Programs / Undergraduate Program

Student Learning Outcomes

Programs

All undergraduate majors in the department are expected to obtain the following skills by the time they graduate. These skills belong to five different general areas: historical knowledge, empirical knowledge and quantitative methods, interpretation and qualitative analysis, theory and critique, and community service. They are:

  1. Historical Knowledge
    • Familiarity with the history of modern Western civilization, including European expansion, conquest, and enslavement.
    • Specific knowledge of the modern history of at least three different ethno-racial groups.
    • Acquaintance with debates in historiography, particularly as they relate to the use of history in relation to the understanding of people of color.
    • For students who specialize in history, proper use of primary and secondary historical sources, as well as the writing of scholarly historical work.
  2. Empirical Knowledge and Quantitative Methods
    • Familiarity with different methods of gathering empirical data about human communities (anthropological, sociological, etc.).
    • Knowledge of critical debates about the use and implications of traditional methods of gathering empirical data to obtain knowledge about communities of color.
    • Identification of proper methods to conduct research, and awareness of the limits and possibilities of such methods.
    • Creative use, delimitation, and expansion of methods of empirical and quantitative study based on the nature of the problems and questions addressed in the research as well as the object of study.
  3. Interpretation and Qualitative Analysis
    • Acquaintance with major methods and debates in the humanities.
    • Familiarity with the art, film, literature, or music of at least three different ethno-racial groups.
    • Identification of proper methods to conduct research about the creative products of human communities, and ethno-racial communities in particular.
    • Creative use, delimitation, and expansion of methods of qualitative analysis based on the nature of the problems and questions addressed in the research as well as the object of study.
  4. Theory and Critique
    • Familiarity with major theories of race and ethnicity, and their intersections and constitutive relations with class, gender, and sexuality.
    • Acquaintance with theories of space and place, including indigeneity, Diaspora, migration, and nation, as well as their use in determining the unit of analysis.
    • Use of comparison and contrast for evaluating and producing theory as well as for critical analysis.
    • Creative use of philosophies and theories that are relevant to the understanding and critical analysis of the social contexts, interpersonal dynamics, and multiple creative productions of ethno-racial communities. 5. Service Learning
    • Further refinement and enrichment of the above listed skills in settings where the students interact with communities of color and/or their productions.