Marriage and Family
Soc 2301
Spring, 2013
Instructor
Dr. Luis Salinas
Telephone
713-743-3957
Office
469 PGH
Email:
Lsalinas@uh.edu
Required Text Marriages and Family by Nijole Benokraitis. (7th ed.)
Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 2010
Course Goals After completion of this course the student will:
1. To gain historical and cross-cultural perspectives on marriage and
family;
2. To understand trends and the diversity of living arrangements in
American society;
3. To examine socio-cultural bases of sexuality;
Attendance
All students are expected to attend all classes. They are also expected to be punctual. Students
are also expected to withdraw themselves before the withdrawal deadline. Failure to do so will
result in a failing grade. I will NOT withdraw you.
Students are requested to turn off cell phones before coming to class. If you have an urgent call,
leave to classroom to answer that call. You should not be having urgent calls frequently. Please
do not force me to drop you for having too many urgent calls.
By staying in this class you agree to the condition that if caught using a cell phone or other
digital device in class you will surrender it until the end of the semester. In addition, there will be
a three point curve added to every test if there are no cell phone violations. For every cell phone
violation, there is one less point added to the test.
Guns are not permitted in the classroom. Please advise me if you will be recording the lectures.
Testing
Testing will be done in a combination of multiple choice, and short essay format. Students are
expected to bring to class a #2 pencil,. Since there are various versions used for each test,
students should put the version number on the test. Failure to do will result in a penalty of 10
points for that test. You may not leave the classroom during testing. If you leave the test is over
for you. You are also expected to be present for the test on time. If you are late the professor
reserves the right to NOT allow you to take the test. Make-up tests are only for extenuating
circumstances. The definition of extenuating is at the discretion of the instructor. Makeup exams
are also full essay questions and will take approximately three hours to complete. Only one
make up is allowed during the semester.
/
Writing Assignments
During the first week of class you are expected to turn in a genogram. This will weigh half as
much as a regular writing assignment. These links will help you with this assignment:
http://www.multiculturalfamily.org/text/genograms.shtml or
http://genogram.freeservers.com/
Pick two essay questions from the list of Homework Essay Questions and answer them. They are
to be two to three pages long and written in correct grammar following one of the standard
writing styles. They should be typed. Correct grammar is part of your grade. The pages to all
papers should be stapled (I do not carry a staple to class). Do not use folders or files or anything
else. Failure to adhere to these guidelines will result in a lower grade. Homework turned in after
the due date will result in a lower grade.
If you are a student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric, vision,
hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must contact the Disability
Services Office at the respective college at the beginning of each semester. Faculty is authorized
to provide only the accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services Office.
You are expected to demonstrate a professional attitude and behavior toward your work, your
fellow-students, and your instructor. This includes regular attendance, punctuality, reliability,
respect for and cooperation with colleagues, willingness to work calmly and courteously under
difficult conditions, determination to achieve first-class work while meeting deadlines, respect
for equipment, systems and constructive response to criticism.
Grading
The following are relative weights assigned to items for this semester:
Exams
70%
Homework
30%
----------100%
The grading system used :100-90=A, 89-80=B, 79-70=C, 69-60=D, 59-0=F
Important Dates To Remember
Genogram Due
Homework 1 due
Homework 2 due
Spring Break
Last Day of Class
January 23
February 14
March 7
March 11-17
April 30
CHAPTER
1
Changing Family
January
CHAPTER
2
Studying Family
January
CHAPTER
3
Family in Historical Perspective
January
Test 1
15-17
22-24
29-31
February
5
CHAPTER
4
Racial & Ethnic Families
February
7-12
CHAPTER
5
Gender
February
14-19
CHAPTER
6
Love & Relationships
February
21-26
Test 2
February
28
CHAPTER
7
Sexuality
March
5-7
CHAPTER
8
Choosing Others
March
19-21
CHAPTER
9
Singlehood
March
26-28
Test 3
2
April
CHAPTER 10
Communication
April
4-9
CHAPTER
15
Separation
April
11-16
CHAPTER
16
Remarriage
April
18-30
Test 4
May
2