WRITING DESIGNATION (W)

Freshman Seminar encourages freshman success by strengthening learning skills, introducing first-semester students to Appalachian's resources and opportunities, and supporting student transition to the university environment. Within this framework, writing plays an important role. Students write frequently throughout the semester, receive faculty feedback, and are given the opportunity to either revise papers or complete additional writing assignments. Writing assignments include brief reaction papers, journals, reaction cards, and analytical essays.

COMPUTING DESIGNATION (C)

As part of Freshman Seminar's commitment to strengthening learning skills, instructors introduce students to several computing components: word-processing (Microsoft Word), PowerPoint, e-mail, and the Internet. In these units, freshmen learn basic computer operating systems and software applications. Computer assignments are integrated into the course throughout the semester, and may include papers written on a word processor, information gathered from the Internet, and regular assignments and faculty feedback through E-mail. Freshman Seminar faculty are trained through the Freshman Seminar Office and supported during the presentation of this unit by Freshman Seminar staff, Peer Leaders, and Academic Computing.

CROSS- DISCIPLINARY DESIGNATION (CD)

Freshman Seminar is one of the most cross-disciplinary courses offered at Appalachian. Instructors come from a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from English, History, Art, and Philosophy in the humanities, to Biology and math in the sciences, and Psychology and Sociology in the social Sciences. During the faculty training week for new instructors, they are encouraged to utilize information, insights, and approaches from their respective disciplines in achieving the goals of US 1150. The course textbook includes chapters by professors from English, journalism, theatre, education, library science, and psychology. The course draws on psychology in approaching human motivation, personal learning styles, and memory studies. It introduces aesthetics and cultural analysis through reading a novel, attending campus cultural events, and discussing Core Curriculum requirements in the humanities. It utilizes historical methods of analysis when discussing Appalachian's history and place in higher education. Discussions of health and wellness draw on sociological concepts as well as the expertise of medical professionals. To encourage the success of approximately 1,400 self-selected freshmen each year, US 1150 employs a highly cross-disciplinary approach in faculty recruitment and training, class materials and strategies, and course goals.