Term: Fall 2015
Professor: Dr. Bernice Barnett, Email: bmbarnet@illinois.edu
Credit: 4 hours Graduate (crn#54748); 3 Hours Undergraduate (#64988)
Days/Time: Tuesday, 1-2:50pm
Course Description:
This combined Graduate and Advanced Undergraduate (Juniors, Seniors only) 400-level social foundations course is a sociological examination of diversity in racial-ethnic families, which are the foundations of education. Understanding how race, gender, class, ethnicity, disability, sexuality, language, immigrant status, and other stratifying relations in society influence diversity in families is important, especially for teacher preparation and educational policies because families generally are the first agents of education, learning, and socialization of children before they enter schools because family background is related to school achievement. In addition, relationships among students/parents/families in homes and teachers/administrators/staff in classrooms/schools/colleges/universities can impact educational achievement. Moreover, local state, regional, and global population demographic are changing racially/ethnically; therefore, families, educators, the public, and policymakers in schools, colleges, and major societal institutions need to be prepared for the racial-ethnic demographic shifts in the US. The primary objectives of this social foundational course are: (1) to introduce, survey, and evaluate major sociological theories, approaches, concepts, research, questions, debates, issues, and data on diversity in racial ethnic families; (2) to develop/strengthen research and analytical skills, especially by critically examining the reality vs. the images, ideals and myths about “typical” racial-ethnic minority and majority families and the social constructions of families as “deviate” vs ”normal;” (3) to foster an awareness and understanding of dimensions/patterns of diversity both across and within racial ethnic families in the U.S. and the basis of racial ethnic diversity globally; (4) to consider how families are interconnected to education, economy, politics, religion, and other social institutions; (5) to examine how families are agents of education and how children from diverse family backgrounds with varying home cultures, resources, compositions, and environments come of age, grow up, develop identities, experience schooling, achieve in education, react to racial-ethnic differences/similarities, and live/learn/work cooperatively and democratically in a multiracial U.S. and global society.
This course analyzes family diversity both among and within these U.S. racial ethnic groups: Black African American, Latino/a American, Asian & Pacific American, Native American as well as White European American and Socio-Religious Ethnic Groups (such as Catholic, Baptist, Mormon, Amish, Jewish, Muslim). To a lesser extent, we explore the nature and basis of racial ethnic diversity, inequality, and relations in families globally in periphery, semi-periphery, and core regions of the world-economy (such as China, Mexico, Nigeria, Japan, Ghana, Russia, Israel, Kenya, Australia, India, Pakistan, S. Africa, Germany, Iraq, Britain, Cuba, France, Haiti, Jamaica, Ireland). In learning about, analyzing, and discussing diversity in racial ethnic families, class participants will consider the strengths, resiliency, and contributions of diverse families and their societal, historical, contemporary, and future opportunities and challenges.
Course Readings:
Diversity in Families by Maxine Baca Zinn, et al and choice selections of coming of age in diverse families books, including: President Barack Obama's Dreams From my Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance; Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes; Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club; Sandra Cisneros's House on Mango Street, among others.
