This course is designed to introduce students (first year students are encouraged to enroll) from a variety of majors to central themes of African-American culture and history. We will discuss American slavery, racial segregation, the Harlem Renaissance, Civil Rights and Black Power Movements. The course will also provide a general overview of African American literature and music. Brief readings (including essays, poetry, and autobiography) will be required. We will discuss the following African American leaders, writers, musicians and athletes: Frederick Douglass, Harriet Jacobs, Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, Langston Hughes, James Weldon Johnson, Richard Wright, Jackie Robinson, James Baldwin, Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Stokely Carmichael, Ralph Ellison, and Gwendolyn Brooks. We will also screen several documentaries.
Diversity and InclusionAfrican American Families 3 s.h.
Racial inequality and experiences of African American families in the United States during the 20th and 21st centuries; historical context for contemporary research on African American family; relative impact of structural and cultural factors on various aspects of African American family life, declining marriage rates, family formation patterns; intersections of race and class in family life; research methods used to examine dynamics of African American family life, including quantitative analysis, structured qualitative interviews, and ethnography.
Diversity and InclusionBlack Culture and Experience 3 s.h.
This course explores black culture and experience within a contemporary perspective. Readings, interactive experiences, course assignments (interview, essays and final paper) and unit quizzes will offer students the opportunity to better understand black culture in the 21st century. The course will explore a variety of important societal topics such as: education, religion, literature, theater, media, politics, sports, criminal justice, health and economics.
Diversity and InclusionInequality in American Sport 3 s.h.
This course offers students an introduction to current scholarship and debates surrounding issues of inequality in sport. Students will learn how to use a critical cultural studies perspective to examine the meaning of sport within the U.S. In particular, the course focuses on the relationships and dynamics of inequities in sport structured along such lines as class, gender, sexuality, ability, race, ethnicity, and religion. The class is offered in a lecture/discussion section format. Requirements include: multiple short reflection writing assignments; reading assignments; lecture attendance and engagement; discussion section attendance and participation; and course roundtable attendance and participation.
Required course text & technology
McGraw Hill Connect
The required textbook for this course is the Connect (digital) format of Coakley's "Sports in Society" (2020). The Connect platform provides an interactive eBook and integrates with ICON for online assignments.
The University of Iowa’s Inclusive Access program will be used to provide required course materials. Your IOWA student account (UBILL) will then be charged $50 by the HawkShop, unless you opt out prior to the last add date of the semester. Specific opt out information will be provided in the syllabus.
Diversity and InclusionPopular images and ideas about North American “Indians” circulate widely, but are frequently incomplete and distorting. This course helps students to critically reflect upon the origins and workings of these long-standing stereotypes in public understandings of the diverse peoples indigenous to North America, emphasizing the U.S. and Canada. We focus on anthropological and indigenous evidence to illustrate pre-colonial ways of life, the process of European incursions into indigenous lands and lifeways, diverse and creative indigenous responses to colonization, and selected contemporary issues. Many contemporary issues highlight how Native peoples’ assertions of cultural distinctiveness and political autonomy in contemporary North America generate complex mixtures of support and debate in public discussions. We use current issues receiving news coverage during the semester as a key resource for this information. Course grades are based on two exams (composed of multiple choice & short answer questions), periodic quizzes and online discussion forums, three short writing assignments (which connect and develop upon one another), and participation in discussion sections.
Diversity and InclusionGlobal Migration 3 s.h.
This course, which fulfills the General Education requirement for “Diversity and Inclusion,” introduces you to the various dimensions of migration in our contemporary world with a focus on the United States as a destination country. It examines the movement of people, practices and ideas with attention to broader historical, cultural, economic and political structures that shape these flows. How do macro-level processes such as free trade agreements shape intimate dynamics of personal identity, family and community? What are the relationships between sending and receiving countries? And, at a personal level, how are migrants linked to those in the receiving country on the one hand and those who remain in the homeland on the other? Although our primary focus is migration to the United States, these case studies will offer insight into broader questions of who moves, why they leave their place of origin, how they are received by host societies, why they select one destination over another, and how transnational migration shapes peoples’ emotional, imaginative and social lives.
This course should enable you to: (1) Define and explain key concepts social scientists use to study nationhood, migration, diaspora and racial/ethnic identity; (2) Explain and apply comparative, transnational and historical frameworks for understanding contemporary migration to the United States; (3) Explain how gender, race, ethnicity, religion and class shape both macro-level policies and individual experiences of migration; (4) Demonstrate how anthropological field research informs the study of nationhood, migration, diaspora and racial/ethnic identity. Though articles will be placed on electronic reserve, students will be expected to purchase three relatively inexpensive books, including International Migration: A Very Short Introduction by Khalid Koser (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed. 2016). This course will incorporate a variety of evaluation methods (including but not limited to papers), early evaluation, class discussion, and opportunities to practice academic skills of reading, writing and speaking.
Recommendation: It is helpful to have already taken an introductory course in cultural anthropology or international studies, but this is neither required nor expected. This is an introductory course, and no prior knowledge about anthropology or migration studies is assumed.
Diversity and InclusionAs a historically populist medium, printmaking has a long tradition of social critique, Printmaking and The Politics of Protest and Representation is an extremely student-centered and interactive course. The course combines scholarship, research, experiential and active learning components. Most classes are devoted partially to print demonstrations, small workshop group discussions that follow-up on short readings and writing assignments outside of class, or provide ideation meetings and in-progress feedback for print projects. Students actively participate in their own learning through prompts given for short writings and then the opportunity to first discuss in small groups prior to discussing with the entire class. Students will create zines, stencils and linoleum cut prints. A sense of community is at the heart of every printmaking class. Students must work in the studios during and outside of class, which not only fosters community within the course but throughout the entire Print Area.
Diversity and InclusionGlobal Science Fiction 3 s.h.
Mother, daughter, sister, wife, lover, whore: How were women represented in the literature of traditional China, Japan, and Korea? This course will explore literary works portraying women in conventional roles such as wife, mother, daughter, or sister, as well as princesses, prostitutes, nuns, and goddesses. Students will read, compare, and discuss portrayals of “good” and “bad” women, including devoted mothers, shrewish wives, controlling mothers-in-law, passionate lovers, wealthy prostitutes, and self-sacrificing daughters. Some depictions are obviously misogynistic and others are positive but highly idealized; in still other cases, there is room for disagreement. We will discuss these works with attention to the original cultural and historical context and also in light of our own cultural backgrounds and contemporary values and thinking.
The major assignments for this course will be creative and critical writing assignments concerning our reading. Other assignments include frequent in-class writing, brief reading response essays, quizzes/reading checks, regular attendance and enthusiastic class participation. No final exam.
All readings and discussions will be in English; no previous knowledge of East Asian languages or cultures is required.
Video Games and Identity 3 s.h.
THIS COURSE DOES NOT COUNT TOWARD THE SCREENWRITING ARTS MAJOR OR THE CINEMA MAJOR OR MINOR. What does it mean to play? How would you define a game? Does what it means to play a game change depending on the people playing (e.g., children vs adults)? How do cultural assumptions about play influence how we think about digital games, including their place in the home, family life, and in relation to other entertainment media such as cinema or television? This lecture- and discussion-based Diversity and Inclusion General Education course introduces students to conversations about what a video game is (aka, video game medium specificity). However, it presents these conversations as unavoidably tied to questions of identity. Digital games are not just the most significant cultural form to emerge in recent history, but they are also at the very center of ongoing debates about diversity, equity, and inclusion within academia, on internet forums, and even in our politics.
This course aims to equip the next generation of media consumers and producers with the critical tools necessary to actively participate in this social discourse. It will introduce students to structural and historical problems of representation and inclusion, both as they relate to commercial videogames and wider entertainment industries and consumer cultures. It will also train students in the skills of formal analysis and college-level essay writing. In course materials, students will encounter the topics of race, gender, sexuality, age, class, and ability. Our classroom will be a space where difficult and sensitive issues can be safely engaged, and we will treat one another with respect and the shared goal of learning.
Students should expect to reserve time each week to complete assigned readings, to watch and participate in lectures, to attend weekly game ‘screenings’, and to actively and enthusiastically engage in discussion sections. The readings will be manageable in length and difficulty and are intended to offer students a foundation for critically engaging games as a medium. Aside from attendance and active participation, students will be evaluated on their written work and other short assignments throughout the semester.
One or more sections may be assigned to a TILE classroom.
Diversity and InclusionExplore meanings of peacebuilding for themselves and community through reading, reflecting, writing, inner peacebuilding, and communal peacebuilding projects; use of choral singing inside prisons to build peace, create positive social connections, transform attitudes toward healing approaches to justice, inspire a sense of deep care within oneself and among others.
Diversity and InclusionStudents with disabilities, gifted and talented; strategies for effective treatment, collaboration between regular and special education teachers; remediation of academic, behavioral, social problems.
Diversity and InclusionWitch Hunts in Fact and Fiction 3, 4 s.h.
Anne Frank and Her Story 3, 4 s.h.
While in school, many of us read Anne Frank’s diary, see her story staged or watch one of its many movie renditions. Anne and her family’s secret hiding space during the Occupation in the center of Amsterdam—now the well-known Anne Frank House—draws over a million tourists each year. Widely read and translated, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl has come to serve as an educational and formative experience for young readers, particularly when explaining the history of the Holocaust and the Second World War. In her biography of Anne Frank, Melissa Müller suggests that Anne’s name is synonymous with "humanity, tolerance, human rights, and democracy; her image is the epitome of optimism and the will to live." She has come to serve as the icon for victims of the Holocaust, but why and how is this the case? After all, there exist a number of other diaries composed by young individuals in hiding, and yet their stories are barely known. Our course centers on the act of storytelling and how individuals represent their personal histories and narratives and celebrate a shared humanity. Today new forms of media allow for innovative ways to express, record, share and consume a story. As we study the various journals, we will discover and exercise our own forms of storytelling and the ways we relate to one another.
Diversity and InclusionPolitics/Memory: Holocaust-Genocide-9/11 3, 4 s.h.
How contested legacies of genocide, global violent conflict, and 9/11 continue to pose an urgent and generationally mediated challenge for critical politics of memory; various approaches to effective or failed coming-to-terms with injurious and difficult past (e.g., Holocaust, Armenian genocide); analysis of museums, sites of memory, and artwork. Taught in English.
This course examines how contested legacies of genocide, global violent conflict and 9/11 continue to pose an urgent and generationally mediated challenge for a critical politics of memory. We will discuss various approaches to an effective or failed coming to terms with an injurious and difficult past (e.g., the Holocaust and the Armenian genocide) by analyzing museums, sites of memory and artwork.
The 4 s.h. option is for students who wish to apply the course to their requirements for the major or minor in German. It requires an additional research component for the course, usually a separate or longer paper or presentation (in English) than that required for non-majors, together with additional meetings with the instructor. There is a limit of two courses taught in English for the major in German and one such course for the minor in German.
Diversity and InclusionDiversity in History 3 s.h.
Taught in English. First-year friendly!
This course does not presume previous coursework in Latina/o/x Studies on the part of students enrolled, and it is appropriate for all UI undergraduate students who are interested in learning about Latina/o/x Studies.
This introductory course will take an interdisciplinary approach to a broad array of fields of inquiry related to Latina/o/x people including history, race/ethnic/gender studies, literature, film, music, politics, economics, education, health policy, etc. Our course will also study and reflect on the multiplicity of national, cultural, and ethnic groups encompassed under the larger pan-ethnic rubric of “Latino/a/x” or Latinidad such as Mexican Americans, Chican/o/x, Puerto Ricans, Dominican Americans, Afro-Latina/o/x, Cuban Americans, and other groups from Central and South America. The latter part of the course will focus on the experiences of Latina/o/x people in the Midwest in both urban and rural areas. This course seeks to incite students’ curiosity and creativity not only in relation to Latina/o/x studies but also in relation to their own ethnic, cultural, or individual identities.
Class will consist of topic- and sources-centered discussions led by students, short writing assignments, an identity formation paper, and a final project, consisting of creative and analytical pieces related to one academic or non-academic field within Latina/o/x students selected by each student.
This course is the foundational course for the Latina/o/x Studies minor. See the Latina/o/x Studies website for more information about the minor.
Diversity and Inclusion
World Events Today! 3 s.h.
Current events that introduce students to political and cultural developments throughout the world.
This introductory level course will use current events to introduce students to political and cultural developments throughout the world. We will read international newspapers and magazines, watch television programs, and listen to podcasts, and will then employ an interdisciplinary approach to help us understand the historical background of current events and their contemporary meaning(s) in global context. In addition to political events, we will highlight sociocultural and artistic themes that connect different parts of the world, for example the politics of popular music, film, or foodways.
Diversity and InclusionFreedom of Expression 3 s.h.
This course blends philosophy, history, political science, and legal studies into a semester-long meditation on the meaning of the freedom of expression, especially in the United States, but also globally. It pays special attention to the forms of reasoning about free expression developed by the U.S. Supreme Court during the 20th and 21st centuries. However, the primary theme of the course is the transition from a traditional, conservative society in the 19th century to a modern liberal one in the twentieth, and the consequences of this transition for how Americans understand the freedom of expression. Part and parcel of this transition has been a greater interest in the protection of individual rights, but also more consideration for social and cultural difference, especially racial and ethnic difference, but economic, religious, and other forms of difference as well. Thus, while the course covers basic areas of free expression law, including prior restraint, libel, obscenity and time-place-manner restrictions, commercial speech and hate speech, it does so in an expansive way.
Diversity and InclusionHow is viral media changing politics and news? With digital media, the public’s demand for around the clock real-time news has skyrocketed. Over the past twenty years newsroom staff has declined by nearly 40% according to Pew, but there has been a dramatic increase in how much is written about leading candidates and political celebrities. In 2016, Donald Trump received about $2 billion of free media coverage, almost three times as much as received by Hillary Clinton. President Trump’s Twitter campaigning generates coverage from traditional journalists and digital-only media outlets and then is consumed by readers online, who want streaming news around-the clock, and television viewers. There is blurring of digital and traditional media and a feedback loop between the two.
This course is about the media and politics. Scholars and the public agree that a free and healthy press is an essential condition of democratic politics, yet both now express doubt as to whether the press is satisfying this requirement. This course surveys the media, including norms and trends of media coverage, with an eye toward asking whether the media is able to fulfill this function.
This course also extends this discussion of media and politics to understand how political information flows online, investigating how members of the mass public talk about politics online as well as efforts by politicians and parties to organize and campaign online. We will investigate whether social media bridges the gaps in traditional media coverage, whether online platforms promote extremism, whether being a celebrity on the internet translates into political relevance, and more.
Diversity and InclusionIntroduction to issues of class and economic inequality in the U.S. and other countries; what class and economic inequality are, debates surrounding these definitions, and attempts to measure both of these concepts; research and arguments on economic and political explanations of economic inequality; different policies aimed at reducing economic inequality and debates over them.
Diversity and InclusionIntroduction to politics of race in the U.S.; history of racial and ethnic groups in the U.S., their relationship with each other, and their interactions with different levels of government.
This course examines the politics of racial and ethnic diversity in the United States. Americans publicly celebrate diversity and its benefits to society. At the same time, we acknowledge that differences based on race, ethnicity, and nativity have divided our nation and undermined key democratic ideals. We explore is tension and study how electoral campaigns and policy outcomes are shaped by race, ethnicity, and immigration. Students are evaluated based on two non-cumulative exams, quizzes, a short paper, and participation in class. This course is appropriate for any student. No prior knowledge or skills are required.
This course counts toward the Latina/o Studies minor. See the Latina/o Studies website for more information about the minor.
Diversity and InclusionToo often the role of religion in politics is ignored and yet religion plays an important role in the lives of the majority of Americans. Not only is religion important to the majority of Americans, but in many cases it can influence and shape the political behavior of individuals and have a substantial impact on the policies of America. This course will introduce students to this complex relationship between religion and politics by examining the historical and contemporary effect of religion on a wide range of areas, such as: political culture, political parties, political behavior, and public policy. The course will also consider important policy debates, such as the role of religion in public life, religious discrimination, and various social issues.
Diversity and InclusionEssentials of world’s religions; focus on religion’s role in national and international events, fundamentalism, millenarianism, protest movements, religion and youth culture, religion and popular culture, contact between religious communities past and present.
Diversity and InclusionPolitics, Sex, and the Bible 3 s.h.
Even in a country in which the Separation of Church and State is a stated goal, it is impossible to completely separate the two. People frequently base their decisions and opinions upon their religious beliefs. However, the debate over exactly how the Bible should influence our culture and laws is not just one between Christian Believers and Atheists. On the contrary, many Christians disagree over exactly how the Bible should be interpreted and applied in any given case. This course will introduce students to the variety of biblical stances presented on major issues influencing our country and help them better understand how so many different positions can be based upon the Bible.
Diversity and InclusionWe hear and use the word "Gypsy" very often, but what do we actually know about the Gypsies or, more correctly, the Roma? As much as the history of this fascinating nation cannot be found written in a definitive way, our course will start with the earliest European references to these people and will continue throughout history until the present moment. We will learn the most basic aspects of Roma culture that are shared by most Roma around the world, and compare samples of Romani folklore from different parts of Europe. Attention will be given to the current situation with the Romani communities in Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and the Czech Republic, where the Roma face growing discrimination. The second part of class will embrace the topics that deal with the impact of the Roma culture on European literature, music, and culture with a particular emphasis on Russian literature.
All reading will be in English, no previous knowledge of Russian or Romani is required. This course counts towards the Russian and Eastern European Studies Minor. This course will be taught by Dr. Timofeyev.
Diversity and InclusionContemporary Social Problems 3, 4 s.h.
This introductory course will use a sociological perspective to examine a few contemporary social problems in the United States. We will begin by investigating how sociologists define social problems. We will then learn about the methods sociologists use to study social problems with a particular focus on how to evaluate statistics about social problems presented by the media, politicians, and activists. In the remainder of the semester we will cover specific social problems, including poverty, racism, gender inequality, family problems, education, and crime, in detail. The lectures, discussions, assignments, and group exercises are designed so that you will understand what a sociological perspective is and be able to apply that perspective to the social problems we cover; gain a greater understanding of each of the social problems we cover and be able to explain causes and consequences of those problems; understand the methods social scientists use to further knowledge about social problems; improve skills that are fundamental to college education including: “numerical literacy” and the ability to think critically about statistics, reading tables, evaluating arguments, pulling together evidence to support a position, and writing with clarity.
Diversity and InclusionRace and Ethnicity 3 s.h.
This course provides an introductory exploration of the sociology of race and ethnicity. The course is designed to give an overview of number of topics that are central to understanding how sociologists approach the study of race and ethnicity in the U.S. The course is divide into five sections. We will begin by exploring theoretical and historical approaches to race and ethnicity which include discussions of racial classification and racial and ethnic boundaries. The second section of the course will explore racism and antiracism. The third section of the course will explore empirical research on aspects of racial and ethnic inequality in the U.S. including economic inequality, incarceration, employment outcomes and educational attainment. The fourth section of the class will explore recent research on immigration and how immigration changes the landscape of American race relations. The course concludes with a section that considers whether or not the U.S. has entered into a post-racial era.
Diversity and Inclusion
Spanish in the U.S. 3 s.h.
The course examines historical and sociolinguistic aspects of Spanish in the U.S. Students learn through readings, essays, videos, discussions and an independent research project about the demographic and linguistic varieties of Spanish spoken in this country.
The course focuses on the dynamics of immigration, language choice, language policies, bilingualism and bilingual education, the myths about Spanglish and the social and identity aspects of speaking Spanish in the United States.
Students will identify language internal traits in various Spanish dialects, and address extra-linguistic factors (race, gender, economic level, education, nationality and age,) and how language use is affected by these demographic characteristics. Taught in English.
The required textbook is available through online access with the University of Iowa Library. Varieties of Spanish in the United States (1st Edition) Author: Lipski, John M. ISBN-13: 9781589012134 Pub Date: 2008. Publisher: Georgetown University Press
Diversity and InclusionThis course covers personal health from an individual responsibility and cultural change perspective. Examples of topics include family health pedigree, stress, sleep, nutrition, physical activity, weight management, substance abuse, violence, chronic disease, and infectious disease.
Diversity and InclusionContexts and functions of translation in the age of globalization; how translations are produced, received, and utilized in various contexts; effects of globalization on ethics, aesthetics, and politics of translation; how we understand cultures when they are received or transmitted through translation; effects of these exchanges on the English language.
Diversity and Inclusion