Despite efforts of both administration and faculty, the intent and the execution of new curricular initiatives are not always in alignment. To understand how the declaration of a campus-wide general education initiative was being implemented, this article combines analyses of syllabi and courses from across disciplines. In an initial review, the…

Six online postings and six one-minute papers were added to an introductory first-year class, forming 5 percent of the final grade, but represented significant intervention in class functioning and amount of active learning. Active learning produced results in student performance beyond the percentage of the final grade it constituted. (Contains 1…

Discusses film-oriented writing classes as a way of expanding student vocabularies and illustrating such literary devices as metaphor, irony, and imagery. Offers guidelines for writing instructors wishing to add films to a course plan, using "King Kong,""The Godfather," and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" as examples. (DMM)

Offers a model for interdisciplinary courses, altering the relation of the discipline, teacher, and student. Describes a University of Texas at Austin course as an example of the model, which focuses on major models for research; on developing students' methodological competence; and on validity and significance as writing criteria. (AYC)

Describes two courses, "Introduction to Music Literature" and "Spectrum of Music," within the context of the newly revised general education program at Willamette University. Describes the general education program, the value of the music classes for a broad range of students, and the content and instructional methods of the…