Examines what constitutes "sports," and uses sociological lens to study sports relationship to education, policy, media, deviance, violence as well as gender, race and class.
Course Learning Outcomes: At the end of this course students should be able to:
1) describe the historical contexts and social relationships, which helped create and continue to shape the growth of US sports. Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through course discussion, written work, and quizzes.
2) discuss the political and economic forces shaping sports and sporting experiences. Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through course discussion, written work, question writing, and quizzes.
3) describe key social and cultural dimensions of sports. Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through creating a course podcast, written work, discussion, question writing, and quizzes.
4) identify the relationship between sports and related social institutions (e.g., economy, education, media, etc.). Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through course discussion, written work, podcast creation, question writing, and quizzes.
5) demonstrate a working knowledge of core sociological concepts, theories, and methodologies. Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through course discussion, quizzes, podcast creation, analysis papers, question writing, and other written work.
6) use written and oral forms of communication to construct compelling arguments. Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through course discussion, podcast creation, analysis papers, and other written work
7) demonstrate a deeper understanding of the course materials through collaborative learning and discussions with peers. Students will demonstrate that they have met this learning outcome through course discussion, peer reviews of podcast scripts, and by providing feedback on other students’ podcasts.
Required Textbook and Readings: Coakley, J. (2021). Sports and Society: Issues and Controversies (13th edition). New York: McGraw Hill. There are many editions of this textbook but please note that course readings, assignments, and quiz questions will be drawn from the 13th edition (2021). Electronic copies of the book are available for purchase at the Georgia Tech Barnes and Noble Bookstore. You may also find print or electronic copies for purchase on-line but please order the 13TH Edition. Other readings will be offered via Canvas.
This course is fully remote and includes a variety of synchronous and asynchronous activities Grading is based upon the final total point value of 375 points as distributed below:
Class Participation (22 of 25 @ 4 points each) 88 points
Reading Quizzes (8 of 10 @ 10 points each) 80 points
Podcast Assignment. 102 points
Analysis Papers (2 @ 50 points each). 100 points
Discussion Goals Paper. 5 points
Grading Scale: A's = 90%-100%; B's = 80%-89.9%; C's = 70%-79.9%; D's = 60%-69.9% 59.9% and below = F
Class Participation: I assign a variety of synchronous (discussion during on-line class) and asynchronous activities (Canvas activities). The top 22 of 25 participation activity scores go toward students’ final grades. Worth 88 Points.
Reading Quizzes: Open book, open notes quizzes. The top 8 of 10 scores go toward students’ final grades. Worth 80 Points
Podcast Assignment: Students complete a podcast related to a course-related topic of their choice. To do so students will complete research to create a podcast draft script, peer review a classmate’s draft script, record the podcast, write a short self-reflection paper and listen to 3 classmates’ final podcasts to offer feedback. Worth 102 points.
Analysis Papers: Two essay papers worth 50 points each (100 points total) that allow you to critically explore course content to make an argument
Discussion Goals Paper: A brief paper that outlines your discussion goals for the semester. Worth 5 points.
Consistent with Institute policies, you are expected to attend all synchronous class meetings and are responsible for all course material. However, given that the Coronavirus pandemic and related health concerns continue to impact campus life and learning, I will remain flexible in dealing with situations that arise while also maintaining academic standards. Should you need any special consideration regarding an illness, unexpected events, or poor wireless issues please do contact me as soon as you possibly can. I will also work with students who need to make up work missed due to Institute approved activities. Please notify me as soon as possible as situations arise or if you will miss class for an Institute approved activity so we can discuss make-up work.
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.
HTS 3073 Sociology of Sports
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