The Literacies

Introduction to Writing - WNA 101 (4 credits)

In their first semester at Cabrini University, all students will complete their Introduction to Writing (WNA 101) core requirement. WNA 101 serves as the first course in which students learn both writing literacy and information literacy skills appropriate at the college level.

Learning Outcomes

Students will use the writing process (brainstorming, drafting, and revising) to compose and organize original ideas. (Written Communication)
Students will understand how writing is influenced by differences in purpose, readers, and conventions. (Small Group Communication; Critical Reading)
Students will improve style, grammar, and punctuation. (Written Communication; Critical Reading)
Students will understand how to synthesize others’ ideas while avoiding plagiarism. (Written Communication; Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking)
Students will examine, evaluate, and synthesize information from diverse sources and perspectives to reach an informed conclusion. (Technological Literacy; Critical Thinking)
Students will identify and select authoritative information and reflect on the search process in order to refine searches. (Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking; Critical Reading; Technological Literacy)

Cabrinian Religious Literacy (3 credits)

All students will complete their Cabrinian Religious Literacy core requirement in either the fall or spring semester of their first year. This course is designed to introduce students to the ways Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini’s Roman Catholic faith shaped her life. Students will also learn about Catholic Social Teaching and the work of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart to help them start to build their own legacy within the worldwide Cabrinian community.

Learning Outcomes

Students will demonstrate an awareness of the history and key principles of Catholic Social Teaching through participation in and reflection upon voluntary service in the Cabrinian tradition. (Cabrinian Faith Tradition and Mission; Knowledge)
Students will gain knowledge of Roman Catholicism, the faith tradition of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, and of the social justice advocacy of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. (Cabrinian Faith Tradition and Mission; Knowledge)
Students will gain knowledge of and can describe the history and the global social justice legacy of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (MSC) and of Cabrini University. (Interpersonal Communication; Cabrinian Faith Tradition and Mission)
Students will identify and articulate, in interpersonal communication and in writing, how they situate themselves within and are challenged by the Catholic identity and social justice legacy of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. (Interpersonal Communication; Sense of Self; Cabrinian Faith Tradition and Mission; Knowledge)

Cultural Literacy and Aesthetics (3 credits)

The Cultural Literacy and Aesthetics core area houses our Foreign Language courses. Students interested in pursuing one of the Spanish certificates or the Spanish minor should take a SPA course to fulfill this core requirement.

Learning Outcomes

Students demonstrate the ability to interact cross-culturally through global conversations in and across diverse disciplines. (Mediated Communication; Ability to Interact Cross-Culturally)
Students understand artistic or linguistic expression as a form of expanding cultural conversations. (Mediated Communication; Ability to Interact Cross-Culturally)
Students utilize creativity and imagination to learn how to communicate through different conventions (e.g., grammar, rhythms, movements, poetic lines, formal visual components) and/or learn how others communicate through those different conventions. (Creativity; Mediated Communication; Curiosity)
Students recognize conventions for creating cultural expressions appropriate for a discipline. (whether linguistic, musical, visual, oral, written) (Creativity; Mediated Communication; Ability to Interact Cross-Culturally; Curiosity)

Civic Literacy (3 credits)

The Civic Literacy core area contains courses that challenge students to build upon what they learned in other core areas and to develop the knowledge needed for civic engagement in the twenty-first century.

Learning Outcomes

Students will build upon the knowledge gained in other core courses and demonstrate the civic knowledge necessary for effective and ethical civic engagement in the 21st century world. (Knowledge of History and Political Systems)
Students will analyze items written or created by people other than themselves, identify the viewpoints expressed in those items, and gather relevant information to evaluate others’ viewpoints. (Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking; Critical Reading)
Students will express their civic knowledge by demonstrating an understanding of the workings of political systems and/or by demonstrating an understanding of the historical roots of modern-day political, social, and cultural issues. (Knowledge of History and Political Systems)
Students will understand underlying assumptions behind their own viewpoints and/or the viewpoints of others by situating themselves and/or others within the proper historical and cultural contexts. (Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking; Knowledge of History and Political Systems)

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (3 Credits)

The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion core area contains courses that challenge students to see the connections between the Cabrinian mission with the knowledge and skills linked to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Learning Outcomes

Students will consider what they learned in other core curriculum courses and demonstrate an understanding of how the ideas and practice of diversity, equity, and inclusion fit within the Cabrinian social justice mission. (Knowledge of Cultural Diversity and American Pluralism; Skills)
Students will analyze and demonstrate how to engage in effective, deliberative, and inter-culturally competent dialogue (using current inclusive language terminology) in both the spoken and written word. (Interpersonal Communication; Knowledge of Cultural Diversity and American Pluralism; Ability to Interact Cross-Culturally)
Students will analyze, demonstrate and engage in active listening, intra-personal communication (internal dialogue, self-perception), and inter-personal communication in written, nonverbal, and/or oral modes. (Interpersonal Communication; Ability to Interact Cross-Culturally)
Students will demonstrate how the knowledge they gained about diversity, equity, and inclusion challenges them as they engage in their life-long process of building a more socially just world. (Ability to Interact Cross-Culturally; Skills)

Ethics and the Common Good (3 Credits)

The Ethics and the Common Good core area is designed to challenge students to consider both their own and others’ values and how those values impact the common good.

Learning Outcomes

Students will understand the important roles that values play in determining human actions. (Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking)
Students will engage in the dynamic interplay of values with their local and global communities and recognize the rights of all people to participate in the political, economic, and cultural life of society. (Values)
Students will articulate and evaluate competing value systems in relation to their own beliefs and values. (Oral Communication; Sense of Self; Values)
Students will explore and understand how different values impact the common good. (Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking; Sense of Self; Values)

Quantitative Literacy (3 or 4 credits)

Students may demonstrate mathematical competence in three ways:

Students whose mathematical skills need strengthening will be required to take a two-semester sequence of MAT 098 or MAT 099 followed by one of MAT 107, MAT 110, MAT 111, MAT 127 (for students in a business-related major only), PSY 271 (for Psychology majors only) or BUS 220 (for students in a business-related major only), as determined by the chair of the Mathematics Department. Depending on a student’s major, additional mathematics course may be required. Each course carries three credits, but the credits for MAT 098 and MAT 099 do not count toward the 123 needed to graduate.
Students whose mathematical skills don’t need strengthening can complete their Quantitative Literacy requirement by taking one course from among MAT 107, MAT 113, MAT 114, MAT 117, MAT 118, MAT 127 (for students in a business-related major only), MAT 130, PSY 271 (for Psychology majors only) or BUS 220 (for students in a business-related major only), as determined by the chair of the Mathematics Department. Depending on a student’s major, additional mathematics courses may be required. Each course carries three credits except for MAT 130, which is four credits.
More mathematically skilled students may fulfill the Quantitative Literacy requirement by taking a course above MAT 130 with the approval of the chair of the Mathematics Department. Such students are strongly encouraged to continue to develop their mathematical skills by taking additional courses, but they are not required to do so.

Students may be exempted through advanced work and appropriate placement scores. Exceptions to any of the above must be approved by the chair of the Mathematics Department.

Learning Outcomes

Students will apply information to construct mathematical/quantitative models and draw conclusions. (Analytic Reasoning and Critical Thinking)
Students will be able to express information in graphical form, e.g., graphs, charts, tables. (Quantitative Reasoning)
Students will solve real-world problems using appropriate mathematical/quantitative strategies. (Creative Thinking; Quantitative Reasoning)

Scientific Literacy (3 or 4 credits)

All students fulfill their Scientific Literacy core requirement by completing one course with an integrated laboratory. Certain majors in the School of Arts and Sciences will complete four credit hours to meet their Scientific Literacy requirement. All other majors complete their Scientific Literacy core requirement with three credit hours.

Learning Outcomes

Students will understand the application of evidence in science. (Scientific Reasoning)
Students will apply the scientific method and quantitative skills through laboratory and/or field experimentation and data analysis. (Scientific Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, Adaptability)
Students will think creatively about future areas of exploration related to scientific topics under consideration. (Scientific Reasoning, Adaptability)
Students will present the results of their experimentation and data analysis in a written format used by science professionals. (Scientific Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning)

Technological Literacy (3 credits)

The Technological Literacy core area houses courses that introduce students to different forms of technology that exist in the modern world. Students will be challenged to use technology in an ethical manner and will have the opportunity to learn about technology most relevant to their major and career aspirations.

Learning Outcomes

Students understand and use technology in the context of ethical concerns to propose solutions to real-world problems. (Technological Literacy)
Students take personal responsibility and adapt to technological changes as they work toward their own personal development. (Technological Literacy; Self-Direction)
Students will understand the societal implications and/or development of new technologies. (e.g. big data, machine learning, artificial intelligence). (Technological Literacy; Self-Direction)
Students will understand and demonstrate how to use mediated communication in an ethical and responsible manner to foster dialogue and civil discourse. (Technological Literacy; Mediated Communication; Self-Direction)