THE
FACULTY SENATE
Senate
Document Number 3709S
Date
of Senate Approval 02/12/09
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Statement
of Faculty Senate Action:
Effective Date: Fall 2009
1. Delete: On p. 173, the requirements
for the concentration in Ethics and Social Institutions in Interdisciplinary
Studies:
I.
Required courses for the major—18 hours, including: ESI 101,
490; ECON 101 or 102; PHIL 200; POLS 220 or 281; SOC 100.
II.
Required courses outside the major—21 hours. Students will
design an elective program organized around a theme in Ethics and Social
Institutions in consultation with the student’s major advisor and approved by
the ESI coordinator. No more than 9 of these credit hours may come from any one
department; at least 18 of the 21 elective hours must be at the 300-level or
above; and at least 26 of the total 39 hours must be taken while a student at
UNCA. Students seeking a double major may count only 6 of the credit hours from
the first toward an ESI concentration. None of a student’s credit hours earned
for a declared minor can be counted toward an ESI concentration.
III.
Other concentration requirements—Senior demonstration of
major, oral and computer competency is met by successful completion of ESI 490
with a grade of C or higher.
Add: On
p. 173, in place of deleted entry:
I.
Required courses for the major—18 hours, including: ESI 101,
490; ECON 101 or 102; PHIL 200; POLS 220 or 281; SOC 100 or ANTH 100.
II.
Research methods—3-7 hours. Complete one of the following groups:
(a) STAT 185 and ECON 365; or (b) POLS 220, 281 and 390; or (c) SOC/ANTH 225
and either
ANTH 336, SOC 335 or
337.
III.
Elective program—18 hours approved by the ESI coordinator.
In consultation with the major advisor, students will design an elective
program organized around a theme in Ethics and Social Institutions. No more
than 9 of these credit hours may come from any one department. Courses must
come from at least three different departments, and at least 15 of the 18
elective hours must be at the 300-level or above.
IV.
Other concentration requirements—Senior demonstration of
major, oral and computer competency is met by successful completion of ESI 490
with a grade of C or higher. At least 28 of the total required hours must be
taken while a student at UNCA. Students seeking a double major may count only 9
credit hours from the other major toward an ESI concentration. None of a
student’s credit hours earned for a declared minor can be counted toward an ESI
concentration.
Impact:
Other
than editorial changes, the substantive changes in ESI requirements made in
this document are to:
1) Allow
students to take either SOC 100 or ANTH 100 rather than require SOC 100.
2) Add a
research methods requirement, which, with prerequisites, adds 3-7 hours to the
major.
3) Reduce the size of the elective program from 21 to 18 hours, as a
result of adding the research methods requirement.
The
impacts of these changes on class enrollments will be small, as the number of
ESI majors is small (at this time, 4-6 graduates per year). There will be an extra ESI student or two in
the disciplinary research methods classes, but this will not lead to a need for
additional sections.
The
major is now 39-43 hours rather than 39. However, because the number of majors
is small, it is not expected to have any impact on the number of courses that
need to be offered.
The
primary impact is on student flexibility. These changes essentially substitute
a course in research methods in the social sciences for one of the courses in
the elective program.
Rationale:
The
first change, to allow students to take either SOC 100 or ANTH 100, is driven
by the recognition that some students in ESI benefit from considering an anthropological
rather than sociological perspective, just as students choose between POLS 220
and 281 depending on their interest area.
The
second change is a result of the assessment of the ESI program discussed above.
Faculty and graduates both observed that students really need a better
understanding of research methods in the social sciences, both to enable
success in ESI 490 (Senior Research in ESI) and for admission to graduate
programs, which typically expect students to have some understanding of statistical
or other research methods. All of the courses identified as appropriate for ESI
students (ECON 365, SOC 335 or 337, and POLS 390) have prerequisites, so this
change adds 3-7 hours to the major for all students.
Finally,
the third change, to reduce the size of the elective program, is driven by a
recognition that adding a research methods requirement has to come with a
tradeoff. Eighteen hours of focused coursework will provide enough coverage for
most issues. Requiring 3 more hours adds minimal value to the academic program.