This course fulfills the social science requirement, the international overlay, is one of the foundations for the Anthropology Major and Minor, and also qualifies for Nonviolence Studies Certificate Program credit.


Course Description:
Cultural Anthropology explores different cultures in all of their manifestations - from how people make a living to what people live for. In an increasingly interconnected world, cultural differences lie at the root of many of our most pressing challenges, throughout the world and in our own personal lives. There has never been a time when Cultural Anthropology has been more important than it is right now.

Successful students will:

• learn the basic tools, concepts, and methods of cultural anthropology and be able to apply these to their own lives regardless of what career path they may choose.
• identify ways in which different aspects of culture – economic, social, political, and religious practices and institutions – relate to one another and are integrated in a cultural system.
• be able to draw comparisons between different cultures, recognizing that such comparisons require a holistic understanding of each of the cultures involved in the comparison.
• describe the processes of globalization and the ways they shape, and are shaped by, different aspects of culture in human communities throughout the world.
• improve their abilities to “think outside the box” by recognizing their own cultural biases and questioning the assumptions, beliefs, concepts, and ideas they had previously taken for granted.
• learn to ask challenging and productive questions about the world and humanity.

REQUIRED TEXTS

Cultural Anthropology: The Human Challenge. 11th, 12th or 13th Edition.
Haviland, Prins, Walrath, and McBride.
Additional readings will be posted on K-State Online
You also must bring a 3”x5” notecard to each class.

Presence	100 points
Participation in Recitation	100
On-Line Quizzes	200
Exams (2 x 100 each)	200
World Simulation Contribution	100
Evol Essay	100
Why Am I Here Essay (Final)	200
TOTAL	1000

A = 900+ points, B=800-899, C=700-799, D=600-699, F=0-599

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

PRESENCE – Your full presence (not just your “attendance”) is required at every class. This means that you must be fully actively engaged with the class at all times. Your presence will be measured by your *thoughtful* responses on notecards to be turned in every day (or almost everyday) in class. Give your notecard to your TA standing outside Umberger Hall (click to see exact location)

PARTICIPATION - This grade measures your participation in your recitation class. For full credit, you must attend all recitations and contribute to a thoughtful and engaging discussion. Your TA will assign this score.

ON-LINE QUIZZES – The on-line quizzes must be completed before class each Wednesday by 8:00 am. They will always be over that week’s readings (including the readings for the day the quiz is due). The readings form an important part of the storyline of the course. This class moves through over 40,000 years of human existence and jumps all over this world which is 25,000 miles around in an any one of the infinite directions you might wish to travel and we only have 17 weeks. So hold on, and please keep up with the readings. The points for each quiz will vary from 10 to 30.

EXAMS - Each exam is worth 100 points (10% of your final grade for a total of 20%.)

EVOL ESSAY: Write a 300-600 word essay on Evol among the Nacirema using the tools and techniques learned in class. This assignment will use Calibrated Peer Review

WORLD SIMULATION CONTRIBUTION - In your recitation you will be asked to sign up to contribute something to the world simulation. Most of you will write a 300-500 word research report on your group's wiki page and then present a 5-7 minute presentation to your group in recitation.

WHY AM I HERE? FINAL ESSAY - 200 points. In this essay you must answer the question
Why am I here?" in 2 ways: 1. Who are you and what are the cultural (social, economic, political, familial, etc.) conditions that led you to be who you are today? (including a section on "how the world works") and 2. What is your purpose on this planet or what do you hope it to be? This will be an assignment that will be discussed frequently in class, so more details will emerge throughout the semester. This assignment will use Calibrated Peer Review



MAKE-UP POLICY

Quizzes: If you missed the deadline for a quiz, you can type a 500 word summary of the articles for that week and turn it in to be graded. You will receive 1 point off for each week that it is late. The summary will be carefully graded, so 500 words does not automatically mean that you will receive full credit.

Attendance: I do not distinguish between excused or unexcused absences. I simply give you the opportunity to make up anything you miss. If a recording of the lecture is available, listen to it, take notes, and send the notes to your TA for credit. If a recording is not available, read the lecture notes on the wiki from the day you missed. Spend 50 minutes doing additional research on the topics covered in class, and then create a thread under the lecture notes and add supporting links, pictures, and videos that relate to the lecture. E-mail your TA to let them know you have completed this. If you miss a recitation, discuss your make-up options with your TA. You have one week after you return to make up an absence.

Exams: You must have a note that excuses your absence. This can be obtained from the Office of Student Life, provided you have a valid excuse. Beware that make-up exams are significantly more difficult than the in-class exams.

HONOR SYSTEM

Kansas State University has an Undergraduate Honor System based on personal integrity which is presumed to be sufficient assurance in academic matters that one's work is performed honestly and without unauthorized assistance. Undergraduate students, by registration, acknowledge the jurisdiction of the Undergraduate Honor System. The policies and procedures of the Undergraduate Honor System apply to all full and part-time students enrolled in undergraduate courses on-campus, off-campus, and via distance learning.

A component vital to the Honor System is the inclusion of the Honor Pledge that applies to all assignments, examinations, or other course work undertaken by undergraduate students. The Honor Pledge is implied, whether or not it is stated: "On my honor, as a student, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this academic work." A grade of XF can result from a breach of academic honesty. The F indicates failure in the course; the X indicates the reason is an Honor Pledge violation.

If you have any condition, such as a physical or learning disability, which will make it difficult for you to carry out the work as I have outlined it or which will require academic accommodations, please notify me in the first two weeks of the course.

All student activities in the University, including this course, are governed by the Student Judicial Conduct Code as outlined in the Student Governing Association By Laws, Article VI, Section 3, number 2. Students who engage in behavior that disrupts the learning environment may be asked to leave the class.