Portion of new core to be considered
By Crystal Forester
Staff Reporter

The Faculty Senate will vote today on what students’ experiences will be with the Heritage, Mission, Vision and Values portion of the new curriculum, said Edward McNertney, Core Implementation Committee chairman.

This portion of the curriculum will include classes in religious, historical and literary traditions, as well as cultural and global awareness, citizenship and social values.

The new curriculum was designed to incorporate the cultural and global awareness, citizenship and social values from TCU’s mission statement into the course requirements, said Robert Vigeland, committee member. The committee used this idea when making ways for students to practice what they are learning, he said.

The new core curriculum is scheduled to be implemented in fall 2005, McNertney said.

The implementation committee, which was created in September, has drafted ideas of what it wants students to learn from those core courses and the processes students will go through to meet the goals of the courses, McNertney said.

For example, in literary courses, students should understand literature and how it affects society and individuals. To gain understanding, students will read and analyze fiction, drama, poetry and other literature to determine what affect it has had. To prove they are learning the material, students will do formal presentations, group discussions and research essays.

Tools to evaluate what students have learned have yet to be drafted, McNertney said.

The proposal must be approved by the Faculty Senate before the committee will move on to discuss whether what students are learning is actually meeting expectations, said Vigeland, an accounting professor.

“We have to plan for assessment now and evaluate ways for courses to meet their objectives,” Vigeland said.

Assessment is used to check students’ progress during their learning experiences and to evaluate the educational program that is set by the accrediting body, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Director of Assessment Melissa Canady said.

“Well-designed assessments can also inform placement decisions, allowing students to be placed in courses most appropriate to their skill levels,” she said.

Core courses will be assessed throughout the semester to assure the faculty that their students understand the material and to give faculty members time to adjust their teaching. At the end of courses, student progress will also be evaluated, Canady said.