The Honors Program at Westark College offers academically ambitious students an opportunity to develop their critical and creative thinking skills in small classes taught by an outstanding faculty. An Honors Degree at Westark is awarded not only for the completion of 15 credit hours of honors courses, but also for the completion of all levels in the ability-based curriculum embedded within the honors courses. The courses in the Honors Program meet basic general education requirements and transfer to all four-year colleges and universities. An honors course challenges students with a different type of learning experience. In small classes usually taught in a seminar format, faculty act as facilitators of learning rather than merely disseminators of information.
Honors courses focus on primary source materials rather than relying on textbook information.
Field trips to archaeological sites, museums, and other experiences allow honor students to gain first-hand knowledge in a subject area. The teaching and assessment of these abilities have been identified in each honors course and integrated with the regular course content. In addition to receiving traditional grades, the honors student collects work in a portfolio, which indicates completion of certain achievement levels in a particular ability. The portfolio serves as an assessment tool and verifies the student's progress through the program. Yes, a student can take a single honors course without enrolling in the Honors Program.