GENERAL EDUCATION: WORLD PERSPECTIVES REQUIREMENT

The study of culture prompts students to recognize themselves as cultural beings and to understand the diverse ways in which people organize life and perceive the world.  Courses that receive the Cultural Emphasis Designations analyze the sources, causes, implications, and ways of understanding diversity both in the United States and around the globe.  They focus on the values, perceptions, history, creative expression, and social life of various cultures and sub-cultures in the United States and in other countries and world regions.  Such study enhances one's ability to live and work intelligently, responsibly, and cooperatively.   Courses with a Cultural Emphasis Designation can appear anywhere in the curriculum, and, where appropriate, may double count.

Purpose and Description of the World Perspectives Designation

This designation helps students examine the perspectives and ways of life of people in societies located outside the United States .  In light of the increasing interaction among nations, the growth of transnational organizations, the growing ease of global communications and population movements across borders, it is necessary for students to be knowledgeable about international matters and matters of global scope and importance.  Courses receiving this designation provide students with the necessary basis for understanding and interpreting the variety of world cultures, institutions, societies, and issues.

World Perspectives Objectives:

1) Examine how culture affects people's efforts to understand, use, and survive in their environments, and how these efforts, in turn, affect culture;

2) Examine within a cultural context the world views, language, or ways of life of  societies, nations, regions, or peoples located outside of the United States ;

3) Consider the interconnectedness and interaction that characterize world relationships.

 Skills Objectives

All courses that receive the U.S. Diversity or World Perspectives designations use teaching methods that help students become more proficient in the following skills:

1) To engage in articulate expressions through effective speaking or writing;

2) To think critically and creatively;   

3) To locate, evaluate, and use information effectively.

Courses with the WP Designation

ANT 204; ANT 211; ANT 215; ANT 315; ANT 360; ANT 370; CHI 202; EAS 201; ENG 204; FRE 202; GER 202; GRK 202; GPY 235; HST 210; HTM 175; JPN 202; LAS 201; LAT 202; MES 201; PHI 210; PLS 281; PLS 282; PLS 283; PSY 355; RST 225; RUS 202; SPA 202; SPA 310; SPA 311;  SS 270; SS 322; SS 324