Canadian Studies (CNST) 361 Lecture 01

Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in Canada
Fall 2008

Tuesday and Thursday, 9:30-10:45am

 

Instructor:	Dr. Paul Stortz
Office Location:	SS206
Office Phone:	220-3240
E-Mail:	pjstortz@ucalgary.ca
Web Page:	www.ucalgary.ca/~pjstortz
Office Hours:	by appointment

 

Course Description

This inquiry-based research course discusses ideas, identities, and discourses of gender, race, and ethnicity in Canada. Through investigation and reflection, the course will challenge pre-conceived notions of these cultural concepts as they have evolved over time and place, and how fundamentally interpretive they are according to contextual experiences and individual and collective subjectivities. What does being defined by particular social signifiers mean, and how does this affect the way people are perceived within social and political communities and the Canadian nation-state? The considerable impact of feminist movements, immigration policies, multicultural institutions, racism and sexism, and perceptions of role and self, often from the social margins, on the formation of practices and ideologies which commonly shape our relationship with the world and our surroundings will be analyzed and deconstructed.

Lectures, discussions, and research will explore the imbedded and ascribed meanings, and historical, philosophical, sociological, and interdisciplinary understandings, of language, power, difference and diversity, inequality, agency, and voice. These topics will be unpacked in light of subjective social, community, and cultural relations in Canada. Introductory lectures will examine the essential tools of the aspiring academic student including research techniques, approaches to source material, avenues of publication, and clear and effective writing, critical thinking, informal logic, and argumentation skills.

 

Objectives of the Course

1. Through lectures, discussion, and research, to provide an academic forum for the study of identities, self, citizenship, and voice in Canada using a variety of interdisciplinary and theoretical perspectives;

2. To engage students in critically analyzing socio-intellectual ideas of Canadian identities in fluid and temporal contexts;

3. To discuss and analyze important issues in concepts of Canadian gender, race, and ethnicity, taking into considerations socio-historical and contemporary tensions and balances of regionalism, the evolving voice of women, rural versus urban perspectives, industrialization and unionization, related issues of science and technology, government policy, institutional and bureaucratic sociologies, intellectual cultures, secularization, influence of media, international relations, arenas of health and education, and popular culture;

4. Through a brief introductory overview of logic, informal argumentation, critical thinking, gendered and ethnic experiential and intuitive (emotional, spiritual, identity-based) methodologies and reflection, the students will strive to critically and clearly study gender, race, and ethnicity in Canada and globally as tangible and intangible, and practical and theoretical, entities;

5. To stimulate an inquisitiveness into the study of Canada in relation to gender, race, and ethnicity, and of larger bases of reality, argument, and judgment. The intellectual foundations of this course require the participants to constantly challenge their own pre-conceived notions, ideas, conceptions, perspectives, biases, predispositions, paradigms, and proclivities related to people, cultures, ethnicities, gender, and cultures in Canada and elsewhere;

6. To promote an individual and collective mindset of the embracement and respect of alternative viewpoints, arguments, and perspectives; and

7. To demonstrate the illogic and fundamentally destructive and ill-guided nature of prejudice, racism, and gender bias. This is accomplished under the larger goal to construct and promote a critical mind and altruistic and humane perspective towards people, society, and cultures nationally and globally.

 

Instructorial and Course Philosophy: The instructor is to be considered a facilitator, discussant, resource, and lecturer of Canadian Studies argument and discussion. The instructor may be approached on any questions or comments related to course content and procedure, or to broad academic concerns or issues which pertain to your intellectual reflection and growth. The course philosophy is heuristic and holistic: as a group, we will tackle pertinent topics and arguments in Canadian Studies, and strive to challenge foundational assumptions of the subject matter in debate and discussion based on a humane perspectives.

Textbooks and Readings

These texts are necessary for the course and are available in the university Bookstore. Both of these sources are essential parts of this course and their selected contents will be formally examined.

1. Augie Fleras, Social Problems in Canada: Conditions, Constructions, and Challenges, fourth edition (Toronto: Pearson, 2005).

2. Paul Stortz, "Inquiries Into Canadian Studies" (sixth edition, 2007; 58pp.).

 

Non-Required but Highly Recommended Tools

1. Formatting manuals available in the bookstore. Chicago, MLA, or APA are acceptable. Consistent and accurate formatting style is fundamental to the writing components of this course.

2. Funk and Wagnalls Canadian College Dictionary. Toronto: Fitzhenry and Whiteside; Oxford English Dictionary (latest editions).

3. Chapman, Robert L., ed. The Original Roget's International Thesaurus. New York: Harper Collins (latest edition).

4. The Globe and Mail; Calgary Herald; CBC's The National; CBC Radio

5. Journal of Canadian Studies and other applicable disciplinary peer-reviewed journals, for example in women's studies, immigration, ethnicity, and race (available on-line via library website, or in print in the library). Referring to works in academic journals is required in this course.

6. The Canadian Global Almanac, Canadian Encyclopedia

7. Books on critical thinking and informal logic. Examples include: T. Edward Damer, Attacking Faulty Reasoning: A Practical Guide to Fallacy-Free Arguments, fourth edition (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2001); Vincent Ryan Ruggiero, Beyond Feelings: A Guide to Critical Thinking, seventh edition (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004); Brooke Noel Moore and Richard Parker, Critical Thinking, seventh edition (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004).

8. Media on popular culture and alternative visions. For example, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV Series); associated critical texts (e.g., Matthew Pateman, The Aesthetics of Culture in Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, [2006], Michael Adams, Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Lexicon [2003], James B. South, ed., Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale [2003]); Adbusters: Journal of the Mental Environment.

 

Selected Recommended Texts/Instructive Optional Reading

Keeping an open and critical mind is essential in the study of Canada. Any good, informative, and critical reading material will have pertinence in this course. If we proceed from the assumption that all knowledge is inter-related, any authoritative academic text is applicable.

 

Assignments and Evaluation

Students must keep a copy of each submitted assignment and be able to produce the copy immediately if requested. Assignments cannot be submitted via email. Assignments are considered officially submitted only when they are received by the instructor (with Communication and Culture date stamp, if outside of class hours) in hardcopy form.

If submitting the assignment directly to the instructor is not possible, a daytime drop box is available in SS110; a date stamp is provided for your use. A night drop box is also available for after-hours submission. Assignments will be removed the following morning, stamped with the previous day's date, and placed in the instructor's mailbox.

All assignments and examinations will be based on the material covered in lectures, assigned readings, course textbooks and manuals, and in-class discussion. Demonstrated knowledge of the topics covered will be graded according to depth and breadth of analysis, perception, research, and expression of the material. In all long and short answer and essay components of the assignments and examinations, an understandable and clearly-presented argument is necessary. Following the research and writing guidelines discussed in "Inquiries Into Canadian Studies" (available in the bookstore and a required component of this course) and adhering to a recognized formatting/style manual (APA, MLA, or Chicago/Turabian) are necessary for structuring and arguing all qualitative responses throughout the course. Not following the instructions and details of these reference materials will result in a negative assessment on the any course component or assignment.

Evaluation will also take into consideration clarity of thought and presentation. The final mark on the assignments and examination will be affected negatively by improper grammar and organization, lack of clarity, poor spelling and presentation, incomplete or faulty sentence and paragraph structures, and lack of proper argumentation. All of these items are the sine qua non for expressing thoughts and analysis on concepts discussed in Canadian Studies.

All assignments are due in class on the due date (see Policy for Late Assignments, below).

 

Evaluation Breakdown

 

• Class participation, classroom collegiality, and attentiveness: Due to the size of the class, this component is not marked officially or in separate evaluation, but attendance is HIGHLY recommended and is considered an essential responsibility of the individual student. Questions on all the assignments and the final examination will cover material from in-class lectures and discussion. As a group, we will discuss and explore issues, topics, and arguments that are applicable to all components of this class, including the assignments and final examination. Adherence to lecture-room etiquette is vital. Talking in class while the lecture and related discussions are conducted is unacceptable, the main argument being that it disrupts the intellectual culture of the class and disturbs your student colleagues. Food and drink (non-alcoholic) are allowed. Cell phones must be turned off. Audio or visual recording devices are not allowed in the lecture hall.

 

 

Assignment	Weight	Due Date	Comments
Critical Reflection Assignment	10%	October 9	This assignment is done over a three-week period, starting the week of September 22. Details will be discussed in class.
Research Report	30%	November 13	Details of the Research Report will be discussed in class.
Argument Paper	30%	December 4 (last day of class)	Details of the Argument Paper will be discussed in class.
Final Examination	30%	The final examination is scheduled by the Registrar.	The Final Examination will cover any or all aspects of the course, including lectures, discussions, readings in Social Problems in Canada, and "Inquiries."

Registrar-scheduled Final Examination: YES.

Please note: If your class is held in the evening, the Registrar's Office will make every attempt to schedule the final exam during the evening; however, there is NO guarantee that the exam will NOT be scheduled during the day.

 

Policy for Late Assignments:

Assignments submitted after the deadline will be penalized with the loss of 3% for each day late. If the paper is not submitted in class, ensuring that the late paper is delivered to the department and date stamped is the sole responsibility of the student.

► If ALL assignments are NOT completed in the course, the final grade will be assessed a "F."

Note that course or personal/professional workload, or computer problems, are not acceptable reasons for late submissions. Late assignments due to health reasons must be accompanied by a stamped physician's note explaining clearly the reasons for missed deadline.

Assignments submitted after the stipulated time and day of submission will be graded without written comments.

 

Writing Skills Statement

Thinking and Writing Skills

Students are required to concentrate on their thinking and writing skills while engaged in the contextual and academic analysis of the idea and foundations of Canada. The instructor may be consulted on questions relating to writing, presentation, critical thinking, and argumentation skills. Course participants must become familiar with "Inquiries Into Canadian Studies" (required reading in this course and available in the university bookstore). All assignments require the use of informal argumentation and argumentative structure, and must follow "Inquiries" precisely.

Resources for improving writing and presentation skills are also available at the Effective Writing Centre, first floor, Social Science Building. If you wish help with your writing at any stage, including drafts, you are invited to contact the Writing Centre, SS110, 220-7255.

 

Grading System

Letter Grade	Percentage Grade	GPA	Description
A+	96-100%	4.0
A	90-95.99%	4.0	Excellent, superior performance, showing comprehensive understanding of subject matter
A-	85-89.99%	3.7
B+	80-84.99%	3.3
B	75-79.99%	3.0	Good, clearly above average performance with knowledge of subject matter generally complete
B-	70-74.99%	2.7
C+	65-69.99%	2.3
C	60-64.99%	2.0	Satisfactory, basic understanding of subject matter
C-	55-59.99%	1.7
D+	53-54.99%	1.3
D	50-52.99%	1.0	Minimal Pass, marginal performance
F	0-49%	0.0	Fail, unsatisfactory performance or failure to meet course requirements

 

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course, and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people's words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS110) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

 

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

 

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info

 

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

 

Ethics

Whenever you perform research with human participants (i.e., surveys, interviews, observation) as part of your university studies, you are responsible for following university research ethics guidelines. Your instructor must review and approve of your research plans and supervise your research. For more information about your research ethics responsibilities, see:

The Faculty of Communication and Culture Research Ethics site:

http://www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/ethics

The University of Calgary Research Ethics site: http://www.ucalgary.ca/research/compliance/ethics/info/undergrad/

 

Schedule of Lectures and Readings

The schedule of lectures and readings will be handed out in class. IMPORTANT: although we will try to follow the lecture schedule closely, it is tentative and is dependent upon class size, student interests and discussions, and the intellectual proclivities and culture of the class. Discussion ALWAYS takes precedence over lecture material as researcher individual and collective feedback and reflection in class are of paramount importance.