Contra Costa College
Course Outline
Department & Number
Course Title
Prerequisite
Co-requisite
Prerequisite or concurrently
Challenge Policy
Sociology 236
Sociology of Sport
None
Number of Weeks per term
Lecture Hours per term
Lab Hours per term
*HBA per term
Units
18
54
3
Advisory
Hours per term.
*HOURS BY ARRANGEMENT:
ACTIVITIES: (Please provide a list of the activities students will perform in order to satisfy the HBA requirement):
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course covers sociological aspects of the study of sport. Sociological theories and concepts will be used to examine
individual and group behavior in sport with an emphasis on social interaction. This course also examines the ways in which
sport has impacted various groups in the United States of America. Topics include the sociological imagination,
sociological theory, sociological research methods, and the role of sport sociologists.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
At the completion of the course the student will be able to:
Explain the concept of the sociological imagination.
Describe different sociological approaches to the study of sport.
Demonstrate an understanding of how sport interacts with other social forces at the micro, middle, and micro
levels of analysis.
Evaluate social policies and ethical issues about sport.
Demonstrate an understanding of how sociological theory and research methods have been used to examine sport.
Demonstrate an understanding of sociological perspectives on historical and contemporary sporting practices.
Demonstrate critical skills for the analysis of sport as part of the popular culture.
Demonstrate an understanding of how sport has impacted various groups of people in the United States of
America.
COURSE CONTENT: (In detail; attach additional information as needed and include percentage breakdown)
10
% Sociological imagination.
10
% Sociological approaches to the study of sport.
10
% Interaction of sport and other social forces.
10
% Evaluation of social policies and ethical issues about sport.
20
% Sociological theory and sociological research methods.
10
% Contemporary and historical sporting practices.
10
% Analysis of sport as part of the popular culture.
20
% Impact of sport on various groups in the United States of America.
METHODS OF INSTRUCTION
Lectures
Large and Small Group Discussions
Audio-Visual Presentations
Films
Supplementary Materials (e.g. Examination Study Guides)
Course Management System (CMS)
Out-of Class Assignments (Analytical Papers and Other Written Assignments)
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
Textbook Title:
Author:
Publisher:
Edition/Date:
Sociology of Sport: A Reader
J. Vern Cromartie
Contra Costa College Bookstore
2013
And/or
Textbook Title:
Author:
Publisher:
Edition/Date:
Sociology of Sport and Social Theory
Earl Smith
Human Kinetics
2009
And/or
Textbook Title:
Author:
Publisher:
Edition/Date:
The Sociology of Sports: An Introduction
Tim Delaney and Tim Madigan
McFarland
2010
NOTE: To be UC transferable, the text must be dated within the last 5 years OR a statement of justification for a text beyond the last 5
years must be included.
COURSE EXPECTATIONS (Use applicable expectations)
Outside of Class Weekly Assignments
Weekly Reading Assignments
Weekly Writing Assignments
Weekly Math Problems
Lab or Software Application Assignments
Other Performance Assignments
Hours per week
2
2
2
Out-of-Class Assignments
Required Assignments
(1) Read assigned material from textbook and hand-outs. (2) View assigned films. (3) In-class exams. (4) Class
discussion of assigned texts and films. Students are expected to have read the assigned texts and watch the assigned
readings. (4) Analytical papers and other written assignments are required to satisfy the university writing requirement for
transfer students. (5) Students will use their sociological imaginations to make critical analyses of assigned texts and films.
Sample Assignment
View and discuss the assigned film titled The Jackie Robinson Story. In a 3-5 page essay, answer the following 14
questions: (1) What do you think about the film? (2) What part or scene in the film did you like most? (3) What part or
scene in the film did you like least? (4) How does the film begin in the opening scene? (5) How does the film end in the
closing scene? (6) Do you think that this film should have been outlawed from being made? (7) Do you think that it
should be against the law for television to show this film? (8) Do you think that it should be against the law for movie
theatres to show this film? (9) Do you think that Branch Richey should have offered Jackie Robinson to be the first Black
person to desegregate modern Major League Baseball? (10) Do you think that Jackie Robinson should have accepted the
contract offer from Branch Richey to be the first Black person to desegregate modern Major League Baseball? (11) Do you
think that Rachel Robinson should have encouraged her husband to accept the contract offer from Branch Richey to be the
first Black person to desegregate modern Major League Baseball? (12) Of the three major sociological perspectives, which
one do you think works best to analyze the experiences of Jackie Robinson as a first year player with the Brooklyn
Dodgers? (13) Why did you pick that particular perspective? (14) What are some of the basic sociological concepts that
came to your mind as you watched the film? As you answer each of the 14 questions, make sure that you indicate why you
took a particular position.
STUDENT EVALUATION: (Show percentage breakdown for evaluation instruments)
66
34
%
%
%
%
Examinations
Analytical Papers and Other Written Assignments
GRADING POLICY (Choose LG, P/NP, or SC)
X
Letter Grade
Pass / No Pass
Student Choice
90% - 100% = A
80% - 89% = B
70% - 79% = C
60% - 69% = D
Below 60% = F
70% and above = Pass
Below 70% = No Pass
90% - 100% = A
80% - 89% = B
70% - 79% = C
60% - 69% = D
Below 60% = F
or
70% and above = Pass
Below 70% = No Pass
Prepared by:
J. Vern Cromartie
Date:
May 1, 2013
Form Revised 01/13