The interaction of proximate research universities is a multifaceted and increasingly relevant phenomenon in today's higher education landscape. The three essays herein add to science policy and innovation literature by exploring the challenges, opportunities, and expectations that arise when multiple universities operate in a region. The first…

Higher education curriculum is as varied as the institutions themselves. Familiarizing parents with college curriculum may assist them in their college students' selection and academic success. This article provides school administrators, teachers, counselors, public relations personnel, and college professors with examples of learning modes and…

Inquiry-based learning is one approach to improving the quality of undergraduate education by moving toward more student-directed, interactive methods of learning while focusing on learning how to learn. This paper deals with a missing component in the inquiry-related literature--the extra-pedagogical challenges of introducing and maintaining…

This book discusses general education reform through a focus on college curricula. It is based on information from individual institutions collected in part through a survey and in part through institutional publications and "fugitive literature" such as committee reports, faculty senate resolutions, and other unpublished materials. Part 1 of the…

Designed to clarify the function of the Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degree, this report lists and explains criteria for the degree as a means of enhancing the potential of the AAS to serve as a national employment credential and as the curricular foundation for the occupational mission of the community, technical, and junior colleges. The…

All institutional activities should be based on mutually-agreed-upon educational and cultural values as declared in a formal mission statement. A carefully formulated statement supported by conscious, informal commitment to its fulfillment allows an institution to maintain integrity and provide direction. (MSE)

Suggests that advisory committees be established for each curriculum in the community college as a way of maintaining a close liaison with the community served. Also suggests that the advisory committees review program objectives, course requirements, and course content. Offers suggestions for working effectively with advisory committees. (DMM)

Multiculturalism is the best approach to helping higher education in the United States make the most of recent demographic changes. Multicultural curricular reform is the cornerstone to successful multicultural education. Isolationism by discipline, interest, or ethnic group, when temporary, is not intrinsically wrong but should be balanced with…

A discussion of the debate over multicultural education in colleges and universities looks at the evolution of the movement and examines some myths about it that threaten its effectiveness. An effective approach to multiculturalism is seen to have implications for institutional philosophy, structure, operations, and academic programs. Concrete…

Points out the need for improving the nation's higher education curricula. Offers reasons for supporting a core curriculum and describes difficulties in developing such a program. Provides a summary of the National Endowment for the Humanities' report "50 Hours: A Core Curriculum for College Students." (KO)

This paper describes certain fundamental realities and choices that planners and teachers of core curricula at the college level must take into account in order to devise programs of quality and integrity. Six common sense realities and the choices they demand are presented and discussed. First, core programs must avoid reducing the teaching and…

There is an urgent need to bring values into the college curriculum. College human resources personnel are uniquely qualified to train college faculty and administrators in ethics and to assist in development of curricula in each discipline incorporating ethics. (MSE)

Several different philosophical approaches to general educational development in higher education are discussed and compared, including (1) positivist epistemology, a pragmatic, empirical perspective; (2) development of curricula promoting interpretation based on understanding; and (3) critical theory, which espouses development of people in…

The individual element of multicultural education needs to be recognized. The Association of American Colleges' national project, "Engaging Cultural Legacies: Shaping Core Curricula in the Humanities," helps colleges develop curriculum that challenge students to explore the humanities as reflected in their own social values, ideas, and…

Examines the growing demand for multicultural competence in college graduates, describes the course content and academic-advising activities recommended to develop it, and comments on the limits and inherent dangers of providing multicultural exposure universally. Academic advisors are urged to help students maximize their human capital by adding…