Course Schedule
Spring 2024
SOCI 201: Social Problems
Professor Kurt Reymers, Ph.D.
Note that this schedule is tentative and subject to change;
any changes will be made in red.
Jan 22-23: Gain access to the Brightspace site or see sociology.morrisville.edu
Review Syllabus and Course Schedule
Download textbook: Social Problems: Continuity and Change, 2016
Jan 24-25: Read The Sociological Imagination (1959)
Jan 26-28: Read Introduction to Sociology Chapter 1.3 and Chapter 4.2
Read Chapter 1 in the online textbook (SP*)
Submit Opening Survey on Brightspace by Friday.
Submit first journal entry on Brightspace by Sunday.
Week 2. Healthcare Systems (and their Problems)
Feb 1-5: Read Social Problems, Chapter 13: Health and Healthcare (pgs. 558-603)
Week 3. Sociology, Pandemics, and Public Policy
Feb 6, 8: Read The Sociology of Covid-19, Journal of Sociology (SAGE), 2020
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday Feb 11
Week 4. Healthcare and Social Bias
Feb 13, 15: Read Structural Racism In Historical and Modern US Health Care Policy, Health Affairs, 2022
Recommended Social Foundations of Health Care Inequality and Treatment Bias, Annual Review of Sociology, 2016
Recommended Celebrating 10 African-American medical pioneers, Association of American Medical Colleges, 2021
Quiz on Section 1 Thursday in class
Submit Music Blog entry by Sunday Feb 18
Week 5.Drug Dependency & Addiction
Feb 20, 22: Read Social Problems, Chapter 7: Alcohol and Other Drugs (pgs. 265-320)
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday Feb 25
Submit Creative Project Assignment 1 by Sunday Feb 25
Week 6.The Opium Epidemic and Harm Reduction
Feb 27, 29: Read Opioids and the Social Construction of Social Problems, Everyday Sociology Blog (Norton), 2017
Read Chapter 2-Drug Use as a Social Problem, Drugs, Society, and Behavior (Hart 2015)
Review Overdose Epidemic Report 2023, AMA (American Medical Association), 2023
Quiz on Section 2 Thursday in class
Submit Music Blog entry by Sunday March 3
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday March 3
Week 7. Midterm Exam
Mar 5: Review for Midterm Exam
Mar 7: Midterm Exam
Week 8. Sex Inequality
Mar 19, 21: Read Social Problems, Chapter 5: Sexual Orientation & Inequality (pgs. 187-224)
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday March 24
Week 9. Understanding LGBTQ+ Orientations
Mar 26, 28: Read Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, Youth.gov
Read Understanding sexual orientation and homosexuality, APA, 2008
Submit Creative Project Assignment 2 by Sunday Mar 31
Week 10. Sex and Gender at Work
Apr 2, 4: Read The Role Of Sexual Orientation And Gender In Workplace Experiences, Williams Institute, 2022
Quiz on Section 3 Thursday in class
Submit Music Blog entry by Sunday April 7
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday April 7
Week 11. Racial Discrimination and Anti-Racism
Apr 9, 11: Read Social Probems, Chapter 3: Racial and Ethnic Inequality (pgs. 87-135)
Read Race and Racism in the United States: A Sociological Guide for the Public, American Sociological Association, 2023
Week 12. “Wokeness” & Black Lives Matter: The Continuation of an American Project
Apr 16, 18: Read Frederick Douglass’ 1876 Report, Niskanen Center, 2022
ReadThe Early History Of The Black Lives Matter Movement…, Nevada Law Review, 2018
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday April 21
Week 13. The Great Replacement Theory: Race and Politics
Apr 23, 25: Read The Great Replacement: White Supremacy as Terrorism?, Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review, 2023
Quiz on Section 4 Thursday in class
Submit Music Blog entry by Sunday April 28
Week 14. Summary and Creative Projects
Apr 30, May 2: Read The Year in Review: 2023's Most Notable Findings, Gallup News, 2023
Tues and Thurs: Creative Project Presentations
Answer Journal Questions by Sunday May 5
Week 15. Final Exam
May 3-6: Review for Final Exam
May 7: Final Exam