-being, as well as an appreciation for the environment, life-long learning, and community participation.

     Critical Thinking And Its Application To Personal, Academic, Career, and Civic Purposes

  2. Students will:
     1. use statistical methods to analyze and interpret data or use techniques of calculus to solve problems.
     2. evaluate and solve problems from the real world using the symbolic language of mathematics with appropriate technology.

  3. Students will:
     1. use social science evidence and theories to become participating and informed citizens in a democracy that exists within an increasingly complex global society.
     2. evaluate relationships among human behavior, social institutions, culture, and/or environment using appropriate technology and the quantitative and qualitative methods of inquiry of the social sciences. .

  4. Students will:
     1. use scientific reasoning, laboratory methods, appropriate technology, and mathematics to investigate scientific concepts.
     2. evaluate and apply scientific evidence and theories.

  5. Students will:
     1. use critical analysis to respond thoughtfully to works of literature.
     2. apply critical and creative methods of the arts and humanities.

     Connecting Critical Thinking In The Disciplines To Life Beyond The Classroom

  6. Students will be able to:
     1. demonstrate knowledge, attitudes, and skills essential for communicating with, working with, and making decisions with people of diverse backgrounds.
     2. articulate and rationally support personal, moral, and civic values and manifest a commitment to these values through personal, academic, career, and civic endeavors.
     3. connect big ideas and methods of inquiry from different disciplines including both historical and contemporary perspectives in ways that lead to effective problem solving and support life-long learning.

  VOTE --> I accept Principles A-F ___ Yes ___ No

Regardless of your votes, but especially if there were parts of the above Principles, Purpose, and Objectives that you find problematic, please communicate your concerns to your Senator or directly to Fred Foster-Clark, Chair of the Gen Ed Task Force, or to any other Task Force member. It is vital that we continue to work toward widespread consensus about these and any other changes to Gen Ed in order to promote the most effective student learning possible.

Thank you for your input.

Original Wording (on ballot)	Suggested Wording Changes (from Senate 4/19/05)1	Revised Wording Changes (from GERC 4/26/05)2
Principle A: Reform must reflect what the faculty believe in and can teach with passion, commitment, and intentionality.	Principle A: Reform must reflect what the faculty believe in and can teach with passion, commitment, and purpose.	Principle A: Reform will reflect what the faculty believe in and can teach with passion, commitment, and purpose.
Principle B: Change should be incremental and based on campus-wide dialogue.	Principle B: Change should be incremental, based on campus-wide dialogue, and well understood by the University community.	Principle B: Change will be incremental, based on campus-wide dialogue, and well understood by the University community
Principle C: We should maintain and build on current MU strengths.		Principle C: The reform will build on and maintain current MU strengths.
Principle D: Reform must be well understood by as many members of the University community as possible.	Omit-incorporated into B	Omit-incorporated into B
Principle E: Increased emphasis on Gen Ed must be accompanied by increased administrative and resource support.	Principle E: Reform of Gen Ed must be accompanied by appropriate and appropriately directed faculty, administrative, and resource support.	Principle E: Reform will be accompanied by sufficient faculty, administrative, and resource support.
Principle F: Reform should be informed by meaningful evaluation.	[Principle F: Evaluation of changes should drive future reform.]	Principle F: The reform process will be guided by meaningful evaluation.
	[Principle G: Reform of Gen Ed must be balanced by the curricular needs of major programs of study, especially as they are impacted by State mandates and/or disciplinary accreditation.]	Principle D (new): Reform of Gen Ed will be balanced by the curricular needs of major programs of study, especially as they are impacted by State mandates and/or disciplinary accreditation.

Note: Changes in the wording from one version to the next are underlined.

Return to Faculty Senate Home Page
Return to MU Home Page