SOC 314: THE FAMILY
Summer 2008
Professor: Ann Marie Kinnell
Office: 432 Liberal Arts Bldg.
Phone/voice mail: 266-5339 (please do not call me at home)
E-mail: Ann.Kinnell@usm.edu
Department of Anthropology and Sociology home page: http://www.usm.edu/antsoc/
Office Hours: MTWThF, 11:00a-noon, and by appointment
If you
feel like this,
it's best to stop by and have a chat! Don't let the semester get away
from you.
If you feel
like this,
stop by anyway and say hello!
(for more paintings, visit the
FOR YOUR INFORMATION: Here is a list of links to Web sites dealing with family issues.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
COURSE ETIQUETTE
REQUIRED READING
GRADING
DISABILITY INFORMATION
CLASS SCHEDULE
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The goal of this course is to give you the tools to look analytically at something we all know very well: the family. We all have intimate experience with our own families, but we do not always see how social, economic, political, and cultural forces shape both our own families and families which are very different from our own. During the course we will look at the family historically to see how the family has changed over time. We will examine the everyday experiences of individuals within families by looking at such things as love, marriage, and parent-child relationships. And, we will take a "macro" view of families to see how families interact with such institutions as the government and the economy. By the end of the course you should have an understanding of how families make decisions about their lives and how outside social forces affect those decisions.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1. Attendance and Participation in Class Discussion
I do not grade attendance and class participation as such, but I do expect it of you. I strongly suggest that you attend class since the purpose of the class is the discussion and integration of lectures, readings, and videos. You can not discuss and integrate if you are not here. I will NOT provide notes for students who miss class.
2. Exams
a. Three midterm exams: 100 points each. Exams are multiple choice and will cover all material from the lectures and the textbook. Material covered in the text book but not in lecture is still fair game for the exam. You will be able to drop your lowest grade of these three exams.
b. Final exam: 200 points. The exam is multiple choice and will cover the material (lectures and textbook chapters) since Exam 3 and all of the material covered since the beginning of the course. Note: you may not drop the final exam.
c. Make-up policy: If you need to miss one of the three midterm exams, you must talk to me before the day of the exam to schedule a make-up. If you miss an exam and do not contact me prior to the exam, the exam you missed will count as your dropped grade. If you miss a second exam you will receive a grade of F for that exam.
3. Family
and Society Paper
Due Monday,
June 2, 2008, by 4:00 pm in LAB432
4. Extra Credit Opportunities: You may do up to three (3) extra
credit opportunities at 5 points each for a total of 15 points.
Each writing assignment, film, speaker, etc. counts as one opportunity.
I will update the possibilities as they present themselves over the course of
the semester. If you know of any speakers, films, or other events
happening on or off campus that would make good extra credit opportunities,
please let me know.
a. Writing Assignment: You may analyze up to three media items (newspaper or magazine articles, Web sites, TV
programs, etc.) which
pertain to a subject discussed in class. Please note that you may NOT use
academic journal articles or readings from other text books. In
analyzing the item you should:
1) provide a summary of its content AND
2) relate the content of the article to specific information
from the text or lectures
(please give page numbers and/or lecture dates).
If you analyze an item from a newspaper or magazine (either in hard copy or
on-line), please hand in the item with your assignment. Each extra credit
analysis (1-2 typed pages) is worth a possible 5 points – 2 points for
the summary and 3 points for the analysis.
Extra credit points will be added to your total
point count at the end of the semester.
For example, if you
end up with 440 points at the end of the semester (grade of B) and you
accurately complete three extra
credit assignments, you would have then have 455 points total (grade of A).
All Extra Credit is due by Friday, May 23, 2008.
I will NOT accept extra credit after that date.
REQUIRED READING
Cox, Frank D. (and Kinnell). 2008. Human Intimacy: Marriage, the
Family, and It’s Meaning. Thomson Custom
Publishing.
GRADING
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Point Distribution: |
|
|
Grade Scale |
|
|
|
Midterm exams (best 2 of 3) |
200 |
|
450-500 |
A |
Excellent work |
|
Final exam |
200 |
|
400-449 |
B |
Good work |
|
Family Paper |
100 |
|
350-399 |
C |
Average work |
|
Total points possible: |
500 |
|
300-349 |
D |
Inferior work |
|
|
|
|
< 299 |
F |
Failing work |
Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty is not tolerated, e.g. cheating on an exam or copying
someone else's work on the paper. Penalties may range from a grade of F
on an exam or the paper to a grade of F for the course. Please see the student handbook
for the university's policy on academic honesty.
Final Grades
All grades are final when I turn them into the
registrar. I do not allow students to do extra work to bring up their
grades after the semester is over. DO NOT ASK!
AMERICAN WITH DISABILITIES ACT (
If a student has a disability that qualifies under the American with
Disabilities Act (ADA) and requires accommodations, he/she should contact the Office of Disability Accommodations (ODA)
for information on appropriate policies and procedures. Disabilities
covered by
Address: The
Voice Telephone: (601)
266-5024 or (228) 214-3232 , Fax: (601)
266-6035,
Individuals with hearing impairments can contact ODA using the Mississippi
Relay Service at 1-800-582-2233 (TTY) or email Suzy Hebert at Suzanne.Hebert@usm.edu.
COURSE ETIQUETTE
While in class, please do not read newspapers or other books, do work for other classes, watch movies, cruise the web, or pass notes to friends. If you do, I will ask you to leave. Please turn off or mute your cell phone before class begins.
CLASS SCHEDULE
Note: Schedule is subject to change if the need arises. Any changes in
the schedule will be announced in class and posted on the course webpage.
As they become available, lecture outlines and exam review sheets will be available
below.
Week One
5/12 1:00-2:15 Introduction to course;
Chapter 1: Human Intimacy in the Brave New World of Family Diversity
2:30-3:45
Chapter 1: Human Intimacy in the Brave New World of Family Diversity
4:00-5:00
Chapter 2: Human Intimacy, Relationships, Marriage, and the Family
5/13 1:00-2:15 Chapter 2: Human Intimacy,
Relationships, Marriage, and the Family
2:30-3:45
A Very Brief History of the American Family (USM-8)
4:00-5:00
A Very Brief History of the American Family (USM-8)
5/14 1:00-2:15 A Very Brief History of the
American Family (USM-8)
2:30-3:45
Chapter 3: American Ways of Love
4:00-5:00
Chapter 3: American Ways of Love
5/15 1:00-2:00 Exam
1 (please bring a scantron form and #2 pencil)
2:15-3:30
Chapter 6: Dating, Single Life, and Mate Selection
3:45-5:00
Chapter 6: Dating, Single Life, and Mate Selection
5/16 1:00-2:15 Chapter 7: Marriage,
Intimacy, Expectations, and the Fully Functioning Person
2:30-3:45
Chapter 7: Marriage, Intimacy, Expectations, and the Fully Functioning Person
4:00-5:00
Chapter 13: The Dual-Worker Family: The Real American Revolution
Week Two
5/19 1:00-2:00 Exam
2 (please bring a scantron form and #2 pencil)
2:15-3:30
Chapter 13: The Dual-Worker Family: The Real American Revolution
3:45-5:00
Chapter 13: The Dual-Worker Family: The Real American Revolution
5/20 1:00-2:15 Chapter 10: The Challenge of
Parenthood
2:30-3:45
Chapter 10: The Challenge of Parenthood
4:00-5:00
Chapter 10: The Challenge of Parenthood
5/21 1:00-2:00 Exam
3 (please bring a scantron form and #2 pencil)
2:15-3:30
Chapter 11: Family Life Stages: Middle Age to Surviving
Spouse
3:45-5:00
Chapter 14: Family Crises
5/22 1:00-2:15 Chapter 14: Family Crises
2:30-3:45
Chapter 15: The Dissolution of Marriage
4:00-5:00
Chapter 15: The Dissolution of Marriage
5/23 Final
Exam (please bring a scantron form and #2 pencil)
Last
Modified: May 21, 2008
URL: http://www.usm.edu/antsoc/socio/syllabus/SOC314syllabussummer08.html
Questions or
Comments?
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