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UNIVERSITY of GUYANA
Course Outline
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Course Number: SOC: 1100 Title of the Course: The Study of Society
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
TUTORIAL TUTORS:
Mrs. ELAINE CONSTANTINE, Mr. DESMOND LEITCH, Ms. REBECCA PERSAUD
Mr. MOHAN SAMWARU & Ms. Melissa Bess
Introduction
GOALS/AIMS
The aims of this course are to provide students with the foundation knowledge of
sociology as a science of human behaviuor; and improve their understanding of the dynamics of
social behaviour and, the diverse organization of people and the social systems they create so
that each student may better appreciate why people and the social structures within which they
live, manifest and mitigates the different ways that they do.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the course students should be able to apply theory to improve their
understanding of society. Specifically, students should be able to:
1. Think sociologically and apply the sociological perspective, theories, and methods to
analyze societal issues.
2. Comprehend the character and purpose of key sociological concepts, inherent in their
own culture, as well as other cultures with which they come in contact.
3. Recognize and understand the specific roles of various institutions and groups, as
well as the social context that impact human behaviour and culture.
4. Translate their knowledge, understanding and appreciation of the various institutional
sets into appropriate adaptive behaviors, that ultimately, resolve into an enriched and
engaging livelihood.
COURSE CONTENTS
The contents of this course cover sociology as a science, the social context and elements
of human behaviour and culture, social inequalities, social conflicts, the institutional structure of
society, and the manifestations of change in contemporary societies.
TEACHING STRATEGIES
This course will be delivered using the following strategies: lectures and tutorials, large
and small discussion sessions, group projects, problem solving, role-playing, peer interaction,
case study discussion, debates and other relevant simulation activities.
RESOURCES
Students are responsible for completing all reading assignments. The readings for this
course are:
Anderson, M. and Taylor H. F. (2009). Sociology the essentials (6th ed.). United
States of America: Thomson and Wadsworth.
Ritzer, George (2015), Introduction to Sociology (3rd Edition.). USA, Sage Publications Inc.
Ballantine, Jeanne H., Roberts, Keith A. (2015), Korgen, Kathleen O., Our Social World,
Introduction to Sociology (5th Edition), USA, Sage Publications Inc.
Haralambos, M., Holborn, M., & Heald, R. (2004). Sociology themes and perspectives (6th ed.).
London: HarperCollins Publishers Limited.
Recommended Textbooks
This assignment must confirm to the following guidelines; The student or group of tutorial
students (not exceeding five members) must:
• Select a topic from the list of tutorial topics; be guided by the schedule of presentations
for the semester
• Perform an oral presentation on the selected topic during the designated tutorial session,
and submit a printed final paper, not later than seven calendar days following the oral
presentation. The printed submission must bear evidence of all relevant correction/s
based on the attending peer comments/evaluations and the tutor/lecturer’s observations.
• The final paper must be an EDPM output on white letter size paper, six (6) to eight (8)
pages (1500-2000 words) in length, excluding reference page(s) and the cover page
(bearing the name of the university, the title and date of the presentation; and the full
name/s and USI number/s of the presenter/s). This paper must also, be compliant with
the following instructions;
• 1.5 letter spacing, Times New Roman, 12 font.
• One-inch margin on either side.
• Pages must be numbered top or bottom right-hand corner preceded by a running head,
which must be on the left-hand side in all caps.
• Paragraphed
• Ensure that all printed tutorial paper have an introduction, a main section (with
appropriate heading(s) and subheadings if necessary), a conclusion, and the
corresponding list of references. All references cited in text must appear in the reference
list. References must appear in alphabetical order.
• All presentations and submissions, are expected to provide evidence the presenter/s
engagement in research; and demonstrate their knowledge, understanding and
application of relevant sociological theory, concepts and other academic materials used in
its production.
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• All written submissions must confirm to the APA/ASA, 2010 guidelines or higher.
• Only the following three websites are allowed in your citations; .org, .gov, and or .edu.
Use of any other website(s) must be done with the permission of the instructor/lecturer.
Course Content
• Week 1
• ► Introduction to course
• ► What is sociology?
• ► The sociological perspective and social imagination
• ► Classical and contemporary theories in sociology; a basic overview
• Week 2
• ► Sociology as science: the sociological method
• ► Basic methods and approaches to measurement, in social research
• Week 3
• ► Culture and the social structure:
• ► Elements and types of culture
• ► Culture and social theory
• ► Cross-cultural variations in Guyana and the Caribbean
• Week 4
• ► Social institutions and society: definition, theory and organization
• ► The Family and society
• ► Religion and society
• Week 5
• ► Social institutions (cont’d)
• ► Education and society
• ► The economic and political organization of society
• ► Power and elitism
• Week 6
• ► Socialization and the development self: concepts and definition
• ► Theoretical approaches to the study of socialization; functionalist,
interactionist and conflict theories
• ► Identity conflicts and social disorganization
• Week 7
• ► Understanding sex, gender and society
• ► Gender roles, identities and controversies
• ► The public vs the private domain: gender and violence
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• Week 8
• ► MID-SEMESTER BREAK
• Week 9
► MID-SEMESTER TEST
• Week 10
• ► Groups and organizations
• ► Formal and informal groups
• ► Group taxonomy (primary, secondary and reference groups)
• ► The dynamics of group behaviour
• Week 11
• ► People and society: race and ethnicity
• ► Social cleavages, ethnic minorities and society
• ► Pluralism and ethnocentrism; an examination of the contemporary Guyanese
society
• Week 12
• ► Industrialism and the sociology of work
• ► Social stratification and structural inequality
• ► Systems of stratification: the open society and the closed society
• ► Social change and society
• Week 13
• ► Social organization and the bureaucracy
• ► Max Weber theory of the bureaucracy
• ► Social legitimacy and bureaucratic conflict
• Week 14
• ► Deviance, crime and social control
• ► Collective action and social movements
• Week 15
• ► FINAL EXAMINATION
3. a. Discuss the role of commonsense and logic in the development of science. b. In what
ways, the social sciences are different from common sense?
4.Do you think the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, (1932-1972) has any lasting impact today?
Are people suspicious of researchers because of experiments like this? What were the effects of
this research on its subjects? What newer approaches to research have become available for the
protection of research subjects? Are there any institutional structures or organizations in Guyana,
that serve the core functions of protecting the rights of subjects and preserving the integrity of
human research?
5. Are the views of Karl Marx still relevant today? How do you evaluate the evidence of
stratification in the present-day Guyanese society?
6. Did Marx predict the current system of global stratification? If so, how?
7. In what ways did Karl Marx views of religion differ from those of Max Weber’s?
8. How has rationalization affected society since the Industrial Revolution? Does it still affect us
today? How and why?
9.Which subcultures exist/ed in your high/secondary school experience and your current
university encounter? What behaviours and norms distinguished or distinguishes the observed or
existing groups from one another? Which of the subcultures were/are considered “deviant and
why?”
10. Globalization has a variety of positive and negative effects on the self. What are some of the
positive and negative effects of globalization that impact individual life? Which theory best
explains your analysis and why?
11. Deviance is defined as “any action, belief, or human characteristic that members of a society
or social group consider a violation of group norms for which the violator is likely to be censured
or punished.” (Ritzer, 2016). In what ways is obesity punished or censured in our society? What
forms or patterns of evidence are available to suggest that the prevailing systems of sanctions are
impacting new behaviours or new forms of organizations?
13.Do you think hoarding is a psychological or sociological condition? Do you think reality
shows that profile hoarders help people understand hoarding, or do they exploit their condition?
Discuss.
14.How would you assess social class as an influence on society’s reaction to drug use among
teens? Why are poor teens more likely to go to jail for drug use than more affluent teens?
Discuss.
15.What can be done to address the feminization of poverty? What kinds of policies or social
changes can address this? Discuss.
16.How might image portrayals of women in the media lead to gender stereotyping? Locate your
discourse within the framework of an applicable theory and provide examples of this
phenomenon and the resulting effects in Guyana or the wider Caribbean.
17.What positive and/or negative consequences do you associate with the family and the rise of
the industrial revolution?
18. As a budding sociologist, what would you identify as some likely effects of the possible
downsizing of the sugar industry in Guyana? Are there any similarities in your projected
outcomes as the noticeable effects that resulted from the downsizing of the bauxite industry in
Guyana? Discuss.
20. Argue for or against the notion that “Marriage has become globally deinstitutionalized”.
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21.Has technology like the internet and smart phones made students smarter or defective? Do
things like spell check and autocorrect help students or hurt them in their education? Would you
assess the availability of these tools as a feature of the hidden curriculum? Discuss.
22.Is modern education “the great equalizer” or does it just reproduce the current class systems?
Discuss.
23. How has the culture and structure of politics in the Guyanese society changed in recent years
to present day?
24.Some religious leaders suggest that science is the enemy of religion. Do you think this is true?
Why or why not? (Hint: consider what science tries to explain versus what religion tries to
explain).
25.What cultural factors influence fertility rates? For example, what do you think the “ideal”
number of children is in our culture? Why?