Longwood University
ANTH 106 / WSTU 106
Introduction to Women's Studies
Fall 2006

Course web page: http://www.longwood.edu/staff/edwardswa/courses.htm

Required Texts
Bâ, Mariama.  So Long a Letter.  Oxford: Heinemann, 1981.

Brumberg, Joan Jacobs.  The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls.  New York: Vintage, 1998.

Ehrenreich, Barbara.  Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America.  New York: Metropolitan Books, 2001.

Select photocopies will also be available at the reserve desk in the library.

Course Description
The course will introduce students to literature in the social sciences by and about women.  These readings will be supplemented with others that explore broader issues of gender.  We will explore key roles which women play in society, how they have questioned these roles, and contributions which women make in different cultures.  We will read about women and minorities in our own and other societies as a way to explore these questions.  3 credits.

Course Objectives
The primary objective of the course to instigate and develop independent, critical thinking about issues of gender.  How does society assign us a gender, and how does it define, restrict, and liberate us by that assignment?  Critical thinking will be fostered and evaluated through daily readings, in-class discussions, sustained writing assignments, oral presentations and timed examinations.  

The expression of all viewpoints will be encouraged and respected in this course.  

Course Requirements
1. Attendance, preparation, and participation. Attendance and participation are mandatory and will account for 10% of the student’s final grade.  As stated in the student handbook, “Students are expected to attend all classes.  Failure to attend class regularly impairs academic performance.  [Moreover,] absences are disruptive to the educational process for others.  This is especially true when absences cause interruption for clarification of material previously covered, failure to assume assigned responsibilities for class presentations, or failure to adjust to changes in assigned material or due dates.”  If the student misses 10% of the scheduled class meetings for unexcused absences, the instructor reserves the right to lower that student’s course grade by no more than one letter grade.  The instructor also reserves the right to assign a course grade of “F” when a student has missed a total (excused and unexcused) of 25% of the scheduled class meetings.  Absences will be excused only for the following reasons: illness, participation in a university-sponsored activity, religious holiday, or recognizable emergency.  Absences will not be excused for court dates, transportation scheduling, or doctor’s appointments.  For purposes of notation, “participation” is defined as physical attendance, obvious preparation, and active contribution to in-class activities, including discussions and group work.

2. Daily readings.  Students are expected to read all assignments before coming to class and to be able to discuss what they have read.  Students do not need necessarily to agree with the viewpoints of various writers, but students should be able to articulate clearly their disagreements.

3. Reaction responses.  At the beginning of each class, student will submit a short, typed reaction to a questions raised by the nightly readings.  Responses should be double-spaced and written in clear, sophisticated English.  Reactions should be no shorter than 125 words.  Because they are designed to verify preparation and spark discussion in class, reaction responses may not be turned in late.

4.  Essays.  Students will write four essays over the course of the semester, each devoted in some respect to a specific unit of the course.  Each paper will be a well-argued essay of about 500 words.

5.  Final exam.  The final exam will be taken during the assigned period and will consist mainly of short answer questions requiring the student to synthesize the material of the semester in a coherent and concise argument.

8.  Honor code.  Students are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with the Longwood University Honor Code.  All work submitted for the class must be pledged.

9.  Grading.  The student’s course grade will be determined by the following percentages:

COURSE ASSIGNMENTS  

Looks, language and oppression 

women and work

 love, sex, and Relationships

 women of the world