10. January 2009 by Mr. Andoscia.

I’ve had some folks asking me to clarify exactly what we are doing in Social Problems.  I figured it would be best to just describe how I see the next three classes going.  Remember, this is the vanguard class in this format, so I may be changing things as the class evolves.

But as it stands, this is how I see things working out.

This wee, each group will be responsible for two things. Usually they will only be responsible for one thing.

First, the groups must nominate a person in their group for City Council. I have exempted some groups from doing this based on contingency, and those groups already know who they are.

Second, the groups are going to communicate and/or meet during this week to put together a budget proposal.  Remember, Andosciaville is over budget, so either something needs to be cut or new ways of generating revenue must be added.  At the same time, each group has a special interest that they are trying to promote, so they may want to try to add some things to the budget that they are interested in seeing.

The person nominated for the Council will not be responsible for working on the budget. He/she will only be responsible for putting together their campaign to convince voters to vote for them. They should treat this just like any standard American election.  The groups nominated them with the assumption that they will serve the group’s interest, but the councilperson does not have to do that.  The Councilperson will only be graded and responsible for the decisions made by the council, not for how well they represent their groups.

Next week we will have the campaign.  Campaign speeches should be about five minutes or so long.  There will be a question and answer period and we will hold the election. Once the election is held the council will take their seats in front of the class.  That’s when each of the groups will present their budget proposals to the council (on which I am the Mayor, by the way).  There will be a debate time and the council will take what the groups had to say into account.

In the last half hour of class, or so, I will present the next social problem, I believe it is crime.  I will give a short lecture about social problems approaches and then everyone will be off.

So the next week the groups will be responsible for coming up with proposals for dealing with crime in Andosciaville. They will communicate throughout the week, and/or meet, and reach a consensus about the issue.

The city council will be dealing with old business.  They will be making a policy for balancing the budget. They can take what the groups had to say into account…or not.  They will not be graded on whether they make everyone happy, only what they propose.

The next class, the city council will present their budget policy to the class.  Their votes will be public record.  They do not have to come up with a consensus, only a majority vote creates the policy.  If there is someone in the minority who would like to present a minority opinion, they may do so, but it has no bearing on policy…it does however, tell the voters where you stand.

I’m thinking about instituting democratic recalls and no-confidence votes in ensuing classes to hold the council accountable for their votes. I’ve not yet decided how to do that.

There will be a brief discussion of the new policy and the possible consequences, then we will move on to new business. The groups will present their proposals for dealing with crime. These proposals may alter the budgets, so they may want to come up with ways to make money, cut something, or prove that their project will not impact the budget.  There will be debate and the matter will be left to the council.  I will introduce the next problem and away you go.

The council will then come up with policy for dealing with crime and the groups will create proposals for the next issue…and so on and so forth.

I hope that clarifies the matter for everyone.

Posted in Social Problems | 1 Comment »

5. January 2009 by Mr. Andoscia.

Welcome everyone to the first ever Andoscia Sociology: Living Text Blog.  This blog is to be a forum for students to offer sociological insights, critics and understandings that they encounter as they learn the sociological imagination.  The forum is set up to be as liberal and didactic as possible.  Also, it is intended to be fun.  It is my desire to use technology to get beyond textbooks and create a living text of sociology.  There’s no reason in the postmodern age to be tied to textbooks in the classroom.

This may be a new idea for most of you, so here’s the idea…you are in class and during a lecture you have a sociological insight that you want to bounce around.  Create a blog.  Perhaps you have a question about sociology that you are not quite getting and I’m not quite able to communicate it to you. Blog it and see if any of your classmates   (or anyone visiting the blog) has a better way to explain it.  Perhaps there’s something that you think is a weekness to sociology, blog it.  Maybe there’s a sociological theory or explanation that you really like, blog it. Or one you really hate, blog it.

I also want students to feel fre to comment on each other’s blogs. I will also comment periodically, especially if I see any misunderstandings of the subject matter.

The blog is meant to be a fun experience.  It is an open forum, but let’s use it responsibly.  And please, let’s avoid foul language.   Yes, sometimes the words are appropriate, but you are college students and should be able to communicate on a higher leve.

For formatting purposes, and also to make it easier for me to assign points format the title the way I have.  Give me your first and last name, parentheses your college or university, a colon, then the title of your post.

Also, please place your post in the appropriate category.  On your left there are two categories, Introduction to Sociology and Social Problems.  If you are in  Introduction to Sociology, check that category box.  If you are in Social Problems, check that box.

I hope this is a fruitful and enjoyable endeavor for everyone and I look forward to seeing the blogs.

Posted in Social Problems, Introduction to Sociology | 1 Comment »