Hello everyone,

A recent conversation with one of my students got me thinking about how well (or poorly) faculty communicate the reasons for the various requirements in our degree programs. This student has a single class to complete in order to graduate, a required course that serves as a capstone, a final experience in her degree program. She is not excited about having to take this course and said to me that she doesn’t really see the purpose of the course, why that particular course is the one that she needs to take. I tried to explain it to her its importance.

When faculty design a degree program, they do so with some ideas about what they hope students will understand, be able to accomplish, and be like when they graduate. In other words, we think about the knowledge, skills and dispositions we hope our students will have gained while completing the curriculum. Each required class should have a purpose and should provide students with learning opportunities that will help them gain the desired knowledge, skills, and/or dispositions. I think it is usually pretty easy to see the kinds of knowledge and skills that are built into the learning experiences that we provide but dispositions are often more difficult to discern and we don’t always do a great job explaining them to students. In the case of my student, I explained that we want our students to think about their education as a whole and what it has meant to them—what was important enough to hold onto and think about as they move into the workforce as well as how their education might help them as they search for job opportunities. The capstone project course is the place where we help our students engage in that reflection.

It is easier to learn the things you’re supposed to learn when you understand what it is that you are supposed to learn and why. So if there’s a requirement in your degree whose purpose you don’t understand ask your advisor, instructor or the chair of your department. These questions will allow you to get the most out of your education.

Cathie