Pathways Learning Outcomes

CUNY’s general education framework lays out requirements that undergraduate students across CUNY must meet. The framework allows students to explore knowledge from various perspectives and to develop their critical abilities to read, write, and use language and symbol systems effectively. It also aims to develop students’ intellectual curiosity and commitment to lifelong learning. In addition to the Pathways learning outcomes listed below, all Queens College General Education courses must satisfy the following two criteria:

Address how, in the discipline(s) of the course, data and evidence are construed and knowledge is acquired; how questions are asked and answered.
Position the discipline(s) in the liberal arts curriculum and the larger society.

I. REQUIRED CORE

English Composition

Courses must meet ALL of the following learning outcomes:

Read and listen critically and analytically, including identifying an argument’s major assumptions and assertions and evaluating its supporting evidence.
Write clearly and coherently in varied, academic formats (such as formal essays, research papers, and reports) using Standard English and appropriate technology to critique and improve one’s own and others’ texts.
Demonstrate research skills using appropriate technology, including gathering, evaluating, and synthesizing primary and secondary sources.
Support a thesis with well-reasoned arguments, and communicate persuasively across a variety of contexts, purposes, audiences, and media.
Formulate original ideas and relate them to the ideas of others by employing the conventions of ethical attribution and citation.

Mathematical and Quantitative Reasoning

Courses must meet ALL of the following learning outcomes:

Interpret and draw appropriate inferences from quantitative representations, such as formulas, graphs, or tables.
Use algebraic, numerical, graphical, or statistical methods to draw accurate conclusions and solve mathematical problems.
Represent quantitative problems expressed in natural language in a suitable mathematical format.
Effectively communicate quantitative analysis or solutions to mathematical problems in written or oral form.
Evaluate solutions to problems for reasonableness using a variety of means, including informed estimation.
Apply mathematical methods to problems in other fields of study.

Life and Physical Sciences

Courses must meet ALL of the following learning outcomes:

Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a life or physical science.
Apply the scientific method to explore natural phenomena, including hypothesis development, observation, experimentation, measurement, data analysis, and data presentation.
Use the tools of a scientific discipline to carry out collaborative laboratory investigations.
Gather, analyze, and interpret data and present it in an effective written laboratory or fieldwork report.
Identify and apply research ethics and unbiased assessment in gathering and reporting scientific data.

II. FLEXIBLE CORE

Common to all Flexible Core courses are the following three learning outcomes:

Gather, interpret, and assess information from a variety of sources and points of view.
Evaluate evidence and arguments critically and analytically.
Produce well-reasoned written or oral arguments using evidence to support conclusions.

World Cultures and Global Issues

A course in this area must meet at least three of the following learning outcomes

Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or interdisciplinary field exploring world cultures or global issues, including, but not limited to, anthropology, communications, cultural studies, economics, ethnic studies, foreign languages (building upon previous language acquisition), geography, history, political science, sociology, and world literature.
Analyze culture, globalization, or global cultural diversity, and describe an event or process from more than one point of view.
Analyze the historical development of one or more non-U.S. societies.
Analyze the significance of one or more major movements that have shaped the world’s societies.
Analyze and discuss the role that race, ethnicity, class, gender, language, sexual orientation, belief, or other forms of social differentiation play in world cultures or societies.
Speak, read, and write a language other than English, and use that language to respond to cultures other than one’s own.

U.S. Experience in its Diversity

A course in this area must meet at least three of the following learning outcomes.

Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or interdisciplinary field exploring the U.S. experience in its diversity, including, but not limited to, anthropology, communications, cultural studies, economics, history, political science, psychology, public affairs, sociology, and U.S. literature.
Analyze and explain one or more major themes of U.S. history from more than one informed perspective.
Evaluate how indigenous populations, slavery, or immigration have shaped the development of the United States.
Explain and evaluate the role of the United States in international relations.
Identify and differentiate among the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government and analyze their influence on the development of U.S. democracy.
Analyze and discuss common institutions or patterns of life in contemporary U.S. society and how they influence, or are influenced by, race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, belief, or other forms of social differentiation.

Creative Expression

A course in this area must meet at least three of the following learning outcomes.

Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or interdisciplinary field exploring creative expression, including, but not limited to, arts, communications, creative writing, media arts, music, and theater.
Analyze how arts from diverse cultures of the past serve as a foundation for those of the present, and describe the significance of works of art in the societies that created them.
Articulate how meaning is created in the arts or communications and how experience is interpreted and conveyed.
Demonstrate knowledge of the skills involved in the creative process.
Use appropriate technologies to conduct research and to communicate.

Individual and Society

A course in this area must meet at least three of the following learning outcomes.

Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or interdisciplinary field exploring the relationship between the individual and society, including, but not limited to, anthropology, communications, cultural studies, history, journalism, philosophy, political science, psychology, public affairs, religion, and sociology.
Examine how an individual’s place in society affects experiences, values, or choices.
Articulate and assess ethical views and their underlying premises.
Articulate ethical uses of data and other information resources to respond to problems and questions.
Identify and engage with local, national, or global trends or ideologies, and analyze their impact on individual or collective decision-making.

Scientific World

A course in this area must meet at least three of the following learning outcomes.

Identify and apply the fundamental concepts and methods of a discipline or interdisciplinary field exploring the scientific world, including, but not limited to: computer science, history of science, life and physical sciences, linguistics, logic, mathematics, psychology, statistics, and technology-related studies.
Demonstrate how tools of science, mathematics, technology, or formal analysis can be used to analyze problems and develop solutions.
Articulate and evaluate the empirical evidence supporting a scientific or formal theory.
Articulate and evaluate the impact of technologies and scientific discoveries on the contemporary world, such as issues of personal privacy, security, or ethical responsibilities.
Understand the scientific principles underlying matters of policy or public concern in which science plays a role.

III. QC COLLEGE OPTION

Unlike the Required Core and Flexible Core, which are structured the same way at all CUNY colleges, the College Option structure varies among the CUNY senior colleges.

Literature

A course in this area must meet all of the following learning outcomes.

QC (1 of 2): Address how, in the discipline (or disciplines) of the course, data and evidence are construed and knowledge is acquired; that is, how questions are asked and answered.
QC (2 of 2): Position the discipline(s) in the liberal arts curriculum and the larger society.
LIT (1 of 4): Understand and be able to express the advantages of reading literature.
LIT (2 of 4): Engage in the practice of reading.
LIT (3 of 4): Appreciate different genres, including narratives, poetry, essays, or drama in their original language or in English translation.
LIT (4 of 4): Through discussion and writing, develop and improve upon skills used in understanding and appreciating literature.

The following information is optional.

For what majors, if any, does this course satisfy a requirement?
With what courses, if any, is this course cross-listed?
Any additional information you would like to include, such as planned section sizes, expected enrollment, or other comments.

Language

A course in this area must meet all of the following learning outcomes:

Address how, in the discipline (or disciplines) of the course, data and evidence are construed and knowledge is acquired; that is, how questions are asked and answered.
Position the discipline(s) in the liberal arts curriculum and the larger society.

In addition, a course in this area must meet at least two of the following learning outcomes:

Differentiate types of language and appreciate their structures.
Appreciate what is lost or gained in translations among languages.
Relate language, thought, and culture.
Compare natural languages, formal languages, and logic.
Understand the processes involved in learning languages.

The following information may also be provided.

For what majors, if any, does this course satisfy a requirement?
With what courses, if any, is this course cross-listed?
Additional information, such as planned section sizes, expected enrollment, or other comments.

Science

Note: Any Pathways LPS or SW course and any PLAS NS or NS+L automatically satisfies the criteria for a college option Science course.

A course in this area must meet all of the following learning outcomes.

QC (1 of 2): Address how, in the discipline (or disciplines) of the course, data and evidence are construed and knowledge is acquired; that is, how questions are asked and answered.
QC (2 of 2): Position the discipline(s) in the liberal arts curriculum and the larger society.
SCI (1 of 3): Familiarity with a body of knowledge in the physical or biological sciences.
SCI (2 of 3): Successful study of the methods of science, including the use of observation, the information of hypotheses and the testing of models.
SCI (3 of 3): Experience and awareness of the impact of science on modern society.

Synthesis

A course in this area must meet all of the following learning outcomes.

QC (1 of 2): Address how, in the discipline (or disciplines) of the course, data and evidence are construed and knowledge is acquired; that is, how questions are asked and answered.
QC (2 of 2): Position the discipline(s) in the liberal arts curriculum and the larger society.
Required: Offer a culminating experience either in one discipline or across the disciplines. Should offer opportunities for rich intellectual experiences that allow students to integrate knowledge and make connections across cultural, philosophical, scientific, artistic, political, or other issues, while advancing their critical and creative abilities. Synthesis courses should be open to all advanced students, regardless of their major.

The following information is optional.

For what majors, if any, does this course satisfy a requirement?
With what courses, if any, is this course cross-listed?
Any additional information you would like to include, such as planned section sizes, expected enrollment, or other comments