Argues that students benefit from a combined emphasis in general education on interdisciplinarity, civic responsibility, service learning, and writing. Describes an epidemics and AIDS course as a model for students wishing to enter the discourse and debates of society. (Contains 31 references.) (AUTH/NB)

Details the undergraduate curriculum revision undertaken by Guilford College, North Carolina, in 1996. Reports that the college's goals included development of strong courses that expressed concretely both the college's core identity, and, in the case of general education, the particular requirements the courses were to satisfy. Adds that the…

Using the pedagogical principles of Theodore Gross as a basis, suggests a purpose and content for general education. Stresses the importance of developing critical thinking skills, the role of intellectual discrimination in moral decision making, and the efficacy of oral-aural pedagogy, especially with urban open-admissions students. (DMM)