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One of the fundamental purposes of general education programs is to prepare students for further studies in their major by developing a broad knowledge base, foundational intellectual skills, and dispositions for lifelong learning. Indeed, a central component of faculty members' professional responsibility is "designing and implementing programs of general education and specialized study that intentionally cultivate the intended learning" (AAC&U 2006, 1.) However, the murky interface between the two domains of college curriculum - general education and specialized study in the major - has long been an area of concern for curriculum developers. Colleges and universities traditionally have been called to develop and implement mechanisms to systematically bridge institutional goals and the goals within the major curricula.
What appears to be new in the rapidly emerging global society is the increased intensity of employers' demands for institutions to significantly enhance efforts in faciliatitng and ensuring student development of transferable general education competencies. Consequently, institutions are increasingly required by accreditors, legislators, and funders to demonstrate the intentionality and transparency of their academic programs by describing how majors integrate institution-wide core competencies that traditionally belonged to the general education domain. Similarly, professional organizations such as the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) advance integration of liberal education outcomes both in the general education program and the major (AAC&U 2009).
We propose that the development of curriculum maps is a necessary first step in addressing AAC&U s (2008) call for institutions to articulate clear and complementary responsibilities between general education and majors for institution-wide core competencies, thus laying out effective and efficient pathways for students to progress through the general education and major curricula. AAC&U (2007) advocates providing students with a compass to help them navigate through the complexities of the college curricula by articulating clear statements of intended learning outcomes as reference points. However, for the compass to serve as a navigational instrument, students need to be provided with maps that visually set the reference points or outcomes in the topographic contexts or program curricula.
This article provides a brief overview of a program curriculum mapping model - a practical tool that a number of departments at Norfolk State University (NSU) utilize - to study and improve transparency and intentionality of degree program curricula in the...