Assignment One:
The first written assignment requires you to select an appropriate research topic for this course and to submit an outline of how you wish to analyze the topic. Select a topic that is interesting to you that is also related to the course topics and materials. This paper should be a new project and not a paper that has been completed for any other course. Identify your topic and how it relates to the course. How is your topic a relevant issue regarding gender? How will you pursue a critical analysis of this topic? After you provide a 1-page description of your topic, include a 2-page outline of how you plan to structure the paper. The following points from the paper should be addressed in your outline:
1. The background, current, and future issues related to your topic
a. Explain the background/history of the topic. What events, laws, policies, etc. have been related to the topic?
b. How do these factors describe why your topic is an important social issue today?
c. What are the current policies, debates, controversies, etc. related to the topic?
d. How does the topic affect contemporary society?
e. What social change do you predict will occur in relation to this topic in the future?
2. The course materials and social theories that relate to your topic.
a. Which theoretical perspectives best support your argument?
c. How does your topic relate to the course and readings?
3. Critical analysis of topic
a. Clearly state your research question
b. Discuss the relationship between gender and your selected topic
Potential topics include (but are not limited to):
- Sexism in the Media
- Parental Leave in the Workplace
- The Gender Pay Gap
- The Feminist Movement
- Gender and Body Image
- Sexual harassment
References:
Andersen, M. & Witham, D. H. (2011). Thinking about women: Sociological perspectives on sex and gender (9th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Connell, R.W. (2000). The men and the boys. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.