General Education Student Learning Outcomes

General education prepares students to be able to demonstrate an understanding of how knowledge is discovered and constructed in the natural sciences, the social and behavioral sciences, the humanities, and language and rationality. Students will understand the methods of inquiry that underlie the search for knowledge in these fields. In addition, students will gain demonstrable skills in four broad interdisciplinary areas.

Critical Thinking
Students will be able to demonstrate higher order thinking skills about issues, problems, and explanations for which multiple solutions are possible. Students will be able to explore problems and, where possible, solve them. Students will be able to develop, test, and evaluate rival hypotheses. Students will be able to construct sound arguments and evaluate the arguments of others.

Information Competency and Technology Literacy
Students will be able to use technology to locate, organize, and evaluate information. They will be able to locate relevant information, judge the reliability of sources, and evaluate the evidence contained in those sources as they construct arguments, make decisions, and solve problems.

Communication
Students will be able to communicate effectively in diverse situations. Be able to create, express and interpret meaning in oral, visual and written forms. Will also be able to demonstrate quantitative literacy and the ability to use graphical, symbolic and numerical methods to analyze, organize, and interpret data.

Self-Development and Global Awareness
Students will be able to develop goals and devise strategies for personal development and well-being. Be able to demonstrate an understanding of what it means to be an ethical human being and effective citizen in their awareness of diversity and various cultural viewpoints.

The General Education Student Learning Outcomes were approved by the Board of Trustees on September 18, 2012.