Syllabus
Science Prerequisites for Health Professionals
SOCI 1010: Introduction to Sociology – Spring 2024
Credits - 3
Description
This introduction to sociology course introduces students to the three main sociological perspectives, the sociological imagination, social construction, and how to think like a sociologist. Topics such as deviance, social control, culture, stratification, socialization, social movements, and other social issues that society faces are explored and discussed. This course will require students to think critically about human actions and interactions. Students will gain an understanding on how people’s lives are shaped by society.
Materials
Learning Objectives and Outcomes
Course Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course the student will be able to:
- Using sociological research, describe sociology
- Describe how socialization impacts human behavior.
- Apply the sociological imagination to their own lives and to a public problem.
- Analyze the impact of the five major social institutions on society and themselves.
- Analyze current events using the three major sociological theoretical perspectives.
- Describe social construction.
- Examine the racial, gender, and economic diversity that exists in the U.S. and how these are used to classify people.
- Assess present and possible future effects of social change on societies and their own basic values.
SELF PACED DESIGN
On the course start date, students will have access to orientation. This must be completed to be able to gain access to the first module in the course. Students must complete the first module to gain access to the next one. We recommend that students spend about 15 hours per week to complete a course in 16 weeks. When trying to complete the course in less than 16 weeks, we typically see students do this successfully within 12-14 weeks. Instructors will be timely in grading and feedback, but it will not be instant.
Assignments
There are 7 assignments and a final paper in this course.
Papers
Requirements:
- The paper should be a minimum of 1 full page. This page count does not include the title page and reference page. No abstract is needed.
- Integrate at least 1 scholarly source and 1 coursework source to back up your stance on the topic. Scholarly sources are peer-reviewed journal articles, college-level books, websites for collegiate-level institutions, government websites, and other websites with collegiate-level, peer-reviewed, academic information. Wikipedia, Quora, eHow and similar sites are not considered scholarly sources. Newspapers and news sites are not considered scholarly sources for this course.
- Assignments should be written in a clear, concise, formal, and organized manner.
- Information from sources should be paraphrased appropriately and accurately referenced and cited in APA (7th ed.) format.
- Assignments for this course should be Times New Roman 12 font with a standard 1” margin on all sides. Do not use any stylized templates in your word processor. All typing must be in black color.
- For detailed grading criteria, refer to the Assignment Rubric. Written assignments are worth 14% of your final grade, each assignment is worth 2% of your final grade.
Final Paper: The only difference for this paper is it should be a minimum of 3 full pages, not including cover page and reference page. The final paper is worth 20% of your final grade.
Discussions
Student Introductions
Student Introductions is the first discussion item. Since we may never have the opportunity to meet face to face, please introduce yourselves to your peers. Be sure to respond to 2 other students.
Discussions and Participation
There are 8 discussions in this course. Requirements for discussions:
- Initial Response to Discussion Question: Your initial post should be 400 words in length. Integrate at least 1 scholarly source to back up your stance on the topic.
- Scholarly sources are peer-reviewed journal articles, college-level books, websites for collegiate-level institutions, government websites, and other websites with collegiate-level, peer-reviewed, academic information. Wikipedia, Quora, eHow and similar sites are not considered scholarly sources. Newspapers and news sites are not considered scholarly sources for this course.
- Posts should be written in a clear, concise, formal, and organized manner. Information from sources should be paraphrased appropriately and accurately referenced and cited in APA (7th ed.) format.
- Your comments should be grammatically correct, without misspelled words.
Participation in Discussions:
- You are expected to respond to 2 of your peers. Each reply needs to be at least 150 words in length and add depth to the conversation.
- Posts should be written in a clear, concise, formal, and organized manner. Information from sources should be paraphrased appropriately and accurately referenced and cited in APA (7th ed.) format.
- Your comments should be grammatically correct, without misspelled words.
For detailed grading criteria, refer to the Discussion Rubric. Discussions are worth 15% of your final grade, this discussion is worth 1.75% of your final grade.
Quizzes
This course includes 7 quizzes; all quizzes are timed and include multiple choice and True/False questions. Quizzes are worth 14% of your final grade, each quiz is worth 2% of your final grade.
Final Exam
The Final Exam is cumulative, timed, includes multiple choice and True/False questions. It is required that the Final Exam is proctored. The Final Exam is worth 20% of your final grade. This Final Exam must be taken though ProctorU. See UNE’s ProctorU page for information about signing up and scheduling your exam. The official UNE webcam is required. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.
Grading Policy
Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:
Grade Breakdown
| Assignment Category | Grade |
|---|---|
| Discussions (8) | 15% |
| Introduction discussion | 2% |
| Quizzes (7) | 14% |
| Assignments (7) | 14% |
| Project | 15% |
| Final Exam | 20% |
| Final Paper | 20% |
| Total | 100% |
Grade Scale
| Grade | Points Grade | Point Average (GPA) |
| A | 94 – 100% | 4.00 |
| A- | 90 – 93% | 3.75 |
| B+ | 87 – 89% | 3.50 |
| B | 84 – 86% | 3.00 |
| B- | 80 – 83% | 2.75 |
| C+ | 77 – 79% | 2.50 |
| C | 74 – 76% | 2.00 |
| C- | 70 – 73% | 1.75 |
| D | 64 – 69% | 1.00 |
| F | 00 – 63% | 0.00 |
Schedule
|
Week |
Topic |
Readings/Resources |
Assignments |
|
1 |
An Introduction to Sociology & Sociological Research |
Chapters 1 & 2 |
Discussion 1initial post Introduction discussion and replies Syllabus Acknowledgement Assignment 1 |
|
2 |
Culture & Society and Social Interaction |
Chapters 3, 4 |
Discussion 1 replies Quiz 1 Project Assigned |
|
3 |
Socialization |
Chapter 5 |
Discussion 2 initial post Assignment 2 |
|
4 |
Groups and Organizations & Deviance, Crime, and Social Control |
Chapters 6,7 |
Discussion 2 replies Quiz 2 |
|
5 |
Media and Technology |
Chapter 8 |
Discussion 3 initial post Assignment 3 |
|
6 |
Social Stratification in the United States |
Chapter 9 |
Discussion 3 replies Quiz 3 Project check in |
|
7 |
Global Inequality |
Chapter 10 |
Discussion 4 initial post Assignment 4 |
|
8 |
Race and Ethnicity |
Chapter 11 |
Discussion 4 replies Quiz 4 |
|
9 |
Gender, Sex, and Sexuality |
Chapter 12 |
Discussion 5 initial post Assignment 5 |
|
10 |
Aging and the Elderly & Marriage and Family |
Chapters 13, 14 |
Discussion 5 replies Quiz 5 |
|
11 |
Religion & Education |
Chapters 15 & 16 |
Discussion 6 initial post Assignment 6 Project check – in |
|
12 |
Government and Politics |
Chapter 17 |
Discussion 6 replies Quiz 6 |
|
13 |
Work and Economy |
Chapter 18 |
Discussion 7 initial post Assignment 7 |
|
14 |
Health and Medicine |
Chapter 19 |
Discussion 7 replies Quiz 7 Project due |
|
15 |
Population, Urbanization, and the Environment |
Chapter 20 |
Discussion 8 Final Paper |
|
16 |
Social Movements and Social Change |
Chapter 21 |
Discussion 8 replies Final Exam |
Student Resources
Online Student Support
Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you - they will monitor course progression and provide assistance or guidance when needed. Please don’t hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, course materials, billing, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies.
Questions? Visit the Student Support Science Prerequisites page
Online Peer Support
Togetherall is a 24/7 communication and emotional support platform monitored by trained clinicians. It’s a safe place online to get things off your chest, have conversations, express yourself creatively, and learn how to manage your mental health. If sharing isn’t your thing, Togetherall has other tools and courses to help you look after yourself with plenty of resources to explore. Whether you’re struggling to cope, feeling low, or just need a place to talk, Togetherall can help you explore your feelings in a safe supportive environment. You can join Togetherall using your UNE email address.
Instructor and Support Contact Information
Check Brightspace for specific instructor and support specialist contact information.
Student Lounge
The Student Lounge Discussion Forum is a designated support forum in which students may engage with each other and grapple with course content. Feel free to post questions, seek clarification, and support each other, but be mindful of UNE's Academic Integrity Policy.
Your instructor will monitor this forum. However, if you are seeking specific and timely answers to questions about course content or your personal grades, please contact your instructor via course messages. For questions about course materials, program policy, and how to navigate and proceed through the course, please contact your Student Service Advisor through the Student Portal.
Policies
Proctored Examinations
Your course may have proctored exams. The University of New England has contracted with ProctorU to provide students with the most convenient online exam proctoring system. This system provides a simple, no cost to the student, secure, online proctor for exams and allows the student to take all the exams at home and on their own schedule.
Upon enrollment into the course, each student will register with ProctorU and establish a login name and password. This will give the student access to all of ProctorU's services. When ready, students will schedule each of their proctored exams with ProctorU. Exams must be scheduled at least 72 hours in advance to avoid fees. Prior to taking their exams, students must be sure that they have downloaded any required additional software. They must also be sure their testing site's connection meets the minimum requirements by using ProctorU's "Test It Out" utility.
Upon the exam day and hour, students will log in to ProctorU and click on "exams". After following the procedures outlined at ProctorU's website, the student will log in to Brightspace and locate their correct exam. The proctor will then allow student access to that exam.
Students must follow all proctoring requirements for their exams to be credited. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.
Exam Attempts Policy
Students will receive two attempts at all proctored examinations. The higher score of the two attempts will be calculated into the final grade. Students can schedule their second attempt by following the same ProctorU instructions as with the original exam.
All students are encouraged to utilize a second attempt on their exams in order to improve their overall performance in the course.
Course Discussions
Discussion topics cover events or materials related to this course that contribute to a deeper understanding of key concepts and allow you to interact with your classmates and the instructor. Each discussion topic may require you to conduct internet research, read additional materials, visit a specific webpage, AND/OR view a short video before writing a response following the specific guidelines in the discussion topic prompt.
To earn full credit you will need to post a response to the discussion topic, respond to the original posts of other students, and then contribute meaningfully to an ongoing discussion. You may need to post your initial response before you will see any posts from your classmates. For special cases where one or two students are accelerating faster through the course, the instructor will participate in the discussion so that everyone has the opportunity to interact.
Please see Brightspace for a full description, along with specific guidelines, for each discussion topic. Discussion board assignments should be completed, along with all other assignments in the course, in the order that they appear. Due to the course design, you may be unable to take a proctored exam if you do not complete all assignments that appear prior to that exam.
Please also refer to the Grading Policy/Grade Breakdown section of the syllabus to learn the percentage of your grade that each discussion is worth.
Technology Requirements
Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Programs: Technical Requirements
Course Length
A schedule of lectures and assignments is included in this syllabus. This is, however a self-paced course and you can complete the course in less time.
- Courses in the SPHP program are equivalent to one-semester courses designed to be completed in 16 weeks
- Enrollment in the course begins the day your section opens which is listed in the Academic Calendar found on the Student Success Portal.
- Course start and end dates are in respect to Eastern Time.
Withdrawal and Refund Policies
Please visit the enrollment page to review the withdrawal and refund policies.
Grade Policy
Students are expected to attempt and complete all graded assignments and proctored exams by the end date of the course. View the incomplete grade policy..
Transcripts
Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, only the student may request official transcripts. This may be done online by going to the University of New England Registrar website and following the directions on the page.
Academic Integrity
The University of New England values academic integrity in all aspects of the educational experience. Academic dishonesty in any form undermines this standard and devalues the original contributions of others. It is the responsibility of all members of the University community to actively uphold the integrity of the academy; failure to act, for any reason, is not acceptable.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:
- Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
- Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
- Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
- Multiple submission of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
- Plagiarism, the appropriation of records, research, materials, ideas, or the language of other persons or writers and the submission of them as one's own.
Charges of academic dishonesty will be reviewed by the Program Director. Penalties for students found responsible for violations may depend upon the seriousness and circumstances of the violation, the degree of premeditation involved, and/or the student’s previous record of violations. Appeal of a decision may be made to the Dean whose decision will be final. Student appeals will take place through the grievance process outlined in the student handbook.
Using Generative AI When Completing Coursework
Generative AI (GenAI) applications (like ChatGPT) have proven to be powerful and effective tools, and students are encouraged to become familiar with and use them. However, as with any tool, students must use GenAI in ways that support learning, not replace it. Learning to use AI responsibly and ethically is an important skill in today’s society.
In their courses, students are not allowed to use advanced automated tools, such as generative AI tools, on assignments unless explicitly directed to do so. Each student is expected to complete each assignment, including labs and quizzes as applicable, without substantive assistance from others, including automated tools.
Using AI-content generators to complete assignments without proper attribution violates academic integrity. By submitting assignments in UNE courses, you pledge to affirm that they are your own work and you attribute use of any and all tools and sources.
Unauthorized Use
Unauthorized use of AI is treated as a violation of academic integrity.
Citing AI Use
If permitted, students should indicate and cite any use of AI tools.
Instructor responsibility
Instructors should clearly reiterate, using UNE Online’s Policy, how students can use AI tools in their courses, and communicate this policy to students at the beginning of the semester.
Student responsibility
Students must follow the academic integrity policy of the University of New England.