Boise State University Core Curriculum Policies April 28, 1998 Amended March 9, 1999 (addition of section 5.2.1) Amended November 8, 2005 (changes to section 1 and insertion of current section 4.2) Amended November 14, 2006 (changes to section 4.3 and insertion of current sections 6.2 and 6.3) Boise State University Core Curriculum Committee 1 Boise State University Core Curriculum 1. Philosophy of the University Core It is the University s responsibility to help students learn to think critically, to communicate clearly and concisely in oral, written, and visual form, to appreciate themselves as part of a larger world, and to cultivate the imagination and intellectual curiosity required for life long learning. The Core curriculum is designed to help students develop skills, knowledge and understanding that can be applied toward these ends. The curriculum provides a variety of foundational courses in each of three broad areas that approach learning and problem solving in different ways and contribute to the preparation of students as both local and global citizens. Area I courses are generally offered by disciplines in the humanities, arts, languages, and philosophy. They provide opportunities to engage in the study of intellectual and aesthetic products from a variety of cultures. Knowledge of expressions of culture promotes understanding of the diverse ways in which human thought, experience, and communication are historically and ideologically shaped and culturally preserved. Area II courses are generally offered by disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences, history, education, and economics. They engage students in the study of how people, cultures, societies, and institutions function and have evolved both in specific situations and over time. They examine the forces that shape human and social activity. Appreciation of methods of inquiry provides insight into human cultures and societies. Area III courses are generally offered by disciplines in the natural and physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics. They promote understanding of the observable physical world. They engage students in the exploration of the relationships among variables. The skills of scientific inquiry expand each student's ability to understand the world and the ways in which applications of science, engineering, and mathematics transform our lives in substantial ways. 2. Structure of the Core The University Core requires 3 to 6 credits of English composition, dependent upon the student's score on a national test, and 12 credits from approved lists of core courses in each of three areas: Area I, arts and humanities; Area II, social sciences and public affairs; and Area III, natural sciences and math. Approved lists of core courses are to be found in the Boise State University Catalog and in current class schedules. The 12 credits of approved core courses in each of Area I and II must include courses from at least three different fields of study. The 12 credits of approved core courses in Area III must represent at least two different fields of study. Further requirements for the B.A. degree include a literature course from the approved list of Area I courses and a history course from the approved list of Area II courses. B.A. students also must complete an additional 9 hours selected from Area I or II fields of study, though these courses need not be from the approved list of core courses. For the B. S. Degree, students must complete an additional 9 credits selected from Area II or III fields of study, though these courses need not be from the approved list of Core courses. Core requirements may vary for specialized degrees such as the Bachelor of Business Administration, the Bachelor of Music, the Bachelor of Fine Arts, and the various bachelor degrees in Engineering. Degrees other than the BA/BS type may differ in their core content quantitatively from the BA/BS core, but must contain English Composition and a minimum of 26 credits to be chosen from Areas I, II, and III, with no less than 6 credits to be taken in any one Area. 3. General Learning Outcomes 3.1. Critical Thinking/Problem Solving Skills Critical thinking and problem solving strategies vary from discipline to discipline and from one context to another; however, all graduating students should demonstrate basic competencies in critical thinking and problem solving. Examples of such basic competencies include:
Clearly identify and analyze a problem; identify possible solutions Distinguish questions of fact from questions of value and explain the interrelationship between the two Employ, analyze, and evaluate arguments in terms of argument assumptions and logical structure Employ, analyze, and evaluate the use of both qualitative and quantitative methods of reasoning. 3.2. Communication Skills Appropriate modes and strategies of communication also differ from discipline to discipline and from context to context; however, all graduating students should demonstrate basic competencies in modes and strategies of communication. Examples of such basic competencies include: Read, interpret, analyze, and evaluate written discourse Write clearly and appropriately for a variety of purposes and for different audiences Employ speaking, listening, and interpersonal communication skills appropriate to various rhetorical situations Interpret, analyze and evaluate spoken discourse Identify and make appropriate use of information sources in both written and spoken discourse. 3.3. Cultural Perspective Graduating students should demonstrate basic competencies with respect to cultural perspective. Examples of such basic competencies include: Explain their own cultural perspective and make meaningful comparisons between it and other cultural perspectives Demonstrate reflective self awareness with regard to their own individual perspectives and values and make meaningful comparisons between these and the perspectives and values of others Make meaningful comparisons between the creative accomplishments of their own and other cultures Recognize and understand the choices and responsibilities of involved citizenship. 3.4. Breadth of Knowledge and Intellectual Perspective As a result of satisfying general education distribution requirements, graduating students should demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the content and perspective of a variety of disciplines at the introductory level. Examples of basic competencies include: Articulate relevant basic assumptions, concepts, theoretical constructs, and factual information Understand and apply relevant discipline specific methodologies and strategies of inquiry Apply appropriate critical thinking/problem solving skills and communication skills in discipline specific contexts Identify some of the fundamental similarities and differences between different fields of study Appreciate the complexity and multiplicity of methods and standards of inquiry, and of the diversity of opinion among informed inquirers within and among different fields of study. 4. Criteria for Including Courses in the University Core 4.1. General Criteria The Philosophy of the Core and the General Learning Outcomes are the documents used as the foundations for decisions for the Approval and Review of Core Courses. For a course to be considered for inclusion in the Core, it must: Demonstrate consistency with the philosophy and outcomes of the Core Address explicitly student learning outcomes within the Critical Thinking/Problem Solving, Communication Skills, Cultural Perspective, and Breadth of Knowledge/Intellectual Perspective categories which are relevant to the course subject matter; these student learning outcomes must be articulated in the syllabus for the course Have a primarily introductory focus serving non major, lower division students Have minimal college level prerequisites for entry into the course 2
Be of sufficient breadth to appeal to a wide audience across disciplines and be open to enrollment to all students meeting the prerequisites. Exceptions to this rule are noted in Section 4.3 Meet the criteria for designation in Area I, II, or III 4.2 Criteria for Designation as Area I, II, or III The following criteria will be used to determine whether a course is appropriate for Area I, II, or III. A course must meet all listed criteria for the Area. Area I courses are those that explore one or more products of culture, such as language, literature, the arts, and philosophy. provide direct experience with product(s) of culture. prepare students to discern the importance and relevance of expressions of culture. Area II courses are those that examine societal structures and/or human behavior. engage students in the methods of inquiry (quantitative and/or qualitative) used to study societal structures and/or human behavior. enable students to compare perspectives with others across time and/or geography by making meaningful comparisons among multiple perspectives. Area III courses based upon the study of natural/physical phenomena or engineering are those that focus on the development of a conceptual understanding of observable phenomena. provide opportunities to practice scientific inquiry as a substantive part of the course. enable students to understand and evaluate scientific finds and their applications. Each course will have a laboratory and/or field experience which will introduce students to the hands on practice of the discipline of study. take place in a group of an appropriate size so that each student has opportunities to interact directly with samples, instruments and phenomena relevant to the discipline. comprise a substantial portion of the class meeting time. (e.g., a 4 credit course might meet for 30 hours of laboratory or field work during the semester). Area III courses in mathematics explore the mathematical relationships among variables. prepare students to use these relationships in problem solving. develop skills in abstract thinking, such as the ability to manipulate mental objects. 4.3. Core Courses with Restricted Enrollment Restrictions for Honors Students : Honors courses that are equivalent to existing core courses can be used for Core credit, as can special sections of Core courses restricted for enrollment by for Honors College students. Other Honors courses may be considered to fulfill Core requirements upon approval by the Core Curriculum Committee. Restrictions Based Upon Student Major: A department may offer a Core course with restricted enrollment if the course content and the student learning goals are essentially identical to that of another Core Course offered by that department for which the audience is not restricted. The course will be designed to meet the needs of a particular student population outside the department. The course cannot be restricted to enrollment only by the department's own majors. (Example courses may include Calculus for engineering majors, Biology for education majors, and Spanish for health science majors.) 4.4. Exclusion of University wide Course Numbers No University wide numbered courses, with the exception of special topics, are permitted to fulfill Core requirements. Such courses include independent studies, internships, conferences, workshops, practicums, colloquium projects, seminars, etc. 5. Procedures for Approval of Core Courses 5.1. Requirements for Courses Seeking Core Designation 3
All courses seeking Core designation must be offered for two semesters as either a regular course or as a Special Topics course before a department can request the course be approved for inclusion in the Core. Special Topics courses must be in the process of becoming a regular course in order to be evaluated for inclusion in the Core. 5.2. Procedure for Courses Seeking Core Designation. The evaluation of proposals for Core course status is based primarily on evidence that 1) student learning outcomes which contribute to the General Learning Outcomes of the Core can be articulated for the course and 2) departmental faculty have engaged in a thorough review of the proposed Core course with respect to its ability to meet achieve student learning outcomes relevant to the Core curriculum. Departments offering courses for which Core course designation is sought should submit the following to the Core Curriculum Committee: A copy of the catalog description for the course. In the case of a Special Topics course currently under review for regular course status, the proposed course catalog description can be submitted. A Request for Curriculum Action Form and a New Core Course Assessment Form * for all departmental offerings of the course from the academic year prior to application. A form* should be submitted for each section of the course which has been offered. (This may be a single offering of the course). This form requests the following information: Identification of the Area (I, II, or III) of the Core to which the course contributes List of Core related learning outcomes for the course. Information about how the learning outcomes are measured in the course. Reflection on the strengths and weaknesses of student learning outcomes. Syllabus for the course The form should indicate this is an application for designation as a Core Course and be signed by the department chair. Approved proposals are forwarded to the Faculty Senate for appropriate action. Proposals rejected by the Core Curriculum Committee will be sent back, along with a rationale for their rejection, to the Curriculum Committee. The department may revise and re submit the course proposal for approval the following semester. 5.2.1. Revisions of Catalog Descriptions for Existing Core Courses If a department proposes a change in the catalog description of an existing Core course, the change will first be submitted to the Curriculum Committee on a Request for Curriculum Action Form. If the Curriculum Committee approves, the revision will then be forwarded to the Core Curriculum Committee along with a syllabus and a statement that, while the course description has changed, the learning outcomes relevant to the Core have not changed. If the change to the course description is accompanied by a substantive change to the course such that the Core related learning outcomes are altered, then the department will submit a list of the new student learning outcomes along with a list of how these outcomes will be measured in the new course. (See the Core Learning Outcomes Table in the Core Course Assessment Form) The Core Committee will determine whether the course is still appropriate for inclusion in the Core. Approved proposals are forwarded to the Faculty Senate for appropriate action. 5.3. Other Requests Concerning Core Requirements All other requests concerning Core requirements (e.g., deleting courses currently listed as Core courses or changing Core course prerequisite) will be sent directly from the department making the request to the Core Curriculum Committee. All requests will be considered by the Committee, and recommendations regarding the requests will be forwarded to the Curriculum Committee for appropriate action. 6. Periodic Review of Core Courses 6.1. Schedule for Review All approved Core courses will be reviewed for continued inclusion in the Core on a regular, rotating basis. All the Core courses offered from a particular department will be assessed during the academic year prior to the department participating in University program review. If a department does not participate in program review, then the department will be inserted into the rotation schedule so that their core courses are reviewed on a regular 4
5 basis at the same interval as those departments, which participate in program review. When possible, the departments being reviewed in a given year should constitute a cross section of courses from Areas I, II, and III. If a course is added to the Core during the interval between departmental review, it will next be reviewed with the rest of the department s Core offerings. 6.2. Procedure for Review The quality of the Core curriculum and its continued improvement are best achieved if its strengths and weaknesses with respect to student learning are reviewed by faculty, departments, and the University community on a regular basis. Such a review both allows individuals to make adjustments to courses in order to improve student learning outcomes and allows for departments and the University to identify practices which may need to be changed in order to meet the goals of the Core for Boise State students. As such, the review of Core courses is based primarily on evidence that faculty are engaged in a regular and thorough review of Core offerings at the course and department level. Course level assessment within a department will be conducted during the academic year prior to review of assessment results by the Core Curriculum Committee. The CCC will contact departments due for review during the semester before assessment should begin. In the Fall semester during the year a department is due for review, the following assessment results should be submitted to the Core Curriculum Committee. The forms, and instructions for their completion, and due dates can be found on the Core Curriculum Committee s website, which can be found on the website for the Boise State University Faculty Senate. In particular cases, the committee may request additional information. Each core course must be assessed during the semester with the largest number of sections of that course. A form will be submitted for each section of each course, including those taught by adjunct or graduate student instructors and those taught online. When multiple sections of a course are taught by a single instructor and each section shares a common syllabus and learning outcomes, that instructor may submit a single form aggregating data from all his/her sections. Assessment will include: A Core Course Assessment Form for departmental core offerings from the academic year prior to Core review. This form requests the following information: o List of Core related learning outcomes for the course. o Information about how the learning outcomes are measured in the course. o Reflection on the strengths and weaknesses of student learning outcomes. o Portion of the syllabus containing the learning outcomes for the course. A Departmental Core Assessment Report Form, completed by the department chair. This form is designed to ensure that the department chair has reviewed the strengths and weaknesses of core offerings in the department. 6.3. Use of Assessment Results Aggregate data from Core course assessment will be analyzed by the CCC to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the Core curriculum viewed broadly across Areas I, II, and III. A report based on the analysis will be submitted annually to the Faculty Senate, the Provost, and other stakeholders. The CCC will use the results to a) make recommendations regarding the improvement and inclusion of courses in the Core curriculum and b) focus and clarify Core objectives outlined in the Core Policy Document. The CCC will not use the assessment results to evaluate individual instructors or departments.