Core Curriculum and General Education

• Core Curriculum
• General Education Philosophy and Rationale
• General Education Goals

Core Curriculum

If a student completes the core curriculum, that block of courses may be transferred to any other Texas public institution of higher education and must be substituted for the receiving institution’s core curriculum. A student shall receive academic credit for each of the courses transferred and may not be required to take additional core curriculum courses at the receiving institution.

A student who transfers without completing the core curriculum shall receive academic credit within the core curriculum of the receiving institution for each of the courses that the student has completed in the core of the sending institution. The student may be required to satisfy the remaining course requirements in the core curriculum of the receiving institution.

A student completing an Associate of Science or an Associate of Arts degree must complete the following Core Curriculum :

General Education Philosophy and Rationale 

The general education and technical programs at Lamar State College Orange provide students with a solid foundation of knowledge and skills which will assist them throughout life. Through general education, students encounter the basic content and methodology of the principal areas of knowledge: humanities and fine arts, social and behavioral sciences, and natural sciences and mathematics. Courses in each of these specific areas introduce a breadth of knowledge and reinforce cognitive skills and effective learning opportunities for each student.

Each instructional program of the College contains a general education core curriculum component that is based on developing competencies in oral and written communication, critical thinking, personal responsibility, social responsibility, empirical and quantitative reasoning, and teamwork. The core curriculum encompasses a breadth of content and courses ranging from the humanities and fine arts to the social and behavioral sciences and from the natural sciences to mathematics. Refer to the core curriculum section of this catalog for an in-depth listing of courses belonging to the LSCO core curriculum.

LSCO’s core curriculum comprises the general education areas and humanities and fine arts, social and behavioral science, and natural sciences and mathematics through the following crosswalk:

General Education Goals

Lamar State College Orange has established eight general education goals to specify the knowledge and skills that students should gain from completing academic and technical programs with the College. These student learning goals are:

1. Critical thinking – Students will be able to demonstrate creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, analysis, evaluation, and synthesis of information.
2. Communication – Students will be able to effectively develop, interpret and express ideas through written, oral and visual communication.
3. Empirical and qualitative skills – Students will be able to manipulate and analyze numerical data or observable facts and create informed conclusions.
4. Teamwork – Students will be able to consider different points of view and to work effectively with others to support a shared purpose or goals.
5. Social responsibility – Students will be able to recognize and acquire a sense of intercultural competence, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities.
6. Personal responsibility – Students will be able to connect choices, actions, and consequences to ethical decision-making.
7. Technology – Students will be able to utilize computer-based technology in accessing information, solving problems, and communicating.
8. Career-entry skills – Students will be able to demonstrate academic skills and workforce skills, knowledge, and ability necessary to attain entry-level employment in a target occupation.

Based upon the knowledge and skills gained through the core curriculum general education and workforce education program at Lamar State College Orange, students will be prepared to serve as informed and productive citizens as well as lifelong learners.