New Undergraduate Courses - Winter 2021-22
The Department is pleased to introduce two new courses for Fall/Spring (2021/2022).
Calendar Descriptions
SOCI 439A Community-Engaged Sociology I (Fall 2021)
An experiential learning course that applies sociology through community engagement. This course takes sociology out of the classroom and into our communities. Students may be expected to volunteer time outside of class to work with non-profit organizations to design, develop and plan projects to serve the organizations’ needs as well as attend off-campus presentations and learning experiences.
Prerequisites:
- Minimum third-year standing; and
- declared Honours or Major in Sociology; or
- permission of the department.
SOCI 439B Community-Engaged Sociology II (Spring 2022)
A continuation of SOCI 439A that culminates with the implementation and/or delivery of the project to the community partner that was initiated in the first semester. Students are expected to volunteer time outside of class working with their community partners to complete their co-developed projects.
Notes:
- Credit will be granted only when SOCI 439A has been successfully completed in the previous semester to SOCI 439B.
Prerequisites:
- SOCI 439A; and
- Minimum third-year standing; and
- declared Honours or Major in Sociology; or
- permission of the department.
Course Details
Both courses require students to work directly with community partners to complete a project the organization would not otherwise be able to do. Students will have some flexibility to choose community partners they are most interested in working with (i.e., to the extent that is possible given student interests/community partner availability). Both 439A and 439B require students to contribute roughly 40 hours (per semester) outside of class time to meet with their community partner, co-develop and deliver the final community project (note: these hours include all meetings, email correspondence, Zoom calls, project planning, research, travel (if necessary) etc.).
Sociology 439A focuses on introducing students to Applied/Public Sociology and Community-Engaged Learning and co-developing the project with the community partner. Sociology 439B builds on 439A and supports students in undertaking and completing the project they developed in 439A.
Examples of previous community projects include: producing promotional videos; conducting literature reviews to supplement and prepare funding applications; interviewing clients and staff to assess and improve existing programs/program delivery; creating an online database to categorize agency equipment rentals and bookings; researching and preparing briefing notes; conducting an accessibility audit; and, creating, distributing and compiling results from surveys to assess community needs (to name only a few).
These courses are intended to take sociology out of the classroom and will appeal to students who are committed to working collaboratively with other students, the instructor, and most importantly, their community partners.
Information related to previous CEL courses include: course evaluations (here); a story on the 438 course (here); and, a video highlighting one community organization we continue to work with (see “Sociology students collaborate…” in “Examples of CEL” here).
Dr. Bruce Ravelli is leading both courses and if you are interested in finding out more, please contact him at bravelli@uvic.ca. Dr. Ravelli has prepared a few Frequently Asked Questions for students interested in the course (here).
Registration for the Fall 2021 semester opens in mid-June. Be sure to register early as both courses are limited to 20 students.