Historical, Social & Cultural Studies - Curriculum

Listening is central to this concentration. Learners study individuals and groups in their social, cultural and historical contexts, listening for who they are, what they know, and what they care about. This concentration includes study in the areas of  history and the social sciences — anthropology, sociology, political science, cultural studies, economics – as well as communications and media.

The Historical, Social and Cultural Studies concentration includes a broadly interdisciplinary background, as well as a focused investigation into one of the social science fields. To develop mastery in your chosen field of study, you will pursue an investigation of the theories, methodologies, content, questions, and the history of that field. Generally, learners choose one of the following fields.

• Historical studies include research in a particular content area of history and knowledge of historical method and historiography.
• Social studies address theories, methods and applications of one or more of the social sciences; for example, anthropology, sociology, economics, government/political science.
• Cultural studies provide an understanding of a culture’s historical, geographical, sociological, economic and ethnographic contexts as well as the methods used in those disciplines. This can also include the variant of studying popular culture.

By concentrating in this area, you will learn to write academic essays in your chosen field, and to correctly document sources.  You learn, practice, and incorporate critical thinking skills into your written work and create new knowledge.  We’ve found that learners often choose this concentration because they wish to learn how to bring about positive change in the world.

Expected Outcomes

• Demonstrate a familiarity with the history of the major theoretical perspectives and concepts in historical, social and cultural studies.
• Demonstrate familiarity with contemporary questions and concepts in historical, social and cultural studies.
• Understand and employ relevant methods of inquiry.
• Recognize contemporary controversies in their field of study.
• Demonstrate an ability to apply principles and methods of this concentration.