SSS 226 Explaining The Unexplained: Using Ethnography and Science To Examine Life's Big Questions
Ethnography using the scientific method is a skill that is used in a multitude of professions, and therefore would be of interest and use to CUA undergraduates from a variety of backgrounds. These could include, but not limited to anthropology, psychology, social work, education, history, criminology, sociology, and politics. This course could also be redesigned to that it met the requirements as part of the social science track for the Honors program. In addition, the focus on using ethnography as the primary method of learning will enhance the students' experience of being in Rome as they are asked to observe more closely the world around them.
As individuals, we are often faced with questions about which we want to know more, yet do not have the tools or knowledge to adequately explore those questions. This course will teach students how to use the scientific method, with a focus on ethnography, as a way to learn how to systematically seek the answers to their questions. Students will engage in the process by learning the method of ethnography, which will allow them to apply a research methodology by observing and documenting these observations in a scholarly manner. Rome provides the perfect context for this process as students will be asked to identify various phenomenon they have encountered in Rome, such as who attends certain markets, what are the patterns that occur among the waitstaff and customers in cafes, how do different types of tourists interact in the community, along with an infinite number of other points of observation students note during their time in Rome. This course will not only teach them ways to answer questions in general, but also ask them to use those skills to learn more about the Roman culture and context.
Cross Listed Courses
ANTH 226 & SSS 226