Yeah, you know, I think I got the Merchants idea from you, Andi. Oh, when I present the scenario of the high school girl starving herself, etc. I get a little dramatic and thrust a recent fashion magazine picked up from a doctor's office or (sob!) my daughters, and challenge a (female) student to find a model in it that isn't pencil-thin. Then I ask the student at the end of the class to show us any non-thin models she found, which, of course, she hasn't, but one student a few years ago told the class she didn't bother to look because she knew she wouldn't find any. I don't recommend giving the fashion magazine to the guys--they just end up ogling the scantily clad models--defeats the whole purpose of the exercise.
Karen ----- Original Message ----- From: "Andi Stepnick" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 10:15 AM Subject: TEACHSOC: Re: That time of the year again ... Thanks, Karen. You're right about Merchants. It gets under their skin... Andi -------------- Every object, every being, Is a jar of delight. Be a connoisseur. ~Rumi~ Life is raw material. We are artisans. We can sculpt our existence into something beautiful, or debase it into ugliness. It's in our hands. ~Cathy Better~ Things which matter most should never be at the mercy of things which matter least. ~Johann von Goethe~ Dr. Andi Stepnick Associate Professor and Chair of Sociology 300-C Wheeler Humanities Building Belmont University Nashville TN 37212-3757 Direct Line: (615) 460-6249 Office Manager: (615) 460-5505 Sociology Fax: (615) 460-6997 ----- Original Message ----- From: Karen Loeb <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 9:53 am Subject: TEACHSOC: Re: That time of the year again ... > Sure, Andi, no problem; I'm attaching the PPT for the different > scenarios.By the way, I was thinking about the class discussion on > obesity (in > contrast to the anorexic girl) and I remember letting the students > make the > connection between obesity and social issues. They came up with > them all, > including, the proliferation of fast food restaurants and children > spendingmore inactive time on computers and watching t.v. I'm the > one who presented > the social class component. And yes, I saw the Tommy Lee reality > show and > thought about showing it to my students for the same reasons you > mentioned.What worked well in this regard, as well, was the PBS > documentary, Merchants > of Cool (which you can get on their website). It worked so well in > convincing students of all the subtle ways they are pressured by the > advertising industry to buy merchandise. I showed the first half > hour of it > in the beginning of the semester, but students kept bringing it up > in their > essays and responses to other articles and concepts. > > Karen > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Andi Stepnick" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Cc: <[email protected]> > Sent: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 8:54 AM > Subject: TEACHSOC: Re: That time of the year again ... > > > > Great idea. Any chance you'd share that PPT with us? (No pressure.) > > Brian - We start on the 24th. Oy! I am totally revising my > courses...and still at it. > > I greet students at the door with a handshake, introduction, and > welcome. Later, after going over the syllabus, they write about > how it > made them feel. They also reflect on their goals, what they expect > from me/themselves/others. > > Then, I have them share all of the above. > > I amazed at how many say they felt humanized, excited, cared for, etc > by the handshake! > > It's good for students to hear that others have expectations for them. > > Normally, I go over the syllabus, but have groups of students > share "the bottom line" about different sections. So, it's not > just me > saying things. Then, we go to the lab and spend half the class in > WebCT…doing posts and whatnot. > > However, I've been thinking of scrapping all that--although it works > well. Last night I taped Tommy Lee goes to College. (Yes, good lord, > but maybe he can make it cool?) I thought about showing part of it > and talking about college…where our ideas come from about what college > is like, what feelings he has that they can relate to. > > For those who didn't see it, Tommy tries out for the band and although > he's a "great rock drummer" can't keep up…he's lost in Chem, Hort, > etc. He feels like a loser, needs help, has to work and prioritize. > He seems to want to do well and learn but doesn't know how. He > gets a > tutor, but struggles. She has faith in him. But then he throws a > partyinstead of studying. But, he does get up, on time, for band > practice. > Those "lessons" (e.g., balance work/fun, faith in self, getting help, > staying focused) resonated with me as something useful. We have a lot > of music students so it's applicable, too! > > Did anyone see it? Maybe you all can help me maximize using this > show? Ideas? Maybe I'd do a combo of Karen's PPT (maybe 2 cases) > mixed with Tommy Lee. Hmmm… > > Another option is analyzing music…something that's always worked for > me. In small groups, then together. Pick anything with a > sociologicaltheme. > > I would add that student's have homework due the next class that > involves going over the syllabus and WebCT page and respond in writing > with questions. They also tell me about goals, interests, etc. It's > useful for getting questions out early and giving me a chance to give > quick, personalized feedback by week 2. > > Good luck, All! > > > Andi > -------------- > Every object, every being, > Is a jar of delight. > Be a connoisseur. > ~Rumi~ > > Life is raw material. We are artisans. We can sculpt our existence > intosomething beautiful, or debase it into ugliness. It's in our > hands. ~Cathy Better~ > > Things which matter most should never be at the mercy of things which > matter least. > ~Johann von Goethe~ > > > Dr. Andi Stepnick > Associate Professor and Chair of Sociology > 300-C Wheeler Humanities Building > Belmont University > Nashville TN 37212-3757 > > Direct Line: (615) 460-6249 > Office Manager: (615) 460-5505 > Sociology Fax: (615) 460-6997 > > > > > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Karen Loeb <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 8:35 am > Subject: TEACHSOC: Re: That time of the year again ... > > > Hi Brian, > > > > On the first day of class, I distribute the syllabus but I don't > > go over it until the second time the class meets. Instead, I tell > > students, since they probably don't have a good idea of what > > sociology is by way of introduction, I present (on a powerpoint) > > four individuals experiencing "personal troubles," i.e., a high > > school student starving herself in order to be thin and > > attractive; a person who loses their job and eventually becomes > > homeless; a man who commits suicide after losing a job and then I > > make the connection between these individuals' problems and > > "public issues." Last year one of my students brought up the > > phenomena of obesity being a problem in America (in contrast to > > the anorexic girl) and we had a wonderful discussion about how > > obesity is often a function of social class (NPR did a wonderful > > series on this last year). This introduction has worked really > > well for me. > > > > Karen > > ----- Original Message ----- > > From: Brian Webb > > To: [email protected] > > Sent: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 8:06 AM > > Subject: TEACHSOC: That time of the year again ... > > > > > > Good Morning - > > > > Believe it or not, our term opens next Tuesday, August 23rd. > > And as usual, I am giving some thought to things I might do or say > > in those first couple of classes that will grab the students' > > attention and open their eyes to the facination of this "special > > kind of passion" known as sociology. One thing I have learned is > > that those first few classes are crucial and can and often do 'set > > the tone' for the rest of the semester. A word about my > audience - > > I teach in a private Québec CEGEP with 1700 students. This is a > > level of education after the end of High School, but before > > university. All students go through the CEGEPs en route to > > university. Our students are 16 - 18 years old, highly motivated, > > middle to upper class, urban, well travelled, multilingual and > > multicultural. Any suggestions for things that you have found > > particularly effective for 'opening day'? And one more thing - > > are there any other folks out there who are starting before Labour > > Day? Misery likes company ... > > > > Brian Webb > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] >
