1. The sociology curriculum (with support from anthropology courses) is designed to acquaint students with the concerns, theories, and methods of the science that deals with social groups, culture, and interpersonal relations of human beings.

 

2. In addition to gaining familiarity with--and competency in--sociology as a science, students are expected to understand how human values relate broadly to the theories, methods, and data of the field.

 

3. The courses are designed to meet the GER and other needs of liberal arts students, as well as sociology majors and students preparing for graduate schools.

 

4. An understanding of the relationship between values and ethics of sociological knowledge.

 

To assess objective 1, we evaluate successful completion of each course, in addition to evaluations of students' capstone Independent projects.  To measure success for objective 2, we have instituted a new tracking system to document student admission and success in graduate programs.  Methods for assessing objective 3 rely on individual instructors' evaluation of examinations, essays, class discussion, and careful evaluation of completed individual research projects that are required of all majors.  Faculty teaching methods courses assess coursework, and student's ethical understanding of the use of human subjects in the research process.  This may include supervision of submissions made by students to the Human Subjects Review Board (IRB).