College & Workforce Readiness

Report: Broader Skills Best for College Grads

By Alyson Klein — January 11, 2007 3 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

As the federal government begins to nudge the higher education system toward greater accountability for student learning, a report released here last week outlines the skills college graduates need to be successful in the global economy and suggests how colleges can impart them.

“College Learning for the New Global Century” is posted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities.

Whether students majored in art history or nursing, their degrees should signal that they have a firm grasp of critical thinking, teamwork, and written communication, as well as an understanding of civics, ethics, and different cultures, according to the report by the American Association of Colleges and Universities. The Washington-based organization represents 1,100 colleges, many of them focused on the liberal arts.

The report, issued Jan. 10, was the work of the leadership council of Liberal Education and America’s Promise, an initiative sponsored by the AAC&U. The panel included college presidents, business and nonprofit leaders, and policymakers.

The learning outcomes embraced in the report have generally been the hallmarks of a strong liberal arts education. But the report argues that all students can benefit from them, particularly because workers tend to switch jobs—and, in some cases, careers—more frequently than ever. Employers, it says, don’t want “toothpick” graduates: those whose focus is deep but narrow. Instead, they want students with broad skills that can help them adapt to the changing job market.

“It really matters very little if students can perform well on multiple-choice tests,” said Wayne C. Johnson, the vice president of university relations for the Hewlett-Packard Co., the Palo Alto, Calif.-based technology company, and a member of the council. “We need more of them to be able to communicate, analyze, think critically.”

While the report focuses the bulk of its recommendations on colleges, K-12 schools must work toward similar learning outcomes, said Carol G. Schneider, the president of the AAC&U. “This really is a framework for P-16,” she said, referring to the span of education from prekindergarten through a four-year college.

Guidance on Assessment

The report also recommends that college educators create diagnostic, interim, and final assessments, specific to students’ chosen fields, to give them a sense of their progress. But it cautions against relying too heavily on standardized tests.

Such tests were endorsed in a report released in August by the federal Commission on the Future of Higher Education. The panel, established by U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, made long-range recommendations for the nation’s colleges (“Department Seeks Input on Higher Ed. Panel’s Suggestions for Change,” Aug. 30, 2006.)

The report says that standardized tests outside the curriculum are, “at best, a weak prompt to needed improvement in teaching, curriculum, and learning. … The tests themselves don’t necessarily point to where or why the problem exists.”

It suggests that curriculum-based assessments might do a better job of identifying students’ strengths and weaknesses. Standardized tests could supplement those efforts, the report says.

Joni E. Finney, the vice president of the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, based in San Jose, Calif., called the report’s cautious language surrounding standardized tests “a bit schizophrenic,” given its emphasis on learning outcomes.

“The fact that you need to assess these outcomes, and the fact that it needs to be comparable, is a step they didn’t take and probably should have,” she said.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the January 17, 2007 edition of Education Week as Report: Broader Skills Best for College Grads

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Assessment Webinar
Rethinking STEM Assessment: Strategies for Administrators
School and district leaders will explore strategies to enhance STEM assessment practices across their district, within schools and classrooms.
Content provided by Project Lead The Way
Federal Webinar Keeping Up with the Trump Administration's Latest K-12 Moves: Subscriber-Exclusive Quick Hit
EdWeek subscribers, join this 30-minute webinar to find out what the latest federal policy changes mean for K-12 education.
Artificial Intelligence Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: Math & Technology: Finding the Recipe for Student Success
How should we balance AI & math instruction? Join our discussion on preparing future-ready students.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

College & Workforce Readiness How Can Educators Support Students Not Going to College?
A bipartisan panel talks about slowing trends in college-going—and what it means for schools.
3 min read
Carter Crabtree, a Daviess County High School junior, learns to stack landscaping blocks with a mini excavator at a demonstration set up by Barnard Landscaping during the Homebuilder Association of Owensboro's annual Construction Career Day on Apr. 24, 2025, in Owensboro, Ky.
Carter Crabtree, a Daviess County High School junior, learns to stack landscaping blocks with a mini excavator at a demonstration set up by Barnard Landscaping during the Homebuilder Association of Owensboro's annual Construction Career Day on Apr. 24, 2025, in Owensboro, Ky. Leaders in education discuss how career-tech education programs can support non-college-bound students, in an online webinar.
Greg Eans/The Messenger-Inquirer via AP
College & Workforce Readiness Opinion Is It Time to Ditch the Four-Year Degree?
A call for three-year degrees, micro-credentials, and closer ties between educators and employers could affect K–12 and higher education.
7 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness 3 Ways Leaders Develop College and Career Pathways Designed to Serve All Students
Two EdWeek Leaders To Learn From share how they built these systems from the ground up.
3 min read
Jennifer Norrell, superintendent of East Aurora School District 131, meets with district leaders for the School Leadership Team's weekly meeting to discuss a college readiness presentation for students at East Aurora High School in Aurora, Ill., on Dec. 4, 2024.
Jennifer Norrell, the superintendent of East Aurora School District 131, meets with district leaders for the School Leadership Team's weekly meeting to discuss a college-readiness presentation for students at East Aurora High School in Aurora, Ill., on Dec. 4, 2024. She has led efforts to expand and enrich the kinds of post-high school pathways the school offers, both in core academics and in career-technical fields.
Jamie Kelter Davis for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness High School Grads Lack Clarity on Next Steps, Survey Shows
Recent high school graduates share insights on what would have changed their trajectory in a new survey.
4 min read
Genny Willis, the Academy Teacher instructor at Smyrna High School, listens to a roundtable of students in the program in a classroom in Smyrna, Del., on Oct. 15, 2024. At Smyrna High School, there are career pathways and experimental learning opportunities to help students use practical applications towards careers after graduating high school, which can include internships, advanced classes, and specific on the job training.
Genny Willis, an instructor at Smyrna High School in Smyrna, Del., listens to a roundtable of students on Oct. 15, 2024. At Smyrna High School, there are career pathways and experimental learning opportunities to help students use practical applications towards careers after graduating high school, which can include internships, advanced classes, and specific on-the-job training.
Michelle Gustafson for Education Week