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University of Connecticut, Stamford Campus
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Anthropology Department
Spring 2020

COURSE:                   ANTH 1000W Peoples and Cultures of the World
INSTRUCTOR:          Matthew Longcore, M.A.
CLASSROOM:           UConn Stamford Room 131
TIME:                         Friday 2:30 PM to 5:00 PM
EMAIL:                      matthew.longcore@uconn.edu

HuskyCT:

• I will use HuskyCT to send emails, post information, assignments, and readings.
• You are responsible for retrieving any information uploaded to HuskyCT and staying current with your readings and teamwork for presentations.

CLASS ATTENDANCE:

• Students are strongly encouraged to attend all class meetings and to be on time.
• If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to catch up with any readings.

OUTSIDE OF CLASS:

• I will respond to emails within 24-48 hours.  Emails responses will only occur in the evening after 6:00 PM or on the weekend.
• Available for pre-scheduled virtual appointments (via phone, Skype, etc.) in the evening after 6:00 PM on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Peoples and Cultures of the World is a general education course that provides an introduction to cultural anthropology. The course also examines diverse lifeways and social structure among societies found today around the world. You will be introduced to the methods and theoretical approaches used by cultural anthropologists, ethical concerns within the discipline, ethnographic studies from across the globe, as well as a number of issues pertinent to current events and global changes. Cross-cultural comparison will help students understand the differences and similarities among extant societies, as well as provide a perspective for evaluating your own society and your place within it.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

• To expose students to worldviews of cultures across time and space.
• For students to recognize and understand why there are similarities as well as variability in human social systems throughout the world.
• For students to recognize that what we, as Americans, consider the social norm in our home is not necessarily the same for all people in our own country.

WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY?

Anthropology is the study of humans, past and present. To understand the full sweep and complexity of cultures across all of human history, anthropology draws and builds upon knowledge from the social and biological sciences as well as the humanities and physical sciences. A central concern of anthropologists is the application of knowledge to the solution of human problems. Historically, anthropologists in the United States have been trained in one of four areas: sociocultural anthropology, biological/physical anthropology, archaeology, and linguistic anthropology. Anthropologists often integrate the perspectives of several of these areas into their research, teaching, and professional lives.

– American Anthropological Association (AAA)

https://www.americananthro.org/

REQUIRED TEXT:

Cultural Anthropology: An Applied Perspective, 11^th Edition, Ferraro and Andreatta, 2018.

The book is available for purchase through the UConn Bookstore. All other required readings will be available on HuskyCT. Periodically, readings will be augmented with appropriate web links. These links will also be posted on HuskyCT.

DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR

Students are expected to maintain behavior appropriate for classrooms. Cell phones must be muted during the duration of lecture. Students engaged in disruptive behavior, including checking email, sending text messages and talking will be asked to leave the room. You are also expected to limit the use of your laptops to note- taking. Watching videos and content not related to note-taking affects those in proximity to you and is also disruptive. Students are expected to be in class on time. Walking into class late is disruptive and is strongly discouraged.

ACADEMIC INTERGRITY

You are expected to know and abide by the rules of the institution as they pertain to the Student Academic integrity in undergraduate education and research. Particular attention should be directed to the proper use of on-line sources. It is important that you read and understand the ethical use of information. Cheating in any of your academic work is a serious violation of the Code of Academic Conduct and may result in an F for the entire course.  Such violations include turning in another person’s work as your own, duplicating information from any source without proper citation, and having someone else do your academic work for you. If you are not sure what is acceptable, consult the instructor before submitting your essay.

Please see UConn tips on how you can avoid breaching the student code of academic integrity at: http://www.community.uconn.edu/proactive_strategies.html

LEARNING DISABILITIES

Any student with a learning disability should inform the instructor at the beginning of the course.

GRADING

Grades will be based on the following:

• Midterm Exam:          20%
• Final Exam:               20%
• Team Presentation:    20%
• Research Paper:        40%

PARTICIPATION

• Active participation in class discussion is very important.
• Attendance and timeliness will be factored into grades.
• Unexcused absences, arriving late, and leaving early will lower grades.

MIDTERM AND FINAL EXAM

• The midterm exam will cover chapters 1-8.
• The final exam will cover chapters 9-16.
• Both exams will be multiple choice format.
• Both exams will have a review session the week prior to the exam.

TEAM PRESENTATION GUIDELINES

• The class will have 7 teams each comprised of 3-4 members.
• Each team will make a PowerPoint presentation on a topic related to the course material.
• The topics and dates of the presentations are listed on next page.
• Each topic is from a story featured by National Public Radio (NPR).
• Presentations should be 30-45 minutes in length (10-15 minutes per team member).
• Following each presentation there will be approximately 15-30 minutes for discussion.

TEAM PRESENTATION FORMAT

Part I – SUMMARIZE

• What are the main points about the topic presented in this story?

Part II – SYNTHESIZE

• How does the story connect to information, terminology, and concepts in your textbook?

 Part III – RESEARCH

• What relevant information can you find about the topic which is not covered in the story?

 Part IV – REFLECTION

• Is the argument presented in the story convincing? Why or why not?
• How might you approach this topic as an anthropologist?

Part V – QUESTIONS

• What additional questions do you think could be explored through further research?
• What questions do you have for your classmates which can lead to class discussion?

TEAM PRESENTATION TOPICS

Chapter 6 Language and Communication – Red Team

Um, Uh, Huh? Are These Words Clues To Understanding Human Language?

Chapter 8 Economics – Orange Team

Making Bank

Chapter 9 Marriage and the Family – Yellow Team

China’s Marriage Rate Plummets As Women Choose To Stay Single Longer

Chapter 10 Kinship and Decent – Green Team

In ‘The New Face Of America,’ Journalist Alex Wagner Saw Herself

Chapter 11 Sex and Gender – Blue Team

Digging Into The Roots Of Gender Differences

Chapter 12 Social Stratification – Purple Team

Coronations, Coups, And Keeping Up With The Kardashians

Chapter 13 Political Organization – Aqua Team

The End Of WASP-Dominated Politics