SOC 101 Introductory Sociology Fall A 2015

SLN 76893/ 78700 ASU Online/ i-course

Syllabus Table of Contents
Subject

Page

1. Introduction

2. Course staff

3. Links to informational articles for students

4. Technical support

5. Required materials

6. Abbreviations used in this course

7. Whats needed to succeed in this course?

8. Course description
Course content
Course organization
Course objectives
Course format

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6
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6

9. What you should know about me as an Instructor

10. Course policies & procedures

Emails
Student conduct
Deaths in the family
Illness, injury and/or other forms of incapacitation
Requests for incompletes
Medical/ compassionate withdrawals
Time zone differences
Important deadlines
Accommodation of students with disabilities
Academic integrity/ dishonesty

11. Grading
General grading policies
Extra credit policies
Table: Point breakdown of course elements
Table: Grading scale

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Subject

Page

12. Online Testing

General Information
ASU campus locations where you can take your tests
Installation of the RLDB for MAC users
Installation of the RLDB for PC users
Step-by-step instructions for taking tests using the RLDB
RLDB practice test
Test mechanics
Test policies

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Material covered on each online test

Table: Test timetable

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13. Discussion Forums

General information
Recycling of previous coursework in Forum posts
Table: Forum post timetable
Forum group assignments
About Post 1s and 2s
Writing quality
The post submission process
How to submit Post 1s and 2s to the Forums
When your posts will be graded
How to report a missing score
How to challenge a post score

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14. Digication e-Portfolio

General Information
Construction of your e-Portfolio
Table: E-Portfolio Timetable and Point Values

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15. Planning for Blackboard outages and/or computer problems

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16. Course Outline

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17. Appendix I: Grading rubric for Discussion Forum posts

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18. Appendix II: Troubleshooting the RLDB

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19. Appendix III: Preparing to create your Digication e-Portfolio

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20. Appendix IV: Honors contract requirements for SOC 101

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Page 2 of 34

SOC 101 Introductory Sociology Fall A 2015

SLN 76893/ 78700 ASU Online/ i-course
Introduction:
Welcome to SOC 101! I hope you will find the course material both interesting and applicable to
your life. We look forward to working with you this semester.
It is important for you to understand that this course moves at an accelerated pace. You must do
everything in 7.5 weeks that students taking it in a 15-week format have to do, but you must do it
twice as fast. You must spend a minimum of 20 hours per week on its requirements. If you do
not have that much time to spend on this course, you should not take it this session.
Please dont be daunted by the length of this syllabus. Just think of it as a reference guide for this
course. Its last eight pages are simply appendices full of information about how to accomplish
some of the online mechanics of the course. I make all my course syllabi this detailed which
causes them to be long - because I try to anticipate in advance what questions my students will
have and then answer them up front, in the syllabus.
In another sense, the syllabus is also a contract between you and me. It states (a) what I will do,
as the course Instructor, (b) what the TAs will do, (c) what you must do, as a student enrolled in
the course and (d) the policies and timetable to which all of us must adhere.
Course Staff:
Name

Title

Email

Instructor
TA
TA
TA
TA
TA

Important Information
Office: Cowden 202, Hours By
Appt.
Oversees work of A-B students
Oversees work of C-E students
Oversees work of F-He students
Oversees work of Hi-Ma students
Oversees work of Mc-Q students

Lisa Whitaker
Hannah Byers
Morgan Hammel
Senet Kidane
Taylor McGrew
Victoria Mohrman
Shae ReecePeeplez
Bailee Zemlock

TA
TA

Oversees work of R-S students

Oversees work of T-Z students

Rachea.Reece-Peeplez@asu.edu
Bailee.Zemlock@asu.edu

Lisa.Whitaker@asu.edu
Hannah.Byers@asu.edu
Morgan.Hammel@asu.edu
Senet.Kidane@asu.edu
Taylor.McGrew@asu.edu
Victoria.Mohrman@asu.edu

Links to informational articles for students:

Blackboard help for students
http://asu.force.com/kb/articles/Informational/Blackboard-Help-for-Students/
Undergraduate academic advising:
http://asu.force.com/kb/articles/FAQ/How-do-I-schedule-an-appointment-with-an-undergraduateacademic-advisor/
ASU Email guide:
http://asu.force.com/kb/articles/Informational/ASU-Email-Guide/

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ASU wireless network:

http://asu.force.com/kb/articles/How_To/How-to-Connect-to-ASU-s-Network/

Technical Support
In the event you have a technical problem with Blackboard or the Respondus Lockdown Browser
it is your responsibility to take the initiative to contact the appropriate Tech Support personnel and
get the problem remedied.
Tech Studio staff members are available Monday-Friday from 9 AM 5 PM for phone, email and
in-person assistance. Their office is located in the Computing Commons, CPCOM 140. Their
phone number is (480) 965-2843. You can also call 1-855-278-5080 for assistance with
Blackboard by phone
Required Materials:
Textbook: Getting Started in Sociology, 5th edition, ISBN 9781259735363 Here is what
the front cover of the 5th edition looks like, so that you can be sure you are getting the
correct edition:

A computer with sufficient RAM (Random Access Memory) to enable you to take the
online tests, watch any assigned videos and create the Digication e-Portfolio that is your
semester project for this course. I recommend you also have second, backup computer
available, which you can use in case your primary computer malfunctions.

Page 4 of 34

A hard-wired (Ethernet), high-speed internet connection with anti-virus software

installed and operating. Non-stable and/or slow internet connections will not excuse time
overages during online testing, failures to watch assigned videos or failures to complete
the Digication e-Portfolio.

A functioning ASU email account from which you can send and receive emails.
Abbreviations used in this syllabus, in Blackboard & in my emails to you:
1. BB = Blackboard
2. Day One (of the course) = 8 AM Thursday, August 20, 2015
3. RLDB = Respondus Lockdown Browser
4. Test = A general term that refers to any of the tests you may take in this course,
including: the Syllabus Exam, the Academic Integrity Quiz and Quizzes 1-6 on the
textbook readings
5. SOL= Student Out of Luck
6. ASAP = As Soon As Possible
7. PPT = PowerPoint presentation
8. 5 PM Friday [deadline each week for submitting coursework] = 5:00:00 PM Friday, the
moment the clock inside Blackboard thinks it is 5 PM (not the moment your personal
clock, watch or phone says it is 5 PM)
9. Work submitted Late = Work submitted on its due date at 5:00:01 PM or later,
according to the clock inside Blackboard. Late work is scored ZERO.
10. PF = Digication e-Portfolio, a project you will complete using the Digication e-Portfolio
tool in the Blackboard portion of this course
Whats needed to succeed in this course?
Thoroughly familiarize yourself with the course syllabus

Do the assigned reading and note-taking on schedule per the Course Outline section of
this syllabus, in order to be prepared to take tests on these materials in a timely fashion.

Check your asu.edu email account and Blackboard Announcements DAILY for any
important course updates - schedule changes, etc.

Take each quiz and complete each e-Portfolio page in a timely fashion. Do not wait
until the last 24 hours before it is due to begin a quiz or a PF page.

Take screen shots of your quiz scores and PF page scores in My Grades. Save these to
your computer and keep them until the semester is over.

Take the initiative to contact the appropriate technical support personnel immediately if
you have any technical problems, so that you can get those problems resolved ASAP.

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Course Set-up
Course Content:
This course covers basic sociological concepts and theoretical perspectives and explains how
they apply to everyday social life. Additionally, you will do a semester project consisting of your
creation of a professional e-portfolio to facilitate your own professional development.
You will be tested on all the textbook articles except those contained in Part IV: Work and
Organizations. The articles in Part IV are nonetheless important for you to read. They are
important for your career development in general and also as source material upon which you will
proceed to create your e-Portfolio for this course.
Course Organization:
With the exception of the abbreviated first week of the course (Thursday 8/20 Friday 8/21,
which I call Week 0.5), each Week of this course (Weeks 1-7) begins at 8:00:00 AM on the
Monday it begins and ends at 5:00:00 PM on Friday of the same week.

Course Objectives: Benefits you will derive from completing this courses requirements:
You will become more knowledgeable about basic sociological theories and concepts
You will become more knowledgeable about current events
You will see how sociological ideas apply everyday life and current events
You will sharpen your critical thinking skills
You will sharpen your writing skills
You will become knowledgeable about and more tolerant of people who look different
than you and of beliefs, opinions and perspectives that differ from your own.
You will have a professional e-Portfolio that you can build on through your time at ASU
and ultimately use as a tool to market yourself professionally and stand out from the pack
when the time comes to compete for the position you want
Course Format:
Each week, your work for this course will include the following requirements:
Reading the textbook articles assigned for the week

Taking notes on the readings using the Study Guides I provide for them

Taking quizzes on the readings via Blackboard, using the Respondus Lockdown Browser.
The deadline for completing each quiz is 5:00:00 PM on Friday of the week it is assigned.

Creating one or two of the seven required pages of your professional digital portfolio an
e-Portfolio that you can use to market yourself professionally after college. The
portfolio you build for this class will be a basic, starter portfolio that you can add to and
otherwise tweak over time as you progress in your professional development.

Additionally:

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During either Week 0.5 or Week 1, you will take an exam on the content of this
syllabus and also a quiz on a PPT you will find in Blackboard (in Week 0.5) that covers
ASUs Academic Integrity policies.

During each of Weeks 1-7 you will submit two posts to a Discussion Forum wherein you
will discuss issues raised in one or more of the readings you will be tested on that same
week.
What you should know about me as an Instructor:
I am a nice person and a fair teacher. That said, you should understand that nice person does
not mean pushover. I am a real stickler for following the rules. I actually follow all my course
policies. I almost never make exceptions to the due dates and deadlines Ive established in this
syllabus. I almost never give students extensions of time to complete coursework. I will run this
class as a professional, business-type setting. I do this to augment your maturity,
professionalism, preparedness for todays work environments and your ability to effectively
compete in todays job market.
One of the reasons I am such a stickler about due dates and deadlines is this: In the final weeks
of each semester, my colleagues and I receive an alarming number of emails from students;
advising they could not complete this or that course requirement because their grandmothers,
aunts and other extended-family members have abruptly died. In fact there is such an epidemic
of dead grandmothers toward the end of each semester that I have seriously considered putting a
warning notice in my course syllabi about how enrollment in my courses places grandmothers atrisk. Please see the Deaths in the Family section of this syllabus for my policies on this matter.
This summer I started running speed intervals on a treadmill as part of my fitness routine. I
immediately realized that when I was doing the fast-speed portions of the run, if I didnt focus on
what I was doing getting my legs to work in a specific way and get my feet to hit the belt at
specific moments I was going to lose my footing, fly off the end of the belt and slam into the
stair machines behind me. Not long after, I realized further that the way you run speed intervals
is a really good metaphor for the way you should approach the work you have to do in this
course: You cant be caught slippin! You have to take the readings, assignments and class
discussions seriously, and do them conscientiously, or your grade will be damaged just as
surely as I would be physically damaged if I didnt pay attention to what I was doing while running
intervals on that treadmill.
This semester I am teaching this course, an in-person MW course, an in-person TTH course and
four other online courses. I also have to attend various meetings, which tend to take place in the
afternoon. Thus I will be online at different times from day-to-day, depending on my schedule
each day. I am typically not online after 5 PM on any day. Thus, if you need immediate
assistance during the evening or nighttime hours, your best bet is to email your TA. If you email
me after 5 PM, you will get a response from me the following morning.
You are welcome to make an appointment to come see me in my office and talk about anything
you want. It doesnt have to be about course material. I am here as a resource for you this
semester.

Page 7 of 34

Course Policies and Procedures

Emails:
Your personal email account(s) will not work for this course. Your TA and I will only
respond to emails originating from your asu.edu email account. Emails sent from any
other email account will not get a reply.

To email Dr. Whitaker or your TA, use the email address for her given in the table on p.3
of this syllabus. Please put SOC 101 in the subject line of your email.

You must be courteous and respectful in the tone and content of your emails to us (your
TA and me), as we will be in our emails to you. You must email us using proper forms of
address and compose your messages in complete sentences. I consider my courses to
be business/professional settings. It is important for your future success, both
professionally and personally, to learn proper forms of communication in a
business/professional setting. Therefore, you must begin your emails to me by
addressing me as Dr. Whitaker (e.g. Dear Dr. Whitaker or Hi Dr. Whitaker) and end
them with an appropriate closing salutation plus your first and last names (e.g. Sincerely,
Mary Smith or Thank you, John Jones). If you do not include both a greeting and a
closing of the types noted here, I will not respond to your email. I will also not respond to
emails containing sentence fragments/text-messaging language, or to emails that are
rude, abusive, sarcastic, haughty and demanding, threatening or inappropriately informal.

Students frequently email us at the beginning AND toward the end of the semester with
questions that this syllabus, itself, answers. If you email us a question and do not get a
response within 24 hours, that means the syllabus contains the answer to your question.

If you email us on a school holiday, you may not get a response until classes resume
after the holiday in question.

If you email us between 8 AM Monday and Noon on Friday, you can expect a response
within 24 hours, but perhaps not before then. If you email us Friday after 12 Noon or
during the weekend, you may not receive a response until the following Monday morning.

Student Conduct
You must conduct yourself with maturity in your interactions with me (through emails) and your
classmates (through the discussion forums) during class. Acting in a mature way entails following
conventions of common courtesy, including:

Treating me and each other, as well as our assorted opinions, with respect

Abstaining from engaging in any online behavior that might be distracting or disruptive to
me or the other students (e.g., disrespectful email correspondence or forum postings,
cyber-shouting, etc.)

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Its important to understand that students do not have an unqualified right of access to university
technology and/or services. Please note that I can have you withdrawn from the course with a
mark of W or E if you repeatedly act in a way that disrupts the learning process for others.
As an ASU student, you should be familiar with all university policies related to student conduct.
Information about students rights and responsibilities can be found at this site:
http://students.asu.edu/srr/code . Information about what constitutes disruptive behavior in the
eyes of the university can be found here: http://www.asu.edu/studentaffairs/safety/definitions.html
Deaths in the Family
If your parent, sibling, child, spouse or significant other dies during the semester and (1) you
notify me of this death within two days of the date of the death and (2) you provide documentation
that I deem adequate to prove the fact and timing of his/her death, I will give you additional time
to complete coursework that is due within the two weeks (14 days) that follow the date of the
death. To provide this documentation you must either leave it with our department receptionist in
SS 144 on the Tempe campus or fax it to my attention at this fax number: (480) 965-6779. If you
fail to meet conditions (1) and/or (2) above, I will not give you any extra time to complete your
coursework.
If your (great) grandparent, (great) aunt, (great) uncle, (great) niece, (great) nephew or one of
your in-laws (parent-in-law, sibling-in-law or child-in-law) dies, you will not get an extension of
time to complete upcoming assignments. If you expect the death of a member of this latter group
this semester and moreover, expect you will be so broken up about his/her death that you will be
unable to do coursework, you should not take this course this semester.
Keep in mind that you have access to every study guide and test on 8/17, and to all the
tools you need to complete your e-Portfolioas of 8/20. Thus there is no excuse for waiting
until in-effect the last minute to take a test or start work on a section of your e-Portfolio. If you
hear on a Monday that your Aunt Martha has died and you decide to fly to Ohio or wherever on
Tuesday for her funeral on Wednesday and plan to stay with relatives until Friday, then you
should complete any tests due that week before you board the plane on Tuesday. Emailing me
the week after the funeral and saying, Oh gosh, I couldnt take Quiz X because my aunt died and
I had to attend her funeral will not get you an extension of time to complete that quiz. Rather, it
will get you a score of zero for the Quiz. The same holds true in the event you procrastinate on
starting a section of your e-Portfolio until a few days before it is due, then learn your Aunt Martha
died and never get around to putting that page of your PF together before you board the plane for
the funeral.
Illness, injury and/or other forms of incapacitation
If you become injured, ill or otherwise so incapacitated that you cannot do any schoolwork, in
order to get extra time to complete coursework you must (1) notify me of this illness/injury within
two days of the date you became incapacitated and (2) provide documentation from your doctor
that I deem adequate on his/her letterhead stationery; stating that you are injured/too ill to do
schoolwork between X and Y dates. The doctors note must include the date you became
incapacitated and the date you can resume your schoolwork. To provide this documentation you
will need to either leave it with our department receptionist in SS 144 on the Tempe campus or
fax it to my attention at this fax number: (480) 965-6779. Once I contact your doctors office and
confirm the authenticity of your documentation, I will create a schedule for you to make up the
work you have missed.
Requests for Incompletes
I do not give Incompletes. If you stay in this course beyond the November 4 withdrawal deadline,
then as of December 4, you will have completed the course and you will get a letter grade.

Page 9 of 34

Medical/Compassionate Withdrawals
Students who experience significant emotional/personal crises or physical health problems during
the semester may qualify for a compassionate or medical withdrawal from their courses. Such
withdrawals must be applied for by contacting the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. For
further information about this withdrawal option, go to:
http://www.asu.edu/aad/manuals/ssm/ssm201-09.html
Time Zone Differences
All due dates and deadlines in this course are in conjunction with Mountain Standard Time (MST).
Because Arizona, except for the Navajo Nation lands, does not participate in Daylight Savings
Time, Arizona remains on Mountain Standard Time when the other states in the Mountain Zone
move to Mountain Daylight Time. Thus from the second Sunday in March until the first Sunday in
November, it is one hour earlier in most of Arizona, including the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, than
it is in other states within the Mountain Time Zone. If you reside or travel outside of the Phoenix
Metro Area of Arizona while taking this course, you are responsible for taking into consideration
any applicable time-zone differences and making the adjustments necessary to complete your
assignments and test-taking on-schedule, according to MST.
Important Deadlines
Last Day to Drop/Add Friday, August 21
Last Day to Apply for Graduation Thursday, October 1
Last Day to Withdraw from this Course Wednesday, September 9
Last Day to Withdraw from all your courses this session Friday, October 9
Accommodation of Students with Disabilities
For disability accommodation, contact ASUs Disability Resource Center (DRC) at
http://www.asu.edu/studentaffairs/ed/drc to establish your eligibility and make sure they can
provide you with the services you will need for this course. Accommodation will begin after I
receive confirmation of your eligibility from your DRC coordinator.
Academic Integrity/Dishonesty
ASUs Academic Integrity policy (http://provost.asu.edu/academicintegrity/policy ) holds students
to a code of conduct that defines academic dishonesty to include cheating, plagiarism, academic
deceit, falsifying records, and inappropriate collaboration. Academic honesty is expected of all
students in all examinations, papers, laboratory work, academic transactions and records. The
possible sanctions include, but are not limited to, appropriate grade penalties, course failure
(indicated on the transcript as a grade of E), course failure due to academic dishonesty (indicated
on the transcript as a grade of XE), loss of registration privileges, disqualification and dismissal.
To increase student awareness, and student-instructor discussion of these issues, students are
required to read the Sanford Schools Academic Integrity PowerPoint and to take the
accompanying Academic Integrity quiz.

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Grading:
General Grading Policies:
Even if Blackboard says otherwise, there are 350 points possible in this course.

Your final grade in this course will be determined using the grading scale given in this
syllabus. [Your semester point total, divided by 350, equals X% and thereby a specific
letter grade, as indicated in the Grading Scale table in this syllabus.]

I do not curve grades, do not round up and will not drop your lowest test, forum or PF
page score.

You should take a screen shot of each of your test, forum and PF page scores in My
Grades. Save these to your computer and keep them until the semester is over. If there
is ever a question about your fulfillment of some course obligation, these screen shots
will be your proof-of-completion. The burden of proof is on you in such situations. Absent
such proof, you may get a zero for the course component in question.

Extra Credit
Extra credit may, OR may not, be offered during the semester. Beyond what is offered to
the entire class, no additional extra credit will be offered to individual students.

If extra credit is offered, it may take the form of an opportunity to participate in a survey
research project conducted by ASU faculty members and/or graduate students. In the
event this occurs, once the survey closes, the individual conducting the research will
email me a list of the names of students in this class who have participated in his/her
survey. It is your responsibility to provide the information requested at the end of the
survey, in order to identify you as a participant. If your name is not on the list the
investigator gives me, you will not get the EC points.

If extra credit is offered, once the points students earn for the EC activity are posted in My
Grades, I will place an Announcement in the course to let you know this. Once that
Announcement is posted, check My Grades to verify your EC points are there. If your
points are not showing in My Grades, notify me immediately by emailing me directly.
Your deadline for notifying me is 5 PM Friday, October 9 (the last day of Session A
classes).

Page 11 of 34

Point Breakdown of Course Elements:

Course Component:
Academic Integrity Quiz
Syllabus Exam
Online Quizzes 1-6
Discussion Forum Posts
Digication e-Portfolio
TOTAL

Point Value
15
35
150 (6 @ 25 each)
70 (7 Forums @ 10 each)
80 (8 tasks @ 10 each)
350 points

Approximate
% of Grade
4.00
10.00
43.00
20.00
23.00
100.00

Grading Scale:
Grade

Meaning of Grade

Points Needed

Percentile

Value

A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
D
E

Exceptional
Wicked-good
Laudable
Commendable
Nicely Done
Better than Average
Above 300-level
At 300-level
Just Barely Passing
Failing

343
329 342
315 328
308 314
294 307
280 293
273 279
245 272
210 279
<209

98 100
94 97
90 93
88 89
84 87
80 83
78 79
70 77
60 69
<59

4.33
4.00
3.67
3.33
3.00
2.67
2.33
2.00
1.00
0.00

Page 12 of 34

Testing
General Information
You will take a total of eight tests in this course. More specifically, you will take an exam on the
syllabus itself, a quiz on ASUs Academic Integrity policies, then six quizzes on the readings in the
textbook. There is no final exam. You will take all of these tests using the Respondus Lockdown
Browser (RLDB) feature of Blackboard. Step-by-step instructions for installing the RLDB on your
computer and using it are below.
The Syllabus Exam consists of 35 questions, some true-false and some multiple-choice. The
Academic Integrity Quiz consists of 15 true-false questions. Each quiz covering course materials
consists of 25 multiple-choice questions. All questions are worth one point each.
All tests will be available to you the day you get access to the course in Blackboard (Monday
8/17). Thus if you wish to do the reading ahead of schedule and take the related tests ahead of
schedule, you may do so. The only thing you cannot do is, take a test late, i.e. after the
established deadline for getting it done has passed. Test-completion deadlines are always
5:00:00 PM Friday on the deadline-date. The Test Timetable on p.17 of this syllabus tells you
the specific date and time by which you must complete each test.
ASU Campus Locations where you can take these tests
The RLDB is on all ASU campus UTO-supported computing sites. You can find locations and
hours here: https://ucc.asu.edu/sites/
If you are going to take tests on an on-campus computer, I recommend going to the Computing
Commons to take these tests, rather than using library locations, since there are staff members at
CPCOM who can help you if you need help. To find the RLDB on one of the on-campus
computers you must search the list of programs the computer has, as there will not be an icon on
the desktop.
Installation of the Respondus Lockdown Browser (RLDB):
If you are going to use your own computer for test-taking in this course, then before taking the
Academic Integrity Quiz and Syllabus Exam, you must install the RLDB on your computer. If you
are planning to take course tests on your own computer, please note that you will be using the
RLDB for test-taking ONLY you will not need it for any other aspects of the course.
To install and use the RLDB on your computer:
For MAC Users:
Please note: MAC users must use the Safari browser to install the RLDB.
1. Do your Apple updates (click on the icon of an Apple in the upper left corner, then
"Software Update..." and install any updates recommended by Apple.) If you havent
done updates in a while, you might have another set of updates that appear after the first
set finishes. Double check this.
2. Run RLDB and click on About and verify that you are running the latest version 1.0.7.03
3. If you are not running the latest version, delete the old version from your applications and
from your downloads. Make sure to empty the trash after you put it in there.

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4. Go to http://www.respondus.com/lockdown/information.pl?ID=197112001 and download

the Mac version and run it.
5. Restart your computer. You must restart your computer after installing the RLDB or it
wont work.
For PC Users:
Please note: PC users should use Internet Explorer to install the RLDB.
1. PC Updates Go to: http://update.microsoft.com and install the High Priority Updates
these are the security patches, etc. It is also essential to do any necessary Java
updates.
2. Click on RLDB padlock icon, log in, then click on "i" symbol in upper right corner. Check
to make sure you are running the latest version 1.0.7.02
3. If you are not running the latest version, delete the old version in your applications and in
your downloads, make sure to empty the trash after you put it in there.
4. Go to http://www.respondus.com/lockdown/information.pl?ID=197112001 and download
the PC version from Server 2 and run it.
5. Restart your computer. You must restart your computer after installing the RLDB or it
wont work.
Step-by-Step Instructions for taking tests using the RLDB
When you installed the RLDB on your computer, it should have put a brown padlock icon onto
your desktop. If it is not on your desktop (as it often isn't for Mac computers) you can find it in
your list of programs.
1. Close and exit ALL other programs/windows/applications/tray items (Chat, Skype, etc.)
2. Double click the RLDB icon (brown padlock) on your desktop (or select LockDown
Browser in the list of your programs) to access Blackboard (Note: you do NOT use your
regular internet browser for this step. If you try to use your regular internet browser to
access a test, you will not be able to do so. You will get a message saying you need to
enter a password. However, no password will work.)
3. You will be asked to choose a server from a drop-down menu. Choose "Bb at ASU" and
click OK.
4. Log into My ASU using your regular ASURITE Id username and password
5. Navigate to the course and the location of the test you want to take.
6. If you are using Respondus LockDown Browser correctly you will not need to add a
password for this course.
Pages 27-28 of this syllabus contain troubleshooting tips for common problems with the RLDB.
RLDB Practice Test:
The RLDB practice test is merely optional, not required. Nonetheless, taking it gives you the
opportunity to: (a) verify you have the RLDB properly installed on your computer and (b)
familiarize yourself with the testing process. The RLDB Practice Test does NOT count toward
your final grade. Your score on the RLDB practice test does not contribute to your
semester point total.

Page 14 of 34

Test Mechanics:
Each test is available for you to take beginning at 8:00:00 AM Monday, 8/17

Questions and their possible responses will be presented to you in random order. You
will get one question at a time. You can only go forward through the questions; you
cannot go backwards to revisit previous questions.

The tests are timed. You are allowed 20 minutes to complete the Academic Integrity
Quiz, 50 minutes to complete the Syllabus Exam and 35 minutes to complete each Quiz
on the readings.

If you use up the time allowed, the test mechanism will shut your test down at the
moment your time expires, save the answers to the test questions you have been able to
complete up to that point, grade your answers and post the number of questions you got
correct as your score. If you are registered with the DRC and are allowed extra time to
take each test, you will get that extra time.

If your test freezes on you while you are in the middle of taking it, click the Refresh
button. Often this will unfreeze your test so that you can proceed. If clicking the Refresh
button does not fix the problem, email your TA for a reset.

If you are inadvertently kicked out of your test due to a malfunction of your computer or
Blackboard, email your TA for a reset. Please note, however, that you will not get a reset
if the reason there was no malfunction and you were kicked out of your test simply
because you used up all the time allotted for you to take it.

Once you complete a test, go to My Grades and verify your score is visible. Take a
screen shot of your test score in My Grades, save it to your computer and keep it until the
end of the semester as proof you completed that test, in case such proof is ever needed.
If your test score is not visible in My Grades, email Dr. Whitaker immediately. Your
deadline for notifying Dr. Whitaker of a missing test score is one hour (60 minutes) after
you complete the test. Please note that Dr. Whitaker can look inside your test and see
precisely when you begin each test and when you complete it.

Test Policies:
You must take each test by yourself. Sharing test questions and/or answers, and/or
taking a test with one or more other students is not permitted.

You must take each test at one sitting. You are not permitted to partially complete a test,
log out, then log back in at a later time and complete it.

If you need a test reset and email your TA for a reset, but your TA does not get your email
in time to reset your test so that you can complete it before the established deadline for
doing so, you are S.O.L. (Student Out of Luck) you will NOT get an additional
opportunity to complete the test.

Page 15 of 34

If you begin a test but then for whatever reason do not get it completed by its
completion deadline, your score will be however many points you earned from the
questions you answered correctly, as of the time the test interval ended.

Material Covered on Each Online Test:

Academic Integrity Quiz
All the information contained in the Academic Integrity PowerPoint presentation located in
Week 1 of the course
Syllabus Exam
All the information contained in the course syllabus
Quiz 1

The Basics: Fundamental Concepts and Perspectives

The Sociological Eye and Its Blinders
Socialization and Culture
Culture: A Sociological View
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life
The Birth of the Intravidual

Quiz 2

Stratification and Inequality

At a Slaughterhouse, Some Things Never Die
What It Means to Be Gendered Me
Emmett and Trayvon

Quiz 3
The Ironies of Diversity
Who Rules America?
The Rise of the New Global Elite
Quiz 4

Deviance
The Influence of Situational Ethics on Cheating
Disclaimers and Accounts in Cases of Catholic Priests Accused of Pedophilia
Because She Looks Like a Child

Quiz 5

Close Ties
The Life Cycle of Friendship
New Technologies and Our Feelings
This Thing Called Love
Dysfunctional Communication and What to Do About It

Quiz 6
Social Problems and Social Change
The Atrophy of Social Life

Page 16 of 34

A Users Guide to the Century

A New End, A New Beginning: Prepare for Life as We Dont Know It
Can A Collapse of Civilization Be Avoided?

Test Timetable:

Test:
A.I. Quiz
Syllabus Exam
Quiz 1
Quiz 2
Quiz 3
Quiz 4
Quiz 5
Quiz 6

Test availability starts

8 AM this Monday:
8/17
8/17
8/17
8/17
8/17
8/17
8/17
8/17

Test availability ends 5

PM this Friday:
8/28
8/28
9/4
9/11
9/18
9/25
10/2
10/9

Deadline to report
missing score is 1 hour
After you finish test
After you finish test
After you finish test
After you finish test
After you finish test
After you finish test
After you finish test
After you finish test

Discussion Forums
You are required to post in seven forums, worth 10 points each. See the forums themselves for
instructions on what to post in each one. Each post is graded according to whether or not it:

Is submitted by its established deadline

Is written in complete sentences with few or no errors in spelling, punctuation or grammar
Meets the length requirement (at least 100 words, not counting a or an, which relate
directly to the topic at hand)
Is submitted to the correct Forum (Posts submitted to the wrong Forum are scored 0.)
Is submitted to the correct Thread within the Forum (Posts submitted to the wrong thread
within the forum are scored 0.)

See p.26 (Appendix I) for more detailed grading information.

With the exception of Forum 7, you must do two posts in each forum, Post 1 and Post 2.
About Post 1s generally:
Post 1 will require you to engage in critical thinking about an issue raised in the readings
you will be tested on during that same week
Each Post 1 is worth 6 points.
About Post 2s generally:
Post 2 will require you to compare and contrast your own Post 1 with the Post 1 of a
classmate. Thus if you do not do a Post 1, you cannot earn any points for a Post 2,
because you have nothing of your own to compare to a classmates work.
If you late-submit a Post 1 to the Forum (Here, late means after the Post 1 deadline but
before the Post 2 deadline), you can still get credit for your Post 2, assuming you submit
that Post 2 on-time and meet all other grading criteria for that post.

Page 17 of 34

Each Post 2 is worth 4 points.

Forum Group Assignments:

You must post in a specific forum thread, according to the first letter of your last name:
AB Students whose last names begin with A or B
CE Students whose last names begin with C, D or E
FHe Students whose last names begin with F, G or Ha-He
HiMa Students whose last names begin with Hi-Hz, I, J, K, L and Ma
McQ Students whose last names begin with Mc-Mu, N, O, P or Q
RS Students whose last names begin with O, P, Q or R
TZ Students whose last names begin with S, T, U, V, W, X, Y or Z
Recycling of Previous Coursework in Forum Posts
You must submit original prose for your Forum posts for this course. Re-using material you
created for another course whether a different course in the current summer session, a different
course in a previous semester or SOC 101 in a previous semester is prohibited. If you recycle
a previously-created document in any of the ways just described, you will receive a zero for the
post in-question. I will also consider referring you to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences for
having engaged in Academic Dishonesty. Whether or not I actually do refer you will depend on
the substance of the document you submitted and any other factors that are relevant to your
situation.
Forum Post Timetable:

Forum
Name:
Forum 1
Forum 2
Forum 3
Forum 4
Forum 5
Forum 6
Forum 7***

Post 1 due in
Forum by 5 PM
this Wednesday
8/26
9/2
9/9
9/16
9/23
9/30
10/5 (a Monday)

Post 2 due in
Forum by 5 PM
this Friday
8/28
9/4
9/11
9/18
9/25
10/2
N/A

Scores will be
posted by 5 PM
this Monday
8/31
9/7
9/14
9/21
9/28
10/5
10/7 (a Weds)

To challenge/report
missing score, contact
TA by 5 PM this Weds
9/2
9/9
9/16
9/23
9/30
10/7
10/9 (a Friday)

***Please note the accelerated deadlines for Forum 7 due to the fact this course ends on 10/9
Writing Quality
To maximize the points you earn for your posts, it is a good idea to compose each post on a
document and save it to your computer prior to submitting it. This will enable you to compare
your post with Forum instructions, make sure you have included all the required information, and
to proofread your work to correct any writing (spelling, punctuation, sentence structure, grammar,
etc.) errors before you submit it.

Page 18 of 34

If you are uncertain about the correctness of your writing, get help with composing each post from
either a staff member of one of ASUs Writing Centers or from an online resource such as the
Purdue O.W.L. (Online Writing Lab) BEFORE you submit it. Here is a link to information about
the Writing Centers: http://studentsuccess.asu.edu/writingcenters. Here is a link to the Purdue
O.W.L.: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/1/
You are not required to use any outside-source material to compose any of your Forum posts.
However, if you do bring outside-source material into any of those posts, you must cite the source
of that information in APA format.
The Post Submission Process
It is essential to pay attention to what you are doing when you submit each post to the
appropriate Forum. You should not be watching TV, chatting with your friends, overseeing your
childrens activities or doing anything that might get you sidetracked during the process of
submitting each post. The reason for this is that each post can only be submitted ONCE. You
cannot revise and resubmit if you do not like the grade you get for your original submission. You
cannot resubmit a post a post to a Forum if you (a) submit the wrong document/post or (b)
submit your document/post to the wrong Forum. If you submit multiple versions of a post to a
Forum, we will grade the first version of the post you submitted.

How to submit Post 1s and 2s to the Forums:

1. Enter the Forum you need to post in and click on the thread for your Group.
2. Click the Reply button.
3. Give a title to your submission, e.g. John_Smith_F1P1
4. Type your post into the message box, or (if you have previously composed your post on a
separate document) copy your post from your document, paste it into the message box;
then click Submit.
When your posts will be graded:
Barring extraordinary circumstances, the TAs will have your posts in Forum X graded, and the
scores posted, no later than three days (72 hours) after Post 2 in Forum X was due. For
example, your Post 2 in Forum 1 is due at 5 PM Friday, 8/28. Your TA will have your Forum 1
score posted in My Grades no later than 5 PM Monday, 8/31.
How to report a missing score:
Continuing with the above example, suppose you check My Grades during the evening of
Monday, 8/31 and find you still do not have a score for your Forum 1 posts. Under such
circumstances it is your responsibility to email your TA immediately to advise your score is
missing. On that email you must:
1. Cc Dr. Whitaker
2. Attach a screenshot of the screen message you received; informing you that your
submission of the post(s) in-question was/were successful
If you fail to do (1) and/or (2) noted above, your request will not be considered and your score will
stand as it is. The deadline for contacting your TA about a missing score is 5 PM of the
Wednesday that arrives 48 hours after the TAs deadline for getting the posts graded. Thus in the
example above, the deadline for bringing this matter to our attention would be 5 PM Weds, 9/2.
See the Forum Post Timetable for all Forum-related deadlines.

Page 19 of 34

How to challenge a post score Step-by-step process:

Step 1:
Email your TA no later than 5 PM of the Wednesday that arrives two days (48 hours) after the
TAs deadline for getting the forum graded. If you fail to follow the procedure explained below, we
will not respond to your email and your score will stand as it is. You lose your opportunity to
question or challenge a post score once the deadline for doing so passes. Please note that your
score-challenging email must satisfy four criteria:
It must be sent from your ASU email account
It must be addressed to your TA; using the email address for your TA in this syllabus
A screenshot of the screen message you received; informing you that your submission of
the post(s) in-question was/were successful, must be attached to your email
You must cc Dr. Whitaker on the email
Step 2:
Your TA will respond to your email with a detailed explanation of how your score was arrived at;
ccing me on that email to you.
Step 3:
Once you have read the TAs explanation of your grade, if you are satisfied with his/her
explanation, the grade-challenge process will end there. However, if after reading your TAs
explanation of your score you still feel your post has been unfairly graded, you may email me to
ask that I re-grade the post in-question.
Step 4:
To bring closure to the matter, I will re-grade your post. The score I give your post will be its final
score. Please note that the score I give your post may be the same as, or higher than, or lower
than the score your TA initially gave the post.

Page 20 of 34

Digication e-Portfolio
General Information
A professional portfolio is a collection of pieces of evidence evidence of your professional skills
and experience which employers in your field of interest are looking for. In E-Portfolio Land,
these pieces of evidence are called artifacts. Artifacts can take the form of photos or other
images, documents or images of documents, video clips, etc. The two tasks you will complete
over and over when building your portfolio will be (1) providing information about your skills and
experience by filling in several templates with your own information and (2) uploading artifacts
that prove you have the skills and experience you claim to have. The portfolio you will build for
this class will be a very basic one that you can add to or otherwise modify over time, as you go
forward in your professional development.
A portfolio is an extremely effective tool for marketing yourself, whether you plan to go on to a
graduate program after college or begin your first professional job. Both arenas the job market
and top-rated graduate programs are highly competitive. To be selected for a place in either
one, you need something to make you stand out from the competition. This portfolio is your
ticket.
Construction of your e-Portfolio
Click the Digication e-Portfolio link in the BB course navigation menu to reach all the information
you need to start creating your portfolio. Your first task will be to create your portfolio shell, into
which you will upload your own information about your professional skills and experience to-date.
You will create this shell by making yourself a copy of the portfolio template Ive constructed for
this course. You will then upload your own professional information using the formatting given in
each page of the template.
You will create your PF pages according to very specific guidelines I give you for the content of
each page. You must follow these guidelines exactly in order to earn full credit for each of your
portfolio pages. The specific instructions for creating each of your PF pages are located in two
places: (1) the portfolio template, itself and (2) inside the Digication e-Portfolio link in the
Blackboard course navigation menu. Each of the tasks involved in creating your e-Portfolio is
graded according to a specific rubric. These rubrics are located inside the Digication e-Portfolio
link in the Blackboard course navigation menu.
I urge you to review the mechanics of the Digication e-Portfolio during Week 0.5 of the course.
Complete the tutorial exercise provided for you in Blackboard to familiarize yourself with the
process of uploading your own information into the template. Start thinking about and composing
the content you want to present on each page no later than the week BEFORE the week that
page is actually due. This will enable you to carefully consider and compose the content you want
to include on each page, locate or create an appropriate artifact for each page and complete each
page by its assigned deadline.
Creating your e-Portfolio at the pace you must do it in this accelerated (7.5-week) course will be
arduous. You will experience this process somewhat as you would experience taking a big swig
of castor oil for medicinal purposes: It will taste awful going down, but you will be happy later.

Page 21 of 34

More specifically, you will be very happy to have your completed portfolio at the end of Session A.
You wont like doing it at the same time you must do all the other work of this course, but at the
end of Session A you will love that you have done it and that it is now available to you to show
others and to build on as you move forward in your career development.
Challenging a score or reporting a missing score
To challenge a score you get for a PF task or to report a missing score for a task, follow the same
procedure as the one used to handle Forum-score issues. The e-Portfolio timetable on the next
page provides the relevant deadlines.
e-Portfolio Timetable and Point Values:

Task Create your:

e-Portfolio Shell
30-second Bio page
Work Philosophy page
Employment page
Projects page
Comm Service page
Org. Memb page
Team Exp page

Point
Value
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10

Tool
availability is 8
AM this
Thursday:
8/20
8/20
8/20
8/20
8/20
8/20
8/20
8/20

Task completion
deadline is 5
PM this Friday:
8/28
8/28
9/4
9/11
9/18
9/25
10/2
10/2

TA will have task

graded by 5 PM
this Monday
8/31
8/31
9/7
9/14
9/21
9/28
10/5
10/5

Your deadline to
challenge
score/report
missing score is 5
PM this Weds
9/2
9/2
9/9
9/16
9/23
9/30
10/7
10/7

Planning for Blackboard/Connect Outages and Computer Problems

Blackboard is taken down periodically for scheduled maintenance. These scheduled
maintenance intervals usually take place between 11 PM on Thursday and 6 AM the following
Friday morning. Blackboard may also go down unexpectedly due to some problem. You are
responsible for completing course requirements by their established deadlines despite these
planned and unplanned Blackboard outages.
You may also have an unexpected problem with your own computer, which makes it inoperable.
It is for this reason that I urge you to have a backup computer in addition to your primary
computer, so that if the primary one fails, you will still be able to complete all course requirements
in a timely manner.
You should keep these prospective outages and problems in mind when you map out a schedule
for completing the work you must do for this course. To make sure you do not end up with a zero
or unnecessarily-diminished score on a quiz or the e-Portfolio, I urge you to:

Take each weekly quiz no later than the 48 hours BEFORE the deadline for completing it.
Since the deadline for completing each weekly quiz is 5 PM on a Friday, this means I am
recommending you begin it no later than 5 PM the preceding Wednesday. By following
this schedule, there will be time to reset your quiz if you incur a technical problem while
taking it, or time to secure a different computer to take the quiz on, should your own
computer fail unexpectedly. Following this schedule would also mean you would have
the quiz done, and avoid getting a zero for it, should Blackboard go down unexpectedly
on a Friday morning and remain out of service until after the deadline for completing the
quiz has passed.

Page 22 of 34

Review the mechanics of the Digication e-Portfolio in a timely (asap) manner. Complete
the tutorial exercise provided for you in Blackboard to familiarize yourself with the
process of uploading your own information into the template. Start thinking about and
composing the content you want to present on each page no later than the week
BEFORE the week that page is actually due. This will enable you to carefully consider
and compose the content you want to include on each page, locate or create an
appropriate artifact for each page and complete each page by its assigned deadline.

Course Outline:
Please note: Topics & sequencing are subject to change at the discretion of the instructor.
Week 0.5 (8:00:00 AM Thursday 8/20 5:00:00 PM Friday 8/21):
Carefully read through the syllabus. Familiarize yourself thoroughly with it. Email me
ASAP with any questions you have about its contents
Get the textbook if you have not already done so.
Watch the PowerPoint presentation on Academic Integrity in Week 0.5
Install the Respondus Lockdown Browser on your computer. (Instructions on pp.13-14)
Click the Digication e-Portfolio link in the course navigation menu. Read through the first
document, Preparing to Create your e-Portfolio. Copy and paste each link given in the
document into your web browser. Watch the tutorials and complete the practice
exercises you are provided via those links. These will familiarize you with the portfoliocreation process.
Take the Academic Integrity Quiz and Syllabus Exam before 5 PM on Friday, 8/28
(Note: 8/28 is Friday of Week 1 of the course)
Week 1 (12:00:01 PM on Monday 8/24 5:00:00 PM Friday 8/28):
After completing the Digication e-Portfolio tutorials as described under Week 0.5, create
your PF shell from the template provided by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 8/28
In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 2nd document, Creating
the 30-second Biography page. This is the first page of your e-Portfolio. Follow the
instructions in the rubric and complete this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 8/28.
Complete the Syllabus Exam and Academic Integrity Quiz before 5:00:00 PM Friday,
8/28
Submit Post 1 in Forum 1 by 5:00:00 PM Weds, 8/26
Submit Post 2 in Forum 1 by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 8/28
Read and take notes on these textbook articles, using the Study Guides provided for
them, in order to be prepared to take Quiz 1 on them next week:
1. The Basics: Fundamental Concepts and Perspectives
2. The Sociological Eye and Its Blinders
3. Socialization and Culture
4. Culture: A Sociological View
5. The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life
6. The Birth of the Intravidual
Week 2 (8:00:00 AM Monday 8/31 5:00:00 PM Friday 9/4):
Complete Quiz 1 before 5:00:00 PM on Friday, 9/4
Submit Post 1 in Forum 2 by 5:00:00 PM Weds, 9/2
Submit Post 2 in Forum 2 by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/4

Page 23 of 34

In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 3rd document, Creating the
Work Philosophy Statement page. This is the 2nd page of your e-Portfolio. Follow the
instructions in the rubric and create this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/4.
Read and take notes on these articles using the Study Guides provided, so that you are
prepared to take Quiz 2 on them next week:
1. Stratification and Inequality
2. At a Slaughterhouse, Some Things Never Die
3. Emmett and Trayvon
4. What It Means to Be Gendered Me

Week 3 (8:00:00 AM Monday 9/7 5:00:00 PM Friday 9/11):

Complete Quiz 2 before 5:00:00 PM on Friday, 9/11
Submit Post 1 in Forum 3 by 5:00:00 PM Weds, 9/9
Submit Post 2 in Forum 3 by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/11
In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 4th document, Creating the
Employment page. This is the 3rd page of your e-Portfolio. Follow the instructions in
the rubric and create this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/11.
Read and take notes on these articles using the Study Guides provided, so that you are
prepared to take Quiz 3 on them next week:
1. The Ironies of Diversity
2. Who Rules America?
3. The Rise of the New Global Elite
Week 4 (8:00:00 AM Monday 9/14 5:00:00 PM Friday 9/18):
Complete Quiz 3 by 5:00:00 PM on Friday, 9/18
Submit Post 1 in Forum 4 by 5:00:00 PM Weds, 9/16
Submit Post 2 in Forum 4 by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/18
In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 5th document, Creating the
Projects page. This is the 4th page of your e-Portfolio. Follow the instructions in the
rubric and create this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/18.
Read and take notes on these articles using the Study Guides provided, so that you are
prepared to take Quiz 4 on them next week:
1. Deviance
2. The Influence of Situational Ethics on Cheating
3. Disclaimers and Accounts in Cases of Catholic Priests Accused of Pedophilia
4. Because She Looks Like a Child
Week 5 (8:00:00 AM Monday 9/21 5:00:00 PM Friday 9/25)
Complete Quiz 4 by 5:00:00 PM on Friday, 9/25
Submit Post 1 in Forum 5 by 5 PM Weds, 9/23
Submit Post 2 in Forum 5 by 5 PM Friday, 9/25
In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 6th document, Creating the
Community Service page. This is the 5th page of your e-Portfolio. Follow the
instructions in the rubric and create this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 9/25.
Read and take notes on these articles using the Study Guides provided, so that you are
prepared to take Quiz 5 on them next week:
1. Close Ties
2. The Life Cycle of Friendship
3. New Technologies and Our Feelings

Page 24 of 34

4. This Thing Called Love

5. Dysfunctional Communication and What to Do About It

Week 6 (8:00:00 AM Monday 9/28 5:00:00 PM Friday, 10/2):

Complete Quiz 5 by 5:00:00 PM on Friday, 10/2
Submit Post 1 in Forum 6 by 5 PM Weds, 9/30
Submit Post 2 in Forum 6 by 5 PM Friday, 10/2
Submit Post 1 in Forum 7 by 5 PM Monday, 10/5
In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 7th document, Creating the
Organizational Memberships page. This is the 6th page of your e-Portfolio. Follow
the instructions in the rubric and create this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 10/2.
In BB, click the Digication e-Portfolio link. Read through the 8th document, Creating the
Teamwork Experience page. This is the 7th page of your e-Portfolio. Follow the
instructions in the rubric and create this page of your PF by 5:00:00 PM Friday, 10/2
Read and take notes on these articles using the Study Guides provided, so that you are
prepared to take Quiz 6 on them next week:
1. Social Problems and Social Change
2. The Atrophy of Social Life
3. A Users Guide to the Century
4. A New End, A New Beginning: Prepare for Life as We Dont Know It
5. Can a Collapse of Global Civilization Be Avoided
Week 7 (8:00:00 AM Monday 10/5 5:00:00 PM Friday, 10/9):
Submit Post 1 in Forum 7 by 5 PM Monday, 10/5
Complete Quiz 6 by 5:00:00 PM on Friday, 10/9

Page 25 of 34

Appendix I: Grading Rubric for Forum Posts

Criterion

Writing is so flawed that we

cannot tell what you are
saying or:
Writing
Quality

Half Credit
Post 1 3 points
Post 2 2 points

No Credit 0 points

Tone of post is flippant,

sarcastic, abusive, or
otherwise indicates
immaturity, prejudice or
failure to take the posting
requirement seriously.

Post contains numerous

writing errors: (incomplete
sentences, text messaging
language, spelling,
punctuation or grammatical
mistakes), but we can still
tell what you are saying

Length

Post contains 0-49 words

relevant to topic not counting
a or an.

Post consists of 50-99

words relevant to topic not
counting a or an

Originality

Some or all of the post is

found to have been
plagiarized from another
student, textbook, or other
print or online source

N/A

Timeliness

Post is submitted after its

established deadline

N/A

Page 26 of 34

Full Credit
Post 1 6 points
Post 2 3 points

Posts intended meaning is clear

and indicative of a serious effort.
Post is written in complete
sentences with few or no errors in
grammar, spelling, punctuation etc.

Post contains 100+ words relevant

to topic not counting a or an

Post is in students own work

product

Post is submitted before its

established deadline

Accuracy

Post was not successfully

submitted to the Forum:
(Post is not visible to Course
Staff in the Forum.) Possible
reasons for this: Student
clicked Save Draft rather
than Submit such that post
does not appear in the
Forum, OR student did not
use his/her own myasu
account/login to post, OR
student submitted the post to
the wrong forum or wrong
thread

N/A

Post was successfully submitted to

the Forum. Post was submitted
using students own myasu
account/login. Post was submitted
to the correct Forum and correct
thread within Forum

Application of Rubric to Grading Process:

In order for a post to get full credit, it must get a full credit rating on ALL dimensions.
A post will earn half credit if it earns a half credit rating on all dimensions.
A post will earn half credit if it earns a half credit rating on one dimension, EVEN IF it
earns higher rating on all other dimensions.
A no credit rating on just one criterion will cause the entire post to be scored zero.

Appendix II: Troubleshooting the RLDB

Browser says a password is required you get an error message like this:
This assessment requires that you use Respondus LockDown Browser. Start Respondus
LockDown Browser and navigate back to this assessment to continue.
* Issue: When you accessed the test through Internet Explorer, Mozilla FireFox, Safari or
Chrome, you get a message saying a password to access the test, but Dr. Whitaker didn't provide
one.
* Resolution: Tests requiring the RLDB cannot be accessed using any other browser, including
Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, or Chrome. If you try to access the test using any of the
standard browsers, the RLDB will block the test by password-protecting it. The only way to
access the test is to launch the RLDB and log into the course from there. Click on the brown
padlock that is on your desktop or click on the Start button and search the list of programs for the
RLDB, then use the RLDB to access the internet.
Youre using the Respondus LockDown Browser and it is still wont let you proceed
without a password, even though Dr. Whitaker said no password is needed.
*Issue: When you accessed the test through the RLDB, you were asked if the instructor provided
a password. Dr. Whitaker says I dont need a password, but it wont let me into the test even
when I click No.
*Resolution: If youve double checked to make sure that you are indeed accessing the internet
using the RLDB, then it is most likely that you need to do the updates on your computer to make
it compatible with the RLDB. (This can be true even if youve used this computer before with
RLDB without having an issue since updates.) See the instructions in this syllabus for installing
the RLDB for information on how to run updates on a PC or Mac. After you run all updates,
restart your computer.

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You cant get the Respondus LockDown Browser to open, even though youre positive
youve closed all the applications you had open beforehand.
* Issue: I tried to access Respondus LockDown Browser, but it won't open. It keeps telling me to
close an application that I already closed.
* Resolution: When you close a chat or screen capture software on a PC, it is very likely that it
could still be open in the background. In the lower right corner of your bottom task bar is a
section called the tray, which contains icons of various applications or tools. Click the double leftfacing arrows to expand the tray. If any tools (including chat tools like Google Chat) or screen
capturing software (like Snag-It or Camtasia) are active, the icon will appear in the tray. Rightclick on the application icon and choose Exit or Close. Now you can launch Respondus
LockDown Browser.
Please note: If the RLDB continues to tell you that an application is running, you may need to
restart your computer. If you do this, verify all applications are closed prior to launching the
RLDB.

Youre using the Respondus LockDown Browser, but it just shows you a blank screen
instead of the test.
*Issue: Instead of seeing the test questions, all you see is a blank screen.
*Resolution: Probably your computer is having a compatibility issue with the RLDB. You either
do not have the correct edition of RLDB installed on your computer or you need to do the updates
for your computer before it will allow RLDB to work. Please see the instructions in this syllabus
for doing the updates and installing the RLDB. Walk through each step very carefully; do not skip
any steps.
You started the test, but cant move past Question 1. Youre getting an error message
saying, Link Blocked
*Issue: You started the exam and answered question 1, but now the test mechanism is not letting
you move to question 2 and the time is ticking. You see an error message that says something
like Link Blocked.
*Resolution: If you dont believe that it is a case of unstable internet (maybe Wi-Fi) and it
happened on question 1, then it is likely that you have a compatibility issue with your computer
and the RLDB. You either do not have the correct edition of the RLDB installed on your computer
or you need to do the updates for your computer before it will allow RLDB to work. Walk through
the steps given in this syllabus to install the RLDB very carefully; making sure to not skip any
steps.
Please note: If this problem occurs while you are on any other question other than Question 1, it
is an internet or network issue. You should be able to exit out of RLDB by entering an explanation
in the entry box. If this doesnt work you can manually shut down your computer (hold power
down) and get out of RLDB and then log back in and continue where you left off.

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Appendix III: Preparing to Build your e-Portfolio

1. Copy and paste this link into your browser window:

https://asu.digication.com/asu_eportfolio_resources/Welcome23/published
The screen you are taken to will look like this:

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2. Review all the information you are taken to. More specifically, read all the
text and watching all the short video tutorials. This will give you an
understanding of how to use the ePortfolio software.

3. Optional: If you wish, you may copy and paste this link into your browser
window: https://asu.digication.com/asu_eportfolio_resources/Example_ePortfolios/published to review some e-Portfolios that other students have
made. The screen you will be taken to will look like this:

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4. You may wish to create a test e-Portfolio not the one that will count for
this class, but a PF that will be a trial run to practice doing the tasks that
are involved in making the portfolio for this course. If you do this, create a
new ePortfolio and title it Practice PF or something similar. During the
creation process, make this ePortfolio private. This portfolio is just a trial
run.

5. If you decide to do a practice portfolio, copy and paste this link into your
browser window:
https://asu.digication.com/asu_eportfolio_resources/Add_Your_Bio1/ The
page you are taken to will look like this:

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Once you arrive on that page, complete all the tasks you are given there.
It would be good to complete these tasks because you will need to know
how to do them when you complete your real portfolio for SOC 101. You
can repeat each basic-training task multiple times if you need to, to make
yourself proficient at it.
6. Once your training is complete, copy and paste this link into your browser
window:
https://asu.digication.com/asu_eportfolio_resources/ePortfolio_template_a
ssigned_in_a_course/published to begin working on your graded ePortfolio for this course. The page you will be taken to will look like this:
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Appendix IV: Honors Contract Requirements for SOC 101

Students who are members of the Barrett Honors College have the option of doing a
special project to get honors credit for this course. If you are a Barrett student and
would like to earn honors credit for this course, here is what you will need to do for your
honors project:
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1. Pick one of the theoretical perspectives discussed in the textbook the

functionalist, conflict, interactionist or feminist perspective.
2. Do research to gather information about the life of (one of) the individual(s) who
contributed in a major way to the development of this perspective
3. Develop your own ideas about how the life circumstances of the theorist
impacted his/her development of the theoretical perspective (s)he developed.
4. Think about and develop your ideas of how the theory you have chosen applies
to world events today.
5. Put together a presentation and record yourself giving it on a webcam (your
laptop probably has one built into it; yes?), in which you discuss (3) and (4)
above.
6. Post your video on YouTube. I can then embed it in the course for students to
view and discuss.
In order to earn the Honors credit, your video must:
1. Your video must cover both (3) and (4) above
2. Your video must be posted on YouTube no later than 8 AM on Monday, 10/5
3. You must send me the link to your YouTube video, as well as the exact title you
have given your video, no later than Noon Monday, 10/5

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