D1 Lower Division Social Science

Lower Division Social Sciences (Area D)

Students take a minimum of 9 units, including one course from Area D1, Area D2, and Area D3.

Course Expectations for Lower Division Social Sciences (D1) (3 units)

To be certified by the Baccalaureate Requirements Committee as meeting the lower-division social sciences (D1) general education requirement,

1. The course must be lower division and open to all students. Courses that are numbered between 100 and 199 may not have prerequisites. Courses that are numbered between 200 and 299 may have a single prerequisite, but departments and programs must provide an adequate justification for that prerequisite. Typically, students should be eligible to enroll in lower division general education courses in their first year.

2. The course syllabus must list the university-approved student learning outcomes for social sciences (D1) and link them to activities and/or assignments that students complete to demonstrate they have met the outcomes.

Student Learning Outcomes for Lower Division Social Sciences (D1) (3 units)

After completion of a lower division general education course in social sciences, students will be able to:

1. understand how the methods of inquiry and analysis characteristic of one or more of the behavioral and social sciences are used to produce and contest knowledge claims about large-scale issues and questions related to human behavior, socially constructed identities, institutions, economic, political, or social systems, or human societies within and/or across cultures and civilizations;

2. evaluate information from a variety of sources and use this information to formulate well-reasoned responses to major ideas, concerns, and debates in the social sciences;

3. appreciate diversity in human behavior, socially constructed identities, institutions, economic, political, or social systems, and human societies within and/or across cultures and civilizations;

4. identify potential ethical issues related to social scientific research and application, including effects of those issues on research practices and evaluation, individuals, society, and the environment, and where appropriate, implications for social justice and the well-being of local and/or global communities;

5. situate human behavior and social systems in the local and/or global, cultural, historical, and sociopolitical contexts in which they occur; and

6. articulate the relevance of social science theories and research to their lives.

Links between Educational Goals and Outcomes for Lower Division Social Sciences

The student learning outcomes were developed in relationship to the “Educational Goals for the Baccalaureate at San Francisco State University.” The chart below illustrates that relationship for lower division social sciences. The numbers correspond to the way the educational goals and student learning outcomes are numbered above.