Sociology 3300 Home Page
"Social Inequality"
Dr. Mary C. Sengstock,
Ph.D., C.C.S
Sociology
Dept.-- 2237 FAB
Wayne State University
Detroit, MI 48202
E-mail
me: m.sengstock@wayne.edu
UPDATE -
PLEASE NOTE: A set of "LEARNING OBJECTIVES"
for this course have been developed since the Syllabus was posted.
Please see these listed below. Also see the notices on deadlines
for
assignments.
This
syllabus is available at:
http://users.wowway.com/~marycay910/SOC 3300.html
This syllabus has been updated as of 1/5/13. Please do not use
any information obtained prior to that date. Also, further updates
may be posted as they become available.
PLEASE NOTE: We are fortunate to have a
TEACHING ASSISTANTwho
has agreed to work with our class. Her name is Jennifer
Lawson. She will be
attending all classes & will be available to aassist you with
problems She will
also be presenting some class lectures. Her contact information
is as follows;
Jennifer Lawson
dz6370@wayne.edu
313-657-7521 (cell)
MEETING TIME: The class will meet as follows: Wednesday, 5:30-9:15.
PLACE: The
classroom has not as yet been
scheduled.
Course Description:
SOC 3300.
Social Inequality. Cr 4. Analysis of
inequalities in society due to race, gender, cultural
differences. Focus on how inequality
is maintained, the experience of discrimination, and their impact on
society and
institutions (economy, government, religion, family).
Specifically, the course will focus on the
inequalities which exist within societies, and its
components, including communities, organizations, and institutions,
such as government, the
economy, religion, and the family. It will examine the
nature of discrimination and prejudice
and their impact in all of these areas, with particular emphasis on the
U.S.
of
prejudice and discrimination and how they impact on individuals and
society; to understand how
and
why inequalities, prejudices, and discrimination are developed
and maintatined in societies.
Specific
Learning Objectives:
- Understand how society and its social institutions are structured.
- Understand what prejudice is and how it operates.
- Understand who discrimination is and how it operates.
- Understand the impact of prejudice and discrimination on individuals
and society.
- Understand why inequalities, prejudices, and discrimination exist in
society.
- Understand how inequality, prejudices, and discrimination impact upon
the many
different groups in society, including persons of
different races, nationalities,
genders, gender preferences, different income levels, and
other categories
of society.
Exams: There
will be 2
exams in this course, a midterm, and a final exam. Both
will be Multiple Choice Exams. The midterm will be given approximately
the eighth
week;
the
final will be given during the
regular
final exam period.
Class Presentation:
Each student will also be expected to make a ten minute presentation to
the class about his/her own experiences with inequality or diversity
sometime within the term.
Presentations may be based on the student's own individual's
experience, or an experience of
someone else whom the student knows, has observed, or been informed
about. These
presentations are intended to generate class discussion about the
topic and individual
experiences with inequality and diversity.
CONFIDENTIALITY ISSUES: Please note that ALL students must
observe the confidentiality
of the persons about whom they will speak. This means that
students will NEVER provide
specific identifying information about anyone: NO names,
addresses, specific occupations, work
or school identification, etc. All persons described will be
anonymous. If you choose to speak
about yourself, you are free to identify yourself if you wish, as long
as this does not identify anyone
else (such as parents or other relatives). Alternatively, you may
also disguise your own identity.
We will begin presentation around the third week of classes.
Students should NOT put off their
presentations until the end of the term, as we may not have time for
all presentations if this occurs.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
There are 4 requirements in this class:
2 Exams: Midterm & Final
1 Term Paper (See Below)
1 Class Presentation (See Below)
PLEASE NOTE: It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to complete the
assignments and turn them
in at the appropriate time. For the class presentation, it is
your responsibility to see the Teaching
Assistant to schedule your time to present to the class. The Term
Paper is due on Wed., 3/20/13,
the class following the Spring Break. Points will be taken off for late
papers.
EXAMS: Both exams will be Multiple Choice exams.
Students should be sure
to bring a green
SCANTRON sheet to the exams.
TERM PAPER REQUIREMENT:
An 3-4
page paper is also required, due the
class following the spring break (3/20/13).
This is a modified/simplified version of the term paper I normally
require in my classes. It has
been my experience that students in this class are not prepared to
write the usual term paper
(8-10 pages). This shortened version will provide you the
opportunity to get somepractice
writing the longer papers you are likely to be required to write in
more
advanced classes.
For this
paper, you are required to locate and read 3 articles
on a topic related to Social Inequality,
as we are defining it and discussing it in this class.
TERM
PAPER DEADLINE: The Term paper is due at the class on
3/20/13. This is the class
following the spring break. Points WILL be taken off for late
papers.
SUGGESTED
TOPICS: Here are a few ssuggested topics for the paper:
How "Tracking" May
Lead to Inequality in the Educational System
Gender Inequality in Education
Gender Inequality in the Workplace
Wage Inequality and its Influence on Social Mobility
Race and Employment Discrimination
Race and Residential Segregation
Income Related Inequality in Healthcare
Race Related Inequality in Healthcare
Salary/Earnings Inequality Among Young Adults
Division of Labor in the Household
Gender Socialization
There are many,. many more!
For
futher suggestions as to appropriate topics, you can see the
various topics for the lectures,
as well as the chapter topics in the text book. We will also
spend some
time in the class
discussing appropriate term paper topics.
Once you
have selected a topic, you should get onto the WSU Library web site,
and search some
of the appropriate research oriented
web sites (such as JSTOR), to locate the 3 articles on this
topic on which you will base your term paper.
In the
term paper, you should briefly describe the information you learned in
the articles, and provide
a brief comparison of their views on this topic.
PLEASE
NOTE THAT THE PAPER MUST BE BASED UPON RESEARCH ARTICLES
OBTAINED FROM RESEARCH JOURNALS
IN SOCIOLOGY. They are NOT to be obtained
from popular sources, such as the newspaper or magazines (Time or Newsweek). They are
DEFINITELY NOT TO BE OBTAINED FROM ANY WEB SITES!
Please
see the separate outline entitled "Guidance
in Wriring Term Papers for Sociology Students"
for further
information.
NOTE: The "Optional Paper Assignment" described there is NOT
available for
this
class.
Additional
details on the term paper will be discussed in class. Neither is
the option to use SOME popular
magazines or web sites.
CLASS
PRESENTATION:
Each student will be expected to make a 5 minute presentation to the
class about some
experience s/he has had with inequality of some type (race, ethnic,
gender, religious,
etc.) This presentation simply focuses on your individual
personal esperience. It does
not require that you do any additional research.
Midterm
Exam
50
Pts
Final
Exam
50
Pts
Class
Presentation 20 Pts
Term
Paper
30 Pts
Total
150
Pts
All students should be aware that the University has introduced some
changes in the deadlines for
adding and withdrawing from classes. All students should take
these into account, or you may not
be able to add or withdraw from a class as you wish.
ADDING A CLASS: Students are now required to add classes PRIOR to
the end of the 1st week
of classes (NOT the 2nd week as before).
WITHDRAWAL FROM A CLASS: Students must now apply for withdrawal
from a class no later
than the 10th week of the term (NOT the 14th week, as in previous
years).
Please make certain to oobserve these deadlines, or you will not be
permitted to carry through on
your requests.
PLEASE NOTE: These are UNIVERSITY requirements, not faculty or
departmental requirements.
Instructors cannot intervene should you not make the deadlines.
FOR
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:
If
you have a documented disability that requires accommodations, you will
need to
register with
Student Disability Services for coordination of your academic
accommodations. The Student Disability
Services (SDS) office is located at 1600 David Adamany Undergraduate
Library in
the Student
Academic Success Services department. SDS
telephone number is 313-577-1851 or
313-577-3365
(TDD only). Once you have
your accommodations in place, I will be glad to meet with you privately
during
my office hours to discuss your special needs.
Student Disability Services’ mission is to assist
the university in
creating an accessible community where students with disabilities have
an equal
opportunity to fully participate in their educational experience at
Wayne State
University."
Please
refer to the SDS website for further information about students with
disabilities and the
services we provide for faculty and students:
http://studentdisability.wayne.edu/
TEXTBOOK:
The textbook cited in the list of topics is:
Tracy
E. Ore, Ed. The Social Construction of Difference and Inequality:
Race,
Class, Gender, and Sexuality.
5th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011.
ADDITIONAL
READING MATERIALS: Additional materials will be taken
from the books listed below. They are not required reading, but
will be
sources for classroom lectures. Students may find it useful to
consult them
in the event you miss a class or have difficulty understanding the
lecture.
Vincent N. Parillo. Strangers to These Shores.
8th Ed. Boston: Pearson, 2006.
Mary C. Sengstock. Voices
of Diversity. New York: Springer, 2009.
All 3 of these books will be placed on special reserve in the
Undergraduate Library.
SCHEDULE OF TOPICS:
(Dates are Approximate)
SOC
3300: INEQUALITY
NOTE: Starred Items (*) are required reading. Others are
the basis for lectures and are optional readings.
| WEEK |
TOPIC |
READING MATERIALS |
| 1-2 |
PART I: Theories &
Research on Inequality Theories & Construction of Inequality; Prejudice & Discrimination; Methods of Studying Inequality |
*Ore, Part, I Parillo, Chap. 2, 3, 4 |
| 3 |
PART II: History of
Inequality in U.S. Pre-20th Century & 20th Century |
Sengstock, Chap. 1, |
| 4-5 |
PART IIIa: Inequality in
20th & 21st Century America: Continuing Inequality: Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans |
Parillo, Chap 10, 11, 7 |
| 6-7 |
PART IIIb: Inequality in
20th & 21st Century America: Relatively New Target Groups: East & Southeast Asians Other Asians & Middle Easterners Religious Minorities Gender as a Minority Category |
Parillo, Chap. 8 Parillo, Chap. 9 Parillo, Chap. 12 Parillo, Chap. 13 |
| 8 (2/27/13) |
MID-TERM |
See NOTE 1 |
| 9-11 |
PART IV: Influence of
Social Institutions on Inequality Family & Education Work & Economy State & Public Institutions Media, Language, Culture |
*Ore, Part II (17-25) Sengstock, Chap. 7 *Ore, Part II (26-29) *Ore, Part II (30-34. 43-46) *Ore, Part II (35-42) |
| 12-13 |
PART V: Individual
Experiences of Inequality |
*Ore, Part III Sengstock, Chap. 4,5,6 |
| 14 |
PART VI: Conclusion:
Resistance & Change |
*Ore, Part IV |
| 15 (see Class Schedule 4/24/13) | Final Exam |
See NOTE 2 |
NOTE 1: The Mid-term
Exam will cover
Part I: Introductory material on types and patterns of
social inequality; the methods for research in the area;
Part II: History of
Inequality in U.S. (pre-20th Century); Part IIIa, b
(Inequality
in 20th & 21st Century America).
Text
Chapters include Part I of Ore. Lectures will cover readings from
Parillo (Chap. 2,3,4,7,8,9,10,11,12,13) & Sengstock (Chap. 1,2).
NOTE 2: The Final
Exam will cover Part IIIb (Inequality in 20th & 21st Cantury
America); Part IV (Influence of Social Institutions on Inequality);
Part V (Individual
Experiences of Inequality); and Part VI (Conclusion: Resistance
Change).
Text Chapters
include Parts II, III, & IV of Ore. Lectures will cover
readings from Parillo (Chap. 8, 9, 12, 13), & Sengstock, Chap. 4,
5, 6).