Curricular Organization and Learning Objectives
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Introduction
The Department of Sociology has organized its curriculum around the following five domains:
- Methods of sociological research. [METHODS]
- Major sociological theories and sociological reasoning. [THEORY]
- Substantive sociological knowledge and current problems/issues in at least two major areas of the field. [AREA]
- Effective written expression of the core ideas and issues of sociological methods, theory, and substantive expertise. [WRITING]
- Integration of the skills developed in the aforementioned domains. [INTEGRATION]
The department has organized course offerings around area specializations to encourage students to develop in-depth knowledge of particular sub-areas in the discipline. All majors are required to successfully pass core courses (statistics, research methods, and theory) as well as courses within designated areas of specialization (Family/Life Course; Law/Crime/Deviance; Population Studies; and Social Organization/Social Inequality). The core courses (Sociology 210 Research Methods, 215 Social Statistics, 302 Classical Sociological Theory, and 310 Methodological Applications in Social Research) provide the necessary academic foundation for progression through the major to the capstone course. Instructors of Sociology 215 and Sociology 310 have collaborated to design common curricular objectives and strategies for these courses. As we note later in this document, capstone courses are intended to assess overall student competencies within the core areas of the discipline. In these courses, students complete an independent research project that integrates area-based knowledge with the core skills.
The Sociology Department offers students several degree options: Bachelor of Arts (major either in Sociology or Sociology/Social Studies); Bachelor of Arts in Education (major in Sociology – Elementary); and Bachelor of Science (major in Sociology). We also offer students options for accumulating sufficient credits (24) for a minor. Students may earn a minor in sociology, population studies, and criminology/sociology of law.
In addition to the information about the Department that is published in the University Catalog, we maintain a departmental website that is accessible to students and the community-at-large, http://www.wwu.edu/depts/soc . We post curricular changes, news and events in the department, internships, job opportunities, events sponsored by the Career Services Center, registration procedures, graduation policies and procedures, and other matters as appropriate. We also include links to resources available to students (e.g., library links, information about how to avoid plagiarism). The quarter-time student advisor maintains the website, the department’s advising web pages, as well as a listserv for students. She compiles a quarterly newsletter that is posted on the website and is emailed to all sociology majors through the listserv. She also maintains Western's Advisors’ listserv, and is a member of Western's Advisors’ group which meets 2-3 times quarterly. She is a member of the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA), and attends national and regional conferences to keep up with the field.
The student academic advisor provides assistance to three groups of students: those interested in the possibility of Sociology as a major (170 as of Fall06); declared Sociology majors (211 as of Fall06); and Sociology minors (approx 50 as of Fall06). She has an individual office in the department and is available by appointment, by phone and by email on a daily basis as students’ questions arise. All majors meet with the advisor at least twice: once to assist with the application process and develop a Plan of Study, and then to complete the Major Evaluation for graduation. Students also meet with individual faculty concerning academic matters concerning individual courses as well as the major, and for guidance concerning post-baccalaureate plans.
The Advisor, the Department Manager, and the Department Chair work closely together to estimate enrollment for particular courses as well as coordination of course offerings. The sequencing of core courses through the capstone has facilitated this process, and has been beneficial for student course planning.