Honors Seminars: Student Learning Outcomes

First Year Foundations Seminars (The Scholar and The World)

Students will deepen their comprehension of the breadth and depth of human intellectual and creative expression in the liberal arts and be globally informed.  The seminars will draw themes from art, art history, history, literature, music, philosophy, science, and social and cultural studies.  The themes of both seminars will vary each year to provide exposure to great scholars and scholarly works from different disciplines.

Courses that fulfill the requirement:

• First Year Foundation Seminar: The Scholar (3 units) and 
• First Year Foundation Seminar: The World (3 units)

First Year Foundation Seminar: The Scholar (3 units)

Student Learning Outcomes:

The students will demonstrate:

1. Identification and comparison of the social, political, artistic, and intellectual values of different cultures
2. Appreciation of scholarship by studying works of other scholars and interacting with scholars
3. Critical and creative thinking skills
4. Organization and development of an Honors Portfolio

First Year Foundation Seminar: The World (3 units)

Student Learning Outcomes:

The students will demonstrate:

1. Understanding of and the ability to analyze world issues from historical and contemporary perspectives from at least two disciplines
2. Critical and creative thinking skills
3. Further development of the Honors Portfolio

New in Fall 2011:  Honors Seminar (1 unit)

Pass/ Fail class that meets once a week.  This course will provide a framework to guide students through their academic career.  Students will learn about internships, resumes, interviews, library resources, study abroad, and communication via internet media like emails, videos and blogs.  Also, students will be given opportunities to become an active participant on campus or int he community through service, research, and leadership.

Second Year Seminars

Sophomore Seminar: Reflection (3 units)

Sustained engagement of questions of God, social betterment, and individual human fulfillment through the study of Biblical literature, Christian theology and social justice ideals, and/or the world’s religious traditions

• Course that fulfills the requirement: Worldviews and Practices of the Great Religions (3 units)

Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate: 

1. Knowledge of world religions
2. Experience with and reflection on different religious practices

Sophomore Seminar: Ethics in Service (3 units)

Examination of contemporary movements in ethical theory, focusing on the essential need for moral meaning and its modern implications. Themes include questions of identity, responsibility, perception of and relation to the “other.” Critical analysis of texts and key issues will be performed and understanding of key issues will be deepened through a service component that allows for active cultivation and expression of core values in the local community.

• Course that fulfills the requirement: Self, Community, and Service: Ethical Theory and Practice (3 units)

Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate:

1. Identification of and reflection on contemporary ethical issues of public and personal importance that arise out of our perceptions of the relationship between self and community
2. Ability to distinguish and identify main features of least two ethical    theories or viewpoints
3. Application of theoretical concepts to real-life ethical involvement, demonstrating  an ability to evaluate concepts and arguments through both scholarship and practice
4. Initiation, development, and participation in a form of active and personally relevant community involvement

Third Year Seminars

Cultural Heritage Colloquia: Global Community and Social Justice (6 units)

Students will enroll in three interrelated 3-unit courses taken over a period of two semesters, and investigate a particular era, theme, or geographical area. The theme will vary from year to year.

• Course that fulfills the requirement: Cultural Heritage Colloquium (9 units) as approved by the Honors Director.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate:

1. Skills to compare and analyze several global paradigms of community and social justice
2. Integration and interdisciplinary understanding of the global community and social justice from at least two disciplines

Multicultural/International Experience (3 units)

Students enrolled in these experiences will learn about social science theories that explain human thought, action, and interaction. All Honors students must develop a proposal for fulfilling this requirement approved by the Honors Board.  Examples include: Dominican University of California approved study abroad program, Honors sponsored City or Country as Text Educational Trip, Dominican University of California sponsored trip abroad, or an internship in a multicultural or international setting.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate:

1. Knowledge of theories used to understand human behavior by drawing upon various social science disciplines    
2. Direct knowledge of another cultural tradition or country
3. Reflection upon the experience in writing (to be included in the Honors Portfolio) which integrates the multicultural experience with knowledge of the
4. Political or psychological or economic or sociological aspects of the cultural tradition(s) or country visited

Forth Year Seminars

Senior Honors Seminar (1 unit)  

Note: This is not a GE requirement but is presented here for completeness.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate:

1. Development and delivery of an oral presentation of their discipline specific senior thesis project
2. An analytical essay reflecting on their Honors education and individual progress
3. Understanding of the process of scholarly publication in diverse formats (electronic, peer-reviewed)
4. Superior scholarship or creative work in their major field (for creative works, a written component must be included)