Sociology 200
Principles
of Sociology
Spring
2007
Dr. John Brenner
Office B-144 Office Phone (276)-964-7226
e-mail: john.brenner@sw.edu 3 Credits
Catalog Description: Introduces basic concepts and methods of sociology. Presents significant research and theory in areas such as socialization, group dynamics, gender roles, minority group relations, stratification, deviance, culture, community studies. Introduces population, social change, and social institutions (family, education, religion, political system, economic systems).
Course Goals: The student should be able to understand and describe the introductory sociological terminology and concepts concerning the following areas: sociological theory and conceptualization, research methods, culture, socialization, social interaction, social organizations, and deviancy.
Required Textbook: Ferrante, J. (2002).
Sociology: A global perspective (6th Ed.).
Course requirements:
Papers--20% (10% each)
Prompts---10%
Quizzes--10%
Final Examination--10%
Tests: There will be five chapter examinations for the semester and a final exam. The test will cover two (2) chapters and the lectures for that chapter plus any outside readings that may be assigned. Students are not allowed to miss an examination. If there is an emergency that prevents you from being in class then you must contact the instructor prior to the time of the test. You may call the office number listed above and leave a voice message or send an email message. If a student misses a test then the test can only be made up at the end of the semester during the final examination period.
Papers: Each student will be required to do two (2)
journal reviews. Each paper (approximately 2-4 pages) will be a review of a
sociological journal article. There is further and detailed information on the
journal in this syllabus. The first paper must be submitted to the instructor no
later than February 23, 2007 (you may turn it in early). After you have
received you first paper from the instructor, you can then submit your second
review. The second paper should be submitted no later than
Prompts: Each student will be required to visit is the Computer Lab once a week to respond to a prompt that has been written which is on the Internet on the homepage of SVCC. The lab staff will show you the location or you can locate it at another computer that has Internet access. You must answer each prompt each week. No one will be allowed a makeup on the prompt. You will receive a 100 if you write on each week's prompt. You will be required to insert your IMP ID number (and the pass word is your birth-date) in order to receive credit for the prompt. Each response must be a minimum of three sentences and it can be as long as you like. You may also comment on the responses made by other students. You may not copy another person's response. Only original responses will be counted. This grade is given on the basis of participation. Check to see if your response was recorded.
Participation: Each student is expected to be an active member of the class. This means the student should come to class prepared and willing to respond to lectures and class discussions. It is also expected that students will actively participate in group work. If you attend class by never missing a day you will receive plus 2 points added to your final grade. If you miss more than 3 days, you will have one (1) point taken off of your final grade for each day over 3 that you have missed.
Quizzes: A number of pop (unannounced) quizzes will be given during the semester. The quiz will come from the reading assignment for the day or the lecture from the previous class period. You will not be able to make-up the quiz for any reason. One or more will be dropped at the end of the semester.
Final Examination: The final exam will cover all the chapters that have been studied during the semester. This exam will cover any material that the student had been tested on during the semester. The date of the exam is noted on the syllabus. Everyone must take the exam.
Grading Scale: A=100-90; B=89-80; C=79-70; D=69-60; Below 59=F.
Internet postingsthe sociology home page will have the PowerPoint Lectures for each chapter. It would be best if you downloaded a hard copy to bring to class with you. The essay questions and test review will also be located at the same place. Go to the sociology site found on the Humanities home page for SVCC.
Journal Review
The student must review an article that published in a sociological journal. Many journals are located on the campus of SVCC in the library. The student may locate the article from other libraries. The student must select an article from the following sources: Deviant Behavior, American Sociological Review, Sociological Focus, American Journal of Sociology, Contemporary Sociology, Social Problems, Social Forces, Journal of Marriage and Family or the Journal of Sociology. You must select a complete article (not a review) from one of the above journals; no articles from popular magazines will be accepted. If you are unable to answer all the six (6) questions then you have not selected a research article. You must select one that describes a research project.
The following are the questions that each student must answer for the journal review. The questions must be type written or computer generated, no hand written work will be accepted. The student is expected to submit a paper uses correct spelling with all typographical errors corrected.
To properly complete the assignment, the student must each of these questions. You may list the question with the answer or combine the answers into a discussion of the journal.
1. What is the name of the article? List the journal
name and when it was published?
2. Who is the author (s)? What does the article say
about the people who wrote this article, for example, what is the authors
occupation, and what reasons do he/she/they present for writing this article?
3. Briefly describe areas where the author(s) have
studied similar topics.
4. What are the conditions of the research? Who did the
author study and how were they chosen? What was the total number of participants
and when was the study conducted? In other words, how did they obtain the
information for their research?
5. What did the authors discover? What conclusions did
they make from doing this piece of research? What are the future implications of
this study?
6. What is your personal conclusion about this study?
What was it that you disliked or like about the study? Your statements can be
positive or negative but they must be directly related to the specific
information that was presented in the article. Here you should be thoughtful and
use insight in your conclusion.
You must answer each of the above six (6) questions. You may not be able to answer all the parts of each question because the journal articles are different but you must at least a paragraph on each question (or more). I will return your first journal review, with comments to explain the grade, after you have received that grade you should then proceed to your second review which follows the same format (6 questions).
a. You should only pick articles that you are interested in reading?
b. You should proofread all you typed or computer generated work before you submit it for grading. You may want to have someone read you article to find some of your errors. You may want to write the review and then re-read it several days later to find the errors.
c. Write clearly by defining everything that you are
writing about in the review. Do not assume that the instructor knows the term.
The instructor wants to know if the student understands the term or concept.
If you take a direct quote from the journal note it by using quotation marks.
d. The goal of this assignment is to describe to the instructor a piece of research that you have read and that you understand it. Answer each question completely in order to receive a high grade on this assignment.
e. The journal that is returned to the student must be returned to the instructor.
Chapter readings, test dates and journal due dates:
26--5
285
Mar 26
5--6
7--6
9-6 (Spring Break 12-16)
Jan 81
101 19--6
121
21-- Test 3
23 7
151
172
192
26--7
287- Journal #2 Due
307
222
24Test 1 April 2--8
263 4--8
6No Class
293
31--3 9--8
Feb 23
11-- Test 4
13----9
53 16--9
74 18--9
94 20--9
124 23--10
144 2510
16Test 2 2710
195
3010
21--5
May 2Test 5
235 Journal #1 Due
Final Examination Friday May 4,