This course explores contemporary society from the point of view of sociology. Areas of substantive concerns within society such as socialization, deviance, class, family and politics will be explored. A general objective is to assist students to understand the relationship between human behavior and the societal context. We aim to assist students in developing skills in explaining, interpreting, applying and evaluating sociological perspectives in relation to specific social phenomena in contemporary societies. In each section sociological theory and empirical findings will be presented and discussed. Socio-historical and comparative analysis will be explored as well as the implication of sociological knowledge for social policy and programs. Our main focus will be contemporary developed societies in general and USA in particular. Cultural diversity and globalization are central themes that will run through all learning modules.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:

Learning Outcome:

At the end of this course students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the sociological theory and concepts in test essays and class projects
2. Identify and critique the sociological arguments related of  social change, cross-cultural differences, ethic difference and gender differences  in contemporary society
3. Apply the sociological perspective to  the study of social class, deviance, race, culture, social institutions and gender
4. Explain the different methods of sociological enquiry  and be able to give general assessment of their strengths and weaknesses
5. Articulate possible application of sociologically derived knowledge

Course Outline

The course is structured around 8 modules  with each scheduled to last one week. In each module the following will be expanded upon; 1.  Objectives 2.   Overview 3. Reading and 4. Assignments