<p>Thanks, Katonahmom, for the great summary and link to the full report. Reading the full text really does cast this in a different light. The use of the term "learning outcomes" in the report is perhaps unfortunate, since that term has been tainted with guilt by association with standards-based testing and the No Child Left Behind Act. This report is really talking about something different, more like educational ideals or precepts, most of which seem relatively uncontroversial. </p>
<p>One of the main strands of the report, which is loaded with ideas, seemed to me to be an educational model that borrows the best aspects of both the liberal arts and pre-professional/vocational models. The report never frames it quite this baldly, but in a nutshell: make liberal arts studies more practical, and less theoretical, abstract, or "ivory tower"; and orient pre-professional education more toward high-level thinking and less toward specific skills. As you get to the specific ways of implementing these ideals, though, it's clear which way the authors are tilting. The experiences that they advocate are:</p>
<p>Freshman seminars, common intellectual experiences, learning communities (meaning course clusters on a common theme taught by profs. in different disciplines), writing-intensive courses, diversity/global courses and programs, service learning, internships, capstone experiences (like senior theses, seminars, etc.) </p>
<p>For those who don't want to wade through the whole 76-page, report, here's a link to a readable executive summary:</p>