The Basic Academic Competencies

The Basic Academic Competencies are the broad intellectual skills essential to effective work in all fields of college study.  They provide a link across the disciplines of knowledge.  The Basic Academic Competencies are developed abilities, the outcomes of learning and intellectual discourse.

The College Board has determined that it is essential that all students have the following academic competencies, in these core curriculum areas, to do effective work in college.

 Language Arts

Reading and Literature:      

• The ability to identify and comprehend the main and subordinate ideas in a written work and to summarize the ideas in ones own words
• The ability to vary ones reading speed and method (survey, skim, review, question, and master) according to the type of material and one purpose for reading
• The ability to read critically by asking pertinent questions about what has been read by recognizing assumptions and implications and by evaluating ideas
• The ability to read a literary text analytically, seeing relationships between form and context
• Interest in and a sense of inquiry about written works
• The ability to respond actively and imaginatively to literature

Writing:

• The recognition that writing is a process involving a number of elements, including collecting information and formulating ideas, determining their relationships, drafting, arranging paragraphs in an appropriate order and building transitions between them, revising what has been written
• The ability to write as a way of discovering and clarifying ideas
• The ability to write appropriately for different occasions, audiences and purposes (persuading, explaining, describing, telling a story)
• Skill and assurance in using the conventions of standard written English

Speaking and Listening:

• The ability to engage in discussion as both speaker and listener interpreting, analyzing, and summarizing.
• The ability to contribute to classroom discussions in a way that is readily understood by listeners—that is, succinct and to the point
• The ability to present an opinion persuasively
• The ability to recognize the intention of a speaker and to be aware of the techniques a speaker is using to affect an audience
• The ability to recognize and take notes on important points in lectures and discussions
• The ability to question inconsistency in logic and to separate fact from opinion

Language:

• English has several levels of usage, and consequently the language appropriate in some situations may not be appropriate in others.
• English words, like those of other languages, gather meaning from their context and carry connotation.

  Viewing and Representing:

• The ability to recognize different purposes, to identify point of view and tone, and to interpret the meaning of the message inferentially as well as literally based on choice of style, elements, and media
• The ability to separate ones personal opinions and assumptions from a writer’s personal opinions and assumptions
• The ability to use media to compare ideas and points of view

Mathematics

General:

• The ability to apply mathematical techniques in the solution of real-life problems and to recognize when to apply those techniques
• Familiarity with the language, notation and deductive nature of mathematics and the ability to express quantitative ideas with precision
• The ability to use computers and calculators
• Familiarity with the basic concepts of statistics and statistical reasoning
• Knowledge in considerable depth and detail of algebra, geometry and functions 

Computing:

• Familiarity with the use of prepared computer programs in mathematics
• The ability to use mental computation and estimation to evaluate calculator and computer results
• Familiarity with the methods used to solve mathematical problems when calculators or computers are the tools

Statistics:

• The ability to gather and interpret data and to represent them graphically.
• The ability to apply techniques for summarizing data using such statistical concepts as average, median and mode
• Familiarity with techniques of statistical reasoning and common misuses of statistics

Algebra:

• Skill in solving equations and inequalities
• Skill in operations with real numbers
• Skill in simplifying algebraic expressions, including simple rational and radical expressions
• Familiarity with permutations, combinations, simple counting problems and the binomial theorem 

Geometry:

• Knowledge of two- and three-dimensional figures in terms of symmetry, congruence and similarity
• The ability to use the Pythagorean theorem and special right triangle relationships
• The ability to draw geometrical figures and use geometrical modes of thinking in the solving of problems

Functions:

• Knowledge of relations, functions and inverses
• The ability to graph linear and quadratic functions and use them in the interpretation and solutions of problems

Science

Science Concepts:

• Investigate and use systems to provide order and organization in understanding the natural world
• Use and/or construct models to interpret evidence and provide explanations relating to scientific principles
• Demonstrate change and constancy within systems that are evolving or are in equilibrium by collecting and analyzing data
• Identify how form relates to function

Use of Tools and Processes:

• Conduct scientific investigations using appropriate equipment and technology to gather, analyze and interpret data
• Use critical thinking and problem solving strategies to design and conduct scientific investigations
• Identify and correctly use safety equipment and procedures when performing scientific investigations
• Apply appropriate mathematical skills when conducting and analyzing investigations

Communication:

• Read and comprehend scientific text
• Use mathematical representations and models to describe and explain scientific concepts
• Use scientific language in oral and written communication to present scientific concepts
• Use a variety of methods to collaborate, critique, discuss and present scientific information
• Communicate the impact of science and technology on past, present and future societies

Social Studies

General:

• Basic factual knowledge of major political and economic institutions and their historical development
• Basic factual knowledge of the social and cultural fields of history
• An introductory knowledge of the content and concepts of the social sciences
• A grasp of major trend in the contemporary world (for example, nationalism or urbanization)
• Familiarity with a variety of written, numerical, and visual forms of data
• Familiarity with the techniques of quantitative and nonquantitative analysis
• Familiarity with diverse interpretations of data

History:

• Some understanding of the relationship between present and past, including contrasts between contemporary institutions and values and those of the past, and reasons for these contrasts and leading continuities between past and present
• Some understanding of how to approach the problem of change over time
• The ability to recognize historical cause and effect
• The ability to identify major historical turning points
• Some ability to develop historical interpretations

World History, Geography, and Cultures:

• The basic features of major societies and cultures in the contemporary world: their geography, major economic and social structures, political systems and religions
• The historical developments underlying present connections and similarities among the world’s peoples, and the major differences dividing them
• The chronology and significance of major events and movements in world history (for example, the Renaissance, the Industrial Revolution, and the spread of Islam)
• The international context of contemporary diplomacy and economics

United States History:

• The relationship between events and historical trends in the United States and trends elsewhere in the world, developed through analysis of major similarities and differences
• The interaction among peoples of different national origins, races, and cultures and how such interaction has shaped American history
• The chronology and impact of political events, development of governmental and other social institutions, technological and environmental changes, and changes in social and cultural values

Social Science:

• The ability to understand basic information developed by the social sciences, including statistical data and other materials
• Familiarity with the basic method of the social sciences, that is, with the framing and empirical testing of hypotheses
• A basic understanding of at least one of the social sciences and of how its practitioners define and solve problems
• Familiarity with how to explore a social problem or social institution by mean of ideas drawn from several social sciences
  

Computer Competency

• A basic knowledge of how computers work and of common computer terminology
• Some ability to use the computer and appropriate software for
  • self-instruction
  • collection and retrieval of information including Internet
  • word processing
  • modeling, simulations, and decision making
  • problem solving, both through the use of  existing programs and through experience with developing one’s own programs
• An awareness of when and how computers may be used in the academic disciplines and various fields of work, as well as in daily life
• Some understanding of the problems and issues confronting individuals—and society generally—in the use of computers, including the social and economic effects of computers and the ethics involved in their use