Area D Guidelines (prior to summer 2020)

In the sections that follow, you will see the specific learning goals for each area. Together, we refer to these requirements as "Guidelines."

  • Generally speaking, "Educational Objectives" refer to what students will learn by completing that sub area while "Course Criteria" refer to how the course is designed to support that learning.

 

Area D: Society and the Individual


Lower-Division Introduction

D1, D2, & D3: Educational Objectives 

D1, D2, & D3: Course Criteria

D5: Upper-Division Elective

Starting with the 2019-20 catalog, D4 (Self-Development) has moved to Area E


 

Lower-Division Introduction



Areas D1: The American Experience, D2: Political Economy, D3: Comparative Social Institutions and D4: Self Development (CSU Area E) provide students with a basic understanding of humans, their institutions, and their social achievements in both contemporary and historical contexts. Courses in this area prepare a student for the demanding tasks of civic participation, life-long learning, the understanding of self and of the human community, and the achievement of perspective in time, space, and human diversity.

Courses in this area should encourage students to see themselves in context with others, and to see the human experience as something that is both uniquely individual and communally comparable. By placing basic knowledge in a larger context, these courses provide a vision of why this area is an important component of general education. Courses in this area also emphasize writing as an integral part of the process of learning and discovery.

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D1, D2, & D3: Educational Objectives



Courses in D1 — D3 must meet THREE of the following objectives:

After completing the foundation courses in Area D/E, students should have an enhanced ability to understand:

  • EO 1 — Physiological, psychological, and social influences on thinking and behavior; how the mind and body work in concert; issues of "nature" versus "nurture"; personal development; and the importance of maintaining physical and mental health;

  • EO 2 — How human beings act in concert; historically how communities have grouped together; basic interpersonal relationships (social, economic, political, and legal); the constant interplay in human society between the protection and elevation of the individual and the welfare of the community; how individual actions affect the whole;

  • EO 3 — Organizations of public order, of commerce and labor, and of society (family, education, government, religion, and economy) and their origins; how humans create institutions and what they expect from them; and how institutions function to first reflect then shape human society;

  • EO 4 — The impact of history on the present and the future; how history affects the study of history; the importance of mythology; historical development in multidisciplinary terms (economic, political, sociological, institutional, intellectual, legal, and scientific); and the development of both western and non-western cultures;

  • EO 5 — How the environment affects human behavior; the human impact on the environment; the importance of geographic and environmental factors on the historical evolution of human society and economy; the interconnectedness of the planet, its natural resources, and its population;

  • EO 6 — The human experience in comparative terms by examining the diversity of experience from both individual and group perspectives with special attention to the issues of gender, ethnicity, and racial diversity on our planet;

  • EO 7 — The importance of empirical information and appropriate methodologies.

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D1, D2, & D3: Course Criteria


 

Lower-division courses in D1 — D3 must meet EACH of the following criteria:

D1: The American Experience — Course Criteria

The course proposal and expanded course outline must clearly indicate how the course:

  • CR 1 — Meets the requirements for Title 5 Section 40404, which provides for the comprehensive study of American history and American Government;

  • CR 2 — Outlines the impact of social, political, legal, and economic forces and events in the historical development of the US;

  • CR 3 — Considers the rights and obligations of citizens in the political and legal system established by the US Constitution;

  • CR 4 — Defines the political philosophies of the framers of the Constitution, the nature and operation of American political institutions and processes, and the system of jurisprudence which operate under that Constitution, as amended and interpreted;

  • CR 5 — Explores the complex issue of gender in the United States;

  • CR 6 — Explores the complex issues of race and ethnic diversity in the United States;

  • CR 7 — Outlines the relationship between and among such factors as geography, history, religion, economics, cultural diversity, politics, and the rule of law in the development of the American nation;

  • CR 8 — Covers the principles and practices of the political process, including political parties, interest groups, legislative politics, campaign practices, and the interrelationship between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the US government, over time;

  • CR 9 — Encourages the fundamental assumption of the responsibilities of citizenship;

  • CR 10 — Makes use of primary source material;

  • CR 11 — Includes an appropriate writing component.

 

D2: Political Economy — Course Criteria

The course proposal and expanded course outline must clearly indicate how the course meets EACH of the following criteria:

  • CR 1 — Focuses on resources, production, consumption, and market exchange, seen in the context of one another and of other forms of human activity over time and comparative in nature, putting economic institutions in the context of the other four basic social institutions (family, government, religion, and education); stresses broad aggregates of economic activity rather than one particular sector; and discusses more than one single economic system;

  • CR 2 — Covers international, including non-western, as well as domestic economic issues;

  • CR 3 — Uses primary source material as appropriate;

  • CR 4 — Blends the theoretical and the practical to make the material relevant to current issues;

  • CR 5 — Includes an appropriate writing component and gives a broad view of economic activity without specialized attention to only one aspect;

  • CR 6 — Includes an appropriate writing component.
     

D3: Comparative Social Institutions — Course Criteria

The course proposal and expanded course outline must clearly indicate how the course meets EACH of the following criteria:

  • CR 1 — Provides an understanding of basic human social institutions in the context of the present and the past: family, government, economy, education, and religion, including their origins, structures, functions, patterns of change, and integration;

  • CR 2 — Includes western and non-western societies in a cross-cultural, global perspective, and recognizes the growing interdependence of the global community and its environmental/geographic context;

  • CR 3 — Develops an appreciation of cultural and social diversity, both domestically and globally, which includes an understanding of ethnic, gender, and class inequality;

  • CR 4 — Introduces students to relevant methodologies;

  • CR 5 — Includes an appropriate writing component.

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D5: Upper-Division Elective

(Writing Intensive)


Introduction

Courses must be integrative in nature, requiring application and generalization of knowledge and understanding from foundation Area D/E courses to the advanced study of a subject or to new, but related, areas of inquiry. These courses may be interdisciplinary in nature, and should focus on achieving depth rather than breadth. Courses in this area also emphasize writing as an integral part of the process of learning and discovery. Attention to issues of gender and diversity is encouraged.
 

D5: Upper-Division Elective — Course Criteria

Upper-division courses in D5 must fulfill EACH of the following objectives:

After completing an upper-division course in this area, students should have an enhanced ability to:

  • EO 1 — Apply knowledge and understanding acquired in lower-division coursework in the area to the advanced study of a subject or to new, but related, areas of inquiry;

  • EO 2 — Respond in depth to the kinds of issues approached in lower-division study in the area;

  • EO 3 — Appreciate the implications of knowledge in a focused area of study;

  • EO 4 — Appreciate the way in which relationships between one area of study and another provide perspective on knowledge.

D5: Upper-Division Elective — Course Criteria

The course proposal and expanded course outline must clearly indicate that the course is at the 300-level and has as prerequisites the completion of Area A and one or more foundation courses from Area D/E. Courses in this area also emphasize writing as an integral part of the process of learning and discovery. (updated 2/12/16)

The course proposal and expanded course outline should also clearly indicate how the course meets EACH of the following criteria:

  • CR 1 — Draws upon and utilizes the perspective of one or more of the multiple fields in the social and behavioral sciences and human life development;

  • CR 2 — Makes an explicit connection between the perspectives of one or more of the Foundation Courses in Area D/E; (updated 2/12/16)

  • CR 3 — Serves as a writing intensive course in GE.

In addition, upper-division courses should, where appropriate:

  • CR 4 — Include consideration, both past and present, of the social, economic, political, legal, and commercial institutions and behavior that are inextricably interwoven in either the US or international contexts;

  • CR 5 — Cover the social, political, legal, and economic forces that influence the creation, development, evolution, and implementation of practical public policies in the American or international contexts;

  • CR 6 — Examine the psychological, physiological, and social influences on the development of the self that influence and determine the quality of one's life as related to one's environment.

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