Policies, Procedures and Guidelines | SUNY Empire State College

Area of Study Guidelines: Human Development for Students Matriculated Before Oct. 1, 2009 Policy

Sponsor:	Academic Affairs
Contact:	Vice Provost
Category:	Academic
Number:	100.119
Effective Date:	01/01/1000
Implementation History:	01/01/1995
Keywords:	Area of study guidelines, Human Development
Background Information:

Purpose

To provide context for the area of study guidelines for area of study Human Development.

Definitions

Area of Study Guidelines: This set of guidelines helps students plan their degree plans by spelling out what the academic world and many employers understand a particular concentration to mean. The guidelines are found in many academic publications.

Disciplinary -- A program of study guided by the existing framework of a discipline.

Interdisciplinary -- The simultaneous and interrelated study of two or more disciplines.

Problem Oriented -- A program of study organized around a problem.

Professional/Vocational -- A study which focuses on acquiring knowledge and skills needed for specific career performance and applications. It also entails
inquiry into the conceptual foundations of the profession, the role of the professional in that career, and the relations between the profession and society
at large.

Thematic -- A program of study focusing on a particular theme or set of ideas.

Statements

These guidelines are designed to help students become aware of the central issues in Human Development, not to prescribe a specific set of study titles. It is important to note that the areas of inquiry described below may be addressed through a variety of approaches.

Studies in Human Development may draw upon many different disciplines of the natural, social and behavioral sciences in an effort to understand human experience and behavior. Illustrations and understanding of human behavior may also be explored through humanistic and cultural studies. Concentrations in the Human Development area of study must in some way address critical topics in the following areas: the nature of human development and changes across the life span; the social and environmental contexts in which human development takes place; the determinants of human development and behavior; the domains and dimensions of thought, emotion and action; and a range of theoretical perspectives and explanatory models.

Human Development uses the scientific method as its basic model of learning and knowing. Thus, students are expected to develop competencies in the following areas: asking and researching questions; observing and analyzing behavior; recording and interpreting data and observations; and examining and communicating ideas. An education in Human Development also includes experience of self and others as a complementary model of learning and knowing.

Not all of these areas need be reflected in specific study titles; however, the student will be expected to indicate in the degree program rationale how the various topics and methods have been explored.

There is one concentration title within Human Development that has particular meaning in the wider academic community. That is psychology. A psychology concentration is expected to meet the rigors of the discipline, including methodology and specific studies. Students planning a psychology concentration should consult Advice for Students Developing Concentrations in Psychology in the Student Degree Planning Guide.