From Essential Elements to an Essential Curriculum: A Model.

The small college communication curriculum must, by necessity, be more limited than that of the university. However, it can still fulfill the needs of its students while responding to external curriculum requirements, such as those of the institution, accrediting agencies, professional societies, and employers. Two approaches to curriculum development involve creating a model curriculum that contains all the courses that any communication department, regardless of its size, should offer and identifying the competencies a curriculum should encompass. However, a nonprescriptive essential curriculum containing only two required courses and offering at least one course in each of seven different communication experience areas could provide a communication major appropriate to students and local needs. (Materials outlining the curriculum suggestions are appended.) (EL)