Sociology 201-V1
Spring 2006
Introduction to Sociology I
John Brenner, Ed. D.
Southwest Virginia Community College
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. (2006). Sociology: A Global Perspective (6th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, (This is a new textbook for Spring 2006, the old textbook will not work.)
Blackboard access:
The video lectures for each of the chapters are found on Blackboard. These are called Teleweb modules and are located under the external links tab. Each chapter has several modules (some more than others). If you are experience problems with Teleweb modules then all of the modules are available from the Distance Education Office (276.964.7279) on CD-Rom.
Sequence of study:
Test 1----Chapters 1 & 2 Test 2----Chapters 3 & 4
Test 3----Chapters 5 & 6 Test 4----Chapters 7 & 8
Grading Scale: A=100-90; B=89-80; C=79-70; D=69-60;
F=59-0.
Course requirements:
Tests--40%
Quizzes—10%
Journals--30% (15% each)
Papers: 10%
Portfolio--10%
Testing schedule:
In order to successfully complete the course the student should use the following as a guideline for completing course work. This is a plan to follow. There is no penalty for early or late completion.
Test 1—Jan 27
Test 2—Feb 24 Journal 1—Feb 6
Test 3—March 24 Journal 2—March 9
Test 4—April 21 Portfolio after reading all chapters
People Paper(s) due:
Paper 1—Feb 28
Paper 2—March 31
Papers:
Each student will be required to review 5 pictures of people from countries other than the United States. The student should select a picture group to review then collect 3 different web sites that deal with the people or society of these people. Include the websites at the conclusion of the paper. Write about the people of the country that you have viewed. You should comment on how the pictures lead you to select certain websites. Then in 2-3 typed pages, write about the country you selected. Here are the items to include in your paper.
In order to help you review the textbook material and understand what the tests will be like, there are posted some learning assistance materials (lecture notes, test reviews and essay questions for each test) on the Internet. Go to:
http://humanities.sw.edu/SOC/SOC201V1/soc201notes.html
This site will offer a variety of learning tools. Posted here will be notes on the chapter, PowerPoint presentations of the instructor’s lectures, reviews for the tests and essay questions for the tests. Not all chapters will have all the same information but what is there will assist you in completing the assignments.
Also remember that you can email the instructor with any problems you are having in getting to the site or how to access the information.
Tests: There will be four examinations for the semester. The tests are objective with several short essay questions. You must read all the material in the book in order to correctly answer the questions. A student can not merely view the videos as this will not be sufficient for answering the test questions. The tests are thorough and test the student over all the material in the textbook. There will be four examinations for the semester. Each will cover two (2) chapters and the videos for that chapter.
Quiz: The quizzes for the course are found on the Blackboard site under the heading “assignment”. There are two quizzes for each chapter. My suggestion is that you read the chapter, view the videos then take the two quizzes. Each test has two chapters so there would be four quizzes for each test. You will want to take the quizzes to see how y ou are doing with understanding the material and they quizzes will assist you in taking the test as they correspond to test questions
Before you take a test, you will have read and studied two chapters, viewed the videos for two chapters, reviewed the essay questions (listed at http://humanities.sw.edu/SOC/SOC201V1/soc201notes.html) and taken 4 quizzes. You will be successful if you follow this sequence and continue to work on the course.
All written assignments must be typed, no handwritten assignments will be accepted.
Journals: Each student will be required to do two 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. It is best if you complete one journal and then wait for the results of that journal before you complete the second review. However, you may complete them as you wish, but they must be submitted before the end of the semester. This assignment will be available at the SVCC Distance Education Office for review purposes only.
Portfolio: Each student will be required to submit a portfolio after the completion of the last examination. This portfolio should consist of two entries in a log for each chapter. After completing the reading of a chapter and the viewing of the videos, the student should take a concept from the material and apply it to current society. You must define the term so that I know that you understand it. Then you may cite something you read, like a newspaper or magazine article or you can cite something you heard or saw. All the student has to do is to write (type) one or two descriptive paragraphs (or more if you like) about a sociological term you now notice. You must type two (2) of these assignments (on two different terms) for each chapter. The purpose of this assignment is to have the student apply sociological terminology to everyday life. For example, the textbook may introduce the term ‘socialization’, after you have mastered an understanding of this term you may want to write about the rules that your family applied to you as a child. The portfolio will cover chapters 1-8 only.
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 stated journals; no articles from popular magazines will be accepted.
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 using correct spelling with all typographical errors corrected.
To properly complete the assignment, the student must answer 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 author’s 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 did they prove or disprove? What conclusions did they make from doing this piece of research? What are the future implications of this study?
(If you can not answer this question then you did not select an appropriate article, it must be one where the author is reporting on a research project.)
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 present 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. Consider the following:
a. You should only pick articles that you are interested in reading?
b. You should proofread all your typed or computer generated work before you submit it for grading. You may want to have someone read your 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.
d. The goal of this assignment is to tell the instructor that you have read a piece of research and you understand it. Answer each question completely in order to receive a high grade on this assignment.
You can not submit the same journal review for the Sociology 201 and 202 course. If you are taking both video courses then you must submit 2 reviews for each course.
Below are some notes from the SVCC Library to help you access sociology journals.
Sociology Journals
On Shelf & Online
To find research articles for your Sociology class, you have a couple of options. You can visit the Southwest Virginia Community College Library and find the actual journal on the library shelves, or you can use the Internet to find full-text journal articles.
The following journals can be checked out from the Library for a period of two weeks, and they can be renewed once for two more weeks. They are Social Forces, Deviant Behavior, American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Journal of Marriage and Family, Sociological Focus, and Sociological Quarterly. To avoid library fines, you can renew your journal by either bringing your library card to the Library Circulation Desk, by calling the SWCC Library at (276) 964-7265, or by renewing online at the SWCC Library web page at http://www.sw.vccs.edu/library. To renew online, choose “Overdue/Renewal Policy” under the “Services” link on the Library web page.
You can also search the VCCS Full-Text Periodical List which is available via the Virtual Library of Virginia (VIVA) to locate full text journal articles online. The Full-Text Periodical List give access to Social Forces and the American Journal of Sociology. From the SWCC Library web page (http://www.sw.vccs.edu/library) select the “Periodicals” link. Then choose “Full-Text List.” Do an “Exact” search (select the button) for your journal title. Direct links can then be made to VIVA databases such as Project Muse, InfoTrac OneFile, Expanded Academic ASAP, or General Reference Center Gold from your results list. Once you have selected one of these databases, you can limit your current search to Social Forces or to the American Journal of Sociology.
Access to the Library’s electronic resources from your home is not automatic. Registered SWCC students have remote access to VIVA and several other specially purchased library databases, which are not available to the general public. If you are accessing the Library’s databases from an off-campus location, you may be prompted for a VIVA username and password. You can use your EMPL I.D. or your VCCS assigned username as your VIVA username. Use the same password that you use to access your student accounts at http://sw.my.vccs.edu (BlackBoard, e-mail, Student Information System – VCCS SIS8).
Need Help? Contact SWCC librarians:
(276) 964-7617, day time
(276) 964-7266, day time
(276) 964-7738, evenings
If you are having difficulties you are encouraged to contact your instructor at 276-964-7226, please leave a message on my voice mail and I will return your call. When calling please say your name and phone number clearly. You can also e-mail me at:
john.brenner@sw.edu