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SOC. 110 Drugs and Society
Scottsdale Community College

SYLLABUS

Dr. Gary R. Lemons

gary.lemons@sccmail.maricopa.edu

course web site:
http://www.scottsdalecc.edu/lemons/soc110/index.html

Office Location: SB 125

 

 
          Required text: Drugs in American Society, 7th edition. Erich Goode                        
  •  A note to students: The syllabus is an important document that you will need to refer to several times during the semester. Please keep it in the front of your notebook for easy access.

  • COURSE DESCRIPTION:  Explores drugs as a social problem.  Examines social-cultural factors contributing to use and abuse and effects of commonly used drugs on the individual and society.  Reviews current theories and research relating to drug use.  Explores prevent, intervention, and treatment.  Examines public policies concerning drug related issues.   No prerequisites.

  • CLASS PROCEDURE:  I expect every single student to be prepared for class every day and I call on students by name.  If you don’t want to speak, just say so and I go to another student.  If you’re not prepared, just say so.  That way we don’t waste time.  After the first day of class, I will make a seating chart so that I can call students by their names (I also learn more names this way).

  • ATTENDANCE:  Attendance is very important. I do grade on attendance. For every class missed your attendance grade will decrease. For every class missed, 5% of you attendance grade will be deducted. Thus, if you miss one class your grade will be 95, if you miss two your grade will be 90 and so on.
  • I will take attendance at each class meeting.  Please sign your name on the roll sheet, which is passed around.  If you miss more than FOUR classes during the first TWO weeks of the semester, you will be automatically withdrawn from the course.  If you miss a class, it is imperative that you get the notes from a classmate.    If you miss more than four classes I MAY drop you.  Absences do not relieve students of the responsibility for missed assignments and exams.  It is the student’s responsibility to drop the course if they stop attending class.

  • GRADES: Bring a #2 pencil for each exam.  You will be tested mostly on the text, but some questions will be on videos and information presented in class. 
    1. Exams (50%):  Each week you will be tested on the material that has been assigned.  Study questions will be provided and you will be tested on the questions.  The exams will be multiple choice and will cover the text and the articles. 

    2. Student Presentation: Article (10%): Each student will find an article about "drugs and society" from the media: newspapers, academic journals, magazines, etc., and present the article to the class. The article should relate to topics covered in the class or in the textbook. You should be able to talk at least five to 10 minutes about the article. You are encouraged to present aspects of the article in a PowerPoint format, or some other electronic source to perk the students interest. You will be graded on how interesting and pertinent your presentation is. You can get the article from many different places such as the New York Times (online version is free), the Arizona Republic, or many different magazines. It could be about recent research on harmful or beneficial effects of a drug, the drug war, drug problems in other countries, addiction research, drug use rates, changes in drug laws, and many other topics.

    3. Participation/attendance grade (10%):  I will grade you on class participation and attendance.   I don’t expect everyone to talk in equal amounts, but if I ask a study question to an individual, I expect an answer.  Everyone will start out with an “A” and points will be subtracted for lack of participation.  5% of your grade is attendance (see above the section on attendance). 5% is participation.

    4. Homework:  (30%):  You will have homework questions on each chapter. 
      1. The answers must be typed.  Unless it is typed, I will not accept it.
      2. Every question must be answered.  All the answers are in the text. If for some reason you cannot find the answer, make an honest attempt to answer it and you will get credit.  If you get a wrong answer, I will not count off – as long as I detect an honest effort to get the right answer. 
      3. If two students turn in identical homework papers, or papers that are roughly the same, say 90% similar, both students will receive a zero for the homework assignment. Homework Instructions:  Points will be taken if any of the following are not followed:  Label the paper at the top like below.  The answers must be typed.  Questions in bold.  No italics or underlining.  Skip spaces between questions and answers.  Follow this format exactly: 

    John Smith
    Sociology 110, MW 12:30
    August 23, 2008

    Chapter 1 Drugs:  A Sociological Perspective

    1. What do rates of conventional church involvements and cult movement in Europe versus America tell us about the effects of extreme secularization?

    They support the idea that such secularization leads to religious innovation rather than the rejection of religion altogether. Many European nations have extremely low rates of weekly church attendance compared to even those American states with the lowest rates. And even with high levels of acknowledged undercounting in Europe relative to America, the rates of cult movements per million people in Europe are much higher than in the United States.

    2.  What evidence is presented in the text on formerly communist countries relative to the thesis that severe repression of religion and aggressive promotion of atheism would lead to the dominance of the latter?

    First, levels of atheism appear to be very low in these countries. Second, adherence to unconventional religious beliefs is relatively high, even among generally well-educated, urban people surveyed recently in Russia. Third, there are currently massive religious revivals under way in the nations of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, including an explosion of new mosques in some areas.

      1.  Staple:  TEN POINTS OFF FOR NO STAPLE. 

      2. #11 or #12 font.  Use a readable font like Times New Roman or Garamond.

      3. Number the pages.

      4. Make two copies of the homework assignment.  One of the copies will be turned in at the beginning of class.  This copy will not be returned.  The other copy is for you to take notes on (if you want) and to study from for the exam.

      5. No late homework is accepted for any reason.  EACH HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT IS DUE AT  THE START OF CLASS ON THE DAY THE CHAPTER IS LISTED ABOVE. 

      6. COPYING:  If two assignments are identical, or close identical, both students will receive a zero for the assignment. 
    • MAKE-UPS:   Students who do not have any make-ups are excused from attending that day.  If a student misses an exam they must sign my make-up sheet with the number of the exam beside their name.  I discourage make-ups.  YOU WILL BE ALLOWED ONLY TWO MAKE-UPS.

    • OFFICE HOURS:  Office hours are for students who need extra help, informal advice concerning the course, moral support, and whatever else the student may wonder about but does not want to ask during class.   If you are making a bad grade, come to see me.  I may be able to help and there are tutors available.  You are welcome to come by anytime, but I cannot guarantee I’ll be there.  I arrive at 9:30 AM or so and often stay late into the afternoon.   

    • EMAIL:  Please email me if you need to.  It is often a better way to convey information than phone calls.  Again, my email address is gary.lemons@sccmail.maricopa.edu

    WITHDRAWAL POLICY

    • Student may initiate an official withdrawal from any course by submitting a withdrawal form with required signatures to the A&R office within published deadlines.

    • Failure to attend any classes is not a guarantee for a refund or an excuse of debt incurred through registration.

    • Official date of withdrawal is last date of attendance as determined by student’s withdrawal or as reported by the instructor.

    • The official date of withdrawal will determine degree of refund, if any.

    • Failure to file official withdrawal form within published deadlines can result in a failing grade and may effect refund of course tuition and fees.

    • Additional information on Withdrawals can be found in the 2008/09 College Catalog http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/catalog/ on page 31.

    ACADEMIC SUPPORT SERVICES

    A variety of student services can be accessed online.  Please refer to the SCC Student Home Page at:  http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/students/ .  Services are free of charge to all registered SCC students.

    Check the following web sites for information and operating hours:

    SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS

    If you have a specific physical, psychiatric, or learning disability and require academic accommodations, please contact Disability Resources & Services office located in SC-144.  You will need to provide appropriate documentation of your disability.   480-423-6517; http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/disabled/

     ACADEMIC HONESTY

    • Every student in this class is expected to produce his/her own original work.

    • Plagiarism is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

    • Plagiarism will result in being dropped from the course with a failing grade.

    • Plagiarism will result in a letter to the Dean of Students for further action.

    CODE OF CIVILITY

    Instructors are expected to be professional, courteous, respectful and empathic to students.  They will:

    • Begin and end class on time.

    • Be prepared for each class session.

    • Provide academic feedback and grade assignments in a timely manner.

    • Be available for individual consultation.

    • Clarify assignments and inform students of any adjustments to the class schedule.

    Students are expected to be reflective, courteous, respectful and emphatic to classmates, instructor and other college staff assisting in their learning.  Students are expected to arrive on time for class and remain until class has ended.  The instructor should be notified in advance if there is a need to leave early.  Students will be expected to:

    • Turn off cell phones and pagers before entering classroom.

    • Be in class and be on time.

    • Be prepared for class sessions.

    • Participate in class activities.

    • Follow instructions and complete assignments.

    • Keep up with and turn in assignments by due dates.

    • Put forth their best efforts.

    • Exchange phone numbers with two classmates in order to keep current.

    • Ask questions when they don’t understand.

    • Maintain knowledge of their grade status

    • Contact instructor right away about concerns or situations that interfere with their success in class.

    • Comply with policies found in the SCC Catalog and SCC Student Handbook.

     

    Syllabus DISCLAIMER:  Students will be notified by the instructor of any changes in course requirements or policies.”

    This site was developed and is maintained by Gary Lemons
    Contact Person: Gary Lemons

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