ANTH 112 & ANTH 326: Syllabus

ANTH 112 Introductory Anthropology (Section 05)
ANTH 326  Ethnographic Research (Section 01)
1:00-2:50pm TR

This course was developed to link cultures through the practical aspects of undertaking ethnographic research. As a means of accomplishing this, students majoring or minoring in anthropology are brought together with international academic programme students. One objective is to learn more about one’s own culture with the assistance of students from different ethno-cultural backgrounds who can offer another perspective. Another is to broaden intercultural learning experiences and, hopefully, develop friendships among those outside one’s typical area programme. Lastly, specifically directed at the international students, is to improve English language skills with primarily English-speaking Canadian students.

This course is experimental and continues to evolve. For this reason, it will not be typical of other courses taught. Students should expect some flexibility in the scheduling. The course is taught simultaneously as ANTH 326 and ANTH 112. Students will receive the appropriate credit for the course in which s/he is registered (ANTH 326, or ANTH 112). The class will not always meet as a group; in general, we will meet every Tuesday as a whole. The second class (Thursday) of the week will be devoted to providing the international students with the essentials of introductory anthropology (ANTH 112). This is reflected in the readings and lecture topics. Nevertheless, all students should be prepared to meet on either day.

NOTE: A time block of 2-hours has been scheduled to allow for 30-minutes of each class to be used to meet and work on class projects (lecture time is 80-minutes).

To help everyone to get know one another better, we will have a potluck dinner at the beginning of the semester. If students are interested, we will also hold one at the end.

The format of instruction is a combination of lecture and seminar-style discussion. BE PREPARED TO PARTICIPATE! For this reason, students are expected to keep up with their readings; read in advance. The grade for ANTH 326 will be based on participation and attendance (15%), one midterm (20%), journal/fieldnotes (10%), two assignments (10% each), and an ethnographic research project (35%). The requirements are the same for ANTH 112, except that the final research project will be worth 25%, and with an additional quiz (10%). As the students in this course are at two different levels of study, their evaluation will be based accordingly.

Missing an exam or not submitting an assignment will result in an “F”; your final grade is based on completing all course work.

Required texts:
Anderson, Barbara Gallatin. 1990. First Fieldwork: The Misadventures of an Anthropologist. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press. [TO BE READ FOR ANTH 326 MIDTERM]

Angrosino, Michael V. 2005. Projects in Ethnographic Research. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

Bohannan, Paul and Dirk van der Elst. 1998. Asking and Listening: Ethnography as Personal Adaptation. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press.

Haviland, William A., Harald E.L. Prins, Dana Walrath and Bunny McBride.  2014. Anthropology: The Human Challenge. 14th Edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/CENGAGE Learning. (ON RESERVE, two copies: XS 7049) [ANTH 112 only]

Murchison, Julian M. 2010. Ethnography Essentials: Designing, Conducting, and Presenting your Research. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
http://www.VIU.eblib.com/EBLWeb/patron?target=patron&extendedid=P_477815_0&

Optional text:
Kutsche, Paul. 1998. Field Ethnography: A Manual for Doing Cultural Anthropology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Please read assigned chapters prior to the week’s class to facilitate discussion.

NOTE:

• Use of technology: Cell phones, iPods and other electronic devices must be turned off in class and laptops are permitted during class ONLY for note taking. Recording is only permitted by request as authorised by Disability Services. Please contact Disability Services if you are in need of academic support and accommodation.
• If there are exceptional and/or extenuating circumstances, such as illness or a death in the family, that prevents you from being present for an exam, or submitting an assignment, etc., please notify me as soon as possible so that other arrangements can be made. (See VIU Calendar, General Regulations.)
• Should you need counselling at any time during the semester, contact Student Affairs. Drop-in counselling is available. If immediate support is needed after hours, call the Crisis & Information Line: 1-888-494-3888. As well, there is a Walk-in Counselling Clinic, Brooks Landing (203-2000 Island Highway North), Nanaimo: 250-739-5710
• Withdrawing from any VIU course MUST be done formally, that is, by applying at the Registration Centre.
• All in-coming mail is spam-filtered. Identify the course name in the “Subject” box when emailing your instructor. If I do not respond within a reasonable period of time, check that I have indeed received your message. Also, add your instructor to your “accepted” email address file.

Final grade assignment:
Grades will be assigned according to the following scale:

Last updated 2016-02-04