Instructor Information s2

SOCIOLOGY 102 Social Problems Spring 2018 Instructor Information: Instructor: Dr. Sara Brallier, Professor of Sociology Office: 221 Britain Hall (BRTH) Office Hours: M: 10:00-11:30; T: 10:00 – 11:30; W: 9:30-10:30; TH 10:00-11:30 and by appointment All times referred to in this course will be in Eastern Standard Time (EST) Phone: 843.349.2470 E-mail: [email protected] (Official means of contact). I will respond to emails within 24 hours.

This is a hybrid course. Most of course materials are delivered via Moodle (http://www.moodle.coastal.edu/ )

Course Description: Analysis of social structures and processes relating to public issues in contemporary society Course Objectives: After completing this course: 1. You will develop an understanding of sociology’s basic concepts, theoretical frameworks, and research processes. 2. You will be able to use sociological perspective to understand human behavior within its social context. 3. You will gain insight into the core sociological concepts of social groups and social control, social inequality, and social institutions.

Measurable learning objectives of what I would like students to achieve via this course: 1. Identify and employ various research designs and their appropriate application to the study of social life. 2. Demonstrate an understanding of the major theoretical perspectives employed in the discipline. 3. Demonstrate an understanding of how social class affects individual life chances. 4. Demonstrate an understanding of social structure and how it shapes and influences social interactions. 5. Demonstrate and understanding of the various approaches to understanding social problems 6. Describe the power structure in America. 7. Discuss issues pertaining to race and ethnicity. 8. Discuss gender stratification in the United States including issues such as wage discrimination, blocked opportunities, and "old-Boy" networks. 9. Discuss drug and alcohol abuse including whether the behavior should be criminalized., medicalized, or legalized. 10. Explain various social issues confronting the family and children in U.S. society. 11. Describe the social issues regarding the educational system. 12. Discuss political economy and how it impacts various social groups in the U.S. 13. Explain how industrialization impacts the ecosystem and how changes in the ecology, in turn, influence human cultures. 14. Describe issues confronting the cities. Be able to explain why people are homeless 15. Discuss various global social problems including exploitative relationships between rich and poor countries. Required Materials: Macionis, John. Social Problems (6th edition).

Course Technology Requirements and Prerequisite Skills:  Desktop or laptop computer with Internet connection (high speed cable connection desirable) is needed for use in online sessions. Access to Moodle Learning Management System (LMS) and other web based tools to be used throughout workshop (links will be provided in Moodle). Access to speakers or earbuds for listening to the audio portion of the videos in this course.  Specific skills needed include, but are not limited to: Ability to send email with file attachments, ability to use Moodle to complete assignments (discussion forums, assignments, quizzes), and ability to view browser based multimedia.  In this course, you will be given some assignments that will allow you the option to display your creativity through mediums other than an essay. Such activities are informational webpages (SMORE: https://www.smore.com/) or informational videos (Adobe Spark: https://spark.adobe.com/ ). Other web based tools may be used throughout the course (links will be provided in Moodle). Course Participation Requirements:  Quizzes. There will be a 20 item quiz for each chapter.  Final Exam. You will take a 50 item final exam. The exam will be offered online during finals week.  Assignments. You are expected to complete four written assignments for this course. Details of the assignments are provided on Moodle.  Discussion. You are expected to participate in 17 online discussions. The discussion posting needs to be done by the date indicated on Moodle. Each discussion posting is worth 20 points. A good discussion posting will:  Address the discussion question (4 points).  Logically present your position (4 points).  Support your position with empirical evidence (4 points).  Incorporate other students’ responses (except for the first posting) (4 points).  Is well written (i.e., no spelling or grammatical errors) (4 points).  Project. You will be expected participate in the CCU Mentoring Program and write 5 blog posts discussing the social problems of education as they relate to your experience with the mentoring program or write a 7 page research paper on a social problem of your choice. Guidelines are provided on Moodle.  Attendance: timely completion of all assignments is required. A missed assignment is considered an absence. As stated in the University’s academic regulations, absences, excused or not, do not absolve the student from the responsibility of completing all assigned work promptly. Moreover, students whose absences are in excess of 25% of the regularly scheduled class meetings will receive an F in the course. Link to University Attendance Policy (http://www.coastal.edu/policies/policyDetails.html?x=120 ) Grading Policy and Procedures: Course Requirement Percent of Grade Quizzes 20% Final Exam 20% Assignments 20% Online Discussions* 20% Course Project 20% Total 100%

Final letter grades will be based on this scale: Percent of total correct: Letter grade: 90.0 - 100.0% A 87.0 - 89.9% B+ 80.0- 86.9% B 77.0 – 79.9% C+ 70.0 – 76.9% C 60.0 - 69.9% D Under 60.0% F

I will make every effort to grade all of your work within 7 days from submission. If you submitted work and it was not graded after 7 days, please let me know; I may not have received it.  All due dates are clearly listed on the syllabus and in Moodle. Late assignments, quizzes and discussions are counted assigned a grade of zero.

 In the event of an emergency or absence please notify me by email as soon as possible and provide documentation when submitting the late assignment.

 There are no extra credit options for this course.

Academic Integrity:  I will report all Academic Integrity issues through the channels provided by the University. Depending on the severity of the case, I will enforce one of the following policies: “Cheating, plagiarism, or any other act of academic dishonesty will result in the student receiving a 0.0 (FX) for the course.” Or “First incident of plagiarism will result in a 0 on the assignment. Any subsequent violations will result in an FX for the course.”  Link to CCU Academic Integrity Policy (http://www.coastal.edu/academicintegrity/) Tentative Course Outline

Week Topic Assignments Due Week 1 Starting the Course  Getting to Know You Forum Class meeting on 1/9 – (1/12) Sociology’s Basic Approach  Sociology 102 Expectations Quiz (1/12) Week 2 Chapter 1:  Forum Post: Social Problems in Class meeting on 1/16 – Sociology: Studying the News Media (1/17) Mentoring program Social Problems  Quiz: Studying Social Problems (1/19) Week 3 Chapter 2: Poverty  Forum Post: Ted Talks: New Class meeting on 1/23 – and Wealth Insights on Poverty (1/24) Training for the mentoring  Quiz: Poverty and Wealth (1/26) program Week 4 Chapter 3: Racial  Forum Post: Color blind or color Class meeting on 1/30 – and Ethnic brave? (1/31) Problems of Social Inequality Inequality  Quiz: Racial and Ethnic Inequality (2/2)  Assignment #1 (2/2) Week 5 Chapter 4: Gender  Forum Post: Discussion of No meeting on 2/6 Inequality Killing Us Softly 4 (2/6)  Quiz: Gender Inequality (2/6) Chapter 5: Aging  Forum Post: Discussion of and Inequality Stereotypes of the Elderly (2/9)  Quiz: Aging and Inequality Week 6 Chapter 6: Crime,  Forum Post: Discussion of We Class meeting on 2/13 - Violence and need to talk about an injustice Problems of Deviance, Criminal Justice (2/14) Conformity, and Well-being  Quiz: Crime, Violence and Criminal Justice (2/16)  Assignment #2 Due Week 7 Chapter 7: Sexuality  Forum Post: Discussion of sex No meeting on 2/20 needs a new metaphor (2/20)  Quiz on Sexuality (2/20) Chapter 8: Alcohol  Forum Post: Discussion of: and Other Drugs Everything you think you know about addiction is wrong (2/23).  Quiz on Alcohol and Other Drugs (2/23) Week 8 Chapter 9: Physical  Forum Post: What if our No meeting 2/27 and Mental Health healthcare system kept us healthy? (2/28)  Quiz on Physical and Mental Health (3/2) Spring Break Week 9 Chapter 10:  Forum Post: Should felons be Class meeting on 3/13 – Economy and allowed to vote? (3/14) Problems of Social Institutions Politics  Quiz on Economy and Politics (3/16) Week 10 Chapter 11: Work  Forum post: What was your No meeting on 3/20 and the Workplace worst job? (3/20)  Quiz on Work and the Workplace (3/20)  Assignment #3 (3/20) Chapter 12: Family  Forum Post: Childcare Issues Life (3/23)  Quiz on Family Life (3/23) Week 11 Chapter 13:  Forum Post: Bureaucracy in Class meeting on 3/27 – Education higher education (3/28) Education  Quiz on Education (3/30) Week 12 Chapter 14: Urban  Forum Post: Life in your home No meeting 4/3 Life community (4/4)  Quiz on Urban Life (4/6) Week 13 Chapter 15:  Forum Post: Discussion of Class meeting on 4/10 -Global Population and Human Trafficking video (4/11) Problems Global Inequality  Quiz on Population and Inequality (4/13)  Assignment #4 (4/13) Week 14 Chapter 16:  Forum Post: Politics and the No meeting on 4/17 Technology and the Environment (4/16) Environment  Quiz on Technology and the Environment (4/20) Week 15 Chapter 17: War and  Forum Post: Politics of war and Class meeting on 4/24 – Review Terrorism terrorism (4/25)  Quiz on War and Terrorism (4/25)  Final Paper (4/25) Final Exam Week  Final Exam – must be completed by May 2 at 11:59 pm Sociology 102 – Social Problems Paper Guidelines

This project will provide you with the opportunity to conduct a sociological analysis on a social problem that you find interesting. For this paper, you will need to do research to explore your topic and use course concepts to analyze and organize your findings. You will also need a reference page listing your sources. The length of the paper (7 pages) requires that you condense a lot of information, be sure that you narrow your topic down to a workable paper.

REQUIREMENTS:  Your paper must be typed, double-spaced, one-inch margins.

 Your paper should be 7 pages in length.

 Format your citations and bibliography using ASA style (ASA Formatting Guide). The bibliography does not count toward the page requirement.  Your paper should be in your own voice, which means using quotations selectively and only when necessary.  Please proofread your paper.  Suggestions for selecting a topic: Pick a topic about which you can find information easily (i.e. not something too obscure). Choose something about which you are interested. The following is a list of general subjects from which you might select a specific project topic. This list is very general -- use it to generate an idea for a specific, well- developed topic. You need to think through how you will conduct an analysis of your topic, what questions you will answer, and what your specific focus will be. Most importantly, be creative and have fun with it.  Alcohol Abuse in College

 Alcohol and Crime

 American Disabilities Act

 Addiction to Prescription Medications

 Adult Male Sex Offenders

 Alcoholism

 Anti-Semitism

 Bigotry

 Bullying

 Causes of School Violence

 Child Abuse

 Chronic Alcoholism

 Crime and Alcohol

 Date Rape

 Discrimination Against Disabled People

 Discrimination

 Domestic Violence  Drunk Driving

 Effects of Incest

 Elder Abuse in Nursing Homes

 Elder Abuse

 Female Pedophiles

 Female Survivors of Childhood Incest

 Gun Violence in America

 Hate Crimes

 Homelessness

 How Poverty Affects School Aged Students

 Human Trafficking

 Juvenile Crime

 Negative Body Image in Adolescent Girls

 Neglect as Child Abuse

 Organized Crime

 Pedophilia

 Pedophile as Online Predator

 Police Officer Use of Deadly Force

 Police Brutality - Evidence of police brutality and excessive use of force are widespread in criminal justice research papers.

 Pornography

 Poverty and Crime

 Poverty and Education

 Problems Facing Children in Foster Care

 Prostitution

 Racial Discrimination in America

 Racial Discrimination in Housing

 Self Cutting

 Sex Addiction

 Street Gangs

 Substance Abuse - This is a research paper on substance abuse and dependence.

 Suicide in the Military

 Suicide  Teen Suicide.

 Teenage Runaways

 Underage Drinking

 Video Games, Violence, and Children

 Violence on Television

 Youth Gangs

Once you have selected a topic for your research paper, you need to focus and narrow it into a specific research question. Your question should be one that:  lends itself to sociological analysis  is not a "yes" or "no" question  has more than one plausible answer  you can get the information to answer  is answerable in the page length allotted

Questions to answer for your topic selection & description Name your topic: I am studying ______, Imply your question: because I want to found out who/how/why ______, State the rationale for the question and the project: in order to understand how/why what ______. State how/which sociological theory provides insight to your topic.

Your paper should follow a general flow, give consideration to writing your introduction, body and conclusion; however keep in mind that you may have subtopics within each. Be sure you stay on topic and fully address your question.

It is very important that you do not write your paper as just a summary of the articles, for example, do not organize your paper and talk about each article one by one.

In other words, your paper should include the following basics:

 Define your question  Identify why your question is important  Outline what others have found out about your topic (gathered from your articles)  Which sociological theory applies to the topic and explain why  What your conclusions are based upon what you have read

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 1. Evaluation Process: Paper will be graded in terms of content, insight, originality, analytical skill, organization, clarity of expression, overall presentation style, spelling and grammar, and proper referencing protocols.

2. Plagiarism: Do not intentionally or knowingly represent the words or ideas of another as your own in any academic exercise. If you do so, you will receive and F in this course. Student Resources Academic Support: Link to: The Writing Center The Writing Center provides one-on-one writing consultations to all students regardless of major or level of writing proficiency. From early brainstorming to the final stages of proofreading, our faculty and undergraduate consultants are available to offer assistance to writers of any discipline at any stage of the composition process. Our services are not limited to English papers; Writing Center consultants are from a wide range of academic majors and are prepared to assist with any writing assignment.  Phone number: 843.349.2937 Link to: Learning Assistance Center The Learning Assistance Center is responsible for:  Link to: Foreign Language Instructional Center (FLIC), Link to: Mathematics Learning Center (MLC), Link to: Writing Center (WC), Link to: Structured Learning Assistance (SLA), and Link to: Learning Assistance in the Sciences - These peer tutoring labs are academic resources available to all Coastal Carolina University students free of charge.  Link to: Foreign Language placement test - All incoming freshmen are required to take this online exam before they arrive on campus for their summer orientation. For more information on any of these services please click on the links above.  Phone number: 843.349.6536 Library Support Link to: Kimbel Library Website Access to the Discover Service and information about the Library. The Kimbel Library and Bryan Information Commons are located on University Boulevard, halfway between U.S. Route 501 and Highway 544. The Reference Office is located on the 1st floor of Kimbel Library in Rooms 104 and 105. The Reference Desk and Ask-A-Librarian reference services are staffed during normal library hours.  Phone number: 843-349-2400 Link to: Kimbel Library Computer Availability Services If you need to use computers in the library, you can check to see what is available. Link to: Kimbel Library Services for Distance Learning Faculty and Students This site will provide information on Distance Learning Services

Accessibility Support Link to: CCU Accessibility Policy Link to: Office of Accessibility and Disability Services The Office of Accessibility and Disability Services offers students with physical, psychological, or learning disabilities accommodations and assistance. With appropriate documentation, counselors determine accommodations needed to assist students in taking full advantage of their Coastal Carolina University educational opportunities. On-going disability coaching is offered to assist students with disabilities to help ensure success at Coastal Carolina University. To access services and accommodations, students should register with the office, obtain documentation of the disability, and make an appointment with an Accessibility Coordinator located in Indigo House.  Phone number: 843.349.2341

Moodle and Technical Support

Moodle If you have technical issues with Moodle, use the Moodle Student Help Request Form (linked below) to ask for assistance. Link to: Moodle Student Help Request Form Technical Support If you need other technical/technology support, contact Student Computing Services. Link to: Technical Support from Student Computing Services Technical Support from Student Computing Services. Check the website for hours, locations and other services.  Student Computing Services Main Help Desk: 843-349-2908  Student Computing Services Tech Support Center: 843-349-2220 Link to: A list of on-campus HelpDesks and the Help Request Form Student Computing Services (SCS) has several help desks on-campus to provide students with information and assistance with all their computing needs. The primary help desk is located in the main office of SCS in Prince 204-C Other Student Services

Career Services (Link to: Career Services)

Planning for a career requires careful attention. Career services can help you be successful from start to finish. Success in your career begins with a wise decision concerning your college major during your freshman year and continues on throughout your college experience with networking, internships, job-shadowing and preparation for your job search in your senior year. Browse through all the online services located at this site. Then, they invite you to schedule an appointment to talk with a counselor about your career management needs. The office is located in the new Lib Jackson Student Union, Suite A-203 on the main campus Phone number: 843-349- 2341

Counselling Services (Link to: Counseling Services) Counseling Services are offered to Coastal Carolina University students to assist students in defining and accomplishing their personal and academic goals. Priorities of the service include: 1) treatment of mental health concerns 2) prevention of psychological difficulties 3) educating students to live emotionally and behaviorally healthy lives, and 4) contributing to a healthy campus environment. Services include individual, couples, and group counseling; psychiatric services; crisis intervention; assessment; nutritional counseling; drug and alcohol education; referrals; and consultation. The ultimate aim of Counseling Services is to produce graduates who are "healthy citizens." Counseling Services adheres to the standard professional procedure regarding confidentiality of information and records are not part of any other Coastal Carolina University records. The office is located at 204 University Blvd. in the Student Health Services/Counseling Services Building.  Phone number: 843.349.2305

Dean of Students (Link to: Dean of Students)

 The office is located in Kearns Hall, Suite 105  Email: dso @coastal.edu  Phone: 843-349-4161

First Year Advising (Link to: First-Year Advising Center ) First-Year Academic Advising for Undeclared, Honors and Veteran Students. We provide academic counseling to all first-year students at Coastal Carolina University during their first two semesters. With a staff of full-time professionals, student staff and outstanding peer leaders, we do our best to answer all questions, support students in their decisions, and provide information about campus.  Phone number: 843-349-2934  Link to: Advising FAQ's

Financial Aid Link to: Financial Aid and Scholarships  Located in 219 Baxley Hall - Chanticleer Drive East  Phone number 843-349-2313

Office of the Registrar Link to: Office of the Registrar Located in the Baxley Hall, Room 222, the Office of the Registrar is a student and faculty service office responsible for the management of academic records and the coordination and facilitation of course registration. The Office is made up of three major departments: Permanent Records, Grading/Transcripting, and Registration/Curriculum Management.  Phone number: 843.349.2019

Student Activities and Leadership Link to: Student Activities and Leadership Student Activities and Leadership (known on campus as OSAL) is your gateway for involvement opportunities, leadership development and exciting entertainment. Our staff is dedicated to helping students to connect and engage to Coastal's campus in a variety of different ways! Please take some time to explore the different options available to you as a student at Coastal. If you have any questions, please go to About Us and contact a staff member.  Phone number: 843-349-2301