An Advisors’ Guide to the New General Education System

In May, 2002 the University Senate adopted a new system of University General Education Guidelines that will go into effect with students entering the University of Connecticut in Fall, 2005. The purpose of this guide is to outline the new system, outlining the changes that have been instituted. A full description of the new General Education Requirements can be found at geoc.uconn.edu.

The Purpose of a General Education Curriculum

Although the specific university general education requirements have changed, the purposes of the university general education requirements remain the same. General education courses are not directed primarily at mastering a body of information or developing professional expertise. Any system of general education should provide all university undergraduate students with the foundations for learning throughout their years at the university and their entire lives; enable them to understand, appreciate, and enjoy both the past and present diversity of human achievement and perspectives at the levels of individuals, groups, and cultures and in relation to the natural world; prepare them for responsible citizenship; and give them the flexibility and skills necessary to face the changes and challenges of the future.

The New General Education Requirements

The New Content Areas:

A pool of approved courses will be associated with each content area. “Academic unit” refers to the department or program offering the course.

Content Area 1 Arts and Humanities:

Six credits required; must be taken in two different academic units.

Content Area 2 Social Science:

Six credits required; must be taken in two different academic units.

Content Area 3 Science and Technology:

Six or seven credits required; must be taken in two different academic units. One of the courses must be a “hands-on” laboratory course of four or more credits that teaches fundamental principles of the physical or biological sciences. However, this laboratory requirement is waived for students who have passed a hands-on laboratory science course in the biological and/or physical sciences.

Content Area 4 Diversity and Multiculturalism: Six credits required; all six credits may be in the same academic unit. One of these courses must have an “International” designation. Courses in this category, and only this category, can also be approved for one of the other content areas. Students are allowed to “double-dip” one and only one Content Area 4 course, and use it to satisfy simultaneously part of the Content Area 1, 2 or 3 requirements.

Students will normally take eight courses to fulfill the content area requirements, but may take only seven courses if they “double-dip” a Content Area 4 course.

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The New Competencies

Quantitative Competency: Two Quantitative (Q) courses are required. Advisors will assist students to determine their readiness for Q courses based on a combination of their SAT mathematics score and class performance. Students may be advised to take Math. 101 for no credit before taking a Q course.

Students will be able to seek advice and tutoring at the Q Learning Center.

Writing Competency:

1. All students must take either English 110 or 111. Students with Advanced Placement English scores of 4 or 5 and students passing ENGL 250 are considered to have fulfilled the ENGL 110 or 111 requirement.

2. Additionally, all students must take two writing-intensive W courses, one of which must be a 200-level course approved for the student’s major. W courses may also satisfy other Content Area requirements. (Note: English 110 or 111 is a prerequisite to all writing-intensive courses.)

Students will be able to seek advice and tutoring at the W Learning Center.

Computer Technology Competency: Entering students will assess their basic computer skills (e.g. Computer Operation Basics; Presentation Software; Spreadsheets; Databases; Graphics and Multimedia; Internet - Web Basics) on modules provided at the Library or Learning Center, using these learning modules to develop entry level skills as necessary by the end of the freshman year. Entry level skills will be used in later course work.

Each major field of study will define its own exit standards in computer technology for its majors, and build opportunities for developing these skills into its curriculum. In many cases, these do not go beyond the basic requirements. The C designation for courses will no longer be used.

Information Literacy Competency: Information literacy involves a general understanding of how information is created, disseminated and organized, and an ability to access and utilize information in academic work. There are no entrance expectations, but basic research skills will be developed in Freshman English and FYE courses. Each major field of study will define its own exit standards in information literacy for its majors, and build opportunities for developing these skills into its curriculum.

Second Language: Three years of one language in High School or pass the 2nd semester of a second language at UConn. This requirement is currently under review as data are being collected on the second language proficiency of entering students and compared with those completing language coursework at the University.

University General Education Requirements

vs.

School/College Requirements.

The new system applies only to University General Education requirements, and does not affect the separate and independent internal degree requirements of the individual schools and colleges. The schools and colleges have been adjusting their own requirements in light of the new University General Education Requirements and advisors should consult the new catalog to review these changes.

It is important for students to be clear on the distinction between university requirements and school/college requirements. For example, while all University of Connecticut students will be required to take 6 credits of social science courses chosen from a pool of approved courses, the School of Nursing requires SOCI 107 and HDFS 190 of its own students. SOCI 107 and HDFS 190 are in the pool of courses approved for meeting the University General Education Social Science requirement. Nursing students would have the option of using SOCI 107 and HDFS 190 to meet simultaneously both a university requirement and a School of Nursing requirement, but they cannot be forbidden from taking other social science courses to meet the University General Education Requirement.

The new general education system still allows “double-dipping” of courses that jointly satisfy university and school/college requirements. Therefore advisors must still be knowledgeable of the different requirements of the various schools and colleges.

COMPARISON OF THE OLD AND NEW GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
OLD GROUPS	NEW CONTENT AREAS
ONE LITERATURE COURSE	SIX CREDITS Content Area One ARTS AND HUMANITIES Must be taken in two different departments/academic units
ONE FINE ARTS COURSE
HISTORY 100 OR 101
ONE COURSE IN PHILOSOPHICAL ANALYSIS
ONE COURSE IN SOCIAL SCIENTIFIC AND COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS	SIX CREDITS Content Area Two SOCIAL SCIENCES Must be taken in two different departments/academic units
TWO COURSES IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY including one 4-credit laboratory course.	TWO COURSES Content Area Three SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY including one 4-credit laboratory course. Must be taken in two different departments /academic units
ONE COURSE IN NON-WESTERN OR LATIN AMERICAN CULTURES	SIX CREDITS Content Area Four DIVERSITY AND MULTICULTURALISM One of these courses must be an “International” course. Courses may all come from the same academic unit. Students may use one and only one Content Area 4 course as a required course in another content area.
OLD COMPETENCY REQUIREMENTS	NEW COMPETENCY REQUIREMENTS
WRITING: ENGLISH 110 0R 111 TWO W COURSES CAP = 30 students per section	WRITING: ENGLISH 110 0R 111 TWO W COURSES one 200-Level approved for the Major Field CAP = 19 students per section EACH MAJOR FIELD MUST HAVE A WRITING PLAN
MATHEMATICS: TWO Q COURSES One of the courses must be in Math. or Stat.	QUANTITATIVE: TWO Q COURSES One of the courses must be in Math. or Stat.
ONE COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY COURSE	COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY: BASIC ENTRANCE EXPECTATIONS FOR ALL STUDENTS EACH MAJOR FIELD MAY SET ADDITIONAL EXIT REQUIREMENTS
	INFORMATION LITERACY: BASIC REQUIREMENTS TAUGHT IN ENGL 110/111 EACH MAJOR FIELD SETS ADVANCED REQUIREMENTS
SECOND LANGUAGE Three years in high school or two semesters at college level	SECOND LANGUAGE Three years in high school or two semesters at college level UNDER REVIEW

The Period of Transition

The new system of General Education Requirements will take effect for students entering the University of Connecticut Fall 2005. The old system will remain in effect concurrently with the new one for at least three years so that students who enter before Fall 2005 can graduate under the system under which they entered the university. Students who entered the university before Fall 2005 will also have the option of graduating under the new General Education requirements, but this can be done only with courses approved under the new system. No courses approved under the old general education system will be grandfathered in to the new system. However, it is anticipated that there will be significant overlap in the courses approved for both the old and new systems.

The new system will also apply to all existing students who change school or college, after it comes into effect. Thus, all ACES students who do not declare a major prior to the end of the Spring 05 semester will be required to meet the new General Education Requirements.

Mapping the Old onto the New

The vast majority of the courses included in the old general education requirements have been submitted and reapproved for use under the new system. Thus, students who have fulfilled the old requirements will have often also met the content area requirements of the new system, though additional courses could be required in the Social Sciences and Diversity and Multiculturalism content areas. A major difference between the two systems is the new competency requirements for each major field of study. However, these requirements are integrated into the requirements for each major and will not constitute additional coursework.

Substitutions

The Senate had authorized the Deans of the Schools and Colleges to make substitutions to the University General Education Requirements. They are expected to exercise this authority with due regard to the principles that underlie the new requirements and make an annual report of these activities to GEOC. Because the new requirements are the same for all schools and colleges, it is expected that substitutions made by one Dean will be effective across all schools and colleges.