General Education Learning Objectives

(Approved: Faculty Senate May 1, 2000)

Program Learning Objectives
The General Education Program is broadly based in order to promote intellectual growth, cultivate critical examination and informed understanding, encourage breadth and flexibility of perspective, and provide students an opportunity to develop skills and knowledge that will form the basis for their life-long learning. Accordingly, the General Education program at Wright State University is a planned and coherent program that is designed to help students:

• sharpen critical thinking, problem solving, and communication skills;
• learn about the aesthetic, ethical, moral, social, and cultural dimensions of human experience needed for participation in the human community;
• increase knowledge and understanding of the past, of the world in which we live, and of how both past and present have an impact on the future.

The General Education Program is required of all students and serves as a foundation upon which all baccalaureate programs are built.

Learning Objectives: At the completion of the Wright State University General Education Program a student will be able to do the following:

Area Learning Objectives

Area	Learning Objectives
I. Communication and Mathematical Skills English Composition Mathematics	a. use writing processes to explore, think, and learn, and to write appropriately for various tasks and audiences b. develop logical and fair arguments, and observe appropriate writing conventions c. show ability to identify main ideas and evaluate, analyze and synthesize primary and secondary sources d. use, formulate and interpret mathematical models e. summarize and justify analyses of mathematical models or problems using appropriate words, symbols, tables and/or graphs
II. Cultural-Social Foundations History The Non-Western World	a. describe and analyze historical-social elements of western culture b. describe and analyze historical-social elements of nonwestern culture c. describe and analyze the global interdependence of groups and of individuals
III. Human Behavior Economics Political Science Psychology Sociology	a. use multiple approaches/perspectives to systematically analyze complex individual and institutional behavior culturally, subculturally, and/or crossculturally b. recognize appropriate ethical uses of social scientific knowledge
IV. Human Expression Great Books Fine and Performing Arts	a. recognize and critically discuss significant creative, philosophical and religious works b. understand the complex blend of personal vision, social-cultural background, ethical values and aesthetic judgement in such works c. discuss the diverse means of communication in such works
V. Natural Science Biology Chemistry Geology Physics	a. understand the experimental basis of scientific inquiry b. understand the importance of model building for understanding the natural world c. understand the theoretical, practical, creative and cultural dimensions of scientific inquiry d. discuss some of the fundamental theories underlying modern science e. understand the dynamic interaction between society and the scientific enterprise f. recognize appropriate ethical uses of knowledge in the natural sciences
VI. College Component	a. communicate with individuals who are in the student’s major, in allied fields, and non-specialists b. understand important relationships and interdependencies between the student’s major and other academic disciplines, world events or life endeavors Or c. additionally meet the objectives of Area I, II, III, IV, or V.