General Education Committee – Review of Outcomes
AY 2007 – 2008
Social Sciences and Diversity

Committee members:
Gary Johnson, Chair
Todd Smith
Morrie Walworth
Brian Zinser

Outcome area: Social Sciences and Diversity

Current Description:
None

Current Outcomes:
Social Sciences
The LSSU graduate recognizes the essential characteristics of the scientific
method in social sciences, as well as the human, social, political, geographical and
economic implications as they are applied through discovery and validation of
models of reality.
Diversity
The LSSU graduate is able to interpret concepts, investigative procedures and
theories as parts of social structures, policies and value systems and apply them in
a pluralistic society.
The LSSU graduate is able to identify and analyze problems confronting a
modern pluralistic society and is aware of the interdependence of race, religion,
gender, culture and socio-economic class.

Courses:
Outcome
Core Courses Distributional Courses
Social
Science
None
Two courses (6 – 8 credits) from List A: [Students must
choose courses from different disciplines.]
EC201, EC202, EC208, EC209, EC302
GG201, GG302
HS101, HS102, HS131, HS132
PS110, PS160, PS241
PY101, PY155
SO101, SO102, SO113
And one course (3 – 4 credits) from List B:
BA308
GG306
HE328
PS333
SO103, SO213, SO225/NA225, SO226, SO321
TE250

Current Method of Assessment:
The University assesses the social science general education outcome through the
Academic Profile Test. The subcommittee would encourage recommendations on
proposing/developing other approved methodologies.
1. Convert courses from 2 character department to current 4 letter
departmental designation. Place results below:
Outcome
Core Courses Distributional Courses
Social
Science
None
Two courses (6 – 8 credits) from List A: [Students must
choose courses from different disciplines.]
ECON201, ECON202, ECON208, ECON209, ECON302
GEOG201, GEOG302
HIST101, HIST102, HIST131, HIST132
POLI110, POLI160, POLI241
PSYC101, PSYC155
SOCY101, SOCY102, SOCY113
Diversity
None
And one course (3 – 4 credits) from List B:
BUSN308
EDUC250
GEOG306
HLTH328
POLI333, POLI334
SOCY103, SOCY213, SOCY225/NATV225, SOCY226,
SOCY321
For the following questions, all responses must be supported.
2. Are the current outcomes measurable? If so, are they measurable by
quantitative or qualitative means?
The current social sciences outcome is stated as follows: “The LSSU graduate
recognizes the essential characteristics of the scientific method in social sciences,
as well as the human, social, political, geographical and economic implications as
they are applied through discovery and validation of models of reality.”
These outcomes are probably not measurable, in part because they are complex,
and more importantly because they are unclear. Thus, the statement refers to the
“human, social, political, geographical and economic implications.” Are these
“implications” the “implications” of the “scientific method in social sciences”? If
so, what are those implications? The statement is unclear, especially when one
adds that it is these “implications” “as they are applied through discovery and
validation of models of reality.”
There is a second problem with these outcomes as stated—our current
requirements would be inconsistent with achieving these outcomes. First, only
one or a few of the course options that students can use to satisfy these
requirements devote any attention specifically to “the scientific method in social
sciences.” And the courses that do give specific attention to this subject devote
only modest attention to it.
Second, even if we clarified which “implications” are being referred to, the list of
implications suggests that students would understand all of those implications:
the “human, social, political, geographical and economic” implications. It is easy
to imagine combinations of two courses from the list of options that would leave
out the geographic, economic, or political facets of these implications.
It seemed clear to the committee that the social sciences outcomes should be
revised.
The diversity outcomes are also complex and unclear. They should also be
revised.
3. Does the current method of assessment measure the stated outcomes?
There is apparently no current method of assessment.
4. Who are the stakeholders in the current outcomes?
LSSU’s students. Their interest in a good education is paramount.
Faculty and programs who do not offer the required courses, but whose majors are
required to take these courses.
Faculty and programs who offer the courses used to satisfy these requirements.
Administrators who bear the overall responsibility for the university’s success as
an institution.
Parents, who frequently invest in their children’s education.
Taxpayers, who are investing in the education of all of LSSU’s students.
5. How are the results of the assessment method delivered to the stakeholders?
Apparently, nothing has been delivered to date.
6. How does LSSU use the results of the assessment method?
Apparently, no assessment has yet been conducted.
7. What changes, if any, do you propose to the outcomes? Support your
position.
Since the outcomes as currently stated are inconsistent with our requirements, and
since those outcomes may not be measurable, it seemed clear to the committee
that the outcomes need to be revised. Our recommendations, together with a brief
statement of explanation for each, are as follows:
Social Sciences
LSSU graduates will be able to think critically and analytically about the causes
and consequences of human behavior. They will be able to demonstrate
knowledge of major concepts, models, and issues in two different disciplines in
the social sciences.
Albert Einstein once said that “the whole of science is nothing more than a
refinement of everyday thinking.” Einstein’s point applies to the social sciences
as well as the natural sciences. Each of these disciplines engages in the
systematic study of some domain of human behavior. Both the methods and
theories of the social sciences are, ultimately, a refinement of the human capacity
for critical and analytical thinking. It is this capacity that is valuable for all
students, whether they are students of business, engineering, nursing, or any of the
other fields in which LSSU grants degrees. While the discipline-specific content
of a social science course may be valuable to students from some particular major,
it is not the specific content of these courses that is of enduring value for students
across all majors. It is, rather, the discipline-transcending skills that may be
applied across all domains of human behavior. By engaging these skills in more
that one discipline, students discover that they are applicable in more than one
domain. This insight should prepare them to engage in a lifetime of critical and
analytical thinking across all domains of human behavior.
Diversity
LSSU graduates will be able view the world from cultural perspectives other than
their own.
Understanding diversity is not a matter of advocacy on behalf of any specific
group or category of people. Nor is it a matter of learning a specific theory of
political, social, or economic relations—such theories may be only transitory
products of particular schools of thought. The enduring skill that will help
students throughout their lives—both professional and personal—is a capacity to
see the world through the eyes of those who are fundamentally different in some
way. One should be able to hone this skill in any course that provides a relatively
in-depth examination of any of the divergent cultures that exist within and across
societies, and that are sometimes also associated with differences in race, gender,
class, religion, national origin, and sexual orientation. Students who develop this
skill should be able to utilize it throughout their lives, and also across cultural
boundaries with which they were previously unfamiliar. The diversity that exists
today is not necessarily the diversity that will exist tomorrow.
8. What changes, if any, do you propose to the method of assessment? Support
your position.
Social Sciences
CAAP might work reasonably well for the general outcome stated in the first
sentence. However, CAAP would not be focused on measuring critical and
analytical thinking as applied specifically to understanding the causes and
consequences of human behavior.
The outcome identified in the second sentence might need to be measured through
the local, discipline-specific methods used to assess the courses in each discipline.
Diversity
It seems likely that this outcome would need to be measured through use of our
own university test. It could be an objective test, or it could be based on a content
analysis or rater evaluation of essays
This review is to be completed and sent to the Chair (bsnyder@lssu.edu) by Thursday,
February 14 2008.