Results of ARCO Case Study
September 2000
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Graduate students majoring in education or a related field were
presented information on major social trends of the last several decades as
well as information from a variety of sources on the types of knowledge,
attitudes, and skills that students would need to acquire in order to be
successful in the information age. They were given specific information on an
institution of higher learning in Bolivia and asked to provide recommendations
for the university’s undergraduate curriculum that would reflect the trends,
the desired outcomes, and the special circumstances of the university and
Bolivia. The description of the case study is shown in Appendix
A. A total of 15 students completed the assignment.
Two papers that demonstrate excellence on this assignment
were done by Holly Chancey and Tara Stiffler (available in Rich Text Format).
Two sets of skills were considered the most important and
were selected by half of the students:
1.
Basic and communication skills of reading, listening,
writing, and speaking as well as basic skills of math, social studies, and
science;
2.
Knowledge and skills necessary to understand and use
technology
Social and interpersonal skills were judged almost as
significant.
The ability to process information (i.e., acquire, evaluate,
organize, maintain, interpret, and communicate information.), critical
thinking, and self-efficacy were the third most cited necessary attributes.
Character (especially honesty, integrity, and
responsibility), global thinking, being aware of new ideas and changes,
optimism, goal-setting, self-regulation, the ability to adapt to change, and a
willingness to upgrade skills also received support from at least two
individuals.
A total of 13 additional attributes such as abstract
thinking, benevolence, compassion, ambition, time management, and
entrepreneurial skills also were mentioned.
The following are some of the suggestions for activities:
Communication skills
Require students to write and give speeches in a variety of courses throughout the undergraduate curriculum
Require students
to work in groups where they must listen to others
Require
extensive reading on a variety of topics
Give written
directions on complex assignments
Have students use
communication skills in all classes
Technology
Have students take introductory course and require the use of technology in upper-level classes (especially communication such as e-mail; also information searches and essay/paper writing
Have students research and make recommendations for technologies to be used in their field
Social and interpersonal skills
Have students
work in cooperative learning groups
Have students
work as a team on class projects
Encourage
students to participate in extracurricular group activities
Have students
engage in discussions, debates, and giving speeches
Encourage men
and women to work together to address the issue of equality of sexes
Encourage
individuals from different ethnic groups or socioeconomic backgrounds to work together
to develop a sense of the oneness of humanity
Information processing skills
Require students to gather data from a variety of sources (e.g., books, articles, interviews, internet) and to judge the quality of those resources
Require term
papers or research studies that require students to compile and summarize a
large amount of data
Require a
research course where students complete a literature review and a data-based
study
Have students
take a course in journalism and write articles for publication
Have students
write on topics directly related to the mission statement principles
Global thinking
Have multiple courses dealing with different topics: economics, religion, education, family life, etc.
Implement “current events” theme in a variety of courses, focusing on what is happening in both Bolivia and other countries
Abstract thinking
Require students to demonstrate abstract thinking in their assignments
Use mediating activities to connect concrete principles and abstract principles (e.g., the mission statement is composed of abstract principles; connect them to concrete activities)
Character
Take coursework in philosophy/ethics and religion
Take part in community- or work-related that required one to demonstrate important character traits
Keep a portfolio of actions that demonstrate character and leadership
Encourage students to develop a vision of who they can become (using a concept such as Becoming A Brilliant Star)
Optimism
Have students
describe situations that presented obstacles and how they overcame them.
Have students
develop personal affirmation statement
Help students
attain mastery in their coursework
Demonstrate that
other countries and cultures have overcome obstacles and succeeded
Self-efficacy
Help students
develop mastery in basic communication skills
Expose students
to role models who come from similar backgrounds and have become successful
Have articles in
newspaper that highlight student performance
Goal-setting and self-regulation
Have students set goals, keep
records, and evaluate their own performance
Have students set goals related to the mission statement and keep a portfolio during their undergraduate years
Entrepreneurship and home-based businesses
Have students initiate
and run service-oriented projects
Have students
take coursework in starting and running a small business
Nur University
Case Study #1—The
ARCO Project
Nur University was founded to serve the needs of rural
Bolivia. At the present time, Bolivia is one of the most stable countries in
the Andean region (Rotella, 2000). It is also one of the poorest countries in
South America; 65% of its population is Indigenous and another 20% is mixed.
Along with Colombia and Peru, Bolivia is one of the world's top sources of
cocaine (Rotella). Without the money provided by the sale of cocaine-related
products, the economy would be in even worse shape than it is at present.
Nur university was established in 1985 in the city of Santa
Cruz, a city that was quickly becoming a city of major political and economic
importance. At the time of its founding, the average time to complete an
undergraduate degree through the state university system was ten years due to
civil and democratic unrest. As the first private university with full legal
authorization, Nur became a legal and affordable alternative to the traditional
autonomous national public university system. Nur is presently authorized to
offer academic programs at a national level. In 1994, it began an extensive
distance learning program for undergraduate studies.
Nur’s undergraduate program builds upon the traditional roles of a
university—teaching, extension, and research. It consists of two primary areas
of study—developmental (or core studies) and technical (or major area studies).
Nur emphasizes ethical and moral education and stresses the importance of
understanding the integrative and disintegrative forces that promote peace and
world citizenship, through an analysis of modernization and globalization
trends.
Service-oriented leadership is emphasized throughout the program and
students are required to complete a service requirement for graduation.
Transdisciplinary study is also emphasized throughout the program.
Five principles form the basis of the mission statement of the
university, and therefore, its undergraduate curriculum:
The Independent Investigation of Truth
The Essential Harmony between Science
and Religion
The Elimination of Prejudice
The Equality of Women and Men
The Unity of Humankind
The Elimination of the Extremes of
Wealth and Poverty
The ARCO Project (Action, Reflection, and Consultation)
developed in response to the institutional need to give a spiritual orientation
to its curriculum. In order to base the curriculum on its stated principles, it
became evident that the university needed to investigate and determine what is
meant by these principles and agree on standards of thinking, valuing,
committing, and behaving that could serve as benchmarks for putting these
principles into practice. ARCO is one strategy to investigate, define and
determine how we can best "translate" these principles into action in
the classroom and beyond.
References
Rotella, S. (2000, August 31).
Andean region teeters between anarchy, tyranny. Los Angeles Times.
Downloaded from the Internet, August 31.
Nur University. (2000). Institutional
profile. Available online: [http://www.nur.edu/ingles/profile.htm]
Summary of Important Educational Outcomes
for the Information Age
(Revised)
Cognitive (knowing,
reasoning, thinking)
abstract
thinking
aware of
competitive pressures, cultural shifts
creativity
critical
thinking, reasoning
global thinking
imagination
implicit
cultural understandings about time, dress,
courtesy, money,
causality, etc.
informational
(acquiring, evaluating, organizing, maintaining, interpreting, and
communicating information)
intelligence
knowing how to
learn
knowledge
problem
solving/decision making
systems understanding
well educated
and technically trained (post high school education)
wisdom
worldly
Attitudinal
(dispositions, feelings, values)
autonomous
benevolence
compassion
courage
courtesy
honesty
integrity
optimism
responsibility
self-efficacy
self-esteem
trustworthiness
truthfulness
Volitional (connecting
thoughts and feelings to action)
adapt to change
alert to new
ideas and fashions, customer preferences, economic and political changes
goal-setting
go-getter
plan strategically
self-determination
willingness to
constantly upgrade skills
Behavioral
(action and doing)
Personal
basic arithmetic
and mathematical skills
can both think
and do
communication
skills (reading, writing, listening, speaking)
financial management
good character
self-regulation,
self-management
time management
Social
get and stay
married
interpersonal
skills (negotiating, exercising leadership, working with
diversity,
teaching others new skills)
serving clients
and customers, and
participating as a team member
social skills
Systems and Technology
monitoring and
correcting system performance, and improving and designing systems
using computers
to process information
technology
utilization skills--selecting, applying, maintaining and troubleshooting
technology