Abstract
Communication departments remain heavily reliant on the inclusion of an introductory communication course in their institution’s general education program. For this reason it is essential for Basic Course Directors (BCDs) to educate themselves on general education. In doing so they will find a new iteration of change to general education where the required course and distribution model are disappearing in favor of an interdisciplinary outcomes-driven approach. Such a shift can have dramatic repercussions on the basic course and communication programs if the course is not further connected with other areas of general education. In this essay, I argue for Basic Course Directors to rethink how they design their respective courses so that they are better protected from the changes sweeping the landscape of general education. To do so, I provide a brief overview of the history of general education, detail the importance of the basic course to communication departments and external constituencies, and provide some suggestions for guiding a “re-imagining” of the basic course.
Recommended Citation
Valenzano, Joseph M. III
(2013)
"Directing the Winds of Change: The Basic Course and General Education,"
Basic Communication Course Annual: Vol. 25, Article 6.
Available at:
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/bcca/vol25/iss1/6
Included in
Higher Education Commons, Interpersonal and Small Group Communication Commons, Mass Communication Commons, Other Communication Commons, Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons