James Madison University
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

General Education: The Human Community is the core academic program of James Madison University in which students come to understand how distinct disciplines look at the world from different vantage points. Courses in The Human Community are organized into five clusters, each emphasizing unique tools, rationales and methodologies. Taken together, courses in a student's chosen major and The Human Community complement and complete each other. Both are integral and essential components of a student's full and proper education.

Source: https://catalog.jmu.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=44&poid=17875&hl=general&returnto=search, 2020-2021 Undergraduate Catalog.

Cluster Three: The Natural World addresses sustainability.

Scientific investigations into the natural world use analytical methods to evaluate evidence, build and test models based on that evidence, and develop theories. Mathematical studies of form and pattern can create a language that assists in these investigations. Courses in this cluster provide students with the opportunity to develop problem-solving skills in science and mathematics at the college level. Students will be introduced to a substantial body of scientific facts, concepts, models and theories, and they will also gain experience in using basic mathematics to obtain knowledge about the natural world. The cluster is cross-disciplinary, thereby demonstrating boundaries and connections among mathematics, the sciences and other aspects of culture.

Typically students begin Cluster Three during their first year and should complete it by the end of their sophomore year. Individual courses satisfy requirements in a number of major and professional programs. Students are encouraged to select appropriate courses in Cluster Three on the basis of their backgrounds, interests and educational objectives.
Cluster Three Learning Objectives

After completing Cluster Three: The Natural World, students should be able to meet the following objectives:

Describe the methods of inquiry that lead to mathematical truth and scientific knowledge and be able to distinguish science from pseudoscience.
Use theories and models as unifying principles that help us understand natural phenomena and make predictions.
Recognize the interdependence of applied research, basic research and technology, and how they affect society.
Identify the interdependence of natural systems with the social, economic and ethical aspects of global and local issues.
Use graphical, symbolic and numerical methods to analyze, organize and interpret natural phenomena.
Discriminate between association and causation, and identify the types of evidence used to establish causation.
Formulate hypotheses, identify relevant variables and design experiments to test hypotheses.
Evaluate the credibility, use and misuse of scientific and mathematical information in scientific developments and public-policy issues.

Source: https://catalog.jmu.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=44&poid=17987

The reference for graduates from degree programs is Office of Institutional Research, https://www.jmu.edu/oir/oir-research/statsum/2021-22/T3-2_2021.pdf. The figure includes 4,495 Bachelor's Degrees, 716 Master's Degrees, 10 Educational Specialists Degrees, 37 Doctorates, and 19 Certificates (SCHEV degrees) from Repyear 2018-2019. 2018-19 was used because it was the most recent, reliable information not affected by the pandemic according to the Center for Assessment and Research Studies.

Essa Paterson, ISNW, identified the number of graduates from degree programs that met the criteria following a methodology consistent with the 2018 STARS report.

First, a list of the degree programs that that have a sustainability-focused outcome, was created by reviewing the undergraduate and graduate program assessment reports, academic year 2018-2019. The reports were reviewed to identify programs and learning goals/outcomes/objectives that met the criteria. Information was recorded on March 3, 2021 (for the undergraduate programs) and August 13, 2021 (for the graduate programs). For the few programs that did not submit goals in the CARS reports for the review year, the goals were obtained individually.

Next, programs with a required sustainability-focused course were identified, using the sustainability course list from AC 1, which included 35 sustainability-focused courses. The catalog was reviewed to identify which of these were required courses in degree programs. One program was identified that required a sustainability-focused course but was not already counted based on the program itself requiring a sustainability-focused outcome.

The number of graduates from the above programs was obtained from the Office of Institutional Research's Fact Book https://jmu.edu/oir/oir-research/statsum/2019-20/T3-3_2019.pdf

Program: Engineering B.S.
Relevant Program Outcomes:
JMU Engineering graduates should have:
c. the ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability.
h. the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context.

Program: Geographic Science B.A./B.S.
Relevant Program Goal:
(3) After completing a degree in Geographic Science, students will be able to apply geographical thinking (spatial thinking, holistic thinking, integration of human/natural environment, current state of the discipline) to real-world problems, including appraisal (analysis) of societal and environmental issues.

Program: Integrated Science and Technology B.S.
Relevant Program Goals/objectives:
Obj. A-7 Explain how organisms interact with the physical environment and consequences of these interactions for population, community, and ecosystem dynamics.
Obj. A-8. Describe how human activities affect the living world and the physical environment.
Obj. C-3. Describe the dynamics of natural and human built systems using the concepts of steady state, equilibrium, feedback, decay, non-linearity, and emergent properties.
Goal E. ISAT graduates define and frame problems by seeking to understand the contexts from which they emerge, including natural science, technological, institutional, cultural, social, and economic dimensions.
Goal H. ISAT graduates analyze the societal dimensions of science and technology using tools and methodologies from the social sciences and humanities.
Obj. H-1. Describe how science and technology are socially constructed, and why this matters.
Obj. K-1. Describe the system(s) out of which and issue emerges, including a consideration of interactions between social, economic, cultural, natural, and technological forces.
Obj. J-3. Evaluate the feasibility of problem-solving options with respect to the technical, social, cultural, economic, and natural factors impacting them.

Program: Earth Sciences B.A.
Relevant Program Goals/objectives:
Goal 3: Demonstrate that the geosciences are fundamentally interdisciplinary through: (d) communicating with peers and contemporaries in collaborative learning situations in class, lab, and field, and with other scientific professionals.
Goal 6: Communicating with and advising non-scientific audiences on dynamic Earth processes that affect individuals and communities.
Obj. 6a. Describing the geological conditions and cautions associated with the use, design, and/or implementation of human designed infrastructures and other land use/resource issues.
Obj. 6b. Communicating with authority in public forums on issues related to the Earth, such as global climate change, ozone depletion, and other Earth environment issues.

Program: Geology B.S.
Relevant Program Goals/objectives:
Goal 3: Demonstrate that the geosciences are fundamentally interdisciplinary through: (d) communicating with peers and contemporaries in collaborative learning situations in class, lab, and field, and with other scientific professionals.
Goal 6: Communicating with and advising non-scientific audiences on dynamic Earth processes that affect individuals and communities.
Obj. 6a. Describing the geological conditions and cautions associated with the use, design, and/or implementation of human designed infrastructures and other land use/resource issues.
Obj. 6b. Communicating with authority in public forums on issues related to the Earth, such as global climate change, ozone depletion, and other Earth environment issues.

Program: Architectural Design B.F.A.
Relevant Program Goals: The BFA in Architectural Design educates future design leaders. It is an intensive program focused on rigorous design processes. Architectural Design is approached holistically – emphasizing investigations into the nature of materials and objects, interior & exterior space, building technology, sustainability, site research and strategies, ergonomics, history and theory, programmatic invention, functional poetics and collaboration across disciplines.

Relevant Program Objectives Students graduating from the BFA program will:
1. Create designs that through research incorporate Environmental Ethics
4. Communicate complex projects that incorporate public, community-based, multi-program spaces that enhance social consciousness, environmental consciousness and education.
5. Use design as a means of inquiry about solutions and responses to our environmental and socio-economics through the built environment, space, materials and site, technology through the production of visionary projects.

Program: Nursing M.S.N.
Relevant Program Goals: Analyze economic, policy, environmental, and social forces to impact health care delivery, quality of care, and safety.

Program: Political Science M.A. - European Union Policy Studies Concentration
Relevant Program Goals: Category 3: Graduating students will possess expertise in contemporary policy issues in political science in their concentration area including international security, immigration, human rights, environmental protection, welfare provision, health and human services, and information technology and their underlying political philosophies.
Objective 3.1: Graduating students will be able to gather and analyze data for the purpose of addressing public policy problems.
Objective 3.2: Graduating students will be able to analyze and affect all stages of the policy cycle, from agenda setting through program evaluation.

Program: Elementary Education M.A.T.
Relevant Program Goal: Goal 2. Candidates possess and are able to use content knowledge in planning and instruction. 2.6 Develops an appreciation for the global connection of all humanity and our interdependence on the finite, natural resources of the earth. https://www.jmu.edu/coe/eere/_files/ELEDGoalsOutcomes.pdf, https://www.jmu.edu/coe/eere/eere-eledmat.shtml

Program: Social Work B.S.W
Required course: SOWK 288. Human Rights, Social, Economic and Environmental Justice

Description of General Education and learning outcome from JMU catalog 20-21: https://catalog.jmu.edu/content.php?catoid=44&navoid=2141. General Education applies to the predominant student body at the undergraduate level.

Responsible party for number of graduates: Tina Grace, Assistant Director for University Planning and Accreditation, Office of Institutional Research. Entered November 28, 2021.

Responsible parties for providing reports: Keston Fulcher, Executive Director, and Yu Bao, Assistant Assessment Specialist, Center for Assessment and Research Studies.

Analysis conducted by Essa Paterson, ISNW, November 29, 2021.