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Instructor: Craig T. Robertson, Ph.D. Office: 558 Stevens Hall Office Phone: (256) 765-4530 Office
Hours: Monday: 11:00-Noon
and 3:00-4:00 E-mail:
Always
use the Blackboard (Bb) e-mail system for this class. Under
"Browse for Recipients..." select me as "All Section
Instructors". This symbol Dept. of Sociology Website: http://www2.una.edu/sociology Check out the website to learn more about the department, the major, the faculty, our courses, careers, etc. This course encourages students to think critically and scientifically about a broad array of social problems that affect people throughout the world. These social problems, to name only a few, include health and health care, substance abuse and crime, poverty, prejudice and discrimination, urbanization, population, education, environment, family, and terrorism. As we study these problems (i.e., assessing how extensive they are, why they occur, policy solutions and their implementation) we must go beyond mere description and opinion-based analysis and reach a point where we understand them scientifically and can communicate this understanding to others. Our understanding of social problems will be enhanced by our ability to apply theoretical perspectives in sociology and so a major part of this course will be devoted to learning and applying the perspectives. I hope you take from this course a greater understanding of what we collectively define as social problems, useful tools in trying to reach an understanding of social problems, and, perhaps most importantly, a genuine willingness to address social problems so as to improve overall quality of life. Kornblum,
W. & Julian, J. 2007. Social Problems (12th ed.). Upper Saddle River:
Pearson/Prentice Hall. Course
Preparation:
I expect my students to be active participants in this class. To
be an active participant you must visit the Bb course website daily, read your assigned chapters and stay current with those chapters.
Students must also keep careful track (using
the calendar feature) of their course obligations and requirements.
I aim to be very explicit about what you must do in terms of
assignments, discussion boards, chat rooms, and testing but this will
amount to nothing if you fail to do your part. Assignments:
Your assignments this
semester will be accessed and submitted through the Bb assignment dropbox.
In sum, I post an assignment (new assignments are indicated with the [
This semester you will be responsible for the following assignments: 1) Ten article summaries (5 pts.
each for a maximum total of 50 pts.) that lay
the foundation for one 15-slide PowerPoint Presentation (worth 50 pts.). Specific instructions
for this two-part assignment are provided within the "Summaries and
PowerPoint" icon as well as under "Assignments" in
"Course Tools". Please note that you must have received
approval from me regarding your topic for this assignment by 4:00pm.
on Jan. 28, '08. A ten point penalty will be exacted
if students miss this deadline. To
obtain approval for your topic, communicate with me through e-mail, phone
or visit me during my office hours. These two submissions must be
submitted to the "Assignments" dropbox by 11:55pm. on May 2,
'08. Other students will participate in the host's forum by responding to the topic host AND other participants involved in the forum. Postings must be distributed evenly over the discussion forum period and you are required to read ALL the postings. Students will earn NO credit for posting several times within a few minutes or on the same day. The hosting student and participating students must make 10 and 4 postings respectively. Discussion forums are not conducted in "real time" like a chat room but rather take place over a maximum of three days which, depending on forum scheduling, may include weekends (specific instructions will be provided to each student with each discussion forum upon topic approval as well as date/time approval). All discussion forums must be concluded by 11:55pm. on May 5, '08. There are NO exceptions to this deadline. The [ To give you an idea of how to use the discussion forum feature, I've set up an "ice-breaker" forum to begin the day classes start so please participate and learn from this experience The "ice-breaker" will end Jan. 16, '08 at 11:55pm. Examinations: Examination dates are noted on the tentative course itinerary (see below) but if we deviate from that schedule I will always give you at least one week notice before rescheduling an exam. My examinations for this course are based on multiple-choice and True/False questions and are given on-line through Blackboard. Tests are timed and questions are delivered sequentially and cannot be skipped or revisited. Once you start a test you have to finish it. I've requested that you complete the Pre-Course Assessment on Bb before 11:55pm. (CST/CDT) on Jan. 13, '08 to give you a feel for how you will be tested. Examination 1 will
count 100 points. Examination 2 will count 100 points and Examination 3,
your comprehensive final examination, will count 150 points.
You are honor bound to behave ethically when taking exams. Do not use your textbook, notes, or other resources I've provided through Blackboard when taking exams. If cheating is discovered and substantiated students will receive an "F" for the course. Students are not to take exams with other students enrolled in this section or any other section of Social Problems. Make-up
Policy: Make-up quizzes and exams are given at the discretion
of the instructor under extenuating circumstances, and requests for
make-up quizzes and exams must be made by the student within three days of
the Learning Disabilities Policy: In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the University offers reasonable accommodations to students with eligible documented learning, physical and/or psychological disabilities. Under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities as compared to an average person in the population. It is the responsibility of the student to contact Developmental Services prior to the beginning of the semester to initiate the accommodation process and to notify instructors within the first three class meetings to develop an accommodation plan. Appropriate, reasonable accommodations will be made to allow each student to meet course requirements, but no fundamental or substantial alteration of academic standards will be made. Students needing assistance should contact Developmental Services (RM. 111 in the GUC or 765-4214). The following grade point scale (A=90-100%, B=80-89%, C=70-79%, D=60-69%, and below 60%=F) is employed. No grades are dropped and there is no additional extra-credit work. Course averages may be calculated at any point in the semester by adding together the total number of points you accumulate from all graded work and then dividing that sum by the total number of points that could possibly have been earned. For example, if a student made 8 out of 10 on a quiz and 45 out of 50 on an exam, the student's grade would be 53 out of 60 or 88.3%. Where do my course points come from?
1st. Examination = 100 pts. Date and Event/Subject 1/9
- Classes begin (be sure to complete opening tasks and begin
reading Chapter 1 in your assigned textbook) It is my goal to make this course worth your time and effort. Therefore, I will do all within my power to ensure that you learn and succeed. If you are concerned with any aspect of this course please contact me. You owe it to yourself to talk with me since I can only help you if I know there is a problem. |
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will appear by the e-mail icon in Bb signifying that you have unread
e-mail.