discussion post exemplifies thoughtfulness W r i t i n g

You have a relative who is not very smart and think that cities are bad places to live because there is so much crime, and that rural areas are place with morally superior people and are places where no one has to lock their doors. Diplomatically, but firmly, you will tell this rather ignorant relative that he/she is wrong, based on the lectures for this course from week 13 and 14. What will you say?

Whenever you refer to a concept from the lectures, be sure to provide a brief definition (preferably, in your own words, not simply copying over a definition from the lectures) and then use it to help answer the discussion question. In other words — “define it and then apply it.”

A suggested length to your answer is 100-200 words. You may apply personal examples (about you, your family, your community, your friends and your society), but you must be sure that you link these examples to the subject matter of the lectures in this course. Otherwise, the examples are extraneous and will lower your grade.

Our goal (the instructors) in this course is to respond to each of your posts. If we do not, it is either because we inadvertently skipped you or something has happened that has caused us to fall far behind in our work (we will try mighty hard to catch up). The longer into the week you wait to respond, the less likely we will have time to respond.

Your grade (2 points)

The rubrics for this discussion question, which is also stated in the syllabus, apply to how you will be graded. Here is a restatement of the rubrics:

Connectedness– The discussion post demonstrates an ability to cite/connect specific concepts, examples and content from the lectures when answering the discussion question;

Relevance– The discussion post shows how the topics relate to either/or your life, current events, or the content, concepts and examples from the previous two weeks of lectures in RS 1500;

Thoughtfulness– The discussion post exemplifies thoughtfulness, originality, and critical thinking. It is not merely a regurgitation or mimicking of the words in the lecture slides, but rather connecting the topic to course content and/or examples outside of class, using your sociological imagination; and

Quality– The discussion post shows you invested some time and effort in your answer. It addresses the discussion question fully. It is not full of typographical errors, misspellings, or poor sentence structure. A good idea is to write the post in Word with the spelling and grammar checker on, and then copy over for the purposes of posting on Carmen.

We will grade your post based on how well you demonstrate that you have viewed/listened to the audio lectures on powerpoint.