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American Studies

Learning Outcomes

Students in American Studies develop the abilities necessary to: 

  1. Articulate the interrelationships between ideas, institutions, perspectives, and aesthetic forms as they have evolved in the United States. 
  2. Recognize the U.S. as home to a diversity of cultural norms and perspectives that affect all aspects of U.S. culture, politics, and society. 
  3. Identify and critically analyze the ways race, gender, ethnicity, class, sexual orientation, and ableness are embedded in perspectives, practices, and histories of United States culture, politics, and society. 
  4. Evaluate the ways in which the history of discriminatory practices and attitudes in the U.S. continues to create barriers for some and opportunities for others. 
  5. Develop sound research questions and strategies, and to gather, evaluate, interpret, and use information accurately, logically, and ethically; this includes the ability to evaluate information sources for authority, accuracy, and bias. 
  6. Employ interdisciplinary approaches to effectively interrogate social and political problems, and pose complex questions regarding the meanings and effects of U.S. cultural practices.