Inside Clemson

Inaugural General Education Program retreat leads to productive discussion on change

Pic of Gen ed retreat
More than 150 faculty, academic staff and students gathered for the first General Education Program retreat.

By Bridget G. Trogden, Ph.D., associate dean, Undergraduate Studies

Many backgrounds, one goal. More than 150 Clemson faculty, academic staff and students from all University colleges and most departments gathered last Wednesday for the first General Education Program retreat, with the goal of examining how to improve the undergraduate General Education curriculum.

Hosted by the Division of Undergraduate Studies and the Faculty General Education Committee, with assistance from the Office of Teaching Effectiveness & Innovation (OTEI) and the University Libraries, the event was the first of this year’s General Education curriculum re-envisioning activities, which falls under the ClemsonForward strategic plan.

For bioengineering major Aparna Mahendranath, who chairs the Academic Affairs Committee for Clemson Undergraduate Student Government, the retreat was “eye-opening.”

“After looking at the statistical trends, I believe that the General Education program needs to shift its focus to promoting the understanding of diverse perspectives, evaluating through reasoning, and connecting the curriculum to everyday experiences,” she explained. “Debates, discussions and complete transparency are a few ways I think the curriculum could emphasize these principles, while adapting to our campus’ environment, students and faculty dynamic.”

Other action items for the day involved discussions around the purpose of a General Education curriculum and the national trend away from a cafeteria-style list of lower-division classes. Participants examined assessment and survey data about our undergraduate students’ curriculum-based learning. They were also able to attend sessions about open education resources and assignment design.

“I enjoyed the fact that the event was an open-ended discussion of the factors that go into what General Education is all about,” said Chad Sosolik, professor of Physics & Astronomy and undergraduate curriculum coordinator. “We were able to look at data, but also think about what goes into that data in ways we hadn’t considered before. The retreat attracted so many people – faculty of all ranks, staff, students – who don’t always get to talk to each other about student learning.”

While curricular change of this scope is not fast or easy, keeping the momentum going could be a game-changer for undergraduate education. As for next steps, the faculty General Education Committee will examine the feedback from colleagues and use it to craft a proposal for further consideration.