SC156.01 SPORTS IN SOCIETY
DRAFT SYLLABUS
Fall, 2002

Michael A. Malec
Office: McGuinn 402
Phone: 552-4131
E-Mail: Malec@bc.edu
Hours: TBA


PURPOSE OF THE COURSE: I assume that you are taking this course because you have some interest in sports, as a participant, a fan, or even as a TV spectator. As such, you are probably familiar with the simplistic cliches that praise sport ("Sport builds character") and with the equally facile criticisms ("Athletes are dumb jocks"). A sociological approach to sport will help us to discover how much or little truth there is in these cliches or critiques.

Sociology is the systematic study of human behavior as it occurs in and is influenced by social groups, institutions, organizations, and societies. Note the emphasis on "systematic." This means that we must go beyond our personal experiences. (I did not say exclude them.) We will use the conceptual frameworks and research methods of sociology to look at and better understand sport. I assume that sport, as a social phenomenon, is inherently neither good nor bad. Such value judgments are meaningful only after we place sport in a social context, and examine the antecedents and consequences of sport in a social system.

Finally, I assume that sport presents us with a microcosm of society. By looking at sport, we also look at and learn about our society. For example, looking at racism in sport should help us to understand racism in general.


READINGS: There is one required texts, and one additional text that I will assign. All are available in paperback editions in the BC Bookstore. They are:

REQUIRED:

Patricia and Peter Adler: Backboards and Blackboards
Aaron Baker and Todd Boyd: Out of Bounds
William G. Bowen & James L. Shulman:The Game of Life
D. Stanley Eitzen: Fair and Foul (2nd ed.)
John McPhee: Levels of the Game
Joan Ryan: Little Girls in Pretty Boxes

SUGGESTED:

D. Stanley Eitzen and George H. Sage: Sociology of North American Sport (7th ed)

Additional readings may be assigned from time to time.

Additional readings will be assigned from time to time. These will usually be available on reserve. All reading assignments should be completed before the corresponding class session. This is not a make-work request. Lectures are more comprehensible if you've read some related material beforehand. Studying is easier if you don't have to cram. And I DO value discussion in class; it is easier for you to raise points of discussion if you know what we are talking about.


GRADING: Your grade will be determined as follows:

25% -- Mid-term Exam (Thursay, Feb. 25 -- NO EXCEPTIONS!)
10% -- For five short (500 word) papers, on a variety of topics.
35% -- Term Paper (DUE ON April 25 at 2:00 PM)
>>>WARNING: LATE PAPERS WILL BE PENALIZED!<<<
>>>A paper is late if it arrives at 2:01!>>>
30% -- Final Exam on DSaturday, May 3, the date assigned by the Registrar, at 9:00a AM. NO EXCEPTIONS!)


ATTENDANCE: FOUR absences are permitted during the semester. Any absence(s) in excess of four will result in the following penalty: For each absence over four, the course grade will be lowered by one step (e.g., from a B+ to a B]. The only "excused" absences are those in writing (a) by a health care practitioner certifying that you had a sound medical reason not to be in class or (b) by a Boston College Dean certifying that you had a serious personal reason to be absent from class.


EXAMS: Each exam will be based on reading material and class content. The mid-term will cover sections I-III (roughly) of the outline. The final exam will cover the entire course, with emphasis on Sections IV and V. Except for extreme emergencies, I do NOT give make-up exams. If you anticipate any problems with an assigment due date or an exam date, you MUST notify me at least one week in advance. The date for the final exam is set by the Registrar, and I will make no exceptions for this.


WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS: Here are some notes for all written assignments.

1. I expect to receive typed papers and the length assigned assumes a typed paper; a handwritten paper is acceptable if you write very legibly. I generally assume that 2.5 handwritten pages equal one typed page.

2. The papers are due on the assigned dates, at the beginning of class. Late short papers will be penalized one point for each calendar day overdue. None of the following excuses is acceptable:

---I had it in my suitcase but the airplane lost it; you know how they are.
---My room was robbed last night. They got everything, even your paper.
---My dog chewed it up.
---Didn't you get it? I put it in campus mail!
---The OCF is backed up seven hours!
---My roommate spilled coffee on it.
---Etc. ad nauseum.

3. I do expect your papers to reflect a university level of writing. Any paper which contains three or more misspelled words on a page, or contains gross grammatical errors, or is badly organized, may be penalized. Papers may be returned for rewriting. THEREFORE: (a) Please prepare your paper sometime before the eve of the due date. (b) Write a rough draft, show it to a friend for comments, then write a final copy; (c) Proofread your paper and have a friend also proofread it.

4. PLAGIARISM AND CHEATING WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. It is your obligation to be fully aware of the Boston College policies on academic integrity. ANY violation may subject the offender to severe penalty.


NOTE: This is not an official course syllabus.

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