| Race & Ethnic Relations in the U.S. Sociology 215-002 Fall 2002 Time: Tuesday-Thursday; 8:00-9:15 a.m. I. Textbook: Richard T. Schaefer. 2002. Race & Ethnic Groups. (8th ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall. ISBN:013097854X, and additional articles on reserve in Morris library. II. Student Learning Objectives: This course examines the status of racial, ethnic, and cultural minority groups from historical, economic, and political perspectives. It is designed to expand knowledge of theory, research, and current events in regards to the relations of race, ethnicity, gender, and class in the United States. It is the intent of this course to introduce key topics, stimulate individual thought and enhance the understanding of group interactions in American society. This process will involve class lectures and discussions, required readings, videos, and participation in a group presentation. Students in this course will be able to: 1) Demonstrate an understanding of such sociological concepts as assimilation, pluralism, ascribed and achieved status, prejudice and discrimination; 2) Display basic knowledge of historical, socioeconomic, and political demographics of various racial/ethnic groups in the United States; 3) Demonstrate critical thinking and understanding about different theories and perspectives pertaining to race, class, gender, and sexuality; and 4) Apply sociological concepts for the analysis of race and ethnicity to personal and/or familial experience. III. Guidelines/Ground Rules for the Course: 1) Acknowledge that racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia exist. 2) Acknowledge that one of the meanings of racism/sexism is that we have been systematically taught misinformation about our own group and especially members of other groups. 3) We cannot be blamed for the misinformation we have learned, but we will be held responsible for repeating misinformation after we have learned otherwise. 4) Victims are not to be blamed for their oppression. 5) We will assume that people are always doing the best they can. 6) We will actively pursue information about our own groups and those of others. 7) We will share information about our groups with other members of the class and we will NEVER demean, devalue, or in any way “put down” people for their experiences. 8) We each have an obligation to actively combat the myths and stereotypes about our own groups and other groups so that we can break down the walls which prohibit group cooperation and group gain. 9) We want to create a save atmosphere for open discussion. Thus, at times, members of the class may wish to make a comment that they do not want repeated outside of the classroom. If so, the student will preface his or her remarks with a request and the class will agree not to repeat the remarks. (**Ground rules 1-9 by Lynn Weber, Center for Research on Women, University of Memphis, TN 38152) IV. Classroom Etiquette: Attendance - You are expected to attend class regularly. You may miss up to five classes without being penalized. Any absences beyond five (no matter what the reason) will result in a deduction of 25 points from your final course grade for each day missed. I will take attendance daily and it is your responsibility to make sure that you are signed in each day. If you do not sign in, it is your responsibility to verify that you were in class. Hence, I highly recommend dating your notes from lecture EVERY DAY! Tardiness - You should come to class on time. Walking into class late is disrespectful to both your instructor and your fellow students and will not be tolerated. Missed Work - Late papers will not be accepted in this course. Any deadlines regarding written work or student meetings will be announced will in advance of due dates. It should not be assumed that you will be given make-up exams if you miss a test day. Exams missed because of serious illness, death in the family, or other serious emergencies (automobile breakdowns do not qualify), require informing the instructor within 24 hours of the class meeting missed. Work can only be turned in late if you have a reasonable excuse for your absence. This means a doctor’s excuse or other official document. At that time, appropriate measures will be discussed to complete the course requirements. Otherwise, failure to show up for an exam on the scheduled day will result in the score of a zero. Assignments- Any assigned work to be turned in must be typed or word-processed. Handwritten work will not be accepted in this course. Plagiarism - You should be aware of plagiarism in every paper or assignment you write. Any time you use the ideas of someone else you must give them credit. You should put quotation marks around all direct quotations and cite the author at the end of the passage. If you are unsure of the proper way to do this see me before you turn in any work. Any work that has been plagiarized will receive a failing grade and may be turned in to the university as a violation of the student code of conduct. Readings - I will not discuss everything that your texts cover. I see no point in simply telling you what your book has already told you. However, you are responsible for all of the information I ask you to read. This means that if you read something that you do not understand, it is up to you to ask me for clarification. We will use class time to discuss and build on the readings. I write each lecture with the assumption that you have read the assigned readings for the day. In order to follow the lecture and participate in the class discussions it will be necessary to do the readings before coming to class. Office Hours - You should make use of my office hours. If you have any concerns about the class I will be quite happy to discuss them with you. I realize some people feel uncomfortable speaking out in a group. It is fine to come and talk to me during office hours about issues that interest you. I prefer you interact with the class but speaking to me also counts as participation. V. Evaluation: Exam 1 100 pts. Grading Scale: A=400-360 Students’ grades will be determined by the following: 1) Research Paper/Book Report: You are responsible for either writing
a 5-8 page paper on 2) Exams: (100 pts. each)There will be two term exams and a final exam. Exams may consist of a combination of multiple choice, true/false, matching, identification, and essay questions. The exams will cover chapters from the textbooks, lectures, and any other materials handed out during the course of the semester. Exams are worth 100 points each and the final exam will be comprehensive, covering all course material.
Week 1 January 14,16: Introduction to the course, sociology, and an introduction
to Schaefer Ch. 1, Understanding Race and Ethnicity Week 2 January 21,23: Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Groups. Week 3 January 28,30: Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Groups. (cont’d) Week 4 February 4,6: Ethnic and Religious Sources of Conflict Schaefer Ch. 4: Immigration and the United States Week 5 February 11,13: Ethnic and Religious Sources of Conflict (cont’d) Schaefer Ch. 5: Ethnicity and Religion Week 6 February 18,20: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United States Schaefer Ch. 6: The Native Americans Week 7 February 25,27: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United States (cont’d) Schaefer Ch. 7: The Making of African Americans in White America Week 8 March 4,6: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United States (cont’d) Schaefer Ch. 8: African Americans Today SPRING BREAK March 11,13: NO CLASS SPRING BREAK Week 9 March 18,20: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United States (cont’d) Schaefer Ch. 9: Hispanic Americans Week 10 March 25,27: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United States (cont’d) Schaefer Ch. 10: Mexican Americans and Puerto Ricans EXAM 2 Week 11 April 1,3: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United
States (cont’d) Week 12 April 8,10: Major Racial and Ethnic Minority Groups in the United States (cont’d) Schaefer Ch. 12: Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans Research Papers/Book Reviews due: April 10 Schaefer Ch. 13: Jewish Americans Week 14 April 22,24: Other Patterns of Dominance Healey Ch 14: Women Week 15 April 29, May 1: Summary, Conclusions, & a Look at the Future Healey Ch 16: Overcoming Exclusion Week 17 April 5-9: FINALS WEEK FINAL COMPREHENSIVE EXAM: Thurs May 8: 12:50pm-2:50pm |