Student Learning Outcomes (SLO)

The Student Learning Outcomes for our General Education program flow from the recognition that certain essential intellectual and practical skills rest at the foundation of a high-quality university education. These include effective written and oral communication, critical thinking, and mathematical reasoning skills.

• Oral Communication—Demonstrates effective listening and speaking skills necessary to organize information and deliver it effectively to the intended audience.
• Written Communication—Demonstrates the ability to question, investigate and draw well-reasoned conclusions and to formulate ideas through effective written communication appropriate to the intended audience.
• Critical Thinking—Identifies issues and problems raised in written texts, visual media and other forms of discourse, and assesses the relevance, adequacy and credibility of arguments and evidence used in reaching conclusions.
• Mathematical Reasoning—Demonstrates knowledge of and applies mathematical or statistical methods to describe, analyze and solve problems in context.

Additional Student Learning Outcomes arise from the values that the program seeks to foster.

• Active Inquiry—Demonstrates knowledge of and applies research techniques and information technology appropriate to the intellectual and disciplinary context.
• Personal and Social Responsibility—Demonstrates knowledge and skills necessary to take responsibility for one's own life and actions, and to recognize opportunities and responsibilities to become engaged in our various local, regional, national, and international communities.
• Sustainability—Describes and explains the environmental dynamics associated with human activities, and assesses the value of balancing social and economic demands with the Earth's ability to sustain physical and biological resources and cultural diversity.
• Diversity—Demonstrates an understanding of and facility with different intellectual viewpoints as well as the unique perspectives of others based on varied experiences, identities and social attributes.
• Creativity—Takes intellectual risks and applies novel approaches to varied domains.
• Global Engagement—Demonstrates knowledge and skills necessary to engage global cultures and peoples.

The GE Program at CSU, Chico is designed to fulfill the goals of a liberal education:

• Recognizing and adhering to the values of open inquiry.
• The cultivation of civic responsibility and informed democratic participation.
• An appreciation for the human condition and for the collective cultural and artistic production of humanity.
• An abiding curiosity about and understanding of the world around us.

The General Education web site has areas that provide details on the Pathways Program, information specifically for students trying to understand the GE program and make sound choices in their general education experience, a section for faculty aimed at enhancing their teaching within the program and assessing the program’s success and a section on the GE revision process that led to the creation of the new Pathways Program.