Undergraduate - Clarion University

58 Clarion University of Pennsylvania
General Education
Distribution
University Curricula
Goals and Purposes
A Clarion University education consists of both
disciplinary and general education. Disciplinary education
aims to prepare a student in a particular vocation, profession,
discipline, or area of study. General education aims to assist
the student’s development as a person and as a citizen.
A baccalaureate program at Clarion University provides
students with both a specialized and a liberal education. A
specialized education provides depth of knowledge in an
academic discipline and in a career area. A liberal education
provides the basis for specialized studies and for life within
and beyond the university.
Students have the freedom to select the academic major
and elective courses in which they are interested. The
general education curriculum provides students with the
opportunity to explore a variety of subjects that not only
serve their interests but community needs as well.
Students lay out their disciplinary and general education
curriculum. Here is an outline of general education
requirements:
General Education Requirements
I. Liberal Education Skills (in writing, mathematics, and
communication)—15 credit hours to include:
A. Writing II
B. A mathematics course
C. A selection of courses from academic support,
computer information science, communication,
elementary foreign language, English composition,
logic, mathematics, and speech communication.
II.
Liberal Knowledge (about society, its individuals,
culture, and environment)—27 credit hours distributed
among three categories:
A. Physical and biological sciences 9 credits
B. Social and behavioral sciences 9 credits
C. Arts and humanities 9 credits
At least two disciplines must be represented
within each of the three categories.
III. Health and Personal Performance (with focus on
wellness, creative activities, and use of leisure time)—
four credits to include:
A. Health and wellness (one course) 2 credits
B. Personal performance (two courses) 1 credit each
IV. General Education Elective (for further exploration of
areas of interest and continued broadening of studies)—
sufficient course work to bring the total for general
education to 52 credits from an approved list in areas
of skills or liberal knowledge. These may not be in
your major, nor a health or personal performance
course.
General Education Flags
Among the courses meeting requirements in both
general education and the major, there are courses having
“flags” or special designations.
These flags denote courses that address such practical
qualities as the ability to understand and discuss values, to
write effectively, and to engage in quantitative reasoning.
You will need to be sure courses selected in general
education and in the major show a total of five flags in the
following categories:
In general education:
* One first-year Values Flag—promotes reflections on
personal values, interpersonal values, and societal
values.
In the major or general education:
* Two Writing Intensive Flags—engage in higher
order reasoning and communication in specific
disciplines. These two writing courses count for
credit beyond general education as part of the total
academic experience, either in the major or in support
courses for the major.
* A Quantitative Reasoning Flag—to develop skills
associated with learning from data, quantitative
expression, evidence and assertions, and quantitative
intuition.
* A second Values Flag—encourages exploration in
human values, applied values, or ethics in a particular
context.
Students have the freedom to select the academic
major and elective courses that are of interest. The
general education curriculum provides the
opportunity to explore a variety of subjects that not
only serve student interests but community needs as
well.