The dynamics of power and privilege produce inequalities at individual, structural, and cultural levels. Human identities develop through cultural values, social group membership, and lived experiences. How societies perceive and manage this cultural, social, and biological diversity can foster or suppress human identity in democratic life, thereby shaping social and individual experiences. Local, national, and global systems contribute to social inequity through structures that privilege select groups over others. Advancement of social justice through the creation of equitable models, policies, and practices requires an exploration of the ways in which societies perceive and manage cultural, social, and biological diversity; communicate hierarchies of worth; perpetuate injustice; and reflect on people, systems, and cultures beyond one’s own.
Courses within this Topic of Inquiry category must meet two or more of the TOI3 Learning Objectives:
TOI3 Learning Objective 1: Through dialogic engagement, students will be able to examine cultural, social and/or biological diversity within national and/or global contexts and the effects power and privilege have on various social group identities.
TOI3 Learning Objective 2: Students will be able to recognize and discuss basic issues of social injustice and how their own identities intersect with structural forms of oppression and empowerment, and how to be respectful and responsible allies (and accomplices) to individuals and groups they do not identify with.
TOI3 Learning Objective 3: Students will be able to discuss the foundations of social inclusion and democracy and the actions that can create and maintain them within national and/or global contexts.
TOI3 Learning Objective 4: Students will be able to recognize and critically investigate the various socio-political forces that have historically and currently excluded individuals from societies across the globe, the structures of various kinds of oppression (e.g. racism, gender discrimination, sexual harassment and violence, etc.), the different levels on which they occur, and the forces that create, maintain, and perpetuate them.
Sample Alignment Table
Provided below are some tips for creating your alignment table, as well as an exemplary example of a table.
Tips for ensuring measurable course alignment
- Be sure the Course Learning Objectives (CLOs) use measurable verbs. CLOs should gauge what students will be able to DO by the end of the course. We recommend reviewing the CLO guidance on CETL's website.
- Be sure the assignments used are assessable. For instance, "Weekly Readings" are not assessable. A quiz or short summary paper that measures or evaluates student interaction with those readings is, however.
- Not all assignments need to measure each CLO. Be sure each assessment actually measures the selected CLO(s). For example, a multiple choice quiz allows students to "identify" information or ideas, but it probably doesn't allow students to "analyze" or "describe" anything, so it would not be an appropriate measure for such CLOs.
- The CLOs listed in the alignment table should be the same as the overall CLOs for the course. Do not create a second set of CLOs for Common Curriculum alignment. The purpose of the alignment table is to show how the CLOs specific to the course align with the TOI learning objectives, and what measures will be used to assess student learning across those objectives.
Course Learning Objectives for a TOI1, TOI3 Course
CLO1: Analyze works of art in a variety of media using feminist, queer, and trans theories and methodologies
CLO2: Explain how artists and artworks from diverse cultural traditions address social injustice and shift our understanding of feminism and art
CLO3: Evaluate feminist artwork as a vehicle for institutional critique or social intervention
CLO4: Explain the ways in which identities, interlocking systems of oppression, and historically specific social constructions impact art creation, access, and analysis
CLO5: Produce original, feminist artwork
CLO6: Practice writing-as-a-process by drafting and revising based on feedback provided by the instructor and peers
| Topic of Inquiry | Common Curriculum Objective | Course Learning Objective(s) (CLO) | Corresponding Assessment(s) |
| TOI1: Creativity: Design, Expression, Innovation | LO1: Students will be able to assess the importance of creativity, ideation, innovation, and/or technical design output to individuals, organizations, society, or various fields of study | CLO1: Analyze works of art in a variety of media using feminist, queer, and trans theories and methodologies
CLO3: Evaluate feminist artwork as a vehicle for institutional critique or social intervention |
Quizzes
Journals Art projects |
| TOI1: Creativity: Design, Expression, Innovation | LO3: Students will be able to design or create new ideas, mechanisms, methodologies, artistic works, or products | CLO5: Produce original, feminist artwork | Art Projects |
| TOI3: Diversity, Equity, and Social Justice | LO4: Students will be able to recognize and critically investigate the various socio-political forces that have historically and currently excluded individuals from societies across the globe, the structures of various kinds of oppression (e.g. racism, gender discrimination, sexual harassment and violence, etc.), the different levels on which they occur, and the forces that create, maintain, and perpetuate them | CLO4: Explain the ways in which identities, interlocking systems of oppression, and historically specific social constructions impact art creation, access, and analysis | Journals
Art Projects |
| TOI3: Diversity, Equity, and Social Justice | LO2: Students will be able to recognize and discuss basic issues of social injustice and how their own identities intersect with structural forms of oppression and empowerment, and how to be respectful and responsible allies (and accomplices) to individuals and groups they do not identify with | CLO2: Explain how artists and artworks from diverse cultural traditions address social injustice and shift our understanding of feminism and art
CLO3: Evaluate feminist artwork as a vehicle for institutional critique or social intervention |
Journals
Art Projects |