NSU Task Force Examines General Education Requirements

TAHLEQUAH Northeastern State University is reconvening a task force this fall to consider changes to the universitys general education curriculum.

Dr. Dalton Bigbee, vice president for Academic Affairs, originally appointed the members of the General Education Task Force (GETF) in the fall of 2007. The group is composed of faculty, staff and students. Dr. Amy Aldridge Sanford, assistant professor of Communication Studies, is the appointed chair.

It has been nearly 20 years since the general education requirements have been reviewed at NSU, said Sanford. We were given the charge from Dr. Bigbee to figure out what todays students need to know when they graduate. As you can imagine, that may be uniquely different from what students in 1988 needed to know.

During the 2007-08 academic year, the GETF reviewed Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education requirements and the curriculum at other Oklahoma regional universities, read multiple research reports, and conducted a survey about general education at NSU.

A report (pdf) was drafted by the GETF from this information.

The task force accepted its responsibilities seriously, undertook a very complex and difficult task, and has done an excellent job, said Bigbee. We will now have to decide how to implement the recommendations. A year from now, we should be ready to roll out the changes to the core curriculum.

The GETF will spend the fall semester meeting with students, faculty and staff to gain feedback on the report and gather recommendations for specific courses that should be in the general education curriculum at NSU.

The GETF hopes to have a recommendation to Bigbee by March 2009, Sanford said.

8/29/2008

Published: 2008-08-29 00:00:00