MISSION, RATIONALE AND STUDENT OUTCOMES

The general education program offers undergraduate students a liberal arts education in order to cultivate thoughtful and responsible persons and citizens, to prepare them for the world of work and to teach them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. In order to accomplish those broad goals, the general education program seeks to promote effective reasoning, broad and deep learning, and the inclination to inquire.

Effective Reasoning
A comprehensive liberal education helps students to develop their abilities to recognize and to think clearly about important issues and questions. The ability to think clearly involves fluency in reading, writing and oral communication, as well as mastery of the basic principles of logical, mathematical and scientific reasoning.

Broad and Deep Learning
A liberally educated person should possess a rich and broad fund of meaningful knowledge as well as the ability to compare and integrate new or different areas of knowledge in fruitful ways. To that end, the general education curriculum imparts a broad understanding of the various liberal arts and sciences and the ways that those arts and sciences evolve. In much the same way, the curriculum aims to foster an appreciation of diversity as a rich source of new ideas and opportunities for learning. Through such studies, students may comprehend the interconnectedness of knowledge and the importance of integrating knowledge gained from disparate parts of the curriculum.

The Inclination to Inquire
An education in the liberal arts fosters a student's commitment to seek out and acquire important knowledge and skills, both for their intrinsic value and for the good they contribute to our common and individual lives. For this reason, a disposition to ask incisive and insightful questions is perhaps the surest sign of a liberally educated mind.
The general education requirement offers a basic knowledge of mathematics and the natural sciences, including laboratory experience, intermediate knowledge of at least one foreign language, the study of the humanities, the political, philosophical and cultural history of world civilizations, and the foundations and principles of American society.
This mission statement reflects the standards promulgated by the American Academy for Liberal Education and CWU’s Mission Statement.

General Education Program Goals

1. Students will become thoughtful and responsible members of society and stewards of the Earth.
2. Students will respect diversity of background, experience and belief, and will value the different perspectives that this diversity brings.
3. Students will achieve fluency in reading, writing, oral communication and information technology.
4. Students will master the basic principles of logical, mathematical and scientific reasoning.
5. Students will develop an appreciation of the breadth and depth of scientific and humanistic knowledge.
6. Students will develop a sense of the inter-connectedness of knowledge.
7. Students will integrate knowledge from diverse fields of study in order to solve real-world problems.
8. Students will become aware of the manifold ways that knowledge evolves.
9. Students will develop a disposition to ask incisive and insightful questions.

Assessment of the General Education Program

1. Students will be surveyed as to how well they think their courses addressed the mission of the general education program.
2. Instructors will be surveyed as to how well they think the course addressed the mission of general education.
3. Student achievement in general education classes will be evaluated regularly by means of examinations.

All courses taken to satisfy general education requirements must be taken for a letter grade.