Curriculum Review: Proposals http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/
Proposals appear in reverse chronological order of submission with brief excerpts and links to the full text of each proposal. (A quick list of linked proposal titles appears to the left.)

Would you like to submit a proposal or reflection for inclusion on this page? Just send your text to Ty Tessitore (ty.tessitore@furman.edu). All proposals are posted anonymously; if you would prefer to submit anonymously, as well, hard copies are also welcome. Proposals will be accepted for posting through the end of October, 2004.

NOTE: When discussing or communicating about specific proposals, please refer to tracking numbers (in parentheses at the end of each title).

]]> en-us 2005-08-19T12:30:24-05:00 A Modest Proposal for a Modified Furmester Calendar (#63) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000150.html The following possible revisions to the current Furman calendar seek to address the most salient objections and goals expressed by faculty and students during our CRC efforts. Having cut the Gordian contact-hours knot, there may be some changes that might... calendar mfairbairn 2005-08-19T12:30:24-05:00 Rationale for Changing the Calendar (#62) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000124.html Faculty at Furman often tailor their class schedules to better suit their pedagogical goals. In my department for instance, “upper level” courses are frequently taught 2-3 afternoons a week for extended periods. I elect to do this for 2 reasons—first,... calendar mfairbairn 2005-03-29T15:26:47-05:00 Proposal from QSA (#61) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000091.html Ignorance manifested in racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia are the antithesis of what a liberal arts education is founded on and should be discouraged. Avoidance of queer themes and feminist issues is the embodiment of the encouragement of homophobia and patriarchy. proposals love 2004-12-14T16:48:54-05:00 Information Fluency and Beyond: The Role of Technology in the Liberal Arts (#60) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000090.html "Information literacy should in fact be conceived more broadly as a new liberal art that extends from knowing how to use computers and access information to critical reflection on the nature of information itself, its technical infrastructure, and its social, cultural and even philosophical context and impact – as essential to the mental framework of the educated information-age citizen as the trivium of basic liberal arts (grammar, logic and rhetoric) was to the educated person in medieval society." proposals mfairbairn 2004-12-13T16:46:02-05:00 Thoughts on a Concentration in the Humanities (#59) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000089.html This program of study will enable students to take an intentional approach to their learning and require them to integrate their coursework from term to term, linking the different disciplines through their chosen project. mfairbairn 2004-11-19T14:36:34-05:00 Calendar proposal (#58) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000088.html [W]e should at least consider reversing the present winter and spring terms, i.e., have a twelve-week term from January through March with an eight-week term following during April and May. calendar love 2004-11-19T09:45:34-05:00 CRC proposal (#57) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000087.html Our experience as students was that focused attention on fewer courses was a particularly effective approach for learning. This is also the opinion of majority of the students we now teach. reflections love 2004-11-19T09:32:49-05:00 Information Fluency Proposal (#56) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000086.html When they discover the number of research resources available to them through the library for their research projects, they tell us again and again that they feel “overwhelmed” and that they have “no idea where to start.” proposals mfairbairn 2004-11-17T16:02:15-05:00 Proposal to the CRC for a Legal Studies Concentration (#55) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000085.html The law thus explicitly or implicitly raises moral, political, philosophical, and even theological questions about human values. proposals mfairbairn 2004-11-17T15:57:32-05:00 A Curriculum Proposal Regarding Military Science (#54) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000084.html Though war is a part of our world, and study of issues related to war is obviously a legitimate issue for academic disciplines, the training of military leaders is a very different matter, and is in basic conflict with Furman’s history (“grounded in Judeo-Christian values” – Catalogue, p. 4) and its aim as a liberal arts institution to teach critical thinking. reflections mfairbairn 2004-11-17T15:44:49-05:00 "Who is this Constantine?" (#53) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000079.html I should like to see us reinforce, not weaken, the teaching of the Western cultural legacy at Furman. A required course in great books would be one possible way of implementing this goal. Certainly History 11 should retain its status as a GER. proposals love 2004-11-09T10:03:06-05:00 Biblical literature in the curriculum (#52) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000078.html Furman’s heritage: Edmund Burke’s admonition that we should form a “bridge with the past” is advice we should consider carefully. Furman has played a serious role in biblical education over the years. reflections love 2004-11-08T15:20:27-05:00 Proposal from the Humanities sequence staff (#51) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000077.html The staff believe that it is crucial to begin immediately in the freshman year the process of developing students’ inquiring and reflective abilities on a mature level. The Freshman Sequence should be a core element of the “freshman experience” program, however that looks in its final iteration. freshman experience love 2004-11-08T15:15:58-05:00 ICP "minors": student-initiated integrative curricula (#50) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000076.html Pods are an attractive credential for prospective employers, demonstrating independence, creativity, and the ability to contextualize and synthesize disparate knowledge and information. proposals love 2004-11-08T14:27:43-05:00 Curriculum proposal (#49) http://millie.furman.edu/weblogs/Curriculum/archives/000075.html In this section, we would like to respectfully disagree with a central tenet of the curriculum review process. We believe that calendar should be considered, and should be considered independently of the curriculum, if the ultimate goal of the process is the enhancement of intellectual vitality at Furman. proposals love 2004-11-05T12:13:55-05:00