COMMENTS ON THE CAPSTONE COURSE.

This article comments on the capstone course. Reform of the college curriculum acquired social movement status in the mid to late 1980. Although most of the attention focused on changing general education, some critics also noted the need to revise the major. Foremost among these was the Association of American Colleges (AAC). According to the AAC Sociology Task Force Report, the capstone course should be a regular required seminar course focusing on synthesizing information and emphasize pulling the disparate pieces of the sociology major together. Students' work should bring all their preparation in the major to bear on the topic at hand and should write a senior paper or thesis or complete some other kind of professional product. The type of capstone course developed depends on how one responds to different mandates and how one views the major and the purpose of a college education. Identifying the goals of the capstone experience is the easy part. Designing and teaching the course is a continual challenge. Writing assignments are one of the most important components of the capstone course. The major writing task is compiling an intellectual autobiography. In this assignment students must assemble a portfolio of their work and must write an essay discussing their intellectual development.