Professor: |
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Douglas Smith |
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| 126 Grise Hall | Phone: (270) 745-3750 |
| Department of Sociology | Email: Douglas.Smith@wku.edu (preferred contact method) |
| Western Kentucky University | Webpage: http://people.wku.edu/douglas.smith/ |
| 1906 College Heights Blvd. #11057 | |
| Bowling Green, KY 42101-1057 | |
| Office Hours: Monday through Friday, 1:00pm-4:00pm, preferably by appointment | |
I am generally in my office and able to answer calls in the afternoons from 1:00pm-4:00pm Central Time. and my office associate (Karen Hume - 270-745-2150) can generally schedule appointments for me. Overall, email is the best way to contact me. I usually have my email open when I am available, and I check it at least once on the weekends. You should normally get an email answer within 24 hours, whereas leaving a message with my office associate or the student workers will mean that your message may not get to me as quickly. I am happy to help you, so do not be afraid to ask.
Introduction to Community, Environment, and Development examines the causes, dynamics, and consequences of socioeconomic change for people, how they live in communities, and how they relate to the natural world. It is a survey course for "Community, Environment, & Development" concentration within the Sociology major.
This course also fulfills the Local to Global Component of the Colonnade Program's Connections Section. This course will help you attain these general education goals--by the end of the course, you will be able to:
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recognize the interconnections of events and processes unfolding in different localities around the world. |
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analyze the tensions between the projects of local communities and economic globalization. |
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identify the consequences of decision-making for various localities and developments at the global scale. |
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consider and evaluate various alternatives for how everyday life might be organized. |
The university also sees the Connections courses of the Colonnade program as the place to demonstrate mastery of the skills developed in WKU's Quality Enhancement Plan, entitled "Evidence and Argument." Through this plan, WKU students will bring evidence and argument to life through written, oral, and visual means so that they can apply and adapt these skills to their professional, social, and personal lives. So at the end of this course, WKU students will also demonstrate:
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the ability to gather sound and relevant evidence to address an issue (Evidence-Gathering). |
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the ability to analyze assembled evidence (Sense-making). |
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the ability to articulate a logical and supported argument based on this analysis (Argumentation). |
More than those institutional goals though, it is my hope that by the end of THIS course you will be able to better:
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Evaluate and recommend appropriate natural resource uses
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Cope with limited economic opportunities through place-based development | ||||||
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Enhance individual and community capacity through people-based development |
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Friedman, Thomas L. 2016. Thank You for Being Late: An Optimists Guide for Thriving in the Age of Accelerations.. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. ISBN 978-0-374-27353-8 |
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Course reserve readings. Electronic copies will be available on our Blackboard website. |
I
want to take a moment to clarify how I hope you will approach
the readings. First, just because something is printed does not make
it Absolute Truth.
Be critical of what you are reading, drawing upon your
own experiences,
and other knowledge. I
have chosen
many readings precisely because they are provocative, and because they may disagree or amplify one
another. If you find yourself strongly disagreeing with a
particular reading,
that's fine; indeed, I encourage strong disagreement. However,
if you disagree,
you must clarify in your mind the reasons and evidence
upon which you are
basing your disagreement.
When reading you should consider the following:
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What are the main themes/arguments in this reading? |
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What evidence does the author provide to support her/his argument? |
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How does this argument relate to other readings we have done? |
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What are the strengths and weaknesses of this argument and any data supporting it? Are terms defined clearly and used consistently? (If not, what problems does this create?) |
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Are terms defined and used the same way as in the other readings? Would other authors we have read agree/disagree with this argument? Why? |
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What additional questions does this reading raise for you? (Or put another way: if you and the author were stranded on a desert isle, what question would you most like to ask him or her (besides "Do you have a boat?)? |
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How could you use the ideas in addressing real world problems? |
Students are expected to adhere to the Student Code of Conduct published in the Western Kentucky Undergraduate Catalog. Moreover, I expect you to do your own work in this course. Any work that you submit to me at any stage of the writing process---thesis and outline, draft, bibliography, etc., through final version---must be your own; in addition, any words ideas, or data that you borrow from other people and include in your work must be properly documented. Failure to do either of these things is plagiarism and violates the Student Code of Conduct. Persons violating the Student Code of Conduct (in particular but not limited to the section on academic conduct) in any assignment or exam in this class will receive a minimum penalty of a grade of zero (0) for the assignment, and may receive an "F" for the course at the instructor’s option. No form of cheating or plagiarism will be tolerated (Consult the WKU Undergraduate Catalog for details.).
It is the student's responsibility to withdraw from class in a timely manner if he/she wishes to do so. The final withdrawal date is Friday, March 10, 2017
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I expect you to be in class. Little interaction can occur between us if you are not.
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Arriving late to class, talking, reading the newspaper are not acceptable classroom behavior and are disrespectful to your instructor and other students who want to listen and learn. ALL cell phones should be turned off before entering class. Similarly, if you are likely to have a regular problem with getting to class on time, please let me know in advance. | ||
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All students should check their WKU email accounts at least weekly and the Blackboard Announcements page each time they log in. New announcements will appear at the top of the page, so read until you get to information you have already seen. Not checking email/reading the Announcements is not an excuse for not knowing the information given via those mediums (NOTE: I will email all things posted as announcements.) | ||
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All formal papers are to be typed and formatted according to the style sheet appropriate to your discipline. | ||
| Late assignments will not be
accepted without penalty unless accompanied by a
doctor's excuse or another form of official
documentation of an emergency.
Assignments will be submitted through Blackboard, so if
you are absent, you can still submit your
assignments. They are still due on the day of
class. If you are anticipating any problems
(For example: computer glitches, the conquest of the
planet by apes/zombies/aliens, hurtful comments by close friends, being struck by space junk or
trapped under an impenetrable dome, good loving gone bad,
rural rebound, inflammation due to chronic dry eye, a date
ending in an interview by Chris Hansen, the paralysis of
analysis, demonic possession, big trouble in little China,
a pants haunting lasting more than four hours, the release
of Diablo V, dating or being divorced by a Kardasian, losing your
sociology mojo, vigilante justice, wardrobe malfunction,
the total destruction of Galador, or anything else that
might interfere with your assignment writing on the day it
is due), get the assignment in early! | ||
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The teacher reserves the right to alter these requirements based on class interest and needs (See my disclaimer at the end of the syllabus.). |
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The Learning Center (TLC) -- Downing Student Union 2141TLC offers an ideal environment to foster student success. Students can take advantage of a vast array of services to supplement course specific content distributed within the classroom. For example, students may utilize the large, quiet study space or their 12 machine computer lab to complete assignments. TLC also provides face-to-face tutoring in over 200 WKU courses by our certified tutors. TLC offers online tutoring as well. In addition to specific courses, we offer tutoring in many academic skill areas including time management, note taking strategies, and reading comprehension.. The Learning Center serves the WKU campus five days a week and strives for all students to reach academic success.
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| The Writing Assistance Center -- Cherry Hall 123The Writing Center is located in Cherry Hall 123 on the Bowling Green campus. The Writing Center also has a location on the Glasgow campus and offers online consultations for students who live at a distance or who cannot visit during our operating hours. Their writing tutors have been trained to provide helpful feedback to students at all phases of a writing project: they can help you brainstorm ideas, structure your essay, clarify your purpose, strengthen your support, and edit for clarity and correctness. But they will not revise or edit the paper for you. See instructions on the website (www.wku.edu/writingcenter) for making online or face-to-face appointments. Or call (270) 745-5719 during our operating hours (also listed on our website) for help scheduling an appointment. More information about the Glasgow Writing Center hours can be found at the website: http://www.wku.edu/glasgow/writingcenter.php.
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Student Accessibility Resource Center -- Downing Student Union 1074Students with
disabilities who require accommodations (academic
adjustments and/or auxiliary aids or services) for this
course must contact the Student
Accessibility Resource Center.
The SARC telephone
number is (270) 745-5004 V/TDD.
You should discuss any accommodation you need with them
and they will give you a form listing the approved
accommodations to give to me to sign. This process
should be completed by the end of the second week of
class. Please DO NOT request accommodations directly from me
(Dr. Smith) without a letter of accommodation from the
Office for Student Disability Services. |
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Research
Appointments with your Personal Librarian
At WKU Libraries, your Personal Librarians are
always ready to help! There are librarians for every
program on campus, plus Special Collection librarians
and archivists. Their goal is to save you time and help
you be successful on term papers and research projects
by showing you what you need to know to get started and
be successful. |
Grades will be made available on Blackboard (My Grades), so I don't answer emails that ask, "What's My Grade?" Grades will be based on the following points system:
| Grade | Points Required |
| A | 360 and above |
| B | 320 - 359 |
| C | 280 - 319 |
| D | 240 - 279 |
| F | 239 or Less |
Points are available for the activities listed below:
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Participation (50 points) |
Participation means ATTENDING class, as well as keeping up with the readings and being able to DISCUSS THEM THOUGHTFULLY in class. I will not post lecture notes or Powerpoint slides. You will need to be vigilant in taking notes during class lecture and discussion. If you miss more than one week of class (3 class sessions), you will start to lose points (five points per session missed after that.).
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Exams (2 exams - 250 points) |
There are two exams. A midterm (100 points) and a final exam (150 points). These exams are based on material from the assigned readings, class lectures, discussions, and videos. All three exams will consist of a combination of multiple choice questions and short essays.
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Response Papers (5 papers - 20 points each) |
Students will write FIVE one-page response papers. Each paper is worth 20 points, for a total of 100 points.
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Day |
Topic |
Readings and Reading Questions |
Assignments & Events |
| January 23, 2017 |
Introduction to the course |
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| January 25, 2017 | Sociological Perspectives:
Functionalism |
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| January 27, 2017 |
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| January 30, 2017 |
Community |
Definitions of Community: Areas of Agreement |
Think about how you define community. Bring a definition to class for discussion. Do the Individual Asset Inventory found in the
Content Section of Blackboard. Think about your
gifts of the head, hands, and heart as well as the
organizations that you belong to and the ways they tie
you to others. |
| February 1, 2017 | Community: Pieces vs. Process | Community Capitals Theory
Interactional Field Theory |
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| February 3, 2017 |
Measuring Community Attachment, Involvement, Action, Needs, Assets, Quality |
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| February 6, 2017 |
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No Class - Southern Rural Sociological Association meeting |
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| February 8, 2017 |
Response Paper #1 Due: |
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| February 10, 2017 | Environment and Natural Resources |
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| February 13, 2017 | Growth and Development |
Development and Growth as Sociological Concepts:
Malthus |
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| February 15, 2017 | Is development the same thing as economic growth? |
How is the trade-off between growth and environmental
stability different for core (rich, industrialized) and periphery
(poor, industrializing) countries? What kinds of conflicts does
this create? Are there ways to reduce poverty and improve the
standard of living without adopting a "Western" pattern
of growth? How has the global recession affected the environment? |
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| February 17, 2017 | |||
| February 20, 2017 | The City as a Growth Machine | Why is exposure to pollution and other environmental risks unequally distributed by race and class? How does "growth machine politics" influence environmental risk? How is the struggle for environment justice at work different from the movement to protect community living spaces |
Response Paper #2 Due:
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| February 22, 2017 | The Galactic City, The Big Sort, and Who's Your City |
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| February 24, 2017 |
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| February 27, 2017 | Globalization |
Is globalization new? What does Giddens identify as the "skeptical" versus "radical" positions on globalization? What does he see as the major risks associated with it? What is the difference between neoliberalism and classical economic liberalism? |
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| March 1, 2017 |
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| March 3, 2017 | Thank You For Being Late pp. 1-156 |
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| March 6, 2017 | |||
| March 8, 2017 |
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| March 10, 2017 | Midterm Exam | ||
| March 13--17 |
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Spring Break -- No Class | |
| March 20, 2017 |
Population and Its Effects |
The Demographic Transition Sprawl |
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| March 22, 2017 |
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Friedman, Chapter 6
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| March 24, 2017 | Climate Change Deforestation Ocean Acidification Biodiversity Extinction |
Response
Paper #3 Due:
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| March 27, 2017 |
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| March 29, 2017 |
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Community Effects: Lost, Found, or Liberated? |
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| March 31, 2017 |
Modernization: Is Development linear or can we skip the bad parts? |
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| April 3, 2017 | Adoption and Diffusion | ||
| April 5, 2017 | Headwinds against Growth | ||
| April 7, 2017 | |||
| April 10, 2017 | Resilience and Anti-fragility | ||
| April 12, 2017 | Friedman, Chapters 7 and 8 |
Response Paper #4 Due: |
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| April 14, 2017 | 31 | ||
| April 17, 2017 | 32 | Designing Better Communities | |
| April 19, 2017 | 33 | Film | |
| April 21, 2017 | 34 | Needs vs. Assets | |
| April 24, 2017 | 35 | Changing Values/Beliefs/Worldviews Paintswaps and ToolShares |
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| April 26, 2017 | 36 | Changing Attitudes and Info Education's effects on population and development |
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| April 28, 2017 | 37 | Changing Incentives Microloans |
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| May 1, 2017 | 38 | Community Norms and Management Dark Side of Community |
Response Paper #5 |
| May 3, 2017 | 39 | Friedman, Chapters 9, 10, and 11. Makerspace/Hackerspace/Techshop or FabLab |
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| May 5, 2017 | 40 | Ramping up |
Finally,
my standard
disclaimer:
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The syllabus for any class is a road map. The readings in the course calendar are places we are scheduled to visit. Anyone who has taken a preplanned road trip or vacation knows that the trip is not fun unless you stop at the interesting roadside attractions even though they might divert from your original route or time table. It's the adventure of the trip there that is intriguing and fun. In that light, the above schedule and procedures for this course are subject to change by the Professor in the event of extenuating circumstances. |
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