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Universities have a
reputation for being resistant to change. A frustrated administrator
once remarked that it was "easier to move a cemetery than it was to
change a university." But that image of universities as stodgy and out
of touch with the "real world" is itself outdated. In today's dynamic
culture of ever-changing technologies, globalization, workforce demands
for independent and innovative thinkers, and public calls for
accountability, universities have demonstrated a remarkable ability to
adapt to better meet the needs of students and society.
A key indicator of the profound change that is taking place in
universities is the revitalized attention to student learning. Of
course, universities have always been dedicated to educating students,
but they have not traditionally sought to document what graduates have
learned. Whereas universities could certify that their graduates had
completed a prescribed curriculum, few had evidence of what students
specifically knew or could do. Could their graduates communicate
effectively? Solve problems or think critically? Understand other |
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cultures?
Contribute to society as responsible citizens? These are the kinds of
questions that employers, legislators, and parents were increasingly
asking but that few colleges and universities could confidently answer.
Yet in relatively few years, these questions have moved from being an
embarrassment to higher education to being at the center of important
conversations within universities about what we want our graduates to
know and be able to do. Increasingly, universities are focusing on the
core competencies that will help students be successful when they
graduate. For example, to ensure that all of our students can write
effectively, CCSU is instituting a writing-across-the-curriculum program
to encourage all teachers to integrate writing assignments in their
courses. CCSU's commitment to cultivating our students' "global
literacy" has also led to greater emphasis on internationalizing the
curriculum and supporting study abroad. Similar conversations are
underway about how to prepare our students for a technological society
and how to foster community engagement.
Knowing what we want students to learn, universities now focus much more
on how to accomplish these outcomes. Supported by a growing body of
research about how people learn, faculty increasingly involve students
more actively in their learning, incorporate technology in their
teaching, and engage students in projects beyond the classroom. At CCSU,
interest in the kind of experiences that produce lasting learning has
also led several teachers to publish their own classroom-based research
about how different teaching methods and assignments affect student
learning.
Finally, as universities have focused more on what they want students to
learn, they have revolutionized their assessment of how well students
are achieving those learning outcomes. Every department at CCSU has an
assessment plan that spells out its intended learning outcomes and how
it will assess whether students are achieving them. Assessment helps
departments better understand how to improve student learning.
As a result of these changes, CCSU has joined a growing number of
universities in becoming both more responsive to the needs of students
and society and more accountable to its many stakeholders. The
university's ability to reinvent itself also shows that it has the
flexibility and commitment to remain relevant in a world in which change
is the only constant.
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