Course:LFS350/Learning Objectives

LFS 350 Learning Objectives

Upon completion of LFS 350, successful students will be able to:

1. Critically analyze connections between food, health, and the environment within a community food security discourse.

Evaluate the contributions of different food-related academic disciplines to addressing community food security issues
Integrate disciplinary and systems approaches to understanding community food security issues
Articulate the principles of Asset-Based Community Development and Food Justice

2. Propose, implement, and evaluate a community-based food systems project in an interdisciplinary team.

Articulate community values and objectives within broader food system theories
Apply the principles of Asset-Based Community Development and Food Justice to address a community food security issue
Propose and implement a course of action to address a community food security issue
Evaluate project outcomes to demonstrate effectiveness of collective actions

3. Interact professionally with project team members and community stakeholders

Identify and integrate personal, group, and community values and objectives
Participate collaboratively as an effective team member, and provide constructive  feedback to peers
Develop and disseminate knowledge that is useful to key stakeholders through oral and written communication
Reflect on and assess personal experiences gained through participating in a collaborative community-based project.

LFS 350 Competency Development

In class and community-based activities in the course are designed to develop the following competencies:

Project Development

I can develop a clear project proposal
I can identify indicators that allow me to measure progress towards project outcomes
I can collect information to determine if project outcomes are achieved
I can keep all stakeholders aware of progress throughout the duration of a project

Collaboration

I recognize my own social and cultural location(s) within society, and how these relate to working with others
I can work with others to achieve a common goal; I do my share.
I can take on roles and responsibilities in a group.
I can address conflict when it arises in group work.
I can give, receive, and integrate feedback
I can reflect on my own and group performance in order to improve work and learning

Equity

I recognize the extent to which socio-cultural structures and values may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create or enhance privilege and power in the food system
I understand that historical and current systemic inequities (e.g. organizational, institutional, legal and legislative forces) affect different groups and individuals
I can use knowledge of the effects of oppression, discrimination, and historical trauma to guide the development of socially just food system projects

Collective Action

I can analyze a food system issue and determine how it emerged
I can identify key stakeholders in a food system issue and the power dynamics among them
I can identify the possibilities and barriers to achieve collective change in a food system issue
I can work in a public setting to address a collective need related to the food system

Communication

I can orally present information and ideas to an audience I may not know.
I can communicate complex ideas in writing.
I can communicate professionally over email and phone.
I can use design principles to create a clear and attractive infographic

LFC Series Learning Objectives

The Land, Food and Community (LFC) series (LFS 100, 250, 350, and 450) is the academic core of all programs in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems (LFS). The objective of the LFC series is to create learning opportunities that encourage students to become citizens, professionals, and leaders who understand the opportunities and obstacles to creating regional, national and global food systems that are ecologically, socially and economically sustainable.

The objectives of the LFC series are achieved through a pedagogical approach and learning environment that we call the “Ecology of Knowledge”. The “Ecology of Knowledge” refers to how knowledge is created, and re-created, in the many diverse contexts in which it emerges. It also examines how knowledge is produced, distributed, and shared. In the LFC series we foster a learning environment that values diversity, encourages excellent oral and written communications skills, and cultivates the ability to work creatively and cooperatively in team settings. Course instructors and teaching assistants are viewed as facilitators and resource people who participate in a “community of learners” with you and your classmates. Land and Food Systems students who have completed the Land, Food and Community (LFC) core series are systems thinkers, able to work collaboratively in multicultural, inter- and trans- disciplinary teams to develop solutions for complex, multi-stakeholder issues related to food, health and the environment. Incorporating academic and community perspectives, they apply their knowledge in an environmentally, socially and economically sustainable manner to community food security challenges.

Upon completion of the LFC Series, students will be able to:

Use systems approaches to analyze land and food issues related to building healthy, sustainable, and just communities, both locally and globally.
Select, evaluate, and integrate interdisciplinary evidence relating to food systems issues.
Plan, implement, and evaluate actions to address food systems challenges.
Collaborate and communicate effectively as members of diverse stakeholder teams.
Critically reflect on learning and responsibilities as professionals addressing food systems issues.

Information for Students in the Dietetics Major

This course, like all required courses in the Dietetics Major, contributes to coverage of the Integrated Competencies for Dietetic Education and Practice (ICDEP). All students in the Dietetics Major should refer to the Mapping of Curriculum to ICDEP page on the dietetics website to familiarize themselves with the requirements.