Introductory Sociology (SOC 1000)
Common Course Objectives and Required Chapters
This document outlines the required commonalities of all sections of SOC 1000.
Individual instructors are free to add additional course objectives and readings (including
additional chapters from the required textbook) as they see fit.
Common Course Objectives:
The primary objectives of this course are to have students:
1. Further develop analytical and critical thinking skills necessary to better understand
complex social situations.
2. Be able to distinguish sociology from other social sciences and professional
disciplines (e.g., psychology and social work).
3. Understand and apply the concept of the “sociological imagination.”
4. Understand key sociological theories (e.g., structural functionalism, social conflict
theory and symbolic interactionism) and how they influence our views of the
world.
5. Examine their values, attitudes and relationships to people of differing
backgrounds and experiences (with regard to race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual
orientation, etc.).
Required textbook:
Ferris, Kerry and Jill Stein. The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology, 2nd edition.
Required chapters:
 Chapter 1, “Sociology and the Real World”
 Chapter 2, “Sociology’s Family Tree: Theories and Theorists”
 Chapter 3, “Studying Social Life: Sociological Research Methods”
 Chapter 5, “The Self and Interaction”
 Chapter 7, “Deviance”
 Chapter 8. “Social Class: The Structure of Inequality”
 Chapter 9, “Race and Ethnicity as Lived Experience”
 Chapter 10, “Constructing Gender and Sexuality”
 Chapter 13, “Life at Home”
 Chapter 16, “Social Change: Looking Toward Tomorrow"
Final grades are to be calculated using the plus/minus system using the following
breakdown:
97 -100% ...A+
93 - 96% ... A
90 - 92% ... A87 - 89% ... B+
83 - 86% ... B
80 - 82% ... B77 - 79% ... C+
73 - 76% ... C
70 - 72% ... C67 - 69% ... D+
63 - 66% ... D
60 - 62% ... D<60% … F