The General Education (GE) program at Cal State East Bay is designed to provide students with opportunities to explore subject areas outside the major, to delve into topics that challenge their world perspectives, and ultimately, to help them become educated citizens who base their decisions on factual evidence. In the CSU, Executive Order 1100 prescribes the broad goals for each GE subject area and mandates each campus defines GE learning outcomes "within a programmatic structure" that may be framed by AAC&U's LEAP Essential Learning Outcomes. GE requirements constitute 40% (or 48 out of 120 semester units needed to graduate) of the undergraduate degree program. At CSUEB, GE learning outcomes are aligned to its Institutional Learning Outcomes (ILOs), WASC Core Competencies, and the LEAP Essential Learning Outcomes--all of which express the knowledge, skills, and values CSUEB graduates are expected to attain. Collectively, CSUEB's GE learning outcomes and ILOs distinguish who we are, what we value, and how we expect students to demonstrate their learning.
CSUEB's GE Long-term Assessment Plan for 2022-2027, 22-23 CAPR 39 (which supercedes 18-19 CAPR 2) provides a detailed implementation plan for the programmatic assessment of GE learning outcomes through the academic year ending in 2027 and clarifies the assessment practices using terminology shared with ILO assessment.
GE Assessment Information:
The GE Office will organize assessment of GE areas, based on the longterm GE Assessment Calendar. Assignments need to be:
The overarching purpose of GE assessment at CSUEB is to enhance undergraduate student learning and improve the learning experiences afforded by the GE program. Looking beyond the CSU Chancellor's Office and WASC accreditation requirements which necessitate GE assessment, the true value of GE assessment lies in how we collaboratively make meaning of assessment results to inform improvements in GE.
♥ GE assessment serves to enhance student learning and improve the learning experiences afforded by the GE program.
♥ GE assessment requires faculty engagement and is a faculty-driven process with assessment work and decisions governed by faculty and faculty committees.
♥ GE assessment is never punitive, and assessment results are never used against faculty (e.g., in retention, tenure, and promotion decisions) or programs (e.g., resource allocation).
♥ GE assessment practices assure the anonymity of faculty participants and protect the confidentiality of students and their work.
♥ GE assessment is distinct and separate from the GE course review and recertification process.
GE Course Review & Recertification
GE assessment is currently progressing and has been been synchronized and coordinated with ILO assessment. The cycle assessment activities within each project cycle are grouped into the following categories (see figure):
GE assessment is synchronized and coordinated as closely as possible with ILO assessment, congruent with the 2022-2028 ILO Long-term Assessment Plan. GE assessment occurs on an on-going, iterative basis on the proposed GE Long-term Assessment Plan (22-23 CAPR 39).
Robust and meaningful assessment of GE at key "checkpoints" (guidepost assessment) is extremely valuable in informing improvements, which help move GE into a more coherent, intentional, and scaffolded program. For example, assessment written communication at key time points in a GE pathway (e.g., GE A2, Second Composition, and upper-division GE Areas UD-C or UD-D) allows us to gauge how well our students attain greater autonomy and sophistication in their writing as they progress through their academic pathways.
Assessment Projects:
Explore the tabs below to learn more about each GE project. Below the tabs faculty can find various GE resources like the rubrics, the assessment reports, and assignment guides.
GE assessment is coordinated by the Director of General Education (GE) and the Educational Effectiveness Council (EEC) Faculty Representative for GE Assessment. The Director of GE and the EEC Faculty Rep work bring together faculty experts from across campus to perform all stages of the assessment work. The Office of GE will manage and maintain all GE assessment data. In Spring 2025, the GE Assessment Committee (subcommittee of CAPR) will oversee some of the collection and analyses of student work from designated GE courses. In some cases the GE Director and EEC Faculty Representative will organize faculty groups to also do assessment.
Kevin Kaatz, Director of General Education at kevin.kaatz@csueastbay.edu
Nancy White, EEC Faculty Representative for GE Assessment at nancy.white@csueastbay.edu
The Office of General Education is located in SA 1500.
