Scholars and activists alike have illustrated the problems of ‘add and stir’ approaches to increasing the participation of women in science and engineering. The interdisciplinary lens of feminist science and technology studies (FSTS) can help us imagine alternatives that transform the disciplines of science and engineering into more just and equitable fields. This course will draw from FSTS to explore the proposed solution of bringing feminism into the practice of science and engineering.
We will start by discussing the gendered, classed, and racialized differences in participation and status in both science and engineering, including cultural norms and issues of access within higher education and later career stages. We’ll then move from questions of women in science and engineering to the question of feminist science in practice. By designing and executing your own research project, you will have the opportunity to put these lessons into practice and to learn through the feminist research process.
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Identify and explain core issues related to the participation and status of women in science and engineering.
- Develop and apply ethical and effective practices for engaging with literature.
- Critically evaluate sources with consideration of broader contexts and underlying assumptions.
- Apply course concepts to design and execute an individual research project.
This is a reading intensive course. The readings will provide you with an opportunity to develop a foundation for the material that we cover in class and provide additional clarification on complex concepts. In order to participate in class discussions and to facilitate your own learning, it is important for you to keep up with the assigned readings. Please plan accordingly. All readings will be made available through Canvas.
Your final grade will be calculated out of 1000 possible points as follows:
- A (900 and above): Excellent
- B (800-899): Good
- C (700-799): Satisfactory
- D (600-699): Passing
- F (less than 600): Failure
If you wish to contest a grade, wait 48 hours after receiving it and then sign up for office hours.
Reading checks (100 points)
Reading and engaging with the literature constitute an important part of the research process. We will discuss strategies for finding sources, active reading, writing annotations, and navigating citational politics. To help you develop effective reading practices, there will be periodic reading checks. More details will be provided in class.
Course Portfolio (300 points)
This semester, you will have the opportunity to engage with course concepts and materials through a variety of activities. You will also contribute to collective class projects, including author biographies and an annotated course bibliography. At the end of the semester, you will compile all of the assignments into a single portfolio to submit on Canvas. For detailed instructions and evaluation criteria, see the course portfolio assignment on Canvas.
Course Project (600 points)
Over the semester, you will design and undertake a research project. This will give you an opportunity to engage in and reflect on the full research process—from developing a good research question to sharing your findings. To help you develop your project, it is broken down into several steps including learning about the IRB process and completing CITI training to work with human subjects, developing your research question, writing and revising a research proposal, conducting and reflecting on data collection activities, and creating a final report and reflection on the process. There will be opportunities to develop and refine your project during class through interactive workshops and peer review.
Your final reports may be presented as a zine, a traditional paper, or another format agreed upon in advance with the instructor. At the end of the semester, you will share your project and your reflections on the process with everyone in a brief presentation.
By taking this course, you are agreeing to actively participate in a classroom community. You have responsibilities to not only yourself, but also to everyone else in this community of learners. Class discussions and collaboration are at the heart of this course, meaning that you will be contributing to an exchange of ideas and to each other’s education. Being prepared for class and keeping up with course tasks will be important for your own learning and for the learning of your peers. You will be expected to attend class, on time and prepared, to contribute to our discussions. This includes, but is not limited to, actively listening, asking questions, offering suggestions, and participating in in-class activities and any online discussions.
I understand that sometimes life happens, bringing emergencies or other unexpected circumstances with it, making attendance that day impossible. Attendance is not mandatory but given the nature of the course it is in your best interest to attend regularly. There will frequently be in-class assignments that will require substantively more effort to make-up. Regularly missing class will make it difficult to be successful in this course.
Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy. For more information on the Honor Code, visit the OSI website.
This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area.
Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.
This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:
- How do I understand human experiences and connections?
Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcomes:
- Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social or geographic relationships develop, persist or change.
Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies:
- Intercultural Competence
- Perspective-Taking
- Persuasion