Program Learning Outcomes

Program Learning Outcomes

 

Upon completion of their History degree, students will be able to do the following:

 

The Nature of Historical Inquiry:

  1. Identify major schools of historical thought.
  2. Attribute a given historian’s interpretation of the evidence to their historiographic and/or theoretical framework.
  3. Explain the relationship between a historian’s context and their arguments.
  4. Analyze major shifts in a specified body of historical literature, tracing continuities and changes in methodology, evidence, and interpretation.

 

Managing Research

  1. Select relevant and appropriately scholarly primary and secondary sources for historical research using a wide variety of library resources, including CSULB holdings, research databases, and interlibrary loan systems and online resources.
  2. Assess the origins, perspective, credibility, accuracy, and usefulness of multiple source types (print, digital, oral, visual), together with the methods needed to interpret them.
  3. Develop an effective system of note-taking and organization (manual or electronic)
  4. Implement discipline-appropriate referencing practices in notes and bibliographies.

 

Historical Thinking Skills:

  1. Recognize, analyze, and evaluate the role of continuity and change in historical events, in isolation or comparatively.
  2. Analyze complex events, movements, or sources in terms of their historical context.
  3. Evaluate short- and long-term causes and consequences of historical events.

 

Presenting Knowledge and Ideas:

  1. Systematize the successive steps for conceptualizing and drafting a research project.
  2. Formulate an original historical question and use research in primary and secondary sources to make a historically defensible and evaluative claim (thesis), demonstrating clear organization and discipline-appropriate language.
  3. Create and support a historical argument in non-written form, making strategic use of both textual and non-textual media (e.g. graphic, audio, visual, or interactive elements) where appropriate to enhance an audience’s understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence.

 

Cooperative Learning:

  1. Communicate and receive constructive, respectful feedback.
  2. Collaborate in an active classroom learning environment by contributing productively to discussions.