General Education Program (prior to Fall 2015)

Gen Ed Student Learning Outcomes


What is a Student Learning Outcome?

A student learning outcome is a statement that describes what a student should know or know how to do as a result of passing a course. Student learning outcomes for a particular course are included in the course syllabus.  While some outcomes focus on knowledge, others reference skills and abilities.  HPU has defined forty student learning outcomes related to the five themes.  In addition to the general education student learning outcomes, many gen ed courses also have course-specific student learning outcomes related to the subject matter of the course.  There are also learning outcomes for the cross-theme requirements and additional outcomes for courses that meet certain common core categories. 

How the Outcomes Determine Placement of Courses into Themes and Categories

Each course approved for general education must address at least three general education student learning outcomes related to the theme under which it is classified as well as at least one other outcome which can come from any theme.  Within each theme there are three categories, and placement into a specific category depends on which outcomes are addressed. The curriculum is designed so that each student will have opportunities for achieving the majority of the student learning outcomes for each theme, and so that if a particular outcome is not covered by the courses chosen, closely related outcomes will be covered.

The Communication Skills Outcomes       

Jump to: Global Systems Research and Epistemology Values and Choices World Cultures

  Students will …

Analyze the way people communicate within and across cultures, genders, generations, and organizations and develop skills in communicating across these domains. [CS 1]

Understand the effects of communication technology on individuals, society, government, and industry.[CS 2]

Compare, contrast, and interact within the various communication contexts, such as intrapersonal, interpersonal, small group, public, and mass communication. [CS 3]

Demonstrate critical reasoning in organizing thoughts, feelings, concepts, and information for effective, clear, and accurate oral, written, non-verbal, visual, and electronic communication. [CS 4]

Develop the information literacy needed to determine the validity of information sources and apply these skills in communication environments. [CS 5]

Demonstrate appropriate uses of verbal, visual, dramatic, numeric and graphic modes of presentation in various combinations. [CS 6]

Analyze the way we construct meaning and communicate it to others. [CS 7]

Demonstrate proficiency in electronic communication and the use of relevant technology, including mastery  of integrated office productivity software, file management, Internet navigation, and e-mail systems. [CS 8]

 The Global Systems Outcomes 

Jump to: Communication Skills Research and Epistemology Values and Choices World Cultures

 Students will …

 Utilize various systems approaches or theories to comprehend global processes [GS 1]

 Integrate knowledge and understanding from various disciplines in the analysis of global systems.[GS 2]

 Describe the global impact of international economic systems and organizations. [GS 3]

 Comprehend the global impact of biological and physical science, technology, and telecommunication systems. [GS 4]

 Understand the importance of global environmental systems and the interactions between humans and the environment. [GS 5]

 Recognize some of the roles that international organizations and transnational ideas and movements play in world societies. [GS 6]

 Understand the impact of the process of globalization from a historical or cultural perspective. [GS7]

The Research and Epistemology Outcomes

Jump to: Communication Skills Global Systems Values and Choices World Cultures

Students will …

Understand the concept of epistemology, i.e., that there are various systems of gathering/ organizing/analyzing/evaluating information in the process of constructing knowledge as well as multiple ways to solve a given problem. [R&E 1]

Identify a research question or problem, gather and organize relevant information, apply appropriate problem-solving strategies, and communicate the results to others. [R&E 2]

Analyze the content, argument, and rhetoric of sources; evaluate the credibility, reliability and validity of sources; consider the influence of contexts. [R&E 3]

Use reasoning skills, such as identifying assumptions, considering multiple perspectives and positions including one’s own, making inferences, and drawing conclusions, to advance an argument supported by reasons and evidence. [R&E 4]

Seek and achieve understanding of numerical data.  [R&E 5]

Recognize the multiple interpretations numerical data permit and ways that those results can be manipulated. [R&E 6]

Utilize methods and technologies appropriate to the discipline to investigate research questions, generate predictions, test hypotheses and/or solve problems. [R&E 7]

Understand the relationship between a discipline’s modes of inquiry and its assumptions about how meaning is constructed. [R&E 8]

The Values and Choices Outcomes 

Jump to: Communication Skills Global Systems Research and Epistemology World Cultures

Students will . . .

Compare and contrast various philosophical models of individual ethics and of collective social ethics.  [V&C 1]

Analyze the interrelationships among beliefs, choices, and cultural, social and /or scientific institutions and practices. [V&C 2]

Understand and analyze the range of consequences that follow from a choice, policy or course of action.  [V&C 3]

Understand the processes (such as elections and markets) by which the choices of individuals combine to produce a shared outcome [V&C 4]

Recognize and value multiple perspectives and develop skills for mediating among conflicting claims. [V&C 5]

Articulate various ethical and moral questions and explore their own system of  values through examination and analysis of examples drawn from history, literature, popular culture, or current events and controversies. [V&C 6]

Apply their understanding of ethical systems and models to develop and demonstrate a conscious value system as individuals, students, professionals and citizens. [V& C 7]

Understand a range of meanings for concepts associated with individual and social ethics such as rights and responsibilities, justice and impartiality, citizenship and social responsibility.  [V&C 8]

Develop an appreciation for aesthetic expression and achievement through the study, performance and production of the arts.   [V&C 9]

The World Cultures Outcomes 

Jump to: Communication Skills Global Systems Research and Epistemology Values and Choices

Develop informed perspectives on the historical development of cultures that focus upon the interrelationship among institutions, values, and ideas.  [WC 1]

Describe the significance of important movements or themes which have shaped the world’s diverse cultures. [WC 2]

Investigate the roles that race, ethnicity, class, power, belief systems, and gender play in past and present cultural systems. [WC 3]

Analyze cultural forces that have influenced customs and choices in contemporary lifestyles and world views. [WC 4]

Engage with and interpret various manifestations of cultures including verbal and visual texts, institutions, behavior, and performance.  [WC 5]

Develop skills that will enable students to assess and engage with cultural difference in a compassionate and systematic fashion. [WC 6]

Develop the ability to use other people’s experiences as a way to reflect critically on their own ways of understanding the world. [WC 7]

Develop the vocabulary and conceptual skills needed to appreciate or respond to aesthetic activity from cultures other than one’s own. [WC 8]