GEGB Meeting Feb 2, 2016

Meeting Details:
 

  • Attendance:  Brenda Helmbrecht, Tal Scriven, Elena Keeling, Bruno Giberti, Clare Battista, Neal MacDougall, Thomas Samuel , Josh Machamer, Mary Pedersen, Katherine O'Claire, Denise Isom, Gary Laver
  • ​Time:  1:10 pm to 2:00 pm
  • Place:  10-241

Discussion of GE Site Visit Meeting January 28/29, 2016

Advising Meeting Comments

  • ​GE needs more outreach.  How do we send out the message?  
  • Students need to receive the message when they first arrive. (In SOAR and WOW).  The message needs to be reinforced at different levels.
  • We need to craft a communication piece for advisors.  We do not want them to use the statement - Get GE out of the way.
  • Encourage Cal Poly to do more online courses. We want GE courses to be meaningful to students.  We want students to learn from their GE courses and realize their importance.  
  • Students take online courses from community colleges after they enroll in units at Cal Poly.  Students take GE courses in the summer at community colleges because it is cheaper and online. 
  • Why is GE at the bottom of the curriculum flowcharts?  Is this a subtle message?
  • Brenda Helmbrecht - Advising outreach is on her list.
  • The GE problem is deeper.  It extends to departments.  We need to look at solutions to the problem.
  • We need to emphasize education rather than throughput - We need to send the message to students that GE compliments their major.  We also need that message reinforced by departments.
  • What training are advisors getting?  Are they relying on their personal experience?
  • Students should understand the meaning of the GE Program Learning Outcomes.
  • We should not take an academic problem and convert it to a marketing issue.
  • Will we ever be able to force student to see the value in GE?  How can we ask departments to show students how a C3 would fit into their major?
  • Can we have a different GE administrative structure that provides more resources?

Student Meeting Comments

  • CENG students expressed the need to take their major courses first, and GE drops down on the list.  
  • CLA students don't like having students in GE classes when they don't want to be there.
  • Students feel that GE courses and major courses should complement each other.
  • They want more online courses.  They want courses that are more conversational vs. lecture.
  • It is hard to tell students not to take GE courses at the community college.
  • Students fill in their major courses first, then they see what time is left and what GE fits in.

Writing Meeting Comments

  • In Area A - There are not enough classrooms to accommodate the demand. There have been no adjustments as student population has increased.  English is offering 85% of the 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm classes. (In winter, 14 sections). They are also offering 7:00 am classes. This is a significant issue as students are expected to meet the Area A requirement in their first year.
  • Most of the Area A instructors are lecturers.  It would be nice to have more instructors with PhD's.  Currently in the English Department, there are only a handful of full-time lecturers.
  • What is the ideal size for a writing-intensive class?  In ENGL 134, it is currently at 23 students.  How can GE deliver a writing-intensive curriculum without any additional resources?  We currently have 6 writing-intensive areas: A1, A3, C1, C2, C4, and D5.  

Diversity Meeting

  • Students voiced comments that the USCP course base was too broad.  Some courses covered the issues better than others. For instance, one student commented that SPAN 111: Elementary Hispanic Language and Culture did not address the issues fully, though it should be noted that SPAN 111 is  not a GE course.
  • What do we mean by cultural pluralism?
  • Do we need both a U.S. component and a global component? What are the core things that student want and need?
  • Is the intellectual inclusiveness missing?
  • How can we incorporate multiple layers of learning objectives into one course?
  • How can we integrate diversity into the curriculum?
  • CTLT staff commented that faculty are not always prepared to address diversity and are concerned about negative student evaluations.
  • How can we establish a culture of diversity on campus?  Can we make small changes in the curriculum that are meaningful?

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