Term

Faculty of Criminology, Justice, and Policy Studies Introductory Sociology SOC 1000U Winter 2010 COURSE DESCRIPTION* Sociology is the study of people and how they interact with each other and various social groups. This course deals with the study of people’s lives, their relationship to society as a whole, and how people are affected by the society in which they live. The concepts, theories and methods of the discipline will be introduced and discussed with particular emphasis on the dynamics of Canadian society and Canadian social problems. COURSE GOALS It seems that now more than ever individuals are being called upon to participate in reshaping the society in which we live. Given the tragedies of the recent past, including 9/11 and the aftermath, the natural disasters globally, and the ongoing headlines highlighting violence in the GTA, it is important that we are knowledgeable about our social world and its impact on our individual lives. The discipline of sociology involves the scientific study of human groups, organizations and societies. It is not concerned with personal opinion, rather systematic study and observation. The goals of this course are to encourage (what C. Wright Mills referred to as) the “sociological imagination”; to provide a foundational understanding of theoretical and methodological approaches to social research; and to learn about current trends and issues through sociological lenses. This is an introductory level course that is intended to provide you with a basis to think critically and forge your own answers to important questions. COURSE INFORMATION Instructor: Rosemary Ricciardelli Office: UA 4140 Office hours: Wednesday 10-11am E-mail: _rosemary.ricciardelli@uoit.ca_ or post to “Questions” discussion topic in WebCT or by appointment Lecture Time: Wednesday 8:10 – 9:45 am (10-11am is online) Location: XXX Wednesday 7:10 – 8:45pm (9-10pm is online) Location: XXX Teaching Assistant: Andrea Kalmin Office Hours: XXXX Course Website: Use WebCT VISTA This course will consist of in person lectures and online components. The course website contains all course materials and assignments. The slides available on this website are NOT a substitute for attending class. The material discussed in lecture goes BEYOND the information available in the textbook and lecture slides. Furthermore, lectures are intended to supplement course readings. This outline provides a schedule of required readings, online exercises and quizzes, and the midterm and final exams. You are responsible for all of the information provided in this outline and on the course Webct Vista site. TEXTBOOK Teevan, James J., White, J. & Hewitt, W.E. (Eds). (2007). Introduction to Sociology: A Canadian Focus, (9th ed.). Toronto: Prentice Hall. Recommended Additional Sources: American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (Fifth Edition). WA: American Psychological Association. Strunk, W. Jr., & White, E.B. (2000). The Elements of Style, 4th Edition. NY: Longman Publishers. It would be a good idea to purchase these recommended references, as you will be able to use them throughout your degree here at UOIT and possibly afterwards. If, however, money is a concern, there are free versions of these sources you can access: A few copies of the APA manual are on reserve in the library. Access to these copies is not guaranteed. Remember, there are close to 250 students in this class alone and your papers are all due at the same time. If you want to use these free copies, plan your time wisely! An older version of the Strunk and White book can be found for free at http://www.bartleby.com/141/ Note: The APA style guide will answer all questions on writing style and form. You should refer to it while writing your course papers. Style guides used in the Humanities, such as MLA, will not be accepted because they do not meet the needs for referencing material in the Social Sciences. COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION The design of the course puts a premium on class participation. Students must keep up with reading and be prepared to engage in discussion online and, to a lesser extent, in lecture. In addition to assigned quizzes and online exercises, your participation on the course site will be monitored and evaluated. You will be required to independently complete online exercises within your assigned workgroup as scheduled. There will also be a mid-term and a final exam, cumulatively worth 65 percent of your final grade.   The following is the evaluation breakdown:   Online Assignments     30%  Midterm Exam     30%  Final Exam      40%    Online Assignments (30%): In accordance with the schedule below, online assignments will be posted on Webct Vista. Exercises are to be completed in your assigned workgroup discussion area on the course website. Further instructions regarding online discussions will be provided in lecture. The exercises will begin Fridays at 6am and will be due by the following Thursday at 11:59am. Any postings submitted after 11:59 am will not be graded. There will be nine online assignments but you will only be responsible for completing five of the online assignments, each worth 6 percent of your final grade. If you complete more than five only the first five completed will be graded. Best grades are not accepted; only the first five completed will be counted in your final grade. Online Assignments Explained: Online assignments will be posted on Webct Vista. The assignments will be explained in power-point slides, stating all questions each student is responsible for answering. These slides can be found on the course homepage under the link entitled “Online Assignments”. Each online assignment begins the Tuesday before the scheduled due date. These assignments are each marked out of 6. These assignments are to be completed in each student’s randomly assigned workgroup, located in the discussion area of the course website. For each assignment, each student is required to complete three postings: one INITIAL POSTING and two DISCUSSION POSTINGS. The first posting – your INITIAL POSTING - is a full and detailed response to each of the questions posed in the assignment power-point slides. You will be given full marks for this initial posting only if you respond to each question posed, provide arguments (not opinions), provide references and evidence to support your arguments, and your response is well written and error free. This initial posting is worth 3 marks. The second and third postings – your DISCUSSION POSTINGS - will be responses to the initial postings and subsequent responses of other students. Here, you will be responsible for discussing the weekly questions and the responses of other students in your randomly assigned groups. You will be given marks based on the quality of your responses, if you provide evidence to support your arguments and if your responses are well written and error free. Each discussion posting is worth 3 marks. The online exercises will begin Friday at 6am, the initial posting must be posted by TUESDAY AT 6 PM and the discussion postings are be due by the following THURSDAY at 11:59am. Any initial postings submitted after Tuesday at 6:00pm will not be graded. Any discussion postings submitted after 11:59am on Thursday will not be graded. There are no exceptions. All late assignments, due to any reasons including technical issues such as Webct being down, will not be accepted under any circumstances. All assignments are due at 11:59am (no excuses or late assignments accepted) on the scheduled due date: (Technological problems and Webct failures are not reasons for accepting late assignments.) Assignment 1: Begins Friday, Jan. 29nd at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Feb. 4th at 11:59am. Assignment 2: Begins Friday, Feb. 5th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Feb. 11h at 11:59am. Assignment 3: Begins Friday Feb. 12th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Feb. 19th at 11:59am. Assignment 4: Begins Friday, Feb. 26th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Mar. 4th at 11:59am. Assignment 5: Begins Friday, Mar. 12th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Mar. 19th at 11:59am. Assignment 6: Begins Friday, Mar. 19th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday, at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Mar. 25th at 11:59am. Assignment 7: Begins Friday Mar. 26th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Apr. 1st at 11:59am. Assignment 8: Begins Friday, Apr. 2nd at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Apr. 8th at 11:59am. Assignment 9: Begins Friday, Apr. 9th at 6am, Initial postings are due Tuesday at 6pm, and discussion postings are due Thursday, Apr. 15th at 11:59am. Please Note: All late assignments/postings in this class are NOT accepted. Delays in uploading files will NOT be considered a suitable reason to have a late posting accepted. Note: It is possible to complete the exercises and receive a failing evaluation. Make sure you are clear about the exercise guidelines and expectations. Exams (70%): The purpose of the exams is to determine each student's current level of course knowledge. Exams are not devised to reward hard work or effort, though hard work and effort generally contribute to greater course knowledge and, thus, better exam grades. There are 2 exams in this course: a midterm and a final. Both exams may contain a combination of multiple choice, fill in the blanks and/or true or false questions. The midterm (30%) will be written during class time on Wednesday, March 3rd. The final exam (40%) will be written during the exam break. If You Cannot Write The Final: The Registrar takes missing a final exam VERY SERIOUSLY. If you believe you have a valid reason for missing the final exam, you must contact Amy Dixon (your Student Advisor) to obtain the official Final Exam Deferral form and to provide your documentation for missing the exam. A student always looks more credible if they approach Amy Dixon BEFORE the exam, rather than after. If Amy Dixon approves that you have appropriate documentation for missing the exam, then a deferred final exam will be scheduled. If you cannot produce valid documentation, a deferred exam will NOT be scheduled and you will earn an F (failure) for your final exam grade. CLASS AND LECTURE SCHEDULE Approximate lecture dates are given so that you can keep up with the readings. You should do the required readings before the topic is covered in class because the lectures will often be expanding upon the concepts from the textbook. Make sure you understand the basics from the textbook before class. You are responsible for all the material covered in lectures and the assigned readings. In other words, everything in lecture and the text is important and will be fair game on the exams. Week  Date  Topic  Assigned Readings   (to be read by corresponding class date) 1  Jan. 13 Introduction to the course  Chapter 1 – Teevan, White and Hewitt 2  Jan. 20 Library Period with Nicole APA Manual, 5th Edition. Use scholarly sources!!!   3  Jan. 27 What is Sociology and What do Sociologists do? Chapter 1 & 6 – Teevan, White & Hewitt   Jan. 29 Online Assignment 1 Begins 4  Feb. 3 Theories of Sociology Chapter 1 & 6 - Teevan, White & Hewitt     Feb. 5 Online Assignment 2 Begins 5  Feb. 10 Feb. 12 Culture & Socialization Online Assignment 3 Begins Chapter 3 & 4 – Teevan, White & Hewitt   6 Feb. 24 Feb. 26 Deviance Online Assignment 4 Begins Chapter 5 – Teevan, White & Hewitt 7 Mar. 3 MIDTERM EXAM 8  Mar. 10 Social Movements and Social Change Chapter 15 & 17 – Teevan, White & Hewitt   Mar. 12 Online Assignment 5 Begins 9 Mar. 17 Deviance Lecture No readings at present – maybe emailed closer to the date   Mar. 19 Online assignment 6 Begins   10  Mar. 24 Family and Gender Relations Chapter 7 & 10 – Teevan, White & Hewitt   Mar. 26 Online Assignment 7 Begins 11  Mar. 31 Race and Ethnic Relations Chapter 8 – Teevan, White & Hewitt   Apr. 2 Online Assignment 8 Begins 12  Apr. 7   Apr. 9 Aging & Health Online Assignment 9 Begins Chapter 9 – Teevan, White & Hewitt   13  Apr. 14 Research Methods & Social Inequality Chapter 2 & 6 – Teevan, White & Hewitt If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to cover any readings, to borrow notes, and to learn of any in class announcements from a classmate. The instructor will NOT provide his/her notes to students. Students with Special Needs: If there is any student in this course, who, because of a disability, may have a need for special accommodations, please come and discuss this with me after you have contacted The Centre for Students with Disabilities (also known as REACH). In compliance with University of Ontario Institute of Technology policy and disability laws, I am available to discuss appropriate academic accommodations that you may require as a student with a disability. Requests for academic accommodations need to be made during the first week of the semester so arrangements can be made. I encourage you to register with REACH for disability verification and for determination of reasonable academic accommodations. ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT* Academic honesty is important to UOIT's purpose of helping learners to develop critical, independent thinking skills and habits. Cheating and other forms of academic dishonesty run counter to this purpose, disadvantage you by inhibiting your learning, disadvantage your peers by creating an unfair environment, and violate ethical and intellectual principles. Therefore, academic dishonesty is subject to penalties. Students are expected to do their own work unless advised that collaboration is acceptable. This means that all work you submit in this course is done by you alone, unless you have been explicitly told by the instructor (or the syllabus) that group work is allowed on a particular project. It is your own responsibility to neither use the work of others and present it as your own, nor to allow others to use your own work and present it as if it were their own. You may use facts from other sources if you re-write them in your own words. Anytime you quote directly from another source or paraphrase substantially, you must cite the source you used. Refer to the APA manual on how to properly cite sources. When you take a test, you are expected to keep your eyes on your own work and to protect your test from being copied by others. For the purposes of this course we will define academic dishonesty as: Plagiarism: Plagiarism is the presentation of work that originates from another unacknowledged source as one's own. Presenting someone else's ideas, argument, or information verbatim (or close to verbatim) without acknowledgement of the source in assessments, papers, or discussions, constitutes plagiarism. Cheating: a) Giving, receiving, or using (or attempting to give, obtain, or use) unauthorized information or assistance during an assessment or an examination b) Obtaining or conveying (or attempting to obtain or convey) unauthorized information about an assessment or examination questions c) Giving or receiving assistance on an essay or assignment that goes beyond that specifically allowed by the instructor (this includes buying and selling, or attempting to buy or sell essays and/or research assistance relating to course assignments) d) Impersonating someone else in an examination, causing or allowing oneself to be impersonated in an examination, or knowingly availing oneself of the results of impersonation e) Presenting a single piece of work in more than one course without the permission of the instructors involved To avoid being accused of cheating on an exam, I offer the following suggestions: Do not sit near friends. Shield your answer sheet so that others cannot see it. Take no notes, books, etc. into an exam except those expressly authorised. If in doubt, ask. Do not gaze around the room when writing an exam. Do not communicate with other students during an exam. Address all questions or comments to a proctor. Arrive on time. Hand in all papers requested. If you hear of anyone acquiring information about an exam in advance, report it to the instructor. If you suspect any suspicious behaviour on behalf of other students, report it to the proctor or instructor. For more information, see UOIT's Academic Calendar: _www.uoit.ca/calendar/calendar_05_06/41508/42668/45044/academic_misconduct_5151.html_ ONLINE ETIQUETTE Here are some GUIDELINES to follow when emailing or posting messages to other students, instructors, or teaching assistants, in order to keep this course a friendly, informative, and professional environment: (1) Assume that mail on the Internet is not secure. Never put in a mail message anything you would not put on a postcard. (2) Respect the copyright on material that you reproduce. Almost every country has copyright laws. (3) If you are forwarding or re-posting a message you've received, do not change the wording. If the message was a personal message to you and you are re-posting to a group, you should ask permission first. You may shorten the message and quote only relevant parts, but be sure you give proper attribution. (4) A good rule of thumb: Be conservative in what you send and liberal in what you receive. You should not send heated messages (we call these "flames") even if you are provoked. On the other hand, you shouldn't be surprised if you get flamed and it's prudent not to respond to flames. (5) In general, it's a good idea to at least check all your mail subjects before responding to a message. Sometimes a person who asks you for help (or clarification) will send another message which effectively says "Never Mind". Also make sure that any message you respond to was directed to you. You might be cc:ed rather than the primary recipient. (6) Make things easy for the recipient. Many mailers strip header information that includes your return address. In order to ensure that people know who you are, be sure to include a line or two at the end of your message with contact information. You can create this file ahead of time and add it to the end of your messages. (Some mailers do this automatically.) In Internet parlance, this is known as a ".sig" or "signature" file. Your .sig file takes the place of your business card. (And you can have more than one to apply in different circumstances.) If you are posting a message that was a group effort, make sure the names of all group members appear at the bottom of the message or in the .sig file. (7) Watch cc's when replying. Don't continue to include people if the messages have become a 2-way conversation. (8) Be especially careful with sarcasm. Remember, you do not have body language or tone of voice to communicate for you in electronic format. (9) Use mixed case. UPPER CASE LOOKS AS IF YOU'RE SHOUTING. (10) Use smileys to indicate tone of voice, but use them sparingly. :-) is an example of a smiley (Look sideways). Don't assume that the inclusion of a smiley will make the recipient happy with what you say or wipe out an otherwise insulting comment. (11) Wait overnight to send emotional responses to messages. (12) Be brief without being overly terse. When replying to a message, include enough original material to be understood but no more. It is extremely bad form to simply reply to a message by including the entire previous message: edit out all the irrelevant material. (13) Mail should have a subject heading which reflects the content of the message. (14) If you include a signature keep it short. Rule of thumb is no longer than 4 lines. Remember that many people pay for connectivity by the minute, and the longer your message is, the more they pay. (15) If you think the importance of a message justifies it, immediately reply briefly to an e-mail message to let the sender know you got it, even if you will send a longer reply later. (16) Try not to use slang or local acronyms. Your audience may not understand you. This information was abstracted from Netiquette Guidelines offered for unlimited distribution on the Delaware Technical Community College website . GRADE EXPLANATIONS* The letter grade explanations below are a description of what you need to achieve in order to receive those particular grades on your final exam and papers. If you have not attained a particular level of performance, you cannot earn the accompanying grade. GRADES ARE AN INDICATION OF WHAT YOU HAVE ACHIEVED IN THIS COURSE, NOT WHAT YOU DESIRE TO ACHIEVE. A+ Amazing. Surpasses all expectations. Very strong evidence of originality and independence of thought; excellent organization; great capacity to analyze and synthesize information; superior grasp of subject matter with sound critical evaluations; strong evidence of extensive knowledge base; an outstanding ability to communicate. A Excellent. Surpasses most expectations. Strong evidence of originality and independence of thought; great organization; strong capacity to analyze and synthesize information; superior grasp of subject matter with sound critical evaluations; strong evidence of extensive knowledge base; an outstanding ability to communicate. A- Very good. Surpasses many expectations. Strong evidence of originality and independence of thought; great organization; strong capacity to analyze and synthesize information; superior grasp of subject matter with sound critical evaluations; evidence of extensive knowledge base; an outstanding ability to communicate. B+ Very good. Substantial knowledge of subject matter; good evidence of organization and analytic ability; a moderate degree of originality and independence of thought; good understanding of relevant issues; evidence of familiarity with literature; an ability to communicate clearly and fluently. B Good. Substantial knowledge of subject matter; good evidence of organization and analytic ability; a moderate degree of originality and independence of thought; good understanding of relevant issues; evidence of familiarity with literature; an ability to communicate clearly and fluently. B- Good. Substantial knowledge of subject matter; some evidence of organization and analytic ability; a moderate degree of originality and independence of thought; reasonable understanding of relevant issues; evidence of familiarity with literature; an ability to communicate clearly and fluently. C+ Adequate. Student is profiting from his/her university experience; an acceptable understanding of the subject matter; ability to develop solutions to representative problems in the material; some ability to organize and analyze ideas; an ability to communicate adequately. C Barely adequate. Student gains some profit from his/her university experience; barely acceptable understanding of the subject matter; some ability to develop solutions to representative problems in the material; some ability to organize and analyze ideas; an ability to communicate adequately. D Marginal. Some evidence that critical and analytic skills have been developed; insufficient, rudimentary knowledge of the subject matter; significant weakness in the ability to communicate. F Inadequate. Little evidence of understanding of subject matter; weakness in critical and analytic skills; limited or irrelevant use of literature; failure to complete required work; an inability to communicate. The letter grade descriptions for this course are expanded upon from UOIT's university-wide standards, as they are expressed in UOIT's Academic Calendar: _http://www.uoit.ca/calendar/calendar_05_06/41508/42668/grading_58.html_ * Portions of these sections were taken from the following sources: Dr. Kimberley Clow’s Research Methods Syllabus, Academic Calendar, Academic Handbook of Senate Regulations, Dr. Mike Atkinson’s Tips on Effective Learning, Dr. Hannah Scott’s Introduction to Psychology Syllabus, and the Department of History at the University of Western Ontario Document on Plagiarism.