Welcome to the first week of Sociology of the Family 130. Please familiarize yourself with the syllabus listed above (make sure to select your appropriate class). We will be viewing several documentaries in class and at home. You can view additional documentaries about media representations at the Media Education Foundation. We will be watching Cover Girl Culture, Tough Guise, and Consuming Kids. We will read the article by Linn: 2: A Consumer in the Family, p. 31-41 (Blackboard).
We will then switch to a more historical representation of the American family. We will watch at home the lecture by Stephanie Coontz. We will read Riseman: “The Evolution of American Families” (on Blackboard) and Riseman: “American Childhood as a Social Cultural Construct” (on Blackboard).
For blog posting number #1, please post a response to the prompt for whichever group you belong (see Blackboard for groups). Be ready to share your response with the class on the due date. Be sure to include links to relevant information and to read the syllabus guidelines for blog posting grading criteria.
Group 1: please select any additional movie from the Media Education Foundation and write a detailed critique of the documentary. Relate this to one other movie or article assigned for this week. Be prepared to share clips of the movies you watch and write discussion questions for the class.
Group 2: Your group members will write a critique of the documentary Consuming Kids, along with the article by Linn “A Consumer in the Family” (see Blackboard). Compare this documentary against the article ”American Childhood as a Social Cultural Construct.” In class, your group will discuss the Consuming Kids movie with your classmates, be sure to show clips from the movie and come up with discussion questions for the class.
Group 3: Your group will write a critique of the documentary Cover Girl Culture and include links to resource websites and YouTube videos. Compare this movie to the article ”The Evolution of the American Family,” for a discussion on evolving understandings of gender roles. In class, please be prepared to come up with discussion questions for the class about the documentary.
Group 4: Your group will write a critique of the documentary Tough Guise. Compare this documentary to the article ”The Evolution of the American Family,” for a discussion on evolving understandings of gender roles. Be ready to present the class with discussion questions and clips about the movie.
Group 5: Your group will write a critique of the video lecture and article by Stephanie Coontz, “The Evolution of the American Family” (on Blackboard). Be prepared to present the class with discussion questions about the article and video, and be sure to show clips from the video.
Group 6: Your group will compare and contrast the article “American Childhood as a Social Cultural Construct” against the documentary Consuming Kids. For class, be ready to present and discuss the article with the class.
Presentation (35 points): You will need to present on a family sociology topic that was NOT COVERED in class. Your presentation should be in the format of a Prezi.com presentation, a photo essay, or a short documentary video. Your presentation should be posted on the blog and have a title, a short description, and a link to your online presentation file.
BE SURE TO STAY WITHIN THE TIME LIMIT SO THAT WE CAN GET TO EVERYONE.
Assignment grading rubric:
Topic not covered in class (5 points).
Proper citation of 3 academic articles/books not assigned in class, MLA format (5 points).
Within the 4 minute time limit (5 points).
Overarching visual theme that brings the presentations together in a creative visual way (4 points).
Clearly start your main argument prominently and cover that first. Make your argument with visual imagery as well (4 points).
Make your own argument that is backed up by examples; do not list a summary of articles. Your argument should also be reinforced visually (4 points).
Use of visual imagery to liven up the presentation overall (if using video, no longer than 30 second) (4 points).
Make the presentations interesting and/or funny, if your classmates laugh or ask a question (4 points).
This week in class, we are watching the documentary Wo Ai Ni Mommyin conjunction with the article “International Adoption” (p. 94-117). (Blackboard). For our final blog posting #13, please describe what stood out to you about this article? Find additional information, statistics, or stories about international adoption to include in your posting. Please describe the connection between the article and your posting.
This class, we will be watching part of the documentary Aging Out.
For blog posting #12, highlight the main arguments and evidence in the chapter from Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child Welfare (p. 3-25). Find links to additional information on the foster care system.
In class this week, we will be looking at the ways in which family life is altered by imprisonment of a parent. We will watch a short clip from the documentary, War on the Family. Then we will turn to the article in our textbook, “Prisoners’ Families and Children,” (519-536). What were the main points of this article for our blog posting, #11? Find related information to your chapter section below:
All groups:
Find pictures that represent themes in your section of the chapter or other research assignment. During your presentation, show these images as you summarize the main arguments and statistics of your section. Come up with a few discussion questions for the class.
Group 1 The Family Profile of the Prisoner Population (p. 522-524)
Group 2 National prison statistics
Group 3 International prison statistics
Group 4 The Strain of Incarceration on Families (524-528)
Group 5 Parent-Child Relationships during Imprisonment (528-530)
Group 6 Family Contact during Imprisonment: Obstacles and Opportunities (531-533)
This week in class, we will be exploring childfree couples by reading two chapters in the book Childfree and Loving It! by Nicki Defago. We read the chapters, “Freedom of Choice,” (p. 3-20) and “The Childfree Stigma,” (p. 21-35). On Tuesday, we will discuss your responses to the blog #10. For this blog, please include a discussion of the two chapters, your response to it, as well as links to further information on childfree couples and individuals.
This week for blog #9, we are reading the article in our textbook by Cowan & Cowan, New Families, (p. 261-281). Please discuss the main points of this article and your response to it. Be sure to post related links.
This week, we are reading the article “Commerce and Regulation in the Assisted Reproduction Industry,” (p. 191-207) In the anthology Baby Markets. Please summarize the main points of this article and provide links to further information. What are ARTs? What are some related statistics? What are the laws around ART in the U.S. versus Europe? Please answer at least one of these questions, or else look up other information related to the topic.
This week, we will be watching the documentary produced by Ricki Lake entitled The Business of Being Born. We will have mini-group research and presentations on both days. On Tuesday, groups 1-3 will present, and on Thursday, groups 4-6 will present.
Please look up information, links, and videos on the following topics. In class, you can present on your topic in creative and visual ways, which include creating a drawing on the white board that expresses your topic, staging a debate with two or three teams, presenting a mini-play, or leading a discussion with class based on discussion questions and/or conducting a survey and presenting results. Or else, your group can come up with another idea. The objective is to present the material in a fun and engaging manner, rather than a dull lecture based presentation.
Group 1: Definitions of terms, issues, and participants in home births
Group 2: Insurance coverage of home births both locally and nationally
Group 3: the legal status of mid-wives and doulas in the various states nationwide
Group 4: social attitudes towards home births
Group 5: statistics and information on home versus hospital births (mortality, outcomes, infections, lawsuits)
Group 6: How European and other countries differ in their approach to home and hospital births
This week, students will be posting their Xtranormal.com animations on the blog and will be presenting them in class. Please choose a topic that is different than those covered in class. You will select three journal articles from JSTOR and incorporate those into the conversation that your characters are having. The videos should be between two and four minutes in length.
Points will be based on the following criteria: 1) quality of video (10 points), 2) proper citation of 3 academic sources by having the character speak the journal name, author, and article name (10 points), 3) time limit (5 points)
For the blog posting, include a title of your video, a 100-word summary of the topic and argument, an MLA format list of your three citations under “works cited.” Export your video to YouTube and embed it into your blog posting.
