2008 Woodie Awards
Effectiveness of Liberal Arts education put to the test
Robert Preliasco
Issue date: 11/9/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 2 next >
11/9/07 - Parents are no longer the only people asking the question, "What's the value of a liberal arts education anyway?"
The University of Rhode Island is participating in a national study to determine exactly what skills, attributes and experiences students take away from a college education.
The Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education is being administered on 25 college campuses in America, including the Universities of Michigan and Notre Dame. This semester is the first time that URI has participated in the study, with 730 freshmen about 30 percent of the entire freshmen class volunteering.
The students answered a questionnaire during a 120-minute session earlier this semester. Another survey will be administered to the same students in the spring of 2008, and then in the spring of 2011, the students' senior year.
Deborah Grossman-Garber is the director of the URI office of student learning, outcomes assessment and accreditation, which administered the survey. She said the goal of the study is for the university to better understand its students.
"We really need to understand who our freshmen are and what their learning skills are," she said.
She added that the survey will keep track of many factors in the students' college careers, including their interaction with faculty, their campus and dorm life, educational experiences and the skills they have gained in college.
Grossman-Garber said the survey will show the university how students change over time and what they gain from general education courses, learning communities and living on or off-campus.
The survey will also demonstrate how students of this generation learn, how they get their news and how they perceive social issues.
"Your generation is a generation that probably learns differently than previous generations because you're digital natives," Grossman-Garber said about today's Internet-savvy students. "That probably has affected how students think through a problem."
The University of Rhode Island is participating in a national study to determine exactly what skills, attributes and experiences students take away from a college education.
The Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education is being administered on 25 college campuses in America, including the Universities of Michigan and Notre Dame. This semester is the first time that URI has participated in the study, with 730 freshmen about 30 percent of the entire freshmen class volunteering.
The students answered a questionnaire during a 120-minute session earlier this semester. Another survey will be administered to the same students in the spring of 2008, and then in the spring of 2011, the students' senior year.
Deborah Grossman-Garber is the director of the URI office of student learning, outcomes assessment and accreditation, which administered the survey. She said the goal of the study is for the university to better understand its students.
"We really need to understand who our freshmen are and what their learning skills are," she said.
She added that the survey will keep track of many factors in the students' college careers, including their interaction with faculty, their campus and dorm life, educational experiences and the skills they have gained in college.
Grossman-Garber said the survey will show the university how students change over time and what they gain from general education courses, learning communities and living on or off-campus.
The survey will also demonstrate how students of this generation learn, how they get their news and how they perceive social issues.
"Your generation is a generation that probably learns differently than previous generations because you're digital natives," Grossman-Garber said about today's Internet-savvy students. "That probably has affected how students think through a problem."