This set of five essays explores the pros and cons of undergraduate core curricula in colleges and universities. Core curricula are seen as either providing the ideal educational base and a shared background, or as a loss of diversity and a protective shell that faculties can use to avoid considering the relevance of a liberal arts education. (JMD)

The core curriculum of a civic liberal education should combine the values of a stable cultural pluralism and political unity. Students should undertake scholarly and critical study of the underlying civic principles and values necessary for generating an informed and effective citizenry. (Author/MSE)

After a survey of general education reform movements of this century, it is suggested that general education should focus on experiences that knit individuals into a community. Six themes are proposed: use of symbols, membership in groups and institutions, producing and consuming, relationship with nature, sense of time, and values and beliefs.…

Fairleigh Dickinson University (New Jersey) students take four core general education courses from the second half of the freshman year through the first half of the junior year. All sections have the same syllabus, and faculty teaching them on separate campuses review and refine the courses together. Core course faculty participated actively in a…

Liberal learning and professional training both can be enhanced if humanities and nursing faculties will join in creating a larger vision of education. (Author/MLW)

This review essay considers one recent and two earlier books on pluralism and canon in American college curriculum: (1) "Battleground of the Curriculum: Liberal Education and the American Experience" (W. B. Carnochan); (2) "Canons and Contexts" (Paul Lauter); and (3) "Realms of Meaning: A Philosophy of the Curriculum for…

Discusses the question of whether community colleges are providing valid liberal arts/general education curricula, citing both community college critics and supporters. Argues for a definition of liberal arts/general education that takes into account the educational aspirations of community college students. Considers the fine line between liberal…

A former professor, current professional organization administrator, and scholar discusses the nature of changes occurring today in higher education, focusing on the contemporary academic climate, politicization of academic life, and what is happening to general education and the liberal arts. Topics discussed include cultural and ethnic diversity…

The State University of New York College at Fredonia undertook a long-term assessment of its general-education curriculum. The experience confirmed that dedicated college faculty can design and implement ambitious tests to assess general learning based on curriculum design and goals, but that it is very difficult to administer them over time with…

Feminist theory is reexamined in the context of recent theory concerning pragmatic liberal education, and many similar principles are found. Topics discussed include feminist theory and the structure of college administration; the future of reform; and collaborative leadership for change. It is argued that both hierarchy and homogeneity must be…

Considerations regarding the undergraduate psychology program at Ithaca College are reviewed. In reevaluating the program, the following projections were made: the number of students who select psychology as a major in preparation for graduate studies will diminish; the majority of students electing the major will primarily need a solid liberal…

The process being used by the University of Montevallo (Alabama) to evaluate the outcomes of its general education program is presented. Emphasis is on the triangulation procedure used to evaluate the validity of the outcome measure selected--the College Outcomes Measures Project (COMP) Test of the American College Testing Program (1984). The…

A project to help small independent liberal arts colleges integrate technology and the liberal arts in the undergraduate curriculum is considered in this newsletter issue. The first two stages of this project on Technology and the Liberal Arts, which is sponsored by the Council of Independent Colleges, are described, along with the progress of…

Efforts to evaluate the general education component of baccalaureate degree programs at ten colleges using a uniform assessment formula are described. The colleges were participants in the American Association of State Colleges and Universities' Academic Program Evaluation Project (APEP), which proposed that outcomes of baccalaureate education can…

An overview is provided of the development of Bergen Community College's (BCC) general education curriculum between 1982 and 1987. First, introductory comments review the state regulations implemented in 1983 to govern general education at all New Jersey community colleges. Next, the paper explains the original charge and final recommendations of…