Utah Valley State College
The purpose of the Global/Intercultural requirement is to assist our students to become better prepared to understand and participate in the global and diverse cultural interdependencies that characterize our world. The Global/Intercultural requirement is a graduation requirement at the bachelor degree level.
STATEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY
In the interest of promoting global and/or intercultural understanding within the college curriculum, we need to give students the opportunity to consider and explore these issues from a variety of perspectives.
This requirement was motivated in part by the December 1999 recommendations of the Utah Regents' Task Force on General Education. Their report argued that an educated person should "appreciate diversity" and possess the abilities "to integrate ethical, cultural, and historical considerations in the humanities" and "to relate another’s humanity to one’s own." Additionally, general education curriculum "should offer students an understanding of differences and similarities between people and between groups" as well as an understanding of "interplays between individuals, groups, and social systems."(1) Similar reasoning has led to widespread implementation of requirements like the one outlined here in many institutions of higher education in America.
Intercultural contact is now a significant element of everyday life and will only increase in the forseeable future. A curriculum that addresses issues of global interconnections and intercultural understanding is now a vital element in higher education. As students and faculty educate each other in the classroom and in informal settings, they should be encouraged to introduce differing points of view, broaden one another’s range of experience, and teach one another to see the world from varied perspectives. Hence, intercultural contact within the curriculum must be recognized and promoted.
For the purpose of constructing curricula that will satisfy the UVSC Global/Intercultural requirement, and in the interest of fostering confidence in relating respectfully and productively with individuals representing cultures and perspectives other than one’s own, courses satisfying the requirement must be consistent with a philosophy that
• recognizes and studies cultural differences
• advocates analysis of such differences and their meanings by appreciating and interacting with the perspectives of these other groups;
• pays particular attention to intercultural issues within global, local, or campus community contexts that will enhance our students' understanding and appreciation of other cultures and perspectives.
The GE Committee will work with departments to find appropriate GE or majors courses so that students are able to complete the requirement without increasing their total required credit hours. This will usually be done through courses that also satisfy a general education requirement, but sometimes, as with the business course, Cross-Cultural Communications, through a course for the major.
UVSC GLOBAL/INTERCULTURAL REQUIREMENT
PURPOSE:
Global/Intercultural understanding should be considered and explored from a variety of perspectives. The requirement will foster greater understanding of, interaction with, and appreciation for, cultures that reflect the diversity present within the local and campus communities, up to the larger state and global context. Courses satisfying the requirement will articulate and examine the unique perspectives, experiences and concerns of individuals and groups representing cultures other than one
’s own. Such understanding and appreciation will both enhance the educational experience of students and facilitate their preparation to participate as active, informed, respectful citizens.
By implementing the Global/Intercultural requirement, the College underscores its commitment to valuing global/intercultural opinions, backgrounds, traditions, perspectives, and experiences. Utah Valley State College recognizes that fostering an intercultural learning curriculum and an understanding of, and appreciation for, a variety of cultural perspectives and experiences is an essential element of higher education.
OUTCOMES:
While realizing that developing intercultural understanding is a lifelong process, the expected outcomes for students completing the Global/Intercultural requirement include:
Gaining an informed and nuanced understanding of global or intercultural issues.
Replacing stereotypical cultural conceptions with recognition of the complexity and variety of different cultural groups.
Gaining appreciation for the contribution of different cultural groups to educational, social and cultural institutions, and for the value of difference within these contexts.
Gaining confidence in interrelating respectfully with individuals representing cultures and perspectives other than one’s own.
Becoming knowledgeable, responsible, reflective and respectful citizens within an increasingly multicultural society and global community.
CRITERIA FOR COURSES SATISFYING THE GLOBAL/INTERCULTURAL REQUIREMENT:
1) The Global/Intercultural requirement will be satisfied by a single course of at least three credit hours.
2) Global/Intercultural issues must be central to each course, rather than one element among several to be explored.
3) Specific courses, and the issues under examination in each course, may take a local intercultural or international perspective.
4) Courses should, when possible, include texts and teaching materials that originate within the specific group(s) under examination.
5) When possible, courses should help students discover interconnections among different groups and cultural contexts, showing how their own experiences relate to those of other cultures.
6) Instructors must agree to provide outcomes assessment as designed by the General Education Committee on an annual basis.
(1) - December 1999 Report of Utah Regents Task Force on General Education: http://utahsbr.edu/Goals1299.htm
August 1, 2006
Gen. Ed. Committee
Global/Intercultural Requirement Documents:
Introduction
G/I course application process
sample courses
Five-Year Review: Review Plan
General Information:
Why general education?
UVSC catalog (.pdf file)
committee members
meeting minutes
assessment
miscellany
