Sociology 113: Multicultural America
1:00—1:50 p.m.
MWF B032 JFSB
Fall 2009
Instructor:
Office:
Phone:
Office Hours:
Email:
Charlie Morgan
JFSB 2025
422-3652
12:00—1:00 p.m. MWF and by appointment
charlie.morgan@byu.edu
Teaching Assistant
Email:
Landon Jones
lmjones320@yahoo.com
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Understanding Diversity: An Introduction to Class, Race, Gender & Sexual Orientation, by Fred
L. Pincus: Lynne Rienner Publishers (2006)
A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America, by Ronald Takaki: Little, Brown and
Company (2008, revised edition). [$12.23 on Amazon]
In addition, we will be a reading a number of chapters and articles on immigration (all of which
will be available on Blackboard, or handed out in class)
COURSE OUTLINE:
1) Course Description: This course is designed as an introduction to issues of diversity and the
various ethnic and racial groups that make up a multicultural America. In order to
understand what it means to live in a multicultural nation, the first third (roughly) of the class
will cover the basic concepts of diversity to give us a common understanding of the ways that
we can think about and discuss diversity in the United States. We will spend the second third
of the class looking at the history of our multicultural nation; it is essential that we
understand the past as many of the current issues that we confront directly relate to what
happened in the past. Finally, the latter third of the class will focus on newer waves of
immigration since the 1960s. These newer waves of immigrants come predominantly from
Asia and Latin America and are changing the ethnic and racial makeup of our society just as
previous waves of immigrants did at the turn of the 20th century.
2) Focus of the Course: The focus of this course is not so much on facts about multicultural
America (although that will certainly be important for grounding our discussion in a
historical and social context), but rather on sociological thinking. My goal is to get you to
think about how the things we learn in class not only affect your own lives now, but also how
it will affect your lives in the future.
3) My Teaching Philosophy: Instead of emphasizing what is taught, and how it is taught,
emphasis will be placed on student learning. In other words, the most important aspect of
teaching is what the students will learn and what students need to do to achieve significant
learning. I see my role in the classroom as more of a facilitator or discussion leader than a
lecturer.
4) Learning Objectives: This class fulfills the Global and Cultural Awareness requirement.
“Since one of the aims of a BYU education is to enlarge the intellect through exposure to ‘the
broad areas of human knowledge,’ awareness of others, in particular traditions and cultures
outside one’s own, is an important and necessary part of a student’s education. The Global
and Cultural Awareness component is founded upon the Lord’s injunction for us to ‘become
acquainted with…languages, tongues, and people’ (D&C 90:15)…Inherent in the notion of
global and cultural awareness is the perspective that we are all spiritual offspring of the same
God, that in addition to our common humanity we also possess a nascent
divinity….Furthermore, seeing the world through others’ eyes helps students gain empathy
and charity toward diverse cultures.”
Each course at BYU has a set of expected student learning outcomes. The outcomes
emphasized in this class are as follows:



Students will acquire informed awareness of either a) a culture outside their own, or
b) the interplay of cultures, languages, and/or nations.
Students will experience thoughtful reflection on the above, as demonstrated in a
structured, guided manner. Evidence of reflection implies written or spoken analysis
that will include a consideration of the student’s own responses to the culture or
global issue, often involving comparison, and will demonstrate informed awareness.
Students will develop greater empathy and charity, and begin to gain a global
perspective, by learning to see themselves from another’s point of view.
5) University Statement on Fostering an Enriched Environment: “The Mission of Brigham
Young University – founded, supported, and guided by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints – is to assist individuals in their quest for perfection and eternal life. That
assistance should provide a period of intensive learning in a stimulating setting where a
commitment to excellence is expected and the full realization of human potential is pursued.
To this end, the University seeks qualified students of various talents and backgrounds,
including geographic, educational, cultural, ethnic, and racial, who relate together in such a
manner that they are ‘no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints,
and of the household of God.’ It is the University’s judgment that providing educational
opportunities for a mix of students who share values based on the gospel of Jesus Christ and
come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences is an important educational asset to
BYU.”
6) Grades: There will be three components of your course grade. Participation in class - 25%,
exams - 45%, and town meetings - 30%.
Participation in class
Reaction papers
Reading guides
Class blog
Throughout the term
25%
5 papers are required
(10%)
periodically (approximately 10)
(10%)
1 post & 1 comment (or 3 comments) (5%)
Exams
3 exams in the term
Week 5 (1st book)
Week 9 (2nd book)
December 14th-18th
Exam #1
Exam #2
Exam #3
45%
(15%)
(15%)
(15%)
Town meetings
2nd half of course
30%
Paper
due at town meeting
(20%)
Presentation
at town meeting
(5%)
Participation
for 5 town meetings
(5%)
___________________________________________________________
TOTAL
100%
7) Participation in Class: You will be expected to participate in class, especially given the fact
that the success of this class is largely determined by the quality of discussion that is
generated during class. The class will be much more rewarding if we have everyone
discussing the readings and sharing their ideas. In order to accomplish this, I have assigned
reaction papers and reading guides as incentive to complete the reading before class starts. I
have consciously eliminated as much reading as possible to make the reading load reasonable.
If you read 20 pages per class period (50 minutes), then you will complete all of the reading
for this course. Some weeks will be lighter than others, so use those weeks to get ahead. In
addition to the reaction papers and reading guides, I have also set up a class blog on Blogger
as a way for us to hear a variety of viewpoints from more students than is possible during our
discussions in class.
8) Reaction Papers/Presentations: You will be required to write 5 1-2 page (double-spaced)
reaction papers throughout the term. There are five different sources you must access in
order to write your reaction paper:
1. Class readings
2. Movies
3. TV shows
4. Guest lecturers
5. NPR programs
You MUST write a reaction paper from each of the above categories. I will provide a list of
appropriate movies, TV shows, and NPR programs, but you are also free to include
something else that is related to our class (just make sure you run it by me or the TA to make
sure it is appropriate). I am not concerned about the format or the writing style of the paper;
I am more concerned about the content of the writing and how much thought went into the
paper. For the class reading reaction paper, I am not looking for a summary; instead I am
looking for your reaction to what you read or how it relates to what we talked about in class.
In addition, you can make a short 3-5-minute presentation of one or two of your reaction
papers to the class (the idea is to summarize your paper rather than read it, as this is one way
to spark class discussions). Presentations are optional and will count as one of your reaction
papers. Therefore, if you write two reaction papers and present two of those to the class, then
that will count as four reaction papers (2 reactions papers and 2 presentations). The only
stipulation for a presentation is that your presentation must be related to the topic for that
class period, and you must email me at least the night before your presentation to clear it with
me (I will only turn you down if there are already a number of people who want to present on
that day; I will allow presentations on a first-come-first-serve basis). The deadlines for the
reaction papers are listed on the syllabus. I will not accept late papers so plan ahead and get
them done early. In addition, all reaction papers must be submitted digitally in the
appropriate folder labeled “Reaction Papers,” under “Assignments” on Blackboard. It will
appear as an exclamation mark in the grade center until I read it and then it will be assigned a
“1” to show that it is complete. It is your responsibility to make sure that it is submitted
correctly before the deadline, otherwise I will not accept it. If you are having problems,
please let me know. One final note, you will be given full credit for turning in reaction
papers (as long as they are the appropriate length and well-thought out). Remember that
these papers are worth 10% of your final grade (for example, if you have a B but don’t turn
in any reaction papers, your grade for the course will drop to a C).
9) Reading Guides: Reading guides are short 1-page guides that have several questions for the
particular reading we will be covering in class. All of the reading guides will be located on
Blackboard well before the assigned class reading. You will need to download the reading
guide, fill it out, and bring it to class before the assigned reading. I will then periodically
collect these reading guides and grade them. I reserve the right to collect reading guides
throughout the semester as often as I feel necessary. The more I feel that people are not
doing the readings the more inclined I will be to collect the reading guides. The guides will
cover the main points from the assigned reading for that day. The idea is not to make your
life miserable, but to make sure everyone is keeping up with the reading, which will allow us
to move away from lectures on the reading material and spend our valuable time discussing
the readings as a class. In addition, the reading guides will serve as study guides for the
exam. These reading guides will be incorporated into your participation percentage and will
count for 10% of your final grade. In the past I have collected an average of 10 reading
guides throughout the course. You must be present to hand in the reading guides. Because
there will be no make-up reading guides (unless it is a planned absence or an emergency) I
will drop one or two of your lowest scores on the reading guides.
10) Class Blog: I have set up a class blog on Blogger (http://sociology113.blogspot.com). We
only have enough time in class to talk about a limited number of interesting topics, so I have
set up the blog as a way to extend these conversations on the Internet. I find that a number of
students either do not have enough time in class or do not feel comfortable discussing their
opinions and viewpoints in class; the blog allows us to hear a variety of thoughts from all of
the students in class. Throughout the semester you will be required to write at least one post
and comment on at least one other post (or instead of writing a post you may comment on
three separate posts), which will be worth 5% of your total grade. Your postings will not be
anonymous and need to be well thought out and at least a decent paragraph. You can
comment on any of the posts on the blog. While only members of the class will be able to
post, anybody else (family, friends, etc.) are welcome to read the blog and comment on the
posts. I encourage you to share the blog through facebook or any other networking tools as a
way to get the general public involved in our blog discussions. This will make the blog more
related to our daily lives and will also force us to articulate our viewpoints with a much
broader audience. Moreover, past students and TAs have asked about the blog and will be
also be following and commenting on it.
11) Exams: Each exam will cover one of the books that we will be reading in class. All of the
questions will come from the readings, lecture, films, and class discussions. Half of the
exam questions will be multiple-choice and the other half will be essay. The multiple-choice
portion will consist of 25 questions. Before each exam I will give you the essay questions
that will be on the exam. I do this so you can study beforehand, and in addition, this method
fosters new learning while taking the exam. The exam dates are written in bold on the course
schedule and cannot be made up. They will all be in the testing center. You cannot use your
book or notes, and there will be no time limit. All of the reading guides will be posted on
Blackboard. The collection of these reading guides will be the study guide to give you a
better idea of what will be covered on the exams. Each exam will cover one book and will
not be cumulative. Each exam will each be worth 15% of your final grade for a total of 45%
of your class grade.
12) Town Meetings: We will hold 6 town meetings in the second half of the course. Each town
meeting will address current issues dealing with a multicultural America. Up to 10 students
will be active participants in each town meeting.
Some of you will sign up as “guest speakers,” and others will sign up as “board members.”
These students will be active participants in the town meetings, while the rest of the class
will act as town residents who are interested in the topic being discussed. Guest speakers
will take on a persona and will “act” as the person they represent. This most definitely
includes representing the person’s real-life point of view, and can also include things like
mannerisms, patterns of speech, dress, etc. As part of their assignment, guest speakers must
also write a 3-page (single-spaced) position statement outlining the stance of the person they
are representing.
Board members will be required to direct the conversation by asking relevant and important
questions to the guest speakers. The board members will also write a 3-page (single-spaced)
paper outlining the stances of all the guest speakers and what questions they would like to
ask them. Through this process the board member should come to some kind of conclusion
about the debate, and therefore you need at least a short paragraph on your position on this
issue.
The rest of the town’s people will participate by asking relevant questions during the
question and answer session of the town meeting. In addition, each person not directly
involved in the town meeting (i.e., not a guest speaker or a board member) will fill out a
response sheet to be handed in at the conclusion of the debate. These sheets will be worth
5% (out of 30%) of the town meeting grade. In the Grade Center (Blackboard) I will have a
slot for 5 town meetings, but you will not get a participation point for the town meeting in
which you are presenting. Therefore, only 5 of the town meeting participation points will
count (each town meeting you attend will be worth 1% of your final grade). I will offer extra
credit for those people who fill out the town meeting response sheet before the town meeting
starts. If you do this for each of the town meetings you attend (besides the town meeting you
are a member of) it will be worth a missed reading guide.
More specific directions, as well as grading rubrics (posted on Blackboard), will be given in
class. Each person in class will have the opportunity to be an active participant (either a
guest speaker or a board member) for only one of the town meetings. A sign-up sheet will be
located in the box in front of my office (2025 JFSB) during the first couple weeks of the
course. You can sign up for an open slot (on a first-come-first-choice basis). Anyone who
does not sign up will be assigned to one of the empty slots.
13) Online Course Evaluation: I offer a little bit of extra credit for completing the online course
evaluation. Make sure you submit your name along with the evaluation; I will not be able to
match your name to your evaluation, but I will be able to give you credit for completing it. I
take your suggestions seriously and use them to improve both the course and my teaching.
14) Course Schedule: The course schedule as printed on the next page is a guide. It is subject to
change as deemed necessary or desirable. It is your responsibility to keep your syllabus
updated as changes are made. I will announce changes through the following two methods:
1) in class, and 2) via email. Please make sure that your email is up to date so that you can
receive the announcements via email.
Course Schedule for Sociology 113: Multicultural America
Week
Day
Date
Topic
Readings
1
M
W
F
31-Aug
2-Sep
4-Sep
Introduction to class
Unique individuals & Basic concepts of diversity
Basic concepts of diversity; Guest Speaker
No readings
Understanding Diversity, Chapter 1
Understanding Diversity, Chapter 2
W
F
9-Sep
11-Sep
Game: Star Power
Game: Star Power
Last names starting with A-J; half of class
Last names starting with K-Z; half of class
3
M
W
F
14-Sep
16-Sep
18-Sep
Class
Class
Race
Understanding Diversity, Chapter 3
Start town meeting paper & Different Mirror
Understanding Diversity, Chapter 4
4
M
W
F
21-Sep
23-Sep
25-Sep
Race
Gender
Gender
Work on town meeting & Different Mirror
Understanding Diversity, Chapter 5
Work on town meeting & Different Mirror
5
M
W
F
28-Sep
30-Sep
2-Oct
Sexual orientation; (First day for EXAM #1 in testing center)
Sexual orientation; Guest Speaker
A Tale of Two Frontiers; (Last day for EXAM #1 in testing center)
Understanding Diversity, Chapter 6
Work on town meeting & Different Mirror
A Different Mirror, Chapters 1 & 2
6
M
W
F
5-Oct
7-Oct
9-Oct
American Indians - From Removal to Reservation
The Hidden Origins of Slavery
Slavery and its discontents
A Different Mirror, Chapter 4
A Different Mirror, Chapter 3
A Different Mirror, Chapter 5
7
M
W
F
12-Oct
14-Oct
16-Oct
Reconstruction of Servitude after the Civil War
Mexicans - The War Against Mexico
American Indians - From Reservation to Reorganization
Chapter on Blackboard (Course Materials)
A Different Mirror, Chapter 7
A Different Mirror, Chapter 9
19-Oct
21-Oct
23-Oct
Up from Mexico
Blacks in the Urban North
World War II & Out of the War
A Different Mirror, Chapter 12
8
M
W
F
2
A Different Mirror, Chapter 13
A Different Mirror, Chapters 14 & 15
Course Schedule for Sociology 113: Multicultural America
Week
Day
Date
Topic
Readings
9
M
W
F
26-Oct
28-Oct
30-Oct
"Tempest-Tost" & "We…Minorities"; (First day for EXAM #2 in testing center)
Film "Immigration"
Town meeting: Reparations to African-Americans; (Last day for EXAM #2)
A Different Mirror, Chapters 16 & 17
Prepare for town meetings
Catch up on reading; prepare for midterm
10
M
W
F
2-Nov
4-Nov
6-Nov
Immigration and the economy
Immigration and the economy
Town meeting: Race as a factor in admission to schools
Are Immigrants Hurting Our Economy? (Malanga)
Myth 2: Immigrants Compete with…Wages
Prepare for town meeting (Reaction #1 due)
11
M
W
F
9-Nov
11-Nov
13-Nov
Immigration and language
Immigration and language
Town meeting: Who can say what?
The Hispanic Challenge (Huntington)
Learning the Ropes: Language and Education
Catch up on reading (Reaction #2 due)
12
M
W
F
16-Nov
18-Nov
20-Nov
Immigration and Crime
Immigration and the border
Town meeting: A color-blind society?
Rethinking Crime & Immigration (Sampson)
Broken Borders (Dobbs)
Catch up on reading (Reaction #3 due)
13
M
Tu
23-Nov
24-Nov
Immigration and the border
Town meeting: Controlling the border & illegal immigrants
Backfire at the Border (Massey)
Catch up on reading (Reaction #4 due)
14
M
W
F
30-Nov
2-Dec
4-Dec
Immigration and public policy
Immigration and public policy
Town meeting: A policy of bilingualism or English-only
Can We Open Our Borders (Malanga)
Conclusion: Immigration and Public Policy
Catch up on reading (Reaction #5 due)
15
M
W
7-Dec
9-Dec
Diversity in the LDS church; blacks & the priesthood
Blacks & the priesthood; Guest Speaker
The LDS Church and the Race Issue
The LDS Church and the Race Issue
16
EXAM #3 (December 14th - 18th; exam in testing center)