PART 1: How Social Science Exploration Courses Address the Theme of the New Curriculum:

Becoming Responsibly Engaged in the World

Concordia College

Summer 2006

In an increasingly complex and global world, being responsibly engaged requires a basic conceptual understanding of how different social worlds operate. Exposure to social science courses as part of the core curriculum is important for understanding, generating and evaluating information about the social worlds humans create and operate in. Responsible decision makers use their understanding of social science research, theory, and topics in their personal, professional and civic lives. Each of the specific criteria for a social science course directly relates to Becoming Responsibly Engaged in the World, as articulated below.

1. Expose students to the scientific method: Attitude formation and decision making in personal, professional and civic life requires critical understanding and evaluation of social science research and therefore students must understand how data are collected and understand the strengths/limitations of social science research methods. Discussion of the scientific method exposes students to the ethical aspects of social science research, facilitating ethical thought and analysis.

2. Expose students to qualitative and/or quantitative research methods: Responsibly engaged persons should be able to assess truth claims from a variety of sources and perspectives. Understanding methodologies employed by social scientists is central to evaluating truth claims and applying information. In light of the growth in acceptance and use of qualitative methods by social scientists, ideally students should become acquainted with both qualitative and quantitative research in the social sciences, since each method has unique strengths and weaknesses.

3. Expose students to major theories utilized by social scientists: Exposure to major theories of social science helps students to understand and appreciate the range and complexity of explanations for individual behavior and human interaction.

4. Expose students to critically thinking about social science research, theory, and topics: An ability to critically assess issues one is confronted with in the world, and to critically apply the findings of social science research to these issues, puts one in a position to engage the world in a thoughtful and purposeful way.

5. Expose students to diverse influences on human behavior including race, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, (dis)ability and/or culture: The study of human behavior and interaction necessarily calls for analysis and clarification of perspective and considers how social and political forces such as race, class, gender, ethnicity, age, dis(ability) and sexuality shape people’s experiences. Social science courses contribute to an intercultural understanding of the world.

6. Encourage increased self-understanding: Social science courses offer abundant opportunities to carefully examine oneself and one’s relationship to other persons, organizations, and institutions. This allows development of thoughtful positions on issues and consideration of one’s responsibility in personal, professional, and civic life.

7. Encourage responsible participation in the world: An informed understanding of human interactions and conditions, as well as societal influences on these interactions/conditions, as developed in social science courses, encourages responsible participation in personal, professional and civic life.

PART 2: How Social Science Exploration Courses Address the GOALS FOR LIBERAL LEARNING

The primary responsibility for social science exploration courses will be to meet Liberal Learning Goal 3: Develop an understanding of disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and intercultural perspectives and their connections. All social science exploration courses will emphasize disciplinary and intercultural perspectives with 300-level courses contributing to an understanding of interdisciplinary perspectives.

More specifically, social science exploration courses will

· assist students as they begin to develop expertise in a discipline,

· assist students in seeing the social sciences as tools for problem solving,

· help students begin to recognize and evaluate multiple perspectives in a discipline,

· allow students to begin to develop a personal perspective that is informed by social science ethical principles,

· help students begin to understand, appreciate and respect the diversity of human experience, and

· allow students to begin to understand how social and political forces shape people’s experiences on the basis of race, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, and/or culture.

Additionally, 300 level social science exploration courses will:

· help students to recognize that disciplinary boundaries are politically and socially fluid,

· help students to understand that problems are not always confined within disciplinary boundaries and often involve the use of many disciplinary perspectives, and

· allow students to integrate forms of experiential learning into their academic programs.

Although social science exploration courses will have a primary responsibility for meeting goal three of the Goals for Liberal Learning, these courses will address all the goals for liberal learning. The following table outlines how each of the criteria for social science exploration courses fits with a particular goal for liberal learning and whether responsibility for this goal will be primary or secondary.

incorporation of the goals for liberal learning by SOCIAL SCIENCE EXPLORATION COURSES

	Goal 1 Instill a love for learning	Goal 2 Develop foundational skills and transferable intellectual capacities	Goal 3 Develop an understanding of disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and intercultural perspectives, and their connections	Goal 4 Cultivate an examined cultural, ethical, physical, and spiritual self-understanding	Goal 5 Encourage responsible participation in the world
Expose students to the scientific method	Secondary responsibility	Primary responsibility	Primary responsibility
Expose students to qualitative and/or quantitative research methods		Primary responsibility	Primary responsibility
Expose students to major theories utilized by social scientists	Secondary responsibility	Secondary responsibility	Primary responsibility
Expose students to critically thinking about social science research, theory, and topics	Secondary responsibility	Primary responsibility	Primary responsibility		Secondary responsibility
Expose students to diverse influences on human behavior including race, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, (dis)ability and/or culture			Primary responsibility	Secondary responsibility	Secondary responsibility
Encourage increased self-understanding				Primary responsibility	Secondary responsibility
Encourage responsible participation in the world					Primary responsibility

PART 3: CRITERIA FOR SOCIAL SCIENCE EXPLORATION COURSES

SOCIAL SCIENCE AT CONCORDIA

Social science is the scientific study of human behavior and interactions at individual, group, institutional and/or cultural levels.

CRITERIA FOR SOCIAL SCIENCE EXPLORATION COURSES AT CONCORDIA:

The following criteria are to be addressed by each social science exploration course in a way appropriate to the course in question. It is understood that each discipline will bring its unique theories and methods to the attainment of these criteria. In order to be classified as a social science exploration course, instructors will demonstrate that the course will:

1. expose students to the scientific method, including its emphasis on systematic data collection, grounding in social science literature, objectivity, generalizability, and adherence to ethical principles,

2. expose students to qualitative and/or quantitative research methods,

3. expose students to major theories utilized by social scientists,

4. facilitate critical thinking about social science research, theory and topics,

5. expose students to diverse influences on human behavior including race, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, (dis)ability, and/or culture,

6. encourage increased self understanding through exposure to social science concepts and/or theories, and

7. encourage responsible participation in the world through exposure to social science concepts and/or theories.

To be classified as a 300-level exploration course in the social sciences, courses will expose students to the 7 criteria for a social science course listed above as well as include:

8. expose students to interdisciplinarity by demonstrating the interconnected character of knowledge so that students recognize

a. that disciplinary boundaries are politically and socially fluid, and

b. topics/issues are not always confined within disciplinary boundaries because understanding involves the use of multiple disciplinary perspectives, and

9. involve students in the application of social science methodology and/or concepts. This application can be accomplished in a variety of ways such as data collection and analysis, research proposals, argumentative term papers, case study analyses, and service learning.

PART 4: Learning Outcomes for Social Science Exploration Courses

The following learning outcomes are to be addressed by each social science exploration course in a way appropriate to the course in question. It is understood that each discipline will bring its unique theories and methods to the attainment of these goals.

1. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the scientific method, including qualitative and/or quantitative research methods.

2. Students will be able to describe major theories utilized by social scientists.

3. Students will be able to think critically about social science research, theory and topics.

4. Students will be able to analyze how diversity (including . race, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, (dis)ability, and/or culture) shapes human behavior and interaction.

5. Students will be able to utilize social science concepts and/or theories to examine their selves and their relationship to other persons, organizations and institutions.

6. Students will be able to utilize social science concepts and/or theories as they consider their responsibility in personal, professional and civic life.

Additional outcomes for 300-level courses:

7. Students will recognize the interdisciplinarity of social science knowledge.

8. Students will be able to utilize social science methodology and/or concepts.

PROPOSED TIMELINE

September 8, 2006: Call for proposals for courses taught in the 2007-2008 academic year

October 13, 2006: Deadline for application for course approval

December 1, 2006: Deadline for working groups to approve courses

January 2007: Deadline for course approval by curriculum committee