Introduction to Sociology - 1st year


Systematic study of social behavior and human groups. It focuses on the influence of social relationships upon people’s attitudes and behavior and on how societies are established and changed. This course provides students with both methodologies and knowledge of the study of critical social issues ranging in scope from family to global.



Objectives:

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

1. Correctly identify causes of critical social issues through a systematic study of social behavior and social change;

2. Demonstrate comprehension of roles and functions of various social institutions and relationships among them;

3. Demonstrate understanding of several sociological theories and apply them to explain social phenomena or situations;

4. Demonstrate interest in taking part in social activities;

5. Use sociological imagination to explain their life experience in a broader social context.

Topics:

Course topics will include the following:

1. The nature of sociology

2. Methods of sociological research

3. Culture

4. Socialization

5. Social interaction and social structure

6. Groups and organizations

7. Deviance and social control

8. Stratification and social mobility

9. Social inequality

10. Race and ethnicity

11. Stratification by gender

12. Stratification by age

13. The family

14. Religion

15. Government and the economy

16. Education

17. Health and medicine

18. Communities

19. Population

20. Collective behavior and social change

Method of Instruction:

1. Lectures

2. Video tapes

3. Discussions

4. Essay presentation

5. Data analysis

Types of Assignments:

1. Students will read the appropriate chapters of a textbook

2. Short essays about social problems


Sample Text:

1. Sociology (Richard T. Schaefer and Robert P. Lamm, MacGraw-Hill, N.., 2002)

2. Social Problems (LeRoy W. Barnes, The Dushkin Publishing Group, Guilford, CT, 2000)