History Program Objectives
Educational outcomes consist of the knowledge, skills, and professional attitudes and values that
students are able to demonstrate upon completion of their course of study. The following
outcomes objectives have been identified by faculty as measures of student achievement for this
program.
B. A. History
1. Identify the contribution of pre-Columbian cultures and/or civilization in the Americas.
2. Identify the major events, figures, and/or contributions (e.g., French, Spanish, English
influence) of the colonial period in the United States.
3. Identify significant individuals and analyze the causes and/or effects of the American
Revolutionary War.
4. Identify major figures and/or events contributing to the establishment of the United
States.
5. Identify causes, effects and/or major events of westward expansion in the United States.
6. Analyze the causes, effects, and/or major events of the American Civil War and the
Reconstruction Era.
7. Analyze the effects of the Industrial Revolution on the United States.
8. Identify significant individuals and events and analyze causes and/or effects of the
Progressive Movement.
9. Analyze the causes and/or effects of the United States involvement in World War I.
10. Analyze the causes and/or effects of contemporary United States history (e.g. civil rights,
Vietnam, social/cultural revolutions, feminism, Watergate, growth of government).
11. Analyze the conflict between interdependence and nationalism in modern world history.
12. Identify the principles associated with the political ideologies of liberalism, conservatism,
and/or imperialism.
13. Describe how the Neolithic Revolution prepared the way for the development of
civilization in the ancient Near East.
14. Compare and contrast the religious outlook of the ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians
with that of the ancient Hebrews.
15. Explain the role of slavery, democracy, and empire in the development of the classical
Greek city-states
16. Trace the major phases in the growth of the Roman Empire and explain the impact of
imperialism on Roman Society itself.
17. Discuss the major factors in Christianity's triumph over traditional Roman religious as
well as the mystery religions.
18. Explain the purpose for the Crusades and show their social, religious, and political
consequences.
19. Describe the characteristics of the Byzantine and Islamic empires of the early Middle
Ages and compare and contrast them with the Carolinian Empire.
20. Explain the major features of feudalism and its importance for the political, economic,
and demographic expansion of the high Middle Ages.
21. Analyze the economic, social, and religious crises of the late medieval period.
22. Discuss the major feature of the Renaissance as an intellectual movement.
23. Explain the intellectual, social, and religious forces that brought about the Protestant
Reformation and show the changes that resulted there from.
24. Analyze the conflicts between the English monarchs and Parliament in the 17th century
which led to the Civil War and Glorious Revolution.
25. Explain the essential constitution principles at stake in the conflict and show the results.
26. Describe the rise of the modern states of Prussia and Russia in the 17th and 18th
centuries.
27. Discuss the factors which led to the conflicts between nations in the 18th century and
show how the balance of power altered as a result of the wars.
28. Describe the characteristics of 18th century Age of Enlightenment focusing upon the
attitudes and personalities of the era.
29. Explain the social, political, economic, and intellectual forces that contribute to the
French Revolution.
30. Explain the significant changes in Europe (social, political, etc.) that came as a result of
the French Revolution and Napoleonic Empire.
31. Discuss how the forces of reaction and revolution characterized Europe from 1815 1848.
32. Summarize and evaluate the effects of the Industrial Revolution (economic, social,
technological, political).
33. Explain the social/intellectual aspects of 19th century Europe (e.g. Romanticism,
socialism, anarchism, Marxism, Darwinism).
34. Explain the reason for western imperialism in the 19th century and summarize the
conflicts that arose directly from these activities.
35. Analyze the causes of World War I and the changes in Europe that resulted.
36. Identify the factors which contributed to the fall of Tsarist Russia and the establishment
of Communist Rule.
37. Identify the theory, personalities, and events in the emergence of Nazism and Fascism
during the post-World War I era.
38. Analyze the forces, policies, and actions which led the world to war in 1939.
39. Explain the Welfare State policies which characterized many of the western European
countries following World War II.
40. Trace the political, economic, and social policies of Soviet Russia centering upon the
revolutionary changes brought about by Lenin and Stalin, and more recently by
Gorbachev. Explain the conditions and policies that led to the collapse of the system and
made possible the revolution begun by Gorbachev in the late 1980's.
41. Explain how Europe evolved from the era of post-war devastation and rebuilding,
through the Cold War during which time it was divided politically, economically, and
philosophically; and to the Revolution of 1989. Show how the 1989 events particularly
altered the position of the two German states and the Eastern European countries.
In addition to these objectives, the faculty expects that by the time students have
completed the B.A. in history they will have developed the ability to analyze primary and
secondary historical data and present their findings in clear academic prose. Such skills are
important not only for jobs that specifically require the history baccalaureate degree (e.g. work in
museums or in the state and national park systems), but also for graduate study.