SOC 260

DEVIANCE
DISCUSSION BOARD PARTICIPATION
Online Discussion and Participation To develop your ability to critically analyze popular understandings of deviance and your ability to communicate your thinking on deviance, you will discuss the course readings and materials each week with your group members. The goal is for you to demonstrate your sociological grasp of the readings and your ability to relate your posts and discussions to the major course concepts across the semester. Each week, the course curators/moderators will post an introductory memo about the weeks topics and then will post a brief discussion prompt along with 1-2 questions for you to discuss at http://deviance.iheartsociology.com/discussions/ (the schedule for course curating is at the same link under moderators). Once you have the prompt, please: 1) 2) 3) 4) Visit the weeks discussion topic at http://deviance.iheartsociology.com/discussions/ Find and click on your groups discussion within that weeks topic (or begin a post with your groups name if your group has not yet begun) Click Reply to begin and/or respond to the weeks discussion prompt with your group members Please address and discuss with your group members by posting throughout the week (you will likely respond 2-3 times per week)

Your posts should demonstrate your ability to critically analyze and communicate your thinking about the readings and the materials (guidelines below). You are to address and discuss your group members questions throughout the week. Your discussions should be completed by the following Monday, 9 PM. You are to participate in each of the weeks discussions. Your online discussions count toward your final participation grade. What are you looking for in discussion board participation? Overall, students who typically receive As for their overall participation grade exceed the requirements below and put forth an exceptional effort in each of their discussion board postings. Their postings are consistently insightful, critical, and engaging of both the material and their peers. The student related their posting to the major themes of the course. The student demonstrated that s/he read the readings materials and/or participated in the class lectures. The student clearly demonstrated having thought critically about the reading materials and/or lectures. The student fully addressed the question(s)/issues included in their peers prompts.

Overall, students who typically receive Bs for their overall participation grade meet these requirements in the majority of their postings. Their postings are perhaps insightful, critical or engaging at times, but not in a consistent manner. The student demonstrated that s/he read the read materials and/or participated in the lectures. The students posts, while solid, are not as thorough or insightful in critically thinking about the material covered.

Overall, students who typically receive Cs for their overall participation grade demonstrate a weak mastery of the material and often limit their postings to commenting or summarizing previous discussion posts without contributing their own original ideas, insights and reflections to the discussion. The student demonstrated some understanding of the material but did not link their response to course themes or substantiate their opinions with some detailed reference. The students post is almost totally lacking a thoughtful assessment of material covered.

Overall, students who typically receive Ds and Fs for their overall participation grade have clearly just not participated in the course and have not participated in several of the discussion board forums.

Source: Danielle Dirks, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Sociology, Occidental College, 1600 Campus Road, M-26 Los Angeles, CA 90041 // danielledirks.com // dirks@oxy.edu // @danielledirks