Description

Has the family disappeared? Or is it simply in need of redefinition? With so many changes in family life over the past few decades, what do we now consider 'family'? How do we construct our visions of intimacy, marriage, parenting and childhood, aging, work? Sociology 2270 will help you answer such questions by providing a multi-faceted introduction to the social construction of family in Canadian and cross-cultural studies. Using information from ethnographic and sociological research, you will gain an understanding of how the family is socially constructed in relation to other social institutions, how family processes and issues develop within a social context, and how cultural assumptions about the family influence social policies and trends. The reading is substantial, but students find it quite absorbing.

Required texts

• Patrizia Albanese, ED. (2023). Canadian Families Today: New Perspectives, 5^th ed. Oxford University Press. (available through the MUN bookstore)


• Readings (journal articles, excerpts from ethnographies) and online video are listed in the Schedule and at the beginning of each unit. Most will be online or accessible through the Queen Elizabeth II library. They are usually available in PDF format; you will need Adobe Reader to view PDF files. Students must ensure that they have a working library card and pin number for off campus access to the library catalogue.

*** Participation & in-class exercises

During the in-class lectures on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, there will be an activity for each section of the course . Some may have online alternate activties. Please note that any online activities are timed and will NOT be available after the deadlines. Also, students "must post first" before they can see the submissions of other students.

If you participate in at least 80% of the class activities and work to an acceptable standard -- i.e., indicating strong engagement with the course and class materials at an A or B level-- you will be awarded the higher of your 2 midterm exam marks as your percentage mark going into the final exam.

You must complete both midterms before the end of classes to take advantage of this "offer" If you cannot participate in 80% of the relevant exercises, you will still have your original 2 midterm marks going into the final exam, so nothing is lost.

A pdf of the compiled statistics from the CEQs for this course is available here. Feel free to email me (Linda Cohen) with any questions you have and please include the course name or number in the subject line.