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SIGNATURE COURSES Washington State University has set out to make "world class, face to face" a reality. At Washington State University we are committed to offering the best undergraduate education available at a research university. In that spirit, the Department of Sociology is proud to offer courses that best exemplify our faculty's commitment to teaching and learning. Each member of the Sociology faculty has selected a "signature course" developed to integrate her or his academic and research interests with teaching methods designed to stimulate student learning and promote critical thinking. Our faculty have invested the time and energy it takes to make their signature courses valuable components of the Department's undergraduate curriculum and the students' course of study. The Department of Sociology supports these efforts by scheduling signature courses on a regular basis, so that our undergraduate students can have the opportunity to experience courses in which world-class researchers bring their scholarly expertise into the undergraduate classroom.
Sociology 101 - Introduction to Sociology Sociology 101 provides an introduction to sociology, including various sociological topics as well as a sociological way of viewing the world. Topics covered include: what is sociology, what is culture, how does deviance operate in society, and many others. The goal of the course is to show students the interconnectedness of things in society. The course shows students how they are constrained and empowered by society and the role that we all play in influencing society. Professor McIntyre presents these topics with a refreshing element of humor. This course is important to sociology majors because it introduces students to the basic vocabulary and points of view largely used in sociology. For non- sociology majors, the course is important because it teaches them the interconnectedness of society and their role in that social process. Professor McIntyre teaches this course in lecture format and provides students with a "lecture guide" that gives an overview of the material and offers optional study opportunities to make the material more easily understood. This course teaches students to develop an analytic approach to theory and to connect abstract theories to the empirical world. The course focuses on one substantive issue – the problem of social order. Students learn to break theory down into its component parts and, in turn, to compare theorists' approaches to this substantive problem. This process helps students to think about the most basic elements of the theories. To increase their understanding of the relevance of social theory for real-world phenomena, students practice applying the theories to contemporary social problems – situations in which order has broken down. The course relies on a reader that includes excerpts from classical texts, contemporary theoretical extensions, and recent empirical research, as well as commentary on those excerpts. The reader has received high praise for its value in teaching theory:
Sociology 331 - Population, Resources, and the Future Professor Lloyd's signature course is Population, Resources, and the Future. This course is designed as an introduction to the study of population from a sociological perspective. The scientific study of population, formally called demography , is multidisciplinary and concerned with virtually everything that influences or can be influenced by population size, distribution, processes, structure, or characteristics. The field of demography is large, crosses many disciplines, and touches on almost every aspect of human existence. This course gives deferential attention to world population growth and processes (birth, death, and migration); how these affect, and in turn are affected by, the social and economic structure, availability of resources, and environment. However, it also touches on other aspects of demography – including historical, political, anthropological, epidemiological, physical, and biological aspects. The course consists of a combination of lecture, class discussion, short written assignments, and in-class examinations. Lectures are intended to provide a basic foundation in demographic issues and concepts. Assigned readings give the student an opportunity to explore particular issues in more detail and also present specific case studies where topics and concepts are discussed in an applied setting. Assignments are designed to introduce students to the demography of a particular country, help students apply key demographic concepts, as well as utilize sources of demographic data. Through informal group discussion students become familiar with the demography of a particular country, while at the same time learn about the demography of their classmates' countries. Sociology 340 - Social Inequality Professor Kmec's signature course is Social Inequality. Topics covered include theories of social inequality, trends in income inequality, ideology in the U.S., social mobility and education, inequality in the workplace, environmental inequality, and inequality in the criminal justice system. Professor Kmec wants students to have an understanding of how structures outside of an individual's control shape the individual's attitudes, behaviors, and achievements. This course prepares sociology majors to understand a more diverse group of colleagues and to involve students in a growing area of sociological work. The course is largely activity and interaction based, and minimizes the use of traditional lectures. She uses Power Point in the course and maintains a web site including interesting articles, links to websites, and assignments. Professor Kmec is an advocate of active learning and engaging students in topics. She makes it a point to make the students feel welcome as well as comfortable speaking out in class. She is also extremely excited to be teaching this topic and feels that her research keeps her up to date on the material and feeds her excitement as well as the excitement of the students. She explains that any students interested in social justice issues, or concerned about issues related to minorities or people of color, should be especially interested in this course. Millions of people worldwide are involved in sport, either as fans, spectators, or participants. This course explores how sociologists and other social scientists consider sport as an industry, a product, and a focus of attention in society. Outside from the reporting of actual athletic events, most popular treatments of sport in the media involve in-depth examination of a specific athlete or team, or are designed to help improve performance in a particular sport. In contrast, this course is organized around the study of sport as an entity within the social world. The major emphasis is on sport in North America . Informed by some basic ideas from sociology, the course examines how sport socializes young people and adults, and considers the role of sport in perpetuating and dismantling gender, racial, and class inequalities. Additionally, the course considers social, economic, political, and cultural issues involved with viewing and participating in sport. Sociology 346 - Sociology of Education Professor Beattie's signature course is Sociology of Education (Soc 346). As a former Teach for America corps member who taught 6 th grade in an inner-city school, Professor Beattie has a longstanding interest in educational equality. Her teaching and research both highlight the ways that educational institutions perpetuate or diminish social inequality in life outcomes. This course focuses on how social forces (such as politics, economics, demographics, and institutional context) create variation in school practices and the social organization of education, as well as how variation in school practices affects individual student achievement, behavior, and life course outcomes. We begin by examining the theories central to the sociological study of education, critiquing them for how well or poorly they aid our understanding of social inequality. Readings and class discussions focus on such topics as school discipline, racial segregation, tracking, and schools as institutions. Throughout the course, we will focus on social inequality; particularly how school experiences vary by class, race, and gender and other dimensions of inequality. Students will also become familiar with presenting and interpreting quantitative public education data. Students with aspirations to become teachers, policy analysts, journalists, or social service workers are especially encouraged to enroll, however the course is likely to be of interest to anyone curious about the role of education in shaping social opportunity. Sociology 351 - The Family Professor Johnson's signature course is Sociology of the Family. In this course Professor Johnson emphasizes demographic and historical change and continuity in the American family, and in so doing, tackles popular myths about families. Students in this class discuss family-related current events, which enables them to take on some of society's most controversial issues that relate to people's core values. Professor Johnson maintains an emphasis on the connections between the family as an institution and other social institutions (e.g. work and the economy, government and politics). Topics covered in the course include the social and legal construction of the family, gender and families, family divisions of labor (paid and unpaid work), domestic violence, family transitions (cohabitation, marriage, parenthood and divorce), and parenting and the socialization of children. Across topics, students examine diversity in family experiences across racial, ethnic, sexual orientation, and economic groups. Professor Johnson combines a lecture format with films and active learning exercises focused on the application of sociological concepts to contemporary family experiences and controversies. This course gives students the opportunity to wrestle with the ways in which families are both a product of and a contributing factor in social change. Further, the policy focus of this course makes it particularly relevant to jobs that students might pursue after completing their undergraduate education. Sociology 351 - The Family One of the most powerful influences on a person is his or her experience within a family. Each person's family is unique in many different ways, but yet share some common characteristics. In this course, we will examine families from a sociological perspective, focusing on how individuals in families are shaped by their surroundings in a society. In addition to exploring general tendencies in American families, we discuss the diversity of family experiences across subgroups of populations, including gay men and lesbians, different national, racial and ethnic groups, and different socioeconomic classes. Sociology 361 - Criminology This course is designed to dispel myths and popular misconceptions about the extent of crime and violence and about who commits crime in the United States . After developing an understanding of the basic contours of criminal offending, we use crime theories to help us understand why some people engage in crime and others do not, why some communities have higher crime rates than others, and why crime rates are high during some periods of history and low in others. Students will also come away with a better understanding of what has influenced their own decisions regarding involvement in crime. Additional topics include: defining what is criminal, measuring criminal offending, media portrayals of crime, and characteristics of offenses such as homicide, burglary, drunk driving, and prostitution. These issues and topics are presented using a sociological perspective, meaning that students will become more aware of the social forces shaping offending patterns and official reactions to it. Professor Schwartz combines a lecture format with active learning experiences, films, classroom discussions or debates, and writing exercises. The multiple learning methods are geared toward enhancing students' critical thinking skills, improving students' abilities to understand and critique statistical information about crime, and increasing retention of key facts about criminology. Course readings complement in-class lectures by providing more detailed information, extended examples of complex concepts, and/or insights from criminals themselves. Professor Schwartz is very enthusiastic about the subject matter and her own research in the area exposes students the latest developments in criminology and crime policies. This course is popular with sociology and criminal justice majors, but also draws students from all parts of the university, perhaps because of the intrinsically interesting nature of deviant behavior.Sociology 372 - Sociology of Film Professor Allen's signature course is The Sociology of Film. This course is a core course in the new Film Studies Minor Program, and draws students from across the University. This course provides sociology majors with a background in the sociology of culture. Non-majors will find this course useful because it gives them an understanding of how films influence their values and beliefs. Topics covered in this course include the organization of film production, the use of cinematic techniques, the structure of film narratives, and the social and cultural influences on film. Professor Allen designed the course so that students would gain a critical understanding of where films come from, both culturally and economically, and what these films leave behind in terms of our collective memory. Professor Allen uses a variety of video materials in his class and students view selected films outside of class. Lectures are presented using PowerPoint. Although the course is distinctive for its reliance on visual material, it is also reading and writing intensive. Professor Allen is currently pursuing research on the cultural consecration of film as an art form and on the impact of global markets on the American film industry. His passion for films is infectious, which makes the class more enjoyable and informative for his students. Sociology 380 - Gender & Work
Sociology 430 - Society and Technology Professor Rosa's signature course is Society and Technology. In this course, Professor Rosa's goal is to teach students that technology doesn't exist in a vacuum, but instead interfaces with people and society. Subtopics that will be covered in this course include: the history of the U.S. from 1870-1970 in terms of technology and social change, technology - benefit or detriment, the unintended consequences of technology, and risk taking. Professor Rosa feels that this course is important for students because it exposes them to information about many of the major public decision issues of the day and gives them the information they need to intelligently approach these issues. Professor Rosa's primary teaching goal is to inspire his students to think critically and to foster the value of civic responsibility. Besides being a "great course," according to his students, it serves as a bridge for students to draw together many things that they learned in previous courses. Professor Rosa does not assume the students enrolled in this course have extensive sociological backgrounds, and has designed the course to be approachable for students from many areas of WSU. This is a popular course among engineering students, business students, and environmental science students, and of course, students of sociology. Sociology 433 - Urbanization and Community Organization Professor Oakley's signature course is Urbanization and Community Organization. In this course, she and her students explore the various ways cities are formed, how those factors influence the ways we define the multiple communities in which we reside, and how these definitions influence human social behavior. This course is aptly identified as a Tier III general education course, given our shared and varied experiences living, working, and identifying ourselves with physical and social locations. The course is designed to inform both sociology and non-sociology majors about theoretical perspectives and empirical research on urban and rural communities. It also empowers students to take an active role in community life and social change. Professor Oakley's goal is to increase students' capacities to work effectively for the health and welfare of individuals, families, and communities. Professor Oakley utilizes a variety of teaching strategies, including brief lectures, films, class discussions, and community service learning to enable students to meet course and individual objectives. Professor Oakley considers herself to be an applied sociologist. Because of this orientation she offers experience-based perspectives to "ground" the array of theoretical debates that have historically and currently influenced the understanding of communities and their relationship to human behavior.
Sociology 474 - Collective Behavior and Social Movements Professor Van Dyke's signature course is Social Movements. Collective action through social movements is arguably the most powerful means that ordinary citizens have for influencing social change in our society. Protest by college students, for example, has shaped student life and the curriculum at this University. Prior to student protests in the 1960s and 1970s, all freshman men at WSU were required to participate in the ROTC, there were no co-ed dorms, and there was no Women's Studies Department. All of our lives have been influenced by social movements, and helping students gain an understanding of the dynamics of these movements is Professor Van Dyke's primary goal in teaching the course. Course topics include the factors that influence the emergence of social movements, as well as how different actors and social contexts influence the development of movements over time. We look at who participates in movements, and why they do so. Course readings and discussions examine contemporary and past movements, such as the anti-globalization movement, militia movement, civil rights movement, women's movement, pro- and anti-abortion movements and others, as case studies for applying the theories covered in class. Students come away from this class with an increased understanding of the dynamics of collective action and the importance of social movements to modern social life. Social movements are Professor Van Dyke's primary area of research, and she brings a great deal of enthusiasm to the course. Students interested in inequality, social justice, and politics will be especially interested in this course. Contact us: soc@wsu.edu, Voice: 509.335.4595, Fax: 509.335.6419, Accessibility | Policies | Copyright |
Professor Lisa McIntyre
Professor Christine Horne 
Professor Kim Lloyd 
Professor Julie Kmec
Professor Tom Rotolo
Professor Irenee Beattie 
Professor Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson
