earticle

영어

This article has reviewed the small group discussion courses for reading, speaking, listening, and writing at Duksung Women's University. These courses were mandated as requisite liberal arts courses in 1969. From 1969 to 1977, in the〈Reading〉, students were instructed to write essays after readings. Later, courses such as〈Study in Humanities〉,〈Human Being in Society〉, and〈Introduction to Literature〉 were introduced. As the titles, organizations, and contents of the courses changed, other courses such as〈Seminars in Philosophy〉,〈Seminars in Literature〉,〈Research Methodology and Writing〉,〈University Study Skills〉,〈Communication〉,〈Critical Reading〉, and finally〈Critical Reading and Writing〉were added. Through these courses, students were able to appreciate different perspectives and also develope their creative and critical thinking capabilities in order to prepare them for the entry into information society. In 1997 and 1998, small group discussion courses accounted for 8.3% of the total credits required for graduation. However, recently this has decreased to 3.1%. This study found that, with 2 courses,〈Critical Reading and Writing in Literature〉 and〈Critical Reading and Writing in Humanities and Natural Science〉, where writing ability was not addressed intensively, limitations were remained. Therefore, it is recommended that the university improve the quality of these courses by keeping writing as a separate course and including all four disciplines (philosophy, literature, humanities and social science, and natural science) in seminar courses.