Page 162 - Keys To Community College Success

Social Sciences and Humanities

Courses in the social sciences and humanities prepare you to be a well-rounded person,
able and ready to fulfill responsibilities to yourself, your family, and a free democracy.
They also prepare you for 21st century jobs by focusing on critical thinking skills, civic
and historic knowledge, and ethical reasoning. As you study these disciplines, look for
themes with critical thinking as the foundation for your work. Build knowledge by
using what you know to learn new material.

Themes
The National Council for the Social Studies (www.socialstudies.org) organized the
study of the social sciences and humanities into ten themes: 4

■ Culture ■ Production, distribution, and
■ Time, continuity, and change consumption
■ People, places, and environment ■ Science, technology, and society
■ Individual development and identity ■ Global connections
■ Individuals, groups, and institutions ■ Ideals and practices of citizenship
■ Power, authority, and governance

Look for these themes as you read, even if they are not spelled out. For example,
as you read a chapter in a political science text on presidential politics, you might
think of the history of presidential elections or how the Internet is changing electoral
politics.

Think critically
Courses in the social sciences ask hard questions about ethics, human rights and free-
doms, and personal and community responsibility, looking at these topics over time
across cultures. Critical thinking helps you ask questions about what you read, think
of material in terms of problems and solutions, look for evidence for arguments, con-
sider possible bias of the writers, and examine big-picture statements for cause-and-
effect logic.
5 Literature
CHAPTER Even if you’re not an English major, you will probably take one or more literature

courses. Books you read for these courses let you experience other times and cultures,
build your understanding of how others react to the problems of daily life, and pro-
vide insight into your own thinking. Literature courses ask you to look at different
literary elements to find meaning on various levels. As you read, use critical-reading
skills to consider:
■ Character. How do characters reveal who they are?
How are the main characters similar or different?
How do a character’s actions change the course of
the story?
■ Plot. How would you evaluate the power of the story?
Did it hold your interest?
■ Setting. How does the setting relate to the actions of
the major and minor characters?
■ Point of view. How are the author’s views expressed
through the characters’ actions?
■ Style. How would you describe the writing style?

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