Tuesday & Thursday 12:35
– 1:50 p.m.
Semester: Spring 2001
Office: Faner 3342
Mailbox: Faner 3384
Phone: 453-7617 (main sociology dept. # 453-2494)
E-mail: t1220@siu.edu
Office Hours: Monday 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Tuesday
9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. & 2:00 p.m.
– 3:00 p.m.
Wednesday
10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Thursday
9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. & 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Course
Description:
An
introduction to the sociological perspectives on human behavior, the structure
and processes involved in social relationships, social stratification and
inequality, social institutions, and social change. A survey of major areas of interest in sociology. Required of majors and minors in sociology.
Additional
Instructor Goals for this Class:
Students will focus critically upon sociological relevant information by doing internet related homework. These assignments, which are called “Virtual Tours in Sociology” (VTS) are exciting ways students can learn how to do sociological research on the world wide web. The purpose of these assignments, however, is not just to learn where to locate sociological information on the internet, but these assignments also encourage students to think critically about many different social issues related to society and their lives in general.
Required Book:
Stark, Rodney. 2001. Sociology. Eighth Edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
In place of a reader, I will place articles
I want you to read on reserve in the Morris Library. The reserve desk is located near the undergraduate circulation
desk on the first floor.
I expect all students to read and be
familiar with the supplementary readings on reserve. I will give the class plenty of notice when I place articles on
reserve. These readings are subject to
test questions, so your knowledge of them are consequential for this class.
Grading: (Based on the total number of points)
Source Maximum
Points
4 Exams 200
points (50 points each)
4 Quizzes 80
points (20 points each)
8 Homework 120
points (15 points each)
Assignments
Maximum Points Available in the Course and Corresponding Letter Grade:
A= 360 - 400
B= 320 - 359
C= 280 - 319
D= 240 - 279
F= 239 or less
There are four exams in this course. All exams will consist of 40 multiple choice questions (each question worth 1 point) and 10 true/false questions (each question worth 1 point). Exam material will come from all readings, videos, lectures, class discussions, handouts, and guest speakers.
There will be short reviews for the exams. Exam reviews will consist of a study guide
handed out one class before the exam and a half hour Q&A session also
during the class before the exam regarding any material students feel unclear about. If no questions are raised during the
Q&A time, I'll expect that everyone is comfortable with the material and
nothing else will be said. NO EARLY
EXAMS WILL BE GIVEN. NO LATE EXAMS WILL
BE GIVEN UNLESS THERE'S A LEGAL EXCUSS OR MEDICAL EXCUSS.
Quizzes:
4 @ 20 points each
There will be four quizzes in this course, one quiz for every section. Quizzes will be announced in class one class meeting before the quiz is given. Each quiz will consist of four short essay questions derived from the book. Students will have to answer two of the four questions. If a student misses class on a quiz day, he or she will NOT be able to make a quiz up. So, do not miss class on a quiz day.
Homework
Assignments: 8 @ 15 points each
In each Virtual Tour,
students will be asked to visit a range of sociological relevant websites,
ranging from official U.S. and U.N. sites, to academic sites and advocacy
sites. Many of these sites are
interactive, which means students will need to input information regarding
their community (always use Carbondale as your community – zipcode 62901).
On
each Tour, students will be asked to perform some sort of activity. These activities range from reading
information, tracking down specific data and recording it, or using your
sociological imagination to analyze information presented. When you are asked to respond to data or to
information online, always use a critical eye and think about what it is you
are responding to and why you are asked to respond to it. This will help you get full credit from the
assignments.
The
Tours vary in length and how long they take to complete will also depend on
such factors as familiarity with the internet and the speed of the
connection. On average, the Tours
should take about an hour to complete.
No previous knowledge is required apart from the ability to recognize a
hypertext link by the fact that it is usually underlined or in brackets.
We
will not be doing every Tour that is online, so be careful to check with the
class schedule to verify you are doing the one I assign.
Grading of these assignments are based on the following criteria:
Full
credit (15 points) – minor or no errors; thoughtful and descriptive
answers when asked to comment, describe, or respond to information and; full
sentences (grammar is always important!!)
Half
credit (7/8 points) – some noticeable errors; missing answers
and; short and poor thought out answers
when asked to comment, describe, or respond to information
No
credit (0 points) – not completed or turned in on time
****************
Students
can find the Virtual Tours in Sociology at the following website:
http://sociology.wadsworth.com/virtual/index.html
When completed, you will need to send me the finished product (your answers). Here is the e-mail address I want you to send your work to:
Take
note that this e-mail address is different than the one I gave above. Send me your homework assignments only
to Tbernhardt@fc.lib.siu.edu
and send anything and everything else to t1220@siu.edu.
****************
Ground
Rules for Course:
1.
Acknowledge that racism, sexism, ageism, heightism,
classism, homophobia, and
all other “isms” do exist in
our society.
2.We cannot be blamed for the misinformation we have
learned, but we will be held responsible
for repeating misinformation after we have learned otherwise.
3. We will not blame victims for their oppression.
4. We will assume that people are always doing their
best.
5. We will share information about our group with other
members of the class and will
NEVER
demean, devalue, or in any way “put down” people for their experiences.
6. We will create a safe atmosphere for open
discussion. This means both active
listening
to one
another (and not always thinking about what we would say). We will make sure that all members have an
opportunity to contribute and will not allow a few to dominate the
discussion. Further, members of the
class may wish to make a comment that they do not want repeated outside the
classroom. If so, the student will
preface his or her remarks with a request and we will AGREE not to repeat the
remarks.
Dropping
the Course:
If you decide to drop this course, you must officially
withdraw from the course. Students who
stop attending the course and who do not officially drop the course will get a
failing grade. See page 13 of the
"Spring 2001 Semester: Schedule of Classes" for information related
to withdrawing from class.
Attendance
and Participation:
Class attendance is required and will be taken each
class session. Signing of another
student’s name on the attendance sheet will result in a “F” grade for the
course. Class participation is
encouraged. This consists of making
verbal contributions during class discussions.
Verbal contributions, however, must remain within the boundaries of the
stated ground rules for the course.
Attendance and class participation will be considered when determining
boarder-line grades.
Extra
Credit:
Extra credit might be available during the semester. Extra credit assignments will be announced in class with no prior notice. If you miss the assignment because you are absent for class, or late for class, I will not repeat the assignment. If and when extra credit is available, I expect a two page, double-spaced paper that summarizes the event.
Class
and Reading/Activity Schedule:
(VTS = Virtual
Tours in Sociology)
Week 1: January 16 & 18 Introduction to Class
Foundations
of Sociology
Week 2: January 23 & 25 Chapter 1:
Groups and Relationships…
**VTS: Introducing
Sociological Resources on the WWW
Due by 12:00 p.m. on January 26th.
Week 3: January 30 & February 1 Chapter 3: Micro Sociology…
Week 4: February 6 & 8 Chapter 4:
Macro Sociology…
Week 5: February 13 & 15 Finishing lectures
and Exam #1 on the 15th
Week 6: February 20 & 22 Chapter 2:
Concepts for Social…
Week 7: February 27 & March 1 Chapter 5: Biology,
Culture, and Society
**VTS: Exploring
Key Cultural Concepts on the WWW
Due by 12:00 p.m. on March 2nd
Week 8: March 6 & 8 Chapter 6: Socialization and Social Roles
**VTS: Social
Interaction & Socialization: Web Resources about How People Become
Social
Due by 12:00 p.m. on March 9th
Week 9: March 13 & 15 SPRING BREAK
Week 10: March 20 & 22 Finishing
lectures and Exam #2 on the 22nd
Week 11: March 27 & 29 Chapter 9:
Concepts and Theories of Strat…
**VTS: Learning
About Social Inequality on the WWW
Due by 12:00 p.m. on March 30th
Week 12: April 3 & 5 Chapter
7: Crime and Deviance
**VTS:
Deviance: Criminal Justice Resources on the WWW
Due by 12:00 p.m. on April 6th
Week 13: April 10 & 12 Finishing lectures and Exam #3 on the 12th
Week 14: April 17 & 19 Chapter 11:
Racial & Ethnic Inequality…
**VTS: Race
& Ethnicity: Identity and Group Process in “Real Life” and Cyberspace
Due by 12:00 p.m. on April 20th
Week 15: April 24 & 26 Chapter 12:
Gender Inequality
**VTS: Web
Resources for Studying Gender and Inequality
Due by 12:00 p.m. on April 27th
Week 16: May 1 & 3 Chapter 13: Family
**VTS: Family:
Studying a Changing Institution on the WWW
Due by 12:00 p.m. on May 4th
FINAL EXAM: MAY 9th 12:50 p.m. – 2:50 p.m.
(in this room)
This syllabus is
subject to change with advance notice.