CCRI's Definition of an Educated Person: Four Abilities

The faculty and staff of the Community College of Rhode Island have established four critical abilities that define the learning outcomes of a CCRI graduate. These four abilities can be applied in many contexts and are critical skills that must be developed not only at CCRI, but over the course of a lifetime. These core abilities guide students, faculty and staff in establishing educational goals and assessing learning within and across the primary domains of knowledge: arts and humanities, science and mathematics, and the social sciences.

  1. Effective Communication
    • Demonstrate English language fluency.
    • Utilize current communication technology.
    • Organize and present ideas effectively, both orally and in writing.
  2. Critical Thinking
    • Identify, analyze, and understand complex ideas.
    • Use information technology appropriately to locate, evaluate and apply research data.
    • Draw inferences from facts.
    • Evaluate and present well-reasoned arguments.
  3. Quantitative and Scientific Reasoning
    • Demonstrate an understanding of mathematical and scientific principles.
    • Apply these principles to the solution of problems in academic work and in everyday life.
    • Interpret numeric information presented in graphic form.
    • Apply scientific methods to the inquiry process.
  4. Social Interaction
    • Evaluate ethical dimensions of decisions.
    • Use teamwork to accomplish tasks in groups.
    • Demonstrate an understanding of global, cultural and historical perspectives.
Assessment of Student Learning

CCRI is committed to providing quality education and to assuring that students acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful. Assessment of student learning provides the information we need to make improvements in program structure, course content, and pedagogy. To this end, information, including samples of student work, may be collected at the classroom, department, and institution levels. The information collected will be completely anonymous and will have no impact on student grades. Aggregated results will be used for program planning purposes and may be included in institutional research analyses and reports. In addition, students may be asked to submit samples of their course work and engage in focus groups. They may also be asked to complete a questionnaire assessing the quality of academic services. These activities help us determine the extent to which students demonstrate competency in the areas outlined in the Definition of an Educated Person and in their area of concentration.

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