Sociology

1.     What is your understanding of intersectionality?  Describe your understanding of intersectionality and by providing example and citing the work of intersectional theorists.

Session 3 Questions A unique part of your experience as a student at Colorado Christian University is that the University presents courses and course content in light of a biblical worldview. Foundational to understanding a biblical worldview is understanding the message and purpose of Scripture. In our discussion this week, we asked you to practice applying Scripture to key words and topics. This is something that you will be asked to do throughout your time at CCU. But, as in anything that you read, understanding the context is everything. Your reading in Bickel and Jantz (1998) this week also gives you a broad, sweeping view of the context of Scripture. After reading the story of the Bible in this format (with the five “acts”), answer the following questions in a question and answer format, but be sure to use complete sentences and check your spelling and grammar prior to submitting. In total, your assignment should be 250 – 500 words. According to Bickel and Jantz (1998), what is the main theme of the Bible? (Provide cited support from your text for this theme.) How does this theme compare to your current view or understanding of the Bible?  How can understanding the big picture of the Bible help you as you seek to apply Scripture to course content? (Provide specific examples to support your response.) Click on the Session 3 Questions link to submit your assignment by the posted due date. Review the rubric available in Due Dates and Grades for specific grading criteria. How to reference the reading assignments for this session: CAGS adheres to APA Style for references, citations, and the general format of student papers. Examples of how to cite some of the reading assignments are provided for you. References Page Bickel, B. & Jantz, S. (1998). Knowing the Bible 101: A guide to God’s word in plain language. Harvest House Publishers. In-text Citations (Bickel & Jantz, 1998) (Bickel & Jantz, 1998, p. __) – If you are using a direct quote. (Holy Bible, New International Version, 1973/2011, John 3:16) John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (Holy Bible, New International Version, 1973/2011).

https://www.foxnews.com Using one of the news websites from the provided list, search for a current news story that demonstrates a moral or ethical dilemma. Your current news selection must be within the last 90 days. Examine the news story. Be sure to reflect and consider all aspects and viewpoints the author provides. In your initial post, state the title of the news story and include the link so that others can access the story. Briefly summarize the story and explain the moral or ethical issue/dilemma and how it relates to an ethical theory, principle, and concept or code in the course text. Your response must be at least 200 words and show a clear connection between the news story/event and the course material/ethical theory. Choose two of your peers’ initial posts and read the summary they provide. Respond with a thoughtful comment relating the article to a point or concept from the course reading material: theory, philosophy, or ethical principle.

Public Administration: The Foundation of Public Service Through public administration we define who we are as a nation, from economics to pollution to civil rights. But what exactly does it mean to be a public administrator, and how does public administration influence the lives of citizens? Write a 3–4 page paper in which you answer the following: What is public administration? Why is it important? Provide an overview of its purpose and function in America. Compare and contrast public administration and business administration. Provide two specific examples of how the fields are different and two examples of how they are the same. What kinds of occupations are found in public administration? Provide three examples: one from nonprofit administration, one from federal government, and one from state or local government. Describe the job functions and requirements of these roles. In thinking about your own career goals, how does knowledge of the field of public administration apply to your current or future plans? Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements: This course requires the use of Strayer Writing Standards. For assistance and information, please refer to the Strayer Writing Standards link in the left-hand menu of your course. Use a minimum of three professional references (Wikipedia is not accepted in this class). The specific course learning outcome associated with this assignment is as follows: Review the foundational concepts and constructs of public administration.

In each of the Position Papers you will be asked to do the following: Select a specific moral question within the scope of what you proposed in the Project Proposal assignment. Use the specific moral theory in the unit to answer that question. It is very important that you attend to the details of the assignment, since papers that fail to do (1) or (2) are highly likely to fail or will need to be redone so as to match the assignment’s requirements. Specific Moral Question A good project proposal question is narrow in scope and uses moral language in a clear way.  Good examples would be, “Can raising animals to eat them be morally justified?”; “Is  pet ownership morally acceptable?”; “Should we experiment on non-human animals in order to test life-saving drugs for humans?” Your paper needs a clear question and that question should be introduced in the first paragraph of the paper.  If your question is unfindable or unclear, your grade will suffer. Using the Moral Theory In each of the main units of the course you will be introduced to a moral theory (Utilitarianism, Kantian Deontology, and Aristotelian Virtue Ethics).  The Position Papers should employ the moral theory from each unit explicitly and thoroughly.  If your paper does not talk about the moral theory, your grade will suffer. Your paper needs to (1) cite the readings from the unit and (2) explicitly describe the moral theory and how it answers the question.  You are welcome to use other sources as well, but if all your sources are summary sources and blogs, your grade will suffer. Use the theory of Utilitarianism to determine what would be right in an example case. (CO4, CO5, CO6) At the end of the last unit, you were asked to choose a topic for your Term Project.  In this assignment, you will complete the first part of that project.  Here are the parameters of the assignment. Choose a specific moral question within the scope of your proposed topic. Write a short (2-3 pages) paper which gives the Utilitarian answer to that question. If you recall, my proposed topic was about human – non-human animal relationships.  For this paper I might choose the following question: “Is there a moral justification for the existence of Zoos?”  You may choose any question within the scope of your topic, so long as it is a moral question.  There are lots of ways to form moral questions, but one easy way to tell whether your chosen question is a moral one is to look and see if it uses moral language – right/wrong, morally good/bad or justifiable/unjustifiable, etc.  If you’re unsure of whether or not your question fits the assignment, let me know. A successful paper should explicitly do all of the following: Introduce and explicitly state a moral question which the paper considers.  If your paper never defines a question or makes a statement of thesis, it is missing something crucial and is likely to receive a very low grade. Describe whatever parts of the moral theory which are relevant to the question.  If your paper never talks in detail about the moral theory of Utilitarianism, it is missing something crucial and is likely to receive a very low grade. Inform the reader about whatever parts of the topic which are relevant to the question.  If your paper makes claims about your topic without explaining them or supporting them with research, it is missing something crucial. Your paper needs to (1) cite the readings from the unit and (2) explicitly describe the moral theory and how it answers the question.  You are welcome to use other sources as well, but if all your sources are summary sources and blogs, your grade will suffer

FIND A MOMENT OF HOPE in the news that relates to article : Alexis Ohanian: Paternity Leave Was Crucial After the Birth of My Child, and Every Father Deserves It ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS (via audio recording or text): 1. Summarize the news article that you uploaded. 2. Why did it stand out to you, and why is it a moment of hope? 3. How does one of the assigned readings or podcasts relate to your news article? (Be specific and refer to details within the reading or podcast. Also, make sure to refer to the complete title of the reading or podcast within your answer.) 4. Describe what you learned from that specific assigned reading or podcast.

I’ll copy and paste the homework in the instruction box here. 1. Is there moral knowledge? Explain your answer from the evolutionary/historic point of view. 2. What does it mean to say that moral facts are “intersubjective”? 3. Is “holding a door to an old woman” a moral norm? Whether yes or no, explain your answer. 4. Pick one universal principle of the two presented in this lecture. Provide an example of this principle from real life. 5. Tom comes from culture A professes cultural relativism and believes slavery is wrong, Theresa comes from culture B, professes cultural relativism and believes slavery is right. Is there a way for Tom to convince Theresa she is wrong? Explain.  CRITICAL THINKING PART 1. Pick one of aesthetic value discussed here and apply that value to a real life situation.  2. What does it mean to say, “being a good person is a necessary condition for being happy?” (apply the definition).  3. Suppose Alice loves John and John loves Alice. Is their mutual love a sufficient condition for the success of their relationship? YES, NO.  4. Identify the following fallacies:  a) God does not exist because every argument for the existence of God has been shown to be unsound.  b) Smoking causes cancer because my father was a smoker and he died of lung cancer.  c) We have no evidence showing that he is innocent. So he must be guilty.  5. Of these 2 inductive arguments. Tell if they are strong or weak.  a) As far as we know, every Marmot Day we’ve had has been held in freezing whether. So, probably, this Marmot Day will be held in freezing whether.  b) The last fifty lottery tickets that Francis purchased have been losers. Therefore, the next one he buys is virtually certain to be a winner.  6. Mr. Ferguson is invited to Mr. Smith’s party where is served seafood for dinner. When Mr. Ferguson goes back home he feels stomach pain and later has an attack of diarrhea. What conditions must be satisfied in order for us to say: “Smith’s seafood caused Mr. Ferguson’s stomach sickness”

Annotated Bibliography   Length: 10 sources, MLA Style citations Peer Review Workshop: Upload to Canvas for peer review on Monday, October 26.   if we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it? – Albert Einstein  Classes that require you to do research often require an annotated bibliography. An annotated bibliography is a useful way to start a research project because it asks you to collect and summarize sources that you might use later in a researched argument. Collecting and summarizing sources early in the research process helps you narrow your research topic. The bibliography can also help you evaluate the possible usefulness of source material for later use in a paper.  We will be completing annotated bibliographies to launch us into our researched arguments, the biggest assignment you will write this semester and the largest part of your course grade. Your bibliography MUST include 10 sources. Four of these sources should be scholarly articles and two should be scholarly books (usually published on a university press). And remember: your annotated bibliography and researched argument should somehow relate to the topic of music.    What is an annotated bibliography?  If you have been assigned to write an annotated bibliography, you might be confused about what the words “annotated” and “bibliography” mean. The word “annotated” is the past tense form of the verb “to annotate” which means to summarize. An annotation is simply a summary of a book, article, or some other source. A bibliography is a list of sources on a particular topic. Put together, an annotated bibliography is a list of sources on a topic that offers a summary for each source.  An entry in an annotated bibliography has two parts. The first part is the bibliography line which should be written according to be MLA format (the author and title, etc.). The second part is the summary paragraph. Both parts taken together are called an “entry.” Entries are typically organized in alphabetical order according to the bibliography information, such as the last name of an author or the title of a book.  What is included in the summary part of an annotated bibliography? Timothy Crusius and Carolyn Channell in The Aims of Argument suggest that your summary should include the following elements: (1)  a sentence or two that describes the author’s credentials, purpose, and audience; (2)  a brief “capsule” summary of the source’s content; and (3)  a sentence at the end of the summary that explains “why this source seems valuable and how you might use it.”  Sample entries:  Alderman, Ellen, and Caroline Kennedy. Right to Privacy. New York: Vintage, 2004.  The authors of this informative national bestseller, who have experienced privacy violations of their own, make the claim that since there is no comprehensive agenda to solve the problem of informational privacy, American citizens will have to be concerned about protecting their personal information. One reason the authors give to support their claim is that most of citizens’ personal information is already being stored on computers that may not be well protected. For instance, as Alderman and Kennedy point out, most bank, insurance, medical and pharmaceutical records are stored on computers others may be able to access. A good example the authors provide of such ease of access is an incident in which a reporter was able to get Dan Quayle’s credit report with a phone call, fifty dollars, and a home computer.     Waite, L. J., Goldschneider, F. K., & Witsberger, C. “Nonfamily living and the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults.” American Sociological Review 51 (1986): 541-554.  The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

Overall, the course papers will require you to: Revisit and review the various theoretical ideas from the material, Focus in-depth on a particular set of ideas or insights within the theory, Find textual evidence (e.g., quotes) from primary source material to support your interpretation of the theory, Apply the work to the social world around you or a contemporary example, and Demonstrate critical thinking in making arguments beyond the textual sources. The purpose of each paper is to demonstrate your comprehension of the various ideas studied in a given unit. You will be required to demonstrate this comprehension through three strategies within your paper:  Provide a brief summary (in your own words) of the theorist’s main argument, drawing from two primary source readings from the unit. You may include context information or refer to the secondary textbook (Bratton and Denham) as needed. Be sure to synthesize across readings to arrive at an understanding of the theoretical perspective.  You must find textual evidence from the primary sources to supplement your summary, with at least one quote per reading. These selected quotes should fit into the larger argument of the paper. Quotes must be cited and documented with page numbers, and should be integrated into the paper’s narrative. Standalone quotes are not acceptable.  Draw from a contemporary example or instance from your life and apply the theory, linking the example to the concepts from review (above). If the theorist were to look at your example, what conclusions would he or she likely draw? How does the theory contribute to our understanding, and what can we gain from this new perspective? Your paper should be organized to carry a distinct argument across the readings. While I do not expect you to cover every reading or point addressed in class, you must draw from at least two different excerpts from the unit. For this assignment, I would rather you focus on reviewing and writing about one or two sets of ideas than covering everything we reviewed in class. You should aim for comprehension, synthesis, and analysis over surface-level engagement with the material. Your papers will be graded on the quality of the work, not the quantity of the pages submitted. Shorter papers with substance count more than lengthier essays without argument. All papers must be 3-4 pages, double spaced, Times New Roman 12 point font. Include a title page and works cited page (see primary source citation information in the Course Reader). You may wish to consult the paper resources posted on Canvas, including a grading rubric, sample paper outline, and tips on college-level writing style.

Create a 5–7 slide presentation (with detailed speaker’s notes) on how you would select, foster collaboration among, and educate a team dedicated to solving a diversity issue. Assessments 1 and 2 are scenario-based, so you must complete them in the order in which they are presented. Finding, organizing, and motivating teams is a key leadership skill as is the ability to communicate and present information. In this assessment you will continue your work on the project by creating a 5–7 slide PowerPoint presentation for the diversity project kickoff meeting. Preparation View the PowerPoint Presentation Instructions for guidelines and hints for an effective presentation. Download the PowerPoint Template found in the resources and use it to complete this assessment. Scenario Imagine that Lynette follows up with you in an e-mail shortly after reading your views on leadership and collaboration: Hi, Thanks for sending me your thoughts last week on the diversity issue at the clinic. Your next step is to select a team of professionals who can help you in this project and prepare an introduction of the project for a first meeting with them. I want you to prepare a presentation to serve as a brief, but substantive introduction for the first meeting with a group of 4–5 members who will participate on the committee tasked with addressing the diversity issue. Once I review more information about the proposed team I can help you with the recruitment. The presentation should be 5–7 minutes and use 6–8 slides with detailed speaker’s notes so I can understand your approach. Not a lot of time or space, so keep things pretty high level. Do the following: Briefly outline the project goals and highlight 2–3 of the initial priorities to be addressed by the group. Also, explain why they are important. Explain the composition of the team and why you chose them. Note that you will not know the exact individuals yet, but assume we will recruit the people with the desired qualities and characteristics that you outline in the presentation. Consider the following: Include a group of professionals you believe can help define the problem and ultimately make recommendations on how to address it. Make sure each member is either trained in, sensitive to, or has experience with the concept of workplace diversity. Give some thought to having some members from outside the organization. Provide member profiles: their diversity, qualifications, experience, internal versus external, and so forth. Explain your role and describe how the committee will work together and achieve effective interprofessional collaboration. Describe how the group will communicate. How and when they will meet. Describe how ideas will be shared and decisions made. Describe roles, group function, and structure. Describe the basic characteristics of a diverse workplace. Provide a convincing argument regarding the benefits of a diverse workforce using support from current research. Thanks, Lynette Instructions Create a 5–7 slide presentation in response to the content defined in the above scenario and submit it in the courseroom. Presentation Guidelines Length: 5–7 PowerPoint slides (not including title slide) that would accompany an approximately 5-minute oral presentation. Notes: Prepare detailed speaker’s notes describing items on each slide so that the viewer can accurately interpret the deeper meanings and intentions that would have been conveyed orally. Support your claims, arguments, and conclusions with credible evidence from 2–3 current, scholarly or professional sources. Visuals: Create visuals that are easily read and interpreted. Use colors, fonts, and formatting and other design principles that make the information clear and generally add to the aesthetic of the presentation.