Curriculum Planning

General Information Pertaining to Curricular Offerings

In the following section, descriptions of all associate degree and certificate curriculums offered by the college are presented. Each curriculum description (1) provides a statement of purpose or intent of the curricular program, (2) states the occupational or transfer objectives for the program, (3) specifies curriculum admission requirements for entry into the program, (4) states the required courses and minimum number of credit hours for completion, and (5) provides an outline for sequencing the courses of study. Each curriculum is structured in accordance with policies established by the State Board for Community Colleges in Virginia. Additionally, the curriculums for all associate degree programs meet criteria set forth by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Curriculums for which the associate of applied science degree and certificate are awarded are all structured to ensure that graduates of these programs have a significant general education foundation, in addition to the necessary skill development training. For the AAS degree, general education comprises approximately 25 percent of the total credit hours; for certificate programs (not career studies certificates), this figure is a minimum of 15 percent.

The associate of arts and associate of science degree programs are designed for transfer to baccalaureate programs offered at four-year colleges and universities. To avoid transfer problems, students should carefully select courses to fulfill elective requirements with the assistance of their advisors and upon an investigation of the transfer requirements of the institution to which transfer is considered. Not all curriculums of study are available on all campuses due to the specialized nature of the human and physical resources required to offer the instructional program. General education courses in the curriculums, however, may be taken at any of the three campus locations at which they are offered.

The following table presents the requirements for associate degrees at Reynolds:

Minimum Requirements for Associate Degrees in the VCCS

^a Each of the courses in communication must be in written communication.
^b Each of the two courses cannot be from the same discipline area (e.g. humanities).
^c One course in social/behavioral sciences must be a history course and the second required course cannot be history.
^d A total of 3-6 semester hours is required in either natural sciences and/or mathematics for the AAA and AAS.
^e Transfer core includes additional general education and/or major courses.

General Education Definition

Associate degree programs provide a coherent, shared experience for students to develop the general education core competencies expected of them as college-educated individuals. General education, as an integrated and cohesive whole, provides the educational foundation necessary to promote intellectual and personal development. Upon completion of the associate degree, graduates of Virginia’s Community Colleges will demonstrate competency in student learning outcomes (SLOs) determined and assessed by each college in 1) civic engagement, 2) critical thinking, 3) professional readiness, 4) quantitative literacy, 5) scientific literacy, and 6) written communication.

Collectively, these general education core competencies distinguish graduates of Virginia’s Community Colleges as individuals with a breadth of knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to pursue further education and their careers, continue to develop as learners, and contribute to the well-being of their communities. The six competencies are defined in policy with aspirational statements of learning goals for graduates. Each community college will determine and assess specific learning outcomes based on the definitions and aspirational statements.

General Education Goals and Objectives/Outcomes

Reynolds Community College degree graduates will demonstrate competency in the following general education areas:

Civic Engagement is the ability to contribute to the civic life and well-being of local, national, and global communities as both a social responsibility and a life-long learning process. Degree graduates will demonstrate the knowledge and civic values necessary to become informed and contributing participants in a democratic society.

Civic Knowledge: Summarize fundamental principles and debates about democracy and citizenship, both within the United States and in other countries

Civic Identity: Reflect on personal social/civic identity and how that identity differs from others in their communities

Civic Discourse: Deliberate on issues and problems to advance or achieve a civic aim

Diversity in Civic Life: Compare and contrast diverse feelings, perspectives, and life experiences; Analyze the strength that such diversity of opinions brings to civic life

Ethical Reasoning: Examine the ethical implications of community and civic actions and decisions

Civic Responsibility: Assess and respond to civic, social, environmental, or economic challenges at local, national, or global levels

Social Justice: Identify personal and collective actions that could be taken to address injustices in society

Critical Thinking is the ability to use information, ideas and arguments from relevant perspectives to make sense of complex issues and solve problems. Degree graduates will locate, evaluate, interpret, and combine information to reach well-reasoned conclusions or solutions.

Points of View: identify and evaluate relevant and diverse points of view

Evidence: utilize effective search strategies and research methods to gather sufficient, relevant, authoritative, and reliable information from divergent perspectives

Interpretations/Inferences: evaluate and analyze ideas, arguments, assumptions, and evidence

Implications/Conclusions: formulate logical and informed conclusions or solve problems based on the analysis and interpretation of information

Written Communication is the ability to develop, convey, and exchange ideas in writing, as appropriate to a given context and audience. Degree graduates will express themselves effectively in a variety of written forms.

Purpose and Focus: clearly identifies the purpose of the message and focuses the delivery to the audience

Content: Uses appropriate and relevant content to illustrate main ideas

Organization: Organizes and presents a main idea clearly and concisely with a basic structure

Language and Style: uses standard American English, and accepted, conventional grammar and mechanics

Quantitative Reasoning is the ability to perform accurate calculations, interpret quantitative information, apply and analyze relevant numerical data, and use results to support conclusions. Degree graduates will calculate, interpret, and use numerical and quantitative information in a variety of settings.

Identify and Evaluate: determine whether the source of the information is authentic, valid, and reliable.

Interpret: explain numerical information presented in mathematical forms (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, tables, words)

Represent: convert relevant information into various mathematical forms (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, tables, words)

Calculate: accurately solve mathematical problems

Apply and Analyze: make judgments and draw relevant conclusions from quantitative analysis of data and predict future trends when appropriate

Communicate: use quantitative evidence to support a position or clarify a purpose orally or in writing using appropriate language, symbolism, data, and graph

Professional Readiness is the ability to work well with others and display situationally and culturally appropriate demeanor and behavior. Degree graduates will demonstrate skills important for successful transition into the workplace and pursuit of further education.

Interpersonal Communication: ability to maintain open, effective, and professional communications

Workplace Demeanor: ability to demonstrate appropriate workplace and classroom demeanor and behavior;

Teamwork: ability to work effectively with others on a task in a group or a team to achieve a common goal while maintaining constructive interpersonal relationships

Creative Problem-Solving: ability to solve a challenge or program through innovative ways

Ethical Reasoning: Ethical Reasoning is reasoning about right and wrong human conduct. It requires students to be able to assess their own ethical values and the social context of problems, recognize ethical issues in a variety of settings, think about how different ethical perspectives might be applied to ethical dilemmas, and consider the ramifications of alternative actions. Students’ ethical self-identity evolves as they practice ethical decision-making skills and learn how to describe and analyze positions on ethical issues. (AAC&U definition)

Leadership: Discern and describe their personal leadership style, strengths, and limitations

Cultural awareness, sensitivity: Recognize their own multiple identities, experiences and biases and how these affect their ability to lead

Scientific Literacy is the ability to apply the scientific method and related concepts and principles to make informed decisions and engage with issues related to the natural, physical, and social world. Degree graduates will recognize and know how to use the scientific method, and to evaluate empirical information.

Explain: Map the steps of the scientific method of inquiry leading to evidenced-based knowledge.

Identify: Recognize the elements of research design.

Interpret: Determine if a research design is correlational, descriptive, experimental, and/or a review.

Synthesize: Plan, design, and conduct scientific investigations, demonstrating an understanding of discipline-related concepts, the scientific method, and research design in the collection of empirical evidence.

Apply: Use empirical information to draw an evidence-based conclusion.

Communicate: Share results and/or conclusions, drawn from empirical information, to the intended audience.

Recognize: Identify how the independent variable (or the cause) impacts the dependent variable (or the effect) to explain cause and effect relationships.

Describe: Demonstrate an understanding of what experimental controls are and why they are important.

Evaluate: Distinguish a scientific argument from a non-scientific argument.

Communicate: Describe the impact that technology has had on science, and vice-versa.

Differentiate: Define and compare inductive, deductive, and causal forms of reasoning.

Distinguish: Differentiate between the concepts of hypothesis, theory, and paradigm.

Clarify: Communicate the limitations of science, and how this may impact public perception and acceptance of empirical evidence.

Integrate: Create a product, based on the knowledge and skills learned in {discipline-related} science and/or technology.

General Education Electives