GENERAL EDUCATION ASSESSMENT AND REVIEW FORM
SOCIAL SCIENCE 5/15
Please attach/ submit additional documents as needed to fully complete each section of the form.
I. COURSE INFORMATION
Department: Political Science
Course Number: PSCI 210
Course Title:
Type of Request:
Rationale:
New
One-time Only
Renew*
Change
Remove
*If course has not changed since the last review and is taught by the same tenure-track faculty member, you may skip sections III-V.
JUSTIFICATION FOR COURSE LEVEL
Normally, general education courses will not carry pre-requisites, will carry at least 3 credits, and will be numbered at the 100-200
level. If the course has more than one pre-requisite, carries fewer than three credits, or is upper division (numbered at the 300 level
or above), provide rationale for exception(s).
II. ENDORSEMENT / APPROVALS
* Instructor: Robert Saldin
Signature _______________________ Date____________
Phone / Email: robert.saldin@umontana.edu
Program Chair: Ramona Grey
Signature _______________________ Date____________
Dean: Associate Dean McNulty
Signature _______________________ Date____________
*Form must be completed by the instructor who will be teaching the course. If the instructor of the course changes before the next
review, the new instructor must be provided with a copy of the form prior to teaching the course.
III. DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE
General Education courses must be introductory and foundational within the offering department or within the General Education
Group. They must emphasize breadth, context, and connectedness; and relate course content to students’ future lives: See
Preamble
IV. CRITERIA
BRIEFLY EXPLAIN HOW THIS COURSE MEETS THE CRITERIA FOR THE GROUP.
1.
Systematically study individuals, groups, or social institutions;
PSCI 210 systematically studies the roles and rights of the individual citizen and voter, of racial and other minorities, and of legal and
illegal aliens under the American system of government. The course also inquires systematically into the roles and rights of interest
groups and political parties in the American system of government. Thirdly, the course analyzes the roles and authority of the
principal institutions of the American system of government – i.e., the national government and its legislative, executive, judicial,
and administrative branches of government, and the state governments and their legislative, executive, judicial, and administrative
branches of government.
2.
analyze individuals, groups, or social problems and structures; and/or
PSCI 210 analyzes individuals, groups, and institutional structures relating to the American system of government from the
perspective of both historical and contemporary problems. Such social problems include independence from England, slavery,
radical states’ rights, industrialization and urbanization, national security and individual liberty, the civil rights movements, and
regulating a national economy.
3.
give considerable attention to ways in which conclusions and generalizations are developed and justified as well as the methods
of data collection and analysis.
PSCI 210 is divided into four major areas: American political principles and values, democratic procedures that citizens use to express
their views to government, the institutional parts of government that respond to citizen views and pressure, and the policies that
contain the governmental responses. These policies – whether in the form of statutes, executive orders, judicial decisions, or
administrative regulations – represent the conclusions and generalizations of government. PSCI 210 looks at the way policy is made,
discovers the findings upon which policy is based, critiques past and existing policy, and inquires whether policy precedent should be
followed or departed from as society changes.
V. STUDENT LEARNING GOALS
BRIEFLY EXPLAIN HOW THIS COURSE WILL MEET THE APPLICABLE LEARNING GOALS.
Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to: 1) understand the origins and nature of the constitutional
system, federalism, and civil liberties; 2) appreciate the relationship between and the development of the legislative, executive, and
judicial branches; 3) understand basic social science theories concerning political behavior, bureaucracies, interest groups, and
political parties; 4) understand how social scientists explain and understand social and political processes; 5) write a thesis-based
persuasive essay; 6) know the difference between a well-crafted argument substantiated with the effective use of evidence, and a
poorly constructed argument based largely upon personal values and opinions
1. Describe the nature, structure, and historical development of human behavior, organizations, social phenomena, and/or
relationships;.
A student who has completed PSCI 210 is expected to be able to describe clearly and with some detail the evolution in the United
States of individual and group political behavior, the major policy problems American government has confronted and attempted to
resolve, the evolution of the nation’s principal government institutions, the critical intra-national power relationships expressed in
the term separation of powers, and the critical state-national power relationships expressed in the term federalism.
2. use theory in explaining these individual, group, or social phenomena; and/or
A student who has completed PSCI 210 is expected to be able to discuss the various institutional and social phenomena studied from
the perspectives of democratic theory, rule of law, individual dignity, pluralism, majoritarianism, counter-majoritarianism (minority
rights), organizational theory, individual behavioral theory, and different voting/election theories.
3. understand, assess, and evaluate how conclusions and generalizations are justified based on data.
A student who has completed PSCI 210 is expected to be able to critique historical practices and reform preferences using findings of
fact presented in the course. For example, discussion of how adequately political parties frame the choices of American voters
should cite the conduct and results of past elections, and discussion of whether the Supreme Court has reinforced or harmed
democracy should be based on past case decisions.
VI. ASSESSMENT
A. HOW ARE THE LEARNING GOALS ABOVE MEASURED? Describe the measurement(s) used, such as a rubric or specific test
questions that directly measure the General Education learning goals. Please attach or provide a web link to the rubric, test
questions, or other measurements used.
1.
Weekly Writing Assignments: Each week students will complete a weekly writing assignments will typically be made available by
Tuesday and will be due on Thursday. These writing assignment will typically link course material to current events of note in the
media.
2.
Student will complete four exams. Exams will include a combination of multiple choice, identification, short answer, and essay
questions.
3.
Students will write a formal three-page essay in which they analyze individuals, groups, or social problems and structures.
A General Education Assessment Report will be due on a four-year rotating cycle. You will be notified in advance of the due date.
This will serve to fulfill the University’s accreditation requirements to assess general education and will provide an opportunity to
connect with your colleagues across campus and share teaching strategies. Items VI.B- D will be helpful in compiling the report.
B. ACHIEVEMENT TARGETS
[This section is optional. Achievement targets can be reported if they have been established.]
Describe the desirable level of performance for your students, and the percentage of students you expected to achieve this:
1.
2.
3.
C. ASSESSMENT FINDINGS
[This section is optional. Assessment findings can be reported if they are available.]
What were the results/findings, and what is your interpretation/analysis of the data? (Please be detailed, using specific
numbers/percentages when possible. Qualitative discussion of themes provided in student feedback can also be reported. Do NOT
use course grades or overall scores on a test/essay. The most useful data indicates where students’ performance was stronger and
where it was weaker. Feel free to attach charts/tables if desired.)
We have added power point slides to enhance lectures. The weekly writing assignments noted above are also new and are designed
encourage student learning through analyzing contemporary events through the lens of the social sciences.
D. ASSESSMENT FEEDBACK
[This section is optional. Assessment feedback can be reported if it is available.]
Given your students’ performance the last time the course was offered, how will you modify the course to enhance learning? You
can also address how the course could be improved, and what changes in the course content or pedagogy you plan to make, based
upon on the findings. Please include a timeframe for the changes.
VII. SYLLABUS AND SUBMISSION
Please submit syllabus in a separate file with the completed and signed form to the Faculty Senate Office, UH 221. The learning
goals for the Social Science Group must be included on the syllabus. An electronic copy of the original signed form is acceptable.