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Report from the Quality Undergraduate Education Task Force
Spring 2000

Context | Qualities of a Western Graduate | Qualities - Explicated
Current Environmental Factors | Impediments | 
Possibilities for Distinctive Signature Programs | Recommendations | Footnotes

Membership

Charge from Provost Bodman

"What statements ought we be able to make about the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and experience of Western graduates as a direct result of their education at the University?

What elements make a Western undergraduate education distinctive from those at other excellent institutions?

What impediments can be identified that prevent the realization of the vision for Western graduates and how might these be addressed?"

A Quality Undergraduate Experience at Western Washington University

Context   

This report is the result of a quarter-long series of rich and sustained conversations around the issues raised by the Provost's charge. Through our membership we were connected to other conversations and current examinations that also contribute to this summary about issues of quality on our campus.  These groups include the Carnegie Campus Conversations, The Provost's Assessment Working Group, Kaleidoscope, The Freshman and Transfer Experience Task Forces, and various working groups associated with recent accreditation efforts.

We also examined the 1991 Strategic Planning Report on Western's Educational Experience, Office of Assessment and Testing data on retention, faculty perceptions and alumnae and employer satisfaction, and the draft report on the Freshman Interest Groups.

An undergraduate education at Western Washington University should prepare graduates to enter a society that is increasingly diverse and increasingly information-rich, but knowledge poor. Building understanding is an active process in which connections are made among one’s own internal knowledge networks and information obtained from the wider environment and other perspectives. Mature learners use knowledge skillfully to make decisions, solve problems and to build understanding through a dialectical process, pausing to reflect and (re)examine their connections and decisions. Additionally, mature learners have developed the ability to identify and explore the ethical dilemmas inherent in the use of emerging knowledge and technologies to address the problems of today's societies and the natural world in which we live. "Knowledge carries with it the responsibility to see that it is well used in the world."^[1]

Construction of knowledge also is a social process built through connections within and among groups of individuals in a process of continuous knowledge building and a commitment to life-long learning and improvement.  An undergraduate education at Western should provide opportunities for students to develop general habits of mind and learn specific skills associated with development of knowledge and accumulation of wisdom among diverse individuals and communities.

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Qualities of a Western Graduate   

What statements ought we be able to make about the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and experience of Western graduates as a direct result of their education at the University?   To answer this question, we developed the following set of qualities that we believe should be the direct result of a Western education.

QUALITY #1 - Graduates have a sense of responsibility to self, others and the environment in community.
QUALITY #2 - Graduates evaluate, interpret and use information to develop understanding.
QUALITY #3 - Graduates have enhanced their ability to live responsibly and successfully in a diverse society.
QUALITY #4 - Graduates can communicate effectively in multiple modes.
QUALITY #5 - Graduates have a broad base of knowledge.
QUALITY #6 - Graduates are poised to become experts.
QUALITY #7 - Graduates imagine, create, and wonder.

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Qualities - Explicated   

QUALITY #1 Graduates have a sense of responsibility to self, others and the environment in community,^[2] having had the opportunity to:

• work both collaboratively^[3] and independently;
• assume leadership roles;
• learn to question and act responsibly and ethically;
• apply theory to practice and situate their learning, contributions and responsibilities to self and others within the context of the communities at Western and in this region;
• reflect on and develop their personal identity and meaning within the WWU community and the larger community.

QUALITY #2 Graduates evaluate, interpret and use information to develop understanding, having had the opportunity to:

• synthesize information from multiple perspectives and develop a capacity to deal with ambiguity and contradiction;
• become competent in multiple modes of thinking and inquiry and apply these methods to larger issues, questions and social phenomena;
• develop relevant questions, recognize and prioritize problems, and explore ethical issues related to these problems;
• think critically (analyze, interpret, theorize, reflect, critique) and creatively (generate, connect, integrate, create) in an open and flexible manner.

QUALITY #3 Graduates have enhanced their ability to live responsibly and successfully in a diverse society, having had the opportunity to:

• identify and examine their own positions, assumptions, and experiences;
• learn about and develop enhanced respect, appreciation and understanding of diverse cultural and social perspectives both local and global;
• acquire the basic skills necessary to examine the origins and impacts of contemporary and historical race, class and gender relations in the United States;
• develop strategies for managing conflict, including the ability to engage in and learn through respectful discussion, however controversial the subject.

QUALITY #4 - Graduates can communicate effectively in multiple modes, having had the opportunity to:

• enhance their ability to speak and write clearly and listen respectfully;
• become more functionally and critically literate logical-mathematical symbol systems, visual representations, and using technology-supported modes of communication;
• choose between various rhetorical and visual modes of communication as appropriate to the purpose, message and audience.
• develop these skills through multiple opportunities across disciplines.

QUALITY #5 - Graduates have a broad base of knowledge, having had the opportunity to:

• develop an understanding of the cultural forces and traditions that have shaped the American society and an awareness of how the past carries significance for the present;
• explore and experience literature, art, music and movement as forms of expression and communication in the worlds of ideas and social action;
• develop an aesthetic and intellectual understanding of the communicative, instructional, and persuasive properties of images and other systems of visual representation across cultures;
• develop an understanding of the patterns of interactions among individuals and institutions and how these impact human behavior;
• develop qualitative, quantitative, scientific and technological literacy;
• develop an understanding of the physical world and the effects of science, technology and society on it and each other;

QUALITY #6 - Graduates are poised to become experts, having had the opportunity to:

• be immersed in the study of a subject area or problem to the level of beginning competence;
• participate in advanced learning, inquiry, or research appropriate to their fields
• apply their learning through internships, apprenticeships, or other applied or experiential work;
• connect their disciplines and expertise with other areas of study to identify and solve problems;
• identify and assess their strengths and challenges as learners and reflect on the significance of their own learning.

QUALITIES #7 - Graduates imagine, create, and wonder having had the opportunity to:

• develop a passion for life-long learning;
• be playful;
• engage in activities that foster observation and curiosity;
• work in contexts that require persistence and flexibility and the ability to put ideas and experiences together in new and exciting ways;
• deepen their self-understanding through engaging with and interpreting works of the imagination;
• clarify their understanding and appreciation for what is meaningful or beautiful in the activity of creation.

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Current Environmental Factors in Place to Develop and Support These Qualities

Many environmental factors are already in place to support the intentional development of these qualities in our graduates.

External

• National research in higher education actively supports integrated experiences, and students and faculty are demanding greater interdisciplinarity.
• External funding opportunities are available to support the kinds of curricular changes needed to implement new initiatives to fulfill the recommendations (e.g. Chemistry's 6-year Research Corporation Grant to develop student research culture, Carnegie funding, PEW grants to support learning communities).
• Our location offers opportunities for targeted, signature programs in the environment and the Pacific Rim.

Internal

• Quality, diversity and connection with the community are part of WWU's mission statement.
• Significant expertise exists in our region and at WWU about integrated learning, learning communities and interdisciplinarity, and opportunities to create communities of learners are already happening in various places on the campus.^[4]
• Western has strong majors and a vibrant faculty. Our culture of strong disciplines helps students to develop beginning expertise.
• Faculty support for involving undergraduates in research, inclusion of diversity issues in the curriculum, and community-based learning is strong.^[5]
• Improved access to technology and WWU's progress as a "wired" campus can help support alternative kinds of communication (web pages, discussion groups, etc.) and interactions with various communities.
• Increased emphasis on assessment, student learning objectives and the Carnegie Conversations have created venues for discussion about these qualities and curricular and structural changes needed to support them.
• Changes in administrative leadership signals some new opportunities for change.
• Increased diversity in student body and increased numbers of female faculty has created pressure for exploration of multiple perspectives.
• Significant expertise on the integration of diverse voices into the curriculum and the improvement of campus climate around issues of diversity exists at WWU.^[6]
• WWU students are very active in service learning activities, internships and student governance. Curricular and co-curricular venues are in place to provide opportunities for students to assume leadership and work collaboratively in community contexts.
• Strong expertise is available in the faculty and staff on teaching written and oral communication skills.^[7]
• Western has a strong tradition of a collegial academic community.  Interviews from graduates consistently reference their connections with faculty and with other students as being central to their positive experiences.

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Impediments   

"What impediments can be identified that prevent the realization of the vision for Western graduates?"  Although Western has many elements in place that support the development of these qualities, there are also some clear impediments that prevent us from fully reaching these goals.

I.  CURRICULUM

1. GUR/GER - The current GUR/GER structure is flawed. Although strong courses are offered within this program, GERs are isolated from each other and the rest of the curriculum, and the current model does not support connection of themes and ideas or the development of a community of learners. The smorgasbord approach to fulfilling requirements typically leads to a fragmented and haphazard experience for students and they often leave the university without a clear understanding of its overall aims and purpose. There is no coherent philosophy about the purpose and goals of the GERs.  Some view the GERs as avenues for introduction to the major, others view them as a means to develop a wide base of knowledge in the liberal arts, while still others emphasis the development of varied modes of inquiry.
2. DIVERSITY - The exploration of the issues of living in a diverse society has not been part of the traditional canon and is still resisted by some faculty. Although a number of departments have made significant strides infusing these issues across their curriculum, in the GERs and in some other departments in which diverse points of view can offer important perspectives, questions of diversity are sometimes relegated to a few "culture" or "diversity" classes, effectively ghettoizing the issues. The post I-200 climate has left students, faculty and staff unclear and unsure about how to take initiatives to foster diversity. Additionally, the CGM portion of the GER does not require both the study of diversity in the United States and the study of another foreign culture.
3. COMMUNICATION IN MULTIPLE MODES - The maturation of communication skills is recursive and developmental. Many WWU students begin their areas of major study with little writing experience (only English 101) and often no formal development of other communication strategies. The curriculum, both in the GERs and in the majors, should be developed so that communication skills are embedded and practiced over multiple quarters. Additionally, simply assigning writing is not necessarily the same as offering instruction in writing.
4. REFLECTION - Efforts to help students build reflexive thinking and reflection are fragmented and 'buried' with little visibility. Students frequently lack vehicles that encourage them to reflect and to create meaning in order to understand who they are in the context of a rapidly changing world.
5. MAJORS - The explosion of the knowledge base in many disciplines has created a push for "coverage," resulting in high credit majors that often leave little time for application or interdisciplinary experiences. Some disciplines provide little opportunity for students to connect developing expertise with other fields. Some faculty and students still see courses as vehicles for content delivery only and do not attend to the identification of a broader range of goals/outcomes. The opportunity for independent study should be available in all majors, and opportunities for applied work should be available in more majors (where appropriate to the discipline).

II.  FACULTY

1. FACULTY DEVELOPMENT - Creating a culture that supports the theme of a "community of learners" will require some significant faculty development. Faculty often are well trained in their disciplines; however often they have not had the opportunity to develop the pedagogical and instructional skills to support thematic, connected and active learning. Some faculty argue that they do not have time (and perhaps the necessary expertise) to take on these elements in addition to the content coverage. Other faculty argue that "it's not my job."
2. FACULTY HIRING - Western's student body has become more diverse in the past decade, however similar progress has not been achieved in the faculty and staff ranks. As the student body grows, faculty hiring should keep pace in order to provide the level of staffing necessary to develop and support a quality program. Faculty salaries have not kept pace, and recruitment of quality faculty is becoming more difficult.
3. FACULTY LOAD AND REWARD - The faculty reward system does not specifically support work toward building a community of learners or interdisciplinarity.  It also frequently does not recognize or reward time spent in mentoring students toward expertise or involvement in research. Heavy teaching loads leave faculty and students little time to reflect and build community or to engage in curricular innovation or revision.

III.  STRUCTURE

1. THEMATIC AND INTEGRATED STUDY - Opportunities for linked classes or learning communities that cross disciplines and/or colleges are difficult to implement into the existing structure.  Registration and curriculum planning processes create barriers for intercollegiate, interdisciplinary planning and there is no clear structural support or incentive for interdisciplinary or learning community work. Absence of an oversight structure for integrated, connected experiences leads to learning within 'disciplinary boxes.' 
2. LOWER DIVISION PROGRAMS - GERs are often the 'step-children' of the majors and there is no consistent philosophy about the purpose and goal of the GER program.  Lack of coordinated oversight for program development, philosophy and staffing has resulted in fragmented program development.
3. DIVERSITY - Diversity issues are by their very nature interdisciplinary and often “orphaned”—therefore without institutionally based advocates. There is no clear academic home for some of the academic programs that support the exploration of these issues (American Cultural Studies, International Programs). Their "orphan" status may be perceived as lack of support and credibility.
4. ADVISING - Although advising within majors is often strong, students report significant dissatisfaction with the advising in their first two years.

IV.  STUDENT BODY - Although WWU is able to recruit very talented students, some students are programmed to a grading system that does not readily foster creativity and risk taking and others have a learned resistance to active learning. Still others come to Western seeking a vocation rather than an education, and view their courses as commodities and boxes to check off. The split in the student body between transfer students and students who enter as frosh also creates difficulties in curriculum and program planning. Although progress has been made to diversify the student body, the students are still relatively homogenous.

V.  RESOURCES - Resources are not systematically targeted toward efforts to build a 'community of learners.' Programs are often developed without a clear explication of the ways the program can support these themes and link with other programs.

VI.  CAMPUS CULTURE - There are a number of impediments buried in the campus culture and history. Western does not have a clearly articulated vision of itself as a community of learners. The weight of our own history (particularly related to GERs) leads to resistance to change. There are no systematic or structural ways to recognize, articulate and cluster significant work already being done to support the development of these qualities across the campus. Faculty, staff and student ownership for development of these qualities is not clearly developed or articulated. Opportunities for reflection are few.

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Possibilities for Distinctive Signature Programs   

"What elements make a Western undergraduate education distinctive from those at other excellent institutions?

1. Community of learners - Developing a campus culture that supports the development of a 'community of learners' could be an organizing theme for any revisions and restructuring that might result from this report. This 'identity' arises from a shared belief that the development of knowledge is most powerful when it is part of an on-going conversation among inquirers about their world, and recognizes the public and civic significance of the intellectual enterprise. Inherent in the development of a community focused toward inquiry is the element of faculty and students learning from each other. ^[8] Many of the major recommendations are strategies for moving toward a coherent identity around student centered learning.  (Thematic GER program, FIGs with integrative seminar, Student/faculty research involvement, reflection and connection with community through service learning and other community-based learning models).
2. Culture of reflection - Western could be distinctive by building a culture of reflection through a portfolio process that encompasses the GER and the major combined with a capstone experience.  Benchmark points for systematic reflection should be an integral part of this program. An electronic portfolio process could also capture Western's status as a 'wired' campus.
3. Location/Pacific Rim - Western's location, the natural environment, our position in the Pacific Rim region, our proximity to the local Indian reservations and communities and to Canada, can provide a central focus for a share of its activities.

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Recommendations

"How might these (impediments) be addressed?"  The following section summarizes the recommendations that developed out of the committee's discussion of both the impediments and strengths already present at Western. This list of suggestions is not meant to be exhaustive, but rather a beginning set of conversation starters for those considering models or beginning points for the changes necessary to improve the undergraduate experience at Western.  

I.  CURRICULUM

1. GUR/GER
   
   Recommendation #IA1 - Develop a GER program in which students take courses that are linked or connected thematically.^[9] Changes in the current GER program could begin by strengthening current models (the FIG program and the Liberal Arts Sequences) and by providing incentives and funding to build other models. (An integrated science sequence, a large lecture series with top-notch lecturers and breakout sessions, or an inquiry based frosh-year GER sequence with one small class each quarter).^[10] All models should help students build their ability to see relationships, develop connected frameworks, cognitive networks, and higher order thinking skills.^[11] A strong GER program should be organized by approaches to learning or modes of inquiries rather than subject matter areas.
   
   Recommendation #IA2 - Develop in an upper-level problem-based GER to bring students together to use their varied disciplinary perspectives to examine a common problem.  This course also might provide a vehicle for reflection on the academic experience.  The implementation of this recommendation might be a long-term goal for the restructuring of the GERs. Building and maintaining connections through the GER structure could be made more coherent with this form of advanced, interconnected experience.^[12]
   
2. DIVERSITY
   
   Recommendation #IB1 - All knowledge occurs in a social context which influences everything from the questions that are posed to the models that are created to understand the world around us. Additional faculty development and summer teaching grants should be funded to help faculty from disciplines infuse diversity issues into the curriculum where appropriate so that students have multiple opportunities to encounter these questions across many disciplines.
   
   Recommendation #IB2 - The GER sequence should include required study of the effects of origins and impacts of contemporary and historical race, class and gender relations in the American society. The GER sequence should also require the examination of global issues and the development of familiarity with another culture.
   
   Recommendation #IB3 - Many students enter college without the skills to use dialogue as a vehicle of learning and inquiry, or even hold a respectful discussion.  The development of these skills is not only the means of education, but also a goal. These skills are necessary for working effectively with others and to understanding and appreciating diverse cultural and social issues. Students should have multiple opportunities to learn how to work in teams, resolve conflict and engage in respectful discussion. These experiences occur in academic, community-based, and co-curricular settings, and should be developed as part of a coordinated plan.
   
   
3. COMMUNICATION IN MULTIPLE MODES
   
   Recommendation #IC1 - Coordinate the GER and major curriculums so that all students have some significant and recursive experiences using various modes of communication each year.^[13] The 1999 report from the Task Force on Implementing the University Writing Program provides some models for beginning these efforts in writing and should be reconsidered.
   
   Recommendation #IC2 - Western’s current and growing strength in co-curricular experiences (e.g., service learning and community service) offer venues where some communication based competencies will be required. Articulating these experiences so that communication skills are included will likely serve as at least one approach to enhancing these skills.
   
   
4. REFLECTION
   
   Recommendation #ID1 - A Capstone Experience, including reflection on the students' learning, should be encouraged in majors.
   
   Recommendation #ID2 - The opportunity to reflect on learning experiences should be built into the whole college experience. Implementing an electronic portfolio, with benchmark points of reflection and discussion in both the GER and the major, could be a powerful tool toward documenting learning and building reflective practice. Infusion of reflection into extra-curricular programs would also help build an integrated culture.
   
   
5. MAJORS
   
   Recommendation #IE1 - More opportunities for interdisciplinary and connected learning should be developed at the upper division and major level.^[14] Although many majors do provide opportunities for students to take courses in other disciplines, the explicit development of interdisciplinary perspectives is not always well developed. Majors that do not already include these experiences should be encouraged to provide more opportunities for exploration of connections with other disciplines with a problem-based orientation.
   
   Recommendation #IE2 - Disciplinary statements from each department and college should be developed that identify how the qualities we desire for graduates are fostered within their disciplines and curriculum, recognizing that the opportunity to develop these skills should be recursive throughout the college experience.
   
   Recommendation #IE3 - Although the community of learners is fostered through interactions with other students and faculty in and out of classrooms, independent study opportunities should be available in all majors for students who have the skills, focus and desire to pursue topics beyond what may be covered in formal classes.
   
   Recommendation #IE4 - An integral part of the development of a 'community of learners' is the opportunities for faculty and students to work together in research and applied settings.  Western has already begun a series of initiatives in a variety of majors that reflect 'best-practices' in the involvement of undergraduate students in research and applied work.  Efforts to make this part of the culture of the institution should be encouraged.
   
   Recommendation #IE5 - Where appropriate, majors should provide students an opportunity to develop competency and professional behavior, and to translate their learning into unfamiliar situations through internships, apprenticeships, or other applied and experiential work.^[15]

II.     FACULTY

1. FACULTY DEVELOPMENT
   
   Recommendation #IIA1 - New faculty orientation should actively begin the process of developing the culture of a community of learners.
   
   Recommendation #IIA2 - Faculty development resources should be actively sought to support the following themes. The Teaching and Learning Academy, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Series^[16] proposed by the Carnegie group and the Center for Instructional Innovation could be vehicles for these development activities.
   1. A culture of writing and communication as part of general education, including the necessary assistance to help faculty respond to the form as well as the content of writing exercises.^[17]
   2. Instructional strategies to promote making connections across disciplines.
   3. Inclusion of diverse voices and perspective across the curriculum.
   4. Pedagogies that foster open-ended thinking, emphasis on process and experimentation, multiple modes of knowing (kinetic, visual, etc), and self-reflection.
   5. Pedagogies that encourage active, engaged learning, even in large classes
      
      
2. FACULTY HIRING
   
   Recommendation #IIB1 - Efforts to hire faculty and staff who can provide expertise in the areas of diversification of the curriculum and can be role models for diverse students need to be strengthened.
   
   Recommendation #IIB2 - As the student body grows, faculty hiring should keep pace in order to provide the staffing necessary to develop and support a quality program.
   
   Recommendation #IIB3 - Faculty salaries have not kept pace, and recruitment of quality faculty is becoming more difficult. Current efforts to improve the salary structure should be continued.
   
3. FACULTY LOAD AND REWARD
   
   Recommendation #IIC1 - The faculty reward structure should recognize those who support and advance efforts to build a community of learners and connected learning.
   
   Recommendation #IIC2 - Summer teaching award and release time should be targeted toward those developing projects that support these themes.
   
   Recommendation #IIC3 - Current trends toward collaboration of students and faculty in research and publication should be strengthened and supported. Tenure and promotion processes should be re-examined to include sponsoring student research and independent study as significant categories.^[18]

III.  STRUCTURE

1. THEMATIC AND INTEGRATED STUDY
   
   Recommendation #IIIA1 - Develop coordinated administrative oversight for the General Education curriculum and interdisciplinary programs.  This structural change might include the development of a General Education Program/College or a VP/Dean/Advocate for undergraduate curriculum and instruction.^[19]
   
   Recommendation #IIIA2 - Provide incentives for the development of interdisciplinary and thematic programs. These might include, but are not limited to, summer teaching grants, course release time, recognition in the tenure and promotion process, or an 'honorary' interdisciplinary program assignment for a year.
   
   Recommendation #IIIA3 - Change the registration process so that linked and interdisciplinary course clusters are easy and simple to enroll.
   
2. DIVERSITY
   
   Recommendation #IIIB1 - A first step in creating academic ownership would be to identify several interested units to serve as “homes” for diversity issues. This will require some creative thinking on how international programs and other campus-wide diversity offices are structured, then shifting their services orientation to that of policy and coordination.
   
3. SIZE
   
   Recommendation #IIIC1 - Administrative/governance structure needs to be altered to provide oversight and support for the development of integrated/connected experiences. Develop smaller 'communities of learning' within the larger university community. (Ah! Paul Woodring is smiling!) Perhaps create a College of General Education to promote these kinds of connections in the first two years.^[20]
   
4. ADVISING
   
   Recommendation #IIID1 - A more coordinated advising program will be an important part of inculturating students to be members of a community of learners. The development of an inquiry based frosh year with small classes could significantly improve advising in the first two years. Through smaller discussion sections, students will develop strong relationships with faculty who could serve as their advisors. Students are more likely to seek advice from faculty they have worked closely with in a class setting than they are to seek advice from an advising office or from a Summerstart advisor with whom they have little experience.  Other intentional strategies for improving advising in the first two years should also be explored.
   
   Recommendation #IIID2 - A clearer thematic structure for the GERs will result in better advising (see recommendations #IA1-3).
   
   Recommendation #IIID3 - Continue support for development of departmental advising web pages, other on-line advising tools, and find funding for the degree audit program.

IV.  STUDENT BODY

Recommendation #IV-1 - Current efforts to diversify the student body should be sustained and strengthened.

Recommendation #IV-2 - The development of their understanding of their roles as members of a community of learners should be fostered in the first quarter of the student's experience at Western, through FIGs or other small connected course experiences.

Recommendation #IV-3 - Strategies for bringing transfer students into the community of learners should be developed (perhaps in the major or perhaps as an 'entry to Western' course during their first term.

Recommendation #IV-4 - Repeated opportunities to reflect on the purpose and meaning of their educational experiences are important and should be systematically included (see recommendations #ID 1-2).

V.  RESOURCES

Recommendation #V-1 - Resources already dedicated toward enriching experiences that can build community (Distinguished Lecture Series, etc) should be better connected with the curriculum.

VI.  CAMPUS CULTURE  

Recommendation #VIA1 - Articulate a vision of Western as an intentional community of learners (this could be an institutional signature). This vision should include engagement at all levels so that faculty, students, staff and administration all see themselves as part of and contributing to the community of learners.

• Activities (such as summer reading program or some other orientation or first year activity) that promotes a shared experience and opportunity for dialogue to help begin the development of this community.
• Repeated and recursive classroom experiences (both curricular and co-curricular) that build teamwork and communication skills and create multiple opportunities for students to work in 'community' groups (recognizing that the cultivation of a sense of self in community is a developmental process).
• Intentional inclusion of multiple opportunities for students to engage in environments that foster interrelated learning models and courses such as FIGS, learning communities, and experimental thematic seminars (perhaps a short intense course on a campus wide theme).
• Early experiences that connect students with each other and with faculty, and provide models for the passion for learning, reflective practice, and making connections across disciplines and ideas. These connections will promote engagement and enhanced advising.^[21]
• Opportunities for involvement in faculty research, promoting mentoring and engagement. These kinds of connections are most likely to occur within the majors.^[22]
• Enhanced ownership for diversity issues among all faculty, staff and students.
• Multiple environments that support sustained conversations with others about ideas, values, and beliefs.

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Footnotes

^[1]Orr, David.  (1994) "What is Education For?" in Earth in Mind: On Education, Environment and the Human Prospect.  Washington, D.C.: Island Press. p. 13.

^[2]Community has multiple meanings in this context - the communities of learners created through course and programmatic structures in their academic work, the communities created through co-curricular involvement in campus based activities, and the communities students connect with through application of their academic work to applied settings in their field and other service learning opportunities.

^[3]In the report from Employers Employing WWU Grads (Summer 1998), the ability to be a 'team player with good interpersonal skills' was listed as the most important attribute employers seek in a new hire.

^[4]The Washington Center for Improving the Quality of Undergraduate Education, the Center for Instructional Innovation, the new FIG program, the Liberal Arts Sequences, Fairhaven College, Huxley College, and the Carnegie Conversations all provide vehicles to support continued work in this area. Venues that allow students to share their research and scholarship with outside audiences (Scholar's Week, ACS & Women Studies Symposia, etc) are a step toward developing a community of learners. Our strong co-curricular program (including the Distinguished Lecture Series and other campus events) provide other opportunities to develop more common experiences and explore ideas and issues in community. Fairhaven College, the Recreation Program in Arts and Sciences, some recent learning community models in Woodring and Huxley College also provide models for cohort learning.

^[5]Recent study from Office of Assessment and Testing on faculty attitudes.

^[6]e.g. American Cultural Studies, Communications, Cross-Cultural Psychology, International Programs, College of Business and Economics, Huxley College, Fairhaven College, the Lifestyles Ally program, Safe Zones, ESC, Women's Center, GLBTA, and efforts of other varied diversity offices support building a more diverse learning community, although these offices and programs are sometimes at the margins and disconnected.

^[7]e.g. Writing Center and Writing fellows program, Communications, English

^[8]For an excellent discussion of the development of this kind of reciprocal environment, see Thor Hansen's "Involving Undergraduates in Research," Dialogue.  Issue #5, March 2000

^[9]Research supports that students participating in learning communities experience "greater social connection, and, if the courses are conceptually linked, less academic fragmentation than their peers who don't participate in learning communities." Barefoot, B. (Jan/Feb 2000) "The First-Year Experience: Are We Making It Any Better?" About Campus. p. 15.

^[10]Models that could keep learning cohorts together should be favored. Developing a system of trained undergraduate TAs to lead small discussion groups could reduce the cost impact.

^[11]Current research on learning and brain development leads educational reformers to suggest that curriculum structures that cut across disciplines best stimulate learning. The reasoning is that the brain can most securely encode and retrieve information when it perceives a web of connected meaning.  Ryan, Mark. (2000) Ask the Teacher: A Practitioner's Guide to Teaching and Learning in the Diverse Classroom. New York: McGraw-Hill.

^[12]Other institutions of our size and mission have implemented upper-division GER requirements, including such a senior capstone.  Portland State, for example, has a senior capstone that brings students from varied disciplines together and combines community-based experience with a reflective summary.

^[13]One proposed model for the development of writing:  First year: stand alone composition course (English 101); Second year: writing in the context of a discipline, perhaps as a linked course with a GER (proposed by the Task Force on Implementing the University Writing Program ); Third year: disciplinary writing (required major course that includes writing); Fourth year: capstone course within the major that includes writing addressing reflection and professional experience.

^[14]At the Chairs and Deans Retreat (fall 1999) increased opportunities for interdisciplinarity was cited as one of the primary goals for 'revisioning' WWU's curriculum in the next decade.

^[15]"Linking classroom learning with students' out-of-class activities creates a synergy that potentially compounds student learning."  Barefoot, B. (Jan/Feb 2000) "The First-Year Experience: Are We Making It Any Better?" About Campus. p. 16

^[16]Carnegie Campus Conversation Action Plan, June 2, 2000.

^[17]One of the suggestions in the Task Force on Implementing the University Writing Program report was assign a writing specialist to spend a quarter in a department to be available to work with faculty members one on one or as a group, helping them to find ways to fold more (and more meaningful) kinds of writing (and other communication work) into their courses. 

^[18]These recommendations parallel those made in the Carnegie Campus Conversations Action Plan, June 2, 2000.

^[19]Recommended by Deans and PAWG as well

^[20]"A pervasive and central problem is that many of the programs and activities that constitute…first year programs often have a single champion rather than broad-based institutional support." Barefoot, B. (Jan/Feb 2000). "The First-Year Experience: Are We Making It Any Better?" About Campus. p. 17

^[21]Alexander Astin's research indicates that connection with other students is one of the most important sources of influence on student development during the undergraduate years. increased interaction with faculty is also an important factor. When done thoughtfully, both result in increased retention. Providing a structure that can build thyese connections intentionally, and centered on the academic enterprise is an essential element of a quality undergraduate education. Astin, A. (1993) What Matters in College? Four Critical Years Revisited. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

^[22]Sustained, informal interaction between students and faculty, particularly around shared academic interests helps achieve academic and social integration for students and enhances both retention and learning. Tinto, V. (1993) Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and Cures of Student Attrition. (2nd Ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.