core curriculum

Falling out of vogue during the 70’s, a number of colleges and universities are looking into establishing core curriculums. Others are dusting them off after a long hiatus.

Major curriculum changes often seem to skip a generation or so. Entering a new century also is making the formation of a new core all the more compelling.

Harvard is in the process of revising its core, last updated in 1978. Goals include becoming more broad based in its teaching and to build "interconnectivity around the world" through its general education program.

The University of Texas at Austin is beginning to implement their recent core revisions, which include providing "skills and experiences needed by citizens and professionals in the 21st century." The University System of Georgia's preliminary model for a new core looks at preparing students for a global environment in the new century.

Provided below is more background about core curriculum initiatives underway.




"A blueprint to significantly change the university’s undergraduate core curriculum received critical support from the UT Austin Faculty Council (fall ‘06), clearing the way for the most meaningful change in the university’s undergraduate curriculum in 25 years," reported the university. "Among the changes to the core curriculum would be requirements that all undergraduates take: Two interdisciplinary ‘Signature Courses’ taught by distinguished faculty members." Courses that include a focus on six skills and experiences needed by professionals and citizens in today’s world, including writing, quantitative reasoning, global cultures, cultural diversity in the United States, ethics and leadership, and independent inquiry." The university "expects the changes to the undergraduate curriculum to be in place by 2010.

For more information, contact Don Hale, vice president for public affairs, The University of Texas at Austin, 512/475-6869, donhale@mail.utexas.edu.




The university is overhauling its core curriculum for the first time since 1991. According to Paul Benson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, the ambitious revision is being done for several reasons. One is that more than half of the faculty has been hired since the current program was created, and "curriculum tends to be vital and effective when faculty members have a hand in creating it," Benson said. The revised core curriculum will create an experience for students that reflects the unique Catholic, Marianist tradition that is distinctive of the University of Dayton, which is one of the top ten Catholic universities in the country. "We want them to take away from their common academic experience something that clearly marks that they have the University of Dayton's academic experience." The new core curriculum will emphasize learning outcomes. "There is a focus on what students will take away. UD is stepping up and saying 'we'll be accountable.' We will be able to demonstrate that our students have met our seven learning objectives in a way that we can explicitly demonstrate." An emphasis on experiential learning in the core: "Experiential learning is much, much more important to the Millennial generation. We are looking at all different kinds of experiential learning -- student research experiences, internships, retreats, student activities -- and we are clarifying how we can relate those experiences to learning outcomes. This will help us bridge experiential and academic course-based programs."

For more information, contact Cilla Shindell, director of media relations, 937/229-3257, shindell@udayton.edu; or Paul Benson, dean, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Dayton, 937/229-2601, paul.benson@notes.udayton.edu.




Students who entered Bates College last September (2007) are the first working under new Bates College General Education requirements. By the fall of 2010, all students will be subject to the new requirements. A Bates education is structured around a major, General Education requirements, and elective courses. There are no core courses required of all students, however, there is a structured menu of options allowing students to extend, focus and connect areas of interest. The General Education requirements include three writing-attentive courses and three courses focused on scientific reasoning, laboratory experience and quantitative literacy; these courses may be taken from many offered across the curriculum. The first-year seminar satisfies the requirement for a first-level writing-attentive course. Students also complete two General Education concentrations outside their major. Each concentration consists of four courses organized around a central theme and reaching across many disciplines. The goals of the new General Education requirements are: To foster a comparative appreciation of how several disciplines function and what they can teach us. This goal is met through the two General Education concentrations each student takes in addition to the major. To help every graduate to meet the challenge of writing correctly and persuasively. This goal is met by a series of three writing-attentive courses taken at various points in a student's Bates career. To ensure that all of our students have had formal instruction at the college level in the methods and findings of the sciences and in quantitative analysis. This goal is met by taking three distinct courses that call for scientific reasoning, develop quantitative literacy, and provide a laboratory experience. General Education requirements help students develop a range of skills across many disciplines and challenge them to think in complex, interdisciplinary ways. Courses and units that meet General Education requirements are taken throughout a student's career at introductory, intermediate and advanced levels. Web link for further background: www.bates.edu/gened2011.xml

For more information, contact Bryan McNulty, director of communications and media relations, Bates College, 207/786-6330, bmcnulty@bates.edu.



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