Investigation of the Alignment of General Education and Academic Degree Program Learning Outcomes

Overview & Synopsis

General education is an essential feature of American universities and colleges. While many educators value general education, many students do not. Students view general education requirements as interfering with their major requirements, perpetuating a negative sentiment about a disconnect between general education and academic degree programs. We aim to investigate the validity of this story using empirical data collected from robust assessment practice. We examined the extensive assessment records at a liberal arts university to evaluate overlap between the learning outcomes of the general education program and academic degree programs. Findings suggest that the outcomes-oriented general education program was well integrated -- nearly half of the academic degree learning outcomes were linked to a general education outcome. Further research should explore if the sentiment of disconnect stems from a lack of implementation fidelity and how findings regarding general education interrelatedness can contribute to the larger conversations and concerns surrounding higher education.