Fall 2006 Syllabus
Sociology 1021-001:
Classroom: BESC 185
Instructor: Duke W. Austin
Duke’s Office: Ketchum 8
Duke’s Mailbox: Ketchum 220
Office Hours: Mon., 6:00-6:50 PM, Wed., 2:30-3:20 PM
Coffee Hours: Select Mondays TBA in class, 10:30-12:00 noon
@ Burnt Toast, 1235
Duke’s Email: Duke.Austin@Colorado.edu (Please expect a
1-2 day response.)
Duke’s Phone: 303-819-8609 (Please do not call before 8AM or after 9PM.)
Required Texts:
McCall, Nathan.
1995. Makes Me Wanna Holler: A
Young Black Man in
Suro, Robert.
1999. Strangers Among Us:
Latino Lives in Changing
Rothenberg, Paula S. 2005. White
Privilege: Essential
Schaefer, Richard T. 2005. Race
and Ethnicity in the
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Course Description and Goals:
This course
introduces students to the sociological study of race and ethnicity. Sociologists argue that race and ethnicity
are socially constructed categories that produce very tangible life
consequences and experiences. Racial and
ethnic constructions structure differential opportunities in the
This course challenges students to
examine racial and ethnic stratification in the
1. Study the theoretical position that race and ethnicity are socially constructed.
2. Understand that the stratification of race and ethnicity is a very real and tangible phenomenon that differentially creates barriers and opportunities that in turn affects life chances.
3. Learn the difference between individual and institutional racism and the effects of each.
3. Examine your own position in racial and ethnic stratification.
4. Acquire tools to combat both individual and institutional racism.
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Classmate
Information:
Classmates provide an important source of information and aid for the class. Should you miss a class, you are required to get missed notes and assignments from your classmates. As the instructor, I will not supply missed material for you. In addition, you should ask your classmates to peer-edit your papers and form study groups before the tests. Please take a moment to get the contact information of at least two classmates.
Name: ________________ Email: ____________________ Phone: ________________
Name: ________________ Email: ____________________ Phone: ________________
WebCT:
WebCT is an essential resource for this class. I will post grades, lecture outlines, and important class-related announcements to WebCT. In addition, I will announce guest speakers and other events of sociological relevance that you can attend as part of your extra-credit assignments. Finally, WebCT provides a weblog where you can post your extra-credit assignments and enter on-line discussions.
You are responsible for all material posted to WebCT and should check it at least once a week in order to keep current with class. You will be automatically entered into the WebCT component of the course when you are officially enrolled. If you do not have access to this course from your WebCT page please inform me before the end of the third week of class.
WebCT can be accessed at https://webct.colorado.edu.
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Office Hours and Coffee Hours:
I encourage students to utilize office hours as an additional class resource where you can discuss course concepts, paper topics or anything else of sociological relevance. Students who visit office hours regularly tend to do better in the class.
Coffee hours are similar to office hours, except I hold them at Burnt Toast Restaurant. The Department of Sociology does not require instructors to hold coffee hours; I hold them in addition to the required office hours because the casual environment is more conducive to good discussions. Hopefully, each of you will be able to frequent coffee hours and join the discussion. If you choose to attend coffee hours, please respect our host by patronizing the establishment.
In addition to office and coffee hours, I will be available in the BESC hallway following each class.
Assignments and
Grades:
Your grade will be comprised of several required and extra-credit assignments. You will find that in addition to the multiple choice exams there is a lot of writing required for this course. Please consider this when choosing whether or not to remain enrolled at the start of the semester. I reserve the right to change the assignments and grading scales based on class specific demands.
The following list breaks down assignments by weight.
Reading Summaries 10%
Test One 10%
Test Two 20%
First Draft of Short Paper 10%
Final Draft of Short Paper 20%
Final Exam 30%
Reading Summaries
(10%)
At the end of every week, you should
submit a typed short summary for all
the assigned readings for that week. I
assign reading summaries because you can use them both for writing
papers and studying for tests. They also
allow me to gauge students’ completion, comprehension and assessment of the
readings.
Second, include a separate short paragraph for each reading assigned that week. Each paragraph should contain three to five (3-5) main points from the reading, be written in fewer than 100 words, and use correct spelling and grammar.
Finally, write a short reflection on all the week’s readings
in which you connect them to other course materials and to your own informed
academic perspective of the readings. In
other words, critically examine the strengths and weaknesses of the argument;
do not simply state your opinion. As
before, write the reflection in paragraph form with fewer than 100 words while
using correct spelling and grammar.
I will grade all reading summaries. To receive full credit, you must make a reasonable effort, correctly summarize the article, and identify important quotes while staying within the guidelines described in the previous paragraphs. If you do not complete the assigned reading, please be honest. Summarize as much as you read and then write, “I did not do/complete the reading,” and you will receive half credit, so long as you do not abuse this privilege (>4 equals abuse). Failing to follow the directions or complete the summary on time will result in no credit. I consider an attempt to fabricate a summary without having done the reading as academic dishonesty (cheating), and I will report the infraction to the honor code council.
Tests (10%, 20%, 30%)
There are three tests in this class. The first is worth 10% of your grade, the second is worth 20% of your grade, and the final exam is worth 30% of your grade. Each test contains a combination of multiple-choice and short-answer questions. Only the final exam is cumulative.
Short Paper (10%, 20%)
A 5 to 7 page paper will be assigned. A completed first draft of the paper is worth 10% of the course grade, and the final draft of the paper will be worth 20% of the course grade. I will post details about this assignment to WebCT later in the semester. Up to five percent of each draft can be earned by having a classmate edit your paper or taking it to the writing center.
Extra-Credit
CU
sponsors a number of guest speakers and events throughout the semester. In addition, local and national newspapers
often run articles that relate to class concepts. To complete an extra-credit assignment,
attend an approved speech or event or read an applicable newspaper
article. Then, write a web log entry
about the event you attended and submit it to WebCT. You may do up to five extra-credit assignments,
each of which will earn you up to one percentage point (1%) on your overall
course grade.
I
will announce extra-credit speeches, events and articles via WebCT. Alternatively, you may approach me with an
extra-credit idea prior to writing the summary.
An
extra-credit web log should be no more than 300 words in length and should
briefly summarize the speech, event or article.
In addition, it should answer the question, "How does this
illustrate or relate to class concepts?"
Be sure to correctly cite the class reading(s) as well as the speech,
event or article. Failure to follow
these guidelines or to adequately relate the speech, event or article to at
least one class reading will result in no credit.
I encourage you to respond to the web log entries. Doing so may help your grade should you have a borderline grade at the end of the semester.
Class assignments will be graded on the following scale.
|
Grade |
Number Grade |
Description |
|
A |
90-100 |
Exceeds all required elements of an assignment, and the quality of the work is considerably greater than what was required. |
|
B |
80-89 |
Meets all required elements of an assignment, and the quality of the work is better than what is required. |
|
C |
70-79 |
Meets all required elements of an assignment, no more, no less. Quality of assignment is satisfactory. |
|
D |
60-69 |
Fails to meet all required elements of an assignment, and/or the quality of the assignment is less than satisfactory. |
|
F |
50-59 |
Only meets some of the required elements of an assignment, and/or the quality of the assignment is considerably lower than satisfactory. |
|
Zero |
0 |
Fails to meet any of the required elements of an assignment, and/or the quality of the assignment is abysmal. Assignment is late or incomplete. Assignment is not turned in at all. Assignment shows signs of plagiarism. |
|
Average |
0% |
60% |
63% |
67% |
70% |
73% |
77% |
80% |
83% |
87% |
90% |
94% |
|
Letter Grade |
F |
D- |
D |
D+ |
C- |
C |
C+ |
B- |
B |
B+ |
A- |
A |
|
GPA |
0.00 |
0.07 |
1.00 |
1.30 |
1.70 |
2.00 |
2.30 |
2.70 |
3.00 |
3.30 |
3.70 |
4.0 |
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Miscellaneous CU and Course Policies:
As per university policy, an undergraduate
student should expect to spend approximately 3 hours per week outside of class
for each credit hour earned. Therefore,
you should expect to spend approximately 12 total hours per week in the
completion of this course. You may see
the definition of a credit hour at http://www.colorado.edu/FacultyGovernance/MOTRES/BFAxm_90105.html.
Classroom Behavior
Students and faculty each have the
responsibility to maintain an appropriate learning environment. Students who do not adhere to
behavioral expectations will be asked to leave the class. Severe or repeated infractions of behavioral
expectations will be subject to further discipline, including grade reductions
and/or dismissal from the class. Instructors have the professional
responsibility to treat students with understanding, dignity and respect, to
guide classroom discussion and to set reasonable limits on the manner in which
students express opinions. See CU’s behavioral polices at www.colorado.edu/policies/classbehavior.html
and at
www.colorado.edu/studentaffairs/judicialaffairs/code.html#student.
Attendance
Except
for the first two days of class, attendance will not be taken. This does not mean, however, that you can
expect to do well if you choose not to attend.
It will be very difficult to write informed papers, perform well on
exams, and make meaningful contributions to class discussions (and therefore
earn a good grade) if you do not regularly attend class.
Late Work Policy
Students
often have good reasons for turning in late work. If you need extra time to complete an
assignment, you must inform the instructor via email no later than 5:00 p.m.
the day before the assignment is due. If
you follow these instructions, he is generally willing to allow an additional
day or two to complete the assignment.
You may take advantage of this policy only once during the semester.
This
policy DOES NOT apply to exams. If an
exam is missed, the student will be required to write an additional paper for
the class, or take a zero on the exam.
The paper will be due two weeks following the date of the exam, and it
is the responsibility of the student to schedule an appointment to discuss the
paper assignment.
The
instructor will not accept late work from students who do not follow these
instructions. Please note that the
instructor will not accept work sent via email or left under his office
door. Work that is placed in my mailbox
without prior approval will be considered late and points will be deducted.
Appealing Your Grade
If
you receive a grade that you believe is incorrect or unfair and would like the
instructor to reconsider it, you will need to submit 1) your graded assignment
and 2) a typed letter explaining point by point why you believe the grade you
received does not accurately reflect the quality of your work given the
requirements of the assignment. You must
submit these items to the instructor within one week of the date the graded
assignment was handed back. The
instructor will inform you of his decision no more than two weeks after
receiving them.
Please
note that if you ask the instructor to reevaluate your work, your new grade may
be lower than the original.
Email
Email is the official means of communication for the Department of Sociology, and students are invited to contact the instructor via his CU webmail account. At the same time, understand that the instructor receives an inordinate amount of official email and may not be able to respond for one to two days. In addition, as an official means of communication, email correspondence addressed to the instructor should be written with correct spelling and grammar.
Add/Drops
Class-size limits are set according to departmental guidelines and the fire code, both of which specify the number of students that can be enrolled in each course. Therefore, please do not ask the instructional team if you can be added to the course. Students who do not attend at least one of the first two recitations will be automatically dropped, and those on the waitlist will be automatically added. Use the CU Connect to verify if you have been dropped or added. The address is https://cuconnect.colorado.edu.
Disability Accommodations
If you
qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please submit to the
instructor a letter from Disability Services by the end of the third week of
class so that your needs may be addressed. Disability Services determines
accommodations based on documented disabilities. Contact: 303-492-8671,
Willard 322, or www.Colorado.EDU/disabilityservices.
Religious Holidays
Campus
policy regarding religious observances requires that faculty make every effort
to reasonably and fairly deal with all students who, because of religious
obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments, or required
attendance. If you need to miss class for a religious holiday please
submit a letter to the instructor by the end of the third week of class. For a copy of CU’s policy regarding religious
holidays, visit: http://www.colorado.edu/policies/fac_relig.html.
Academic Integrity
All
students of the
Code can be found at http://www.colorado.edu/policies/honor.html
and at
http://www.colorado.edu/academics/honorcode/
Sexual Harassment Policy
The
Course
Calendar:
|
Theme: Race Matters: Introduction to R&E, History and Privilege |
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|
|
Monday |
Wednesday |
Friday |
|
Week One: Introduction to Race & Ethnicity |
28-Aug Introductions And Syllabus Attendance Taken |
30-Aug “Understanding Race and Ethnicity” Attendance Taken |
1-Sept Brown, “Biology and the Social
Construction of the ‘Race’ Concept,” and West, “Race Matters” Introductory Essay Due Reading Quiz Given in lieu of Reading Summary |
|
Week Two: Individual & Structural Racism |
4-Sept Labor Day NO CLASS |
6-Sept Schaefer, Ch.2: “Prejudice” |
8-Sept “Discrimination” Week Two Reading Summaries Due |
|
Week Three: Genocide and Slavery |
11-Sept Reading (on WebCT): Churchill, “‘Nits Make Lice’ The
Extermination of North American Indians, 1607-1996.” |
13-Sept Readings (on WebCT): CU Investigation of Research
Misconduct, and Mayer’s Response (These readings may be skimmed.) |
15-Sept No additional readings. Week Three Reading Summaries Due |
|
Week Four: Privilege |
18-Sept Reading: Schaefer, Ch. 5: “Ethnicity and Religion” |
20-Sept Reading: Start Rothenberg, Part I: “whiteness: the power of
invisibility” |
22-Sept Reading: Finish Rothenberg, Part I:
“whiteness: the power of invisibility” Week Four Reading Summaries Due |
|
Week Five: Wrap-Up & Test Review |
25-Sept Reading: Rothenberg, Part II: “whiteness: the power of the
past” |
27-Sept Reading: Rothenberg, Part III: “whiteness: the power of
privilege” |
29-Sept Test One Review (Test One will be given Monday, Oct. 2.) Week Five Reading Summaries Due |