• Joseph F. Healey, 1998. Race, Ethnicity,Gender, and Class . The Sociology of Group Conflict and Change.2nd. ed..London: Verso.

 
[Available at the bookstore]
 
• Rodney D. Coates & Vincent N. Parrillo, 1998. Webquester. Race and Ethnic Relations, A Guide to Your Internet Journey. New York: Dushkin.

Webquester web site: http://www.mhhe.com/webquester

[Available at the bookstore. You need to buy the Webquester brochure to obtain a key to access the Webquester site. Once you have it, you may access Webquester by pressing the "Webquester" frame button  to your left, clicking above, or by adding Webquester's URL address above to your web browser's "Bookmarks" ]
 
• Various Authors. Web Readings on Dr. Santos' World Wide Web Site.

[To access Dr. Santos' web readings click above or press the frame button "Web Readings" to your left.]

 

This course provides the student with a broad introduction to the field of race & ethnic relations, mostly as it has developed and exists in the United States, but also as it exists elsewhere in the world, especially in the Americas. The historical and contemporary experiences of various ethnic and panethnic groups in the United States -- the so-called European Americans, Native Americans, African Americans, Latinos/Hispanics, and Asian Americans -- are analyzed, using various theoretical perspectives and tracing their historical evolution. In short, we seek to understand the history and dynamics of modern peoplehood, as mediated by sociological concepts.

Emphasis is placed on how race, ethnicity, & nationhood were and are socially (re)constructed, and how they relate to other social constructs such as gender, native/immigrant status, and social class. We seek to reveal and understand the context in which these modern social categories originated and evolved, how they were affected by and in turn affected the broader political, economic, and cultural processes of the five-centuries-old modern world-system.

Attention is also given, via a large selection of readings placed in Dr. Santos' website and at the Webquester web site, to various contemporary controversial issues in the United States and worldwide related to peoplehood . Students will be asked to select, read, and respond to these readings by emailed reports and interactive quizzes.

 

Physical Attendance:

Attendance to two campus sessions are mandatory for all on-line students: the first one will be on Monday, June 22, at 6:00 pm, in the Computer Lab 3 at the basement of the Walter Stiern Library, to get acquainted and go over all aspects of the course; the second will be on July 30th, at 2:00 pm (room DDH-K101), to take the final exam.

Lectures:
 
Dr. Santos will actually lecture every class day to another, "live," section of this course (2:00-4:00 pm, MTWTh, DDH-K101). On-line students are welcome to attend, though it is, of course, not required of them to do so. The lectures will be based on the Healey textbook. The outline of these lectures will uploaded to this site as they are produced (see schedule below). The uploaded lectures will be PowerPoint slides; they may be perused by clicking here, by pressing the frame button "Presentations" to your left, or by clicking the appropriate PowerPoint presentation in the schedule below.

Activities Based on the Textbook

Students will file two types of email reports in relation to the Healey textbook:
 

1. Chapter Reports: Submit a "critical thinking" report on each of the first 12 chapters of the Healey textbook, with an emphasis on analyzing the main sociological concepts used, the historical process described, and the interplay or "fit" between the two.  Do you agree with Healey's explanations? Why or why not? What would be an alternative explanation or approach? How can you extend, illustrate,  or amplify the main points in the chapter? To write and send your reports press the "Chapter Reports" frame button to your left.

 
2. Debate Reports: At the end of each chapter of the Healey textbook, there is a section entitled "Current Debates", accompanied by a few questions. Answer these questions using the "Debate Reports" frame button to your left. If a chapter contains more than one debate, chose one and only answer the questions pertaining to it.

Activities Based on the Webquester Site

Students will be assigned to read on their own a a number of  web readings on Race & Ethnic Relations located in Webquester (click here, on the "Webquester" frame button to your left, or in the schedule below) and to write e-mail essays and do email quizzes on them. Each module assigned has a number of links and attached multiple-choice questions, short-answer questions, and essay questions. Students answer and submit all the answers from within the module itself, and receive instant grading for the multi-choice section. Dr. Santos receives scores and answers by email.

Students must submit their Webquester quizzes at the latest by the weekend ahead of the date assigned (except the last week assignments, which must submitted by Wednesday night, July 29). Students receive copies of all the reports they submit.

Activities Based on Dr. Santos' Web Readings

Students will file one report a week from a reading within an assigned web reading list assembled by Dr. Santos. To access the web reading lists, click here, or press the frame button "Readings" to your left. To file a web reading report, press the frame button "Reading Reports" to your left. Students are free to choose which reading within an assigned reading list they will read and file a report on.

Students must submit their web reading reports at the latest by the weekend ahead of the date assigned - see schedule below (except the last week assignments, which must submitted by Wednesday night, July 29). Students receive copies of all the reports they submit.

Final Exam

There will be a final exam, exclusively based on the Healey textbook, given on campus (room DDH-K101) on Thursday, July 30, 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm. NO EARLY OR LATE EXAMS WILL BE GIVEN! Please make all necessary arrangements to be on time. The exam will be multiple-choice. Bring a # 2 pencil.

Extra Points for Exploring New Web Sites or Dr. Santos' Links

There are two frame buttons to your left labelled "Web Links" and "Link Reports." The former button connects you to a large depository of web links collected by Dr. Santos, many of which are related to the course's subject matter. The latter button is a form (so-called "cgi" form) that feeds into itself: in it you may file a report on either one of Dr. Santos' links or on a new link you found on the web, with the advantage that when you "send" it, it is automatically appended to the bottom of the form itself. This acumulating, sausage-like form allows other students to explore the links you reported on, and perhaps "bookmark" or file their reports as well. On-line students are not required to file any link reports, but those that do will receive extra points.

Students must submit all their Link Reports, as they wish, by Wednesday night, July 29. No copies of these reports are sent to anyone.

Other Frame Buttons

There are other frame buttons that are to be ignored for this term: "Other Notes," "Research Papers," and "Student Projects."

Grading:

The final exam is worth 40 points. The accumulated scores of Webquester multiple-choice quizzes is worth 15 points, and its essays and short answers are worth another 15 points. The Chapter Reports are worth 10 points, the Debate Reports 10 points, and the weekly Web Reading Reports another 10 points. Up to 10 extra points may be obtained by contributing to the Link Reports. The final letter grade will be assigned, on a scale of 0 to 100, as follows:

Office Hours/E-Mail to Dr. Santos:

Dr. Santos will generally be available at his office from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm from Monday through Thursday, for phone consultations or visits. Students are also encouraged to communicate with him via email  (his email address is above). Please be advised, though, that email communication has to be very brief; for longer than a paragraph or two, please call.