Beckie Supiano of The Chronicle of Higher Education argues that general-education courses must better demonstrate their relevance to foster student engagement and critical thinking. To make this argument, Supiano spotlights Professor Doug Duncan (University of Colorado Boulder) and his reimagined “Introductory Astronomy” course. The course was designed to focus less on content and more on cultivating scientific thinking among non-majors. Duncan used humour, real-life examples, and anti-misinformation assignments to show science’s real-world value. “The easiest mistake for faculty to make is to look at students and think, well, those are kind of like me 30 years ago,” he said. “No, they’re not like you. You became a professor.” Duncan thus encourages instructors to start with why their course matters—and to name the transferable skills students will gain.
