History Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete the History major will be able to:
- demonstrate a knowledge of specific facts, concepts, and generalizations regarding past human activity in social, political, intellectual, economic, cultural, geographic, technological sphere
- demonstrate a knowledge of chronology and periodization
- demonstrate an understanding of the historical concept of change and continuity over time
- explain the connections between pat development and contemporary issues
- articulate the value and belief systems of past societies, the contexts in which they developed and the functions they served
- identify differing interpretations of historical phenomena and evaluate the evidence used to support those interpretations
- compare and contrast contemporary social and individual values with other value systems both contemporary and historical
- locate information resources and conduct research using a variety of information media
- evaluate the quality and accuracy of the information provided
- demonstrate an ability to extract information from narrative text
- demonstrate an ability to distinguish between the major generalizations and the supporting evidence in a narrative
- extract and interpret information from documentary sources
- evaluate evidence contained in documentary sources in the context of previously learned historical material
- identify flaws in arguments and resist claims that have no supporting evidence
- compare and contrast data from two or more historical sources
- construct and defend an analytical argument based on evidence contained in primary and secondary sources
- construct hypotheses and research questions based on historical data
- conduct research in both primary sources and secondary literature
- clearly and correctly communicate historical knowledge both orally and in writing
- students will be able to write argument-driven essays using historical evidence
- articulate what historians do
- articulate how skills learned in the pursuit of history are relevant to the whole range of professional activities