Sociology 220
Introduction to Sociological Methods
Instructor: Samuel Clark
E-mail: soc220@samclark.net
Course web site: faculty.washington.edu/samclark/Soc220
Office Hours: By appointment, 220 Condon Hall
Lectures: Wednesday and Friday, 8:30 – 9:50 am, 301 Gowen Hall
Contact TAs directly for office locations and office hours.
Devin Kelly: devink@u.washington.edu
Adam Lind: jal23@u.washington.edu
Solee Shin: soleeis@u.washington.edu
Joe Walch: joewalch@u.washington.edu
This course is an introduction to statistical methods used by sociologists and other behavioral scientists. The objective is to provide you with the ability to critically evaluate the data and methods used by sociologists and to be discerning consumers of research news in the mass media.
There are no prerequisites for this course. The course is not heavily mathematical, but you are expected to be capable with arithmetic. Success will depend more on your ability to think and communicate clearly.
The course is based on the text Statistics, Concepts and Controversies by David S. Moore and William I. Notz, 6th edition, below. Required readings from this text are listed below in the order in which they will be covered in class. As the term progresses the lecture schedule may become slightly out of synch with the assigned readings. Regardless of this, you are still responsible for all of the assigned reading each week.
David S. Moore, William I. Notz and Darryl K. Nester. 2006. Statistics, Concepts and Controversies (6th Edition). New York: W.H. Freeman. ISBN: 0716786362.
There will be eight take-home problem sets and eight short quizzes. You will have at least one week to complete each problem set, and they will require a mixture of hand calculation, written work and computer work. Quizzes will be given in recitation, and your quiz grade will be determined using your top six quiz grades (we will disregard the worst two of your eight quiz grades). If you skip recitation and miss a quiz, you will receive a grade of zero for that quiz, and there will be no make-up quizzes.
Problem sets must be turned in to your TA at your recitation section on or before their due date.
The course grade will be based on problem sets (15%), quizzes (15%), midterm (30%) and final (40%).
The class web site can be found at http://faculty.washington.edu/samclark/Soc220. You will be able to find the course syllabus, problem sets, solutions and other course-related material on this web site.
The request academic accommodations due to disability, please contact Disabled Student Services, 448 Schmitz Hall, (206) 543-8924 (V/TTY). If you have a letter from Disabled Student Services indicating that you have a disability that requires academic accommodations, please present the letter to me so that we can discuss the accommodations you might need in this class.
Read each assignment before it is covered in lectures, and then read it again at least one time afterward.
At the end of each chapter, and at the end of each major group of chapters, the text gives you a series of exercises. We recommend that you do the odd-numbered exercises – answers are given at the back of the text. These exercises are similar to the questions that you will be asked in exams, so they are good practice. If you can’t figure out how to do any of them, contact one of us.
The class website at http://faculty.washington.edu/samclark/Soc22 contains a course syllabus, problem sets and information about exams. Within a day of giving a lecture, I will post the overheads used for the lecture, and solutions to the problems sets will be posted the week after they are due. Instead of copying material from the overheads during the lectures, focus on making sure you understand the ideas being presented.
Some students are nervous about statistics. This class is no harder than most of the others you have taken. You will be able to do well if you keep up with the readings, lectures, homeworks and labs. However, unlike many classes you take at UW, the material in this class is cumulative. This means if you fall behind you will have a hard time catching up, and you may not be able to catch up at all. Solution: give this course priority and don’t fall behind.
If you don’t understand an idea presented in the text or lecture, come see one of us as soon as possible during office hours or by appointment.
You are expected to do your own work. Anyone found cheating or committing plagiary on any assignment or examination will receive a grade of X for the course and will be reported to the Dean’s office in the College of Arts and Sciences.
We do not give make-up examinations or quizzes except in the event of serious and well-documented emergencies.
Almost everyone hates disruptions in class. They slow things down and break peoples’ concentration. If you have to be late to class, enter unobtrusively; if you need to leave early, sit by the door and leave discretely. Be sure to silence your telephones or beepers before class begins.
Do not talk, read newspapers, or do other annoying or disrespectful things in class.
Problem set 1 handed out.
Read:
Read:
Problem set 1 DUE at section.
Problem set 2 handed out.
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Problem set 2 DUE at section.
Problem set 3 handed out.
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Problem set 3 DUE at section.
Problem set 4 handed out.
Read:
Read:
PROFESSOR CLARK AWAY AT POPULATION ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA (PAA) MEETINGS
Problem set 4 DUE at section.
Problem set 5 handed out.
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Problem set 5 DUE at section.
Problem set 6 handed out.
IN-CLASS MIDTERM.
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Problem set 6 DUE at section.
Problem set 7 handed out.
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Read:
Problem set 7 DUE at section.
Problem set 8 handed out.
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Read:
Problem set 8 DUE at section.
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Final exam 8:30am – 10:20am, 301 Gowen Hall.