Sociology

6 semester credits. This field learning course engages the student in topics related to Italian civilization and culture through direct experience and on-going research. Places of historic, archeological, artistic, architectural, religious, and culinary importance will be introduced on-site as students are guided by the instructor to contextualize an interdisciplinary understanding of Italy. The 3-week course focuses on three distinct areas of geographic interest in Italy: Northern Italy and its relationship to Europe; Southern Italy’s proximity to Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cultures; and Central Italy’s cultural dominance due to the Etruscan, Roman, and Renaissance influence. Pre-course research is required through the analysis and study of designated resources and bibliographies. On-site fieldwork and assessment are conducted on a daily basis between the instructor and students. Discussion, recording, and presentation are essential forms of re-elaborating the course topics. The course emphasizes the development and evolution of Italian society from the perspectives of institutions, family, social class, religion, economy, and education. This class includes field learning hours. Field learning is a method of educating through first-hand experience. Skills, knowledge, and experience are acquired outside of the traditional academic classroom setting and may include field activities, field research, and service learning projects. The field learning experience is cultural because it is intended to be wide-reaching, field-related content is not limited to the course subject but seeks to supplement and enrich academic topics. Students will have the opportunity to integrate theory and practice while experiencing Italian culture, art, and community within the Italian territory. Faculty will lead students in experiencing Italian culture through guided projects and field experiences as planned for the course. Field learning will be developed through classroom preparation, follow up projects, and guided learning outcomes. Field learning will provide students with the opportunity to develop skills and appreciate the multifold components of Italian Culture through direct experience. Field education will advance student learning as a relationship-centered process.

3 semester credits. One week of on-site field learning in different locations before session start: Rome, Tuscan coast, Cinque Terre (Fall-Summer); Rome, Orvieto, Perugia (Spring). The study of Italian culture helps the student to acquire a deep awareness of both cultural unity and regional diversity. This one-week intensive course is intended to provide students with an in-depth introduction to Italian culture and to broaden one’s awareness and understanding of the role of cultural heritage in customs and lifestyles. Lectures will provide students with an organized, focused, and academic understanding of Italian history, art, architecture, food, religion, and culture. The course provides additional enrichment through basic notions of Italian language and terminology along with assigned readings and a final paper. On-site teaching is a significant part of this course and aims to provide the student with an incomparable experience of studying important sites of artistic, architectural, and social relevance in present-day Italy. Students are encouraged to observe the sites through active participation and to discuss their observations using specific and analytic social assessment skills. This class includes field learning hours. Field learning is a method of educating through first-hand experience. Skills, knowledge, and experience are acquired outside of the traditional academic classroom setting and may include field activities, field research, and service learning projects. The field learning experience is cultural because it is intended to be wide-reaching, field-related content is not limited to the course subject but seeks to supplement and enrich academic topics. Students will have the opportunity to integrate theory and practice while experiencing Italian culture, art, and community within the Italian territory. Faculty will lead students in experiencing Italian culture through guided projects and field experiences as planned for the course. Field learning will be developed through classroom preparation, follow up projects, and guided learning outcomes. Field learning will provide students with the opportunity to develop skills and appreciate the multifold components of Italian Culture through direct experience. Field education will advance student learning as a relationship-centered process.

3 semester credits. The study of Italian culture helps the student to acquire a deep awareness of both cultural unity and regional diversity. This course is intended to provide students with an in-depth introduction to Italian culture and to broaden one’s awareness and understanding of the role of cultural heritage in customs and lifestyles. Lectures will provide students with an organized, focused, and academic understanding of Italian history, art, architecture, food, religion, and culture. The course provides additional enrichment through basic notions of Italian language and terminology along with assigned readings and a final paper. On-site teaching is a significant part of this course and is aimed to provide the student with an incomparable experience of studying important sites of artistic architectural and social relevance in present-day Italy. Students are encouraged to observe the sites through active participation and to discuss their observations using specific and analytic social assessment skills. Florence only.

6 semester credits. One week of on-site field learning in different locations before semester/summer sessions: Rome, Tuscan coast, Cinque Terre (Fall-Summer); Rome, Orvieto, Perugia (Spring). Upon completion of the field learning week, the course continues as a regular academic session in Florence. The study of Italian culture helps the student to acquire a deep awareness of both cultural unity and regional diversity. This one-week intensive course is intended to provide students with an in-depth introduction to Italian culture and to broaden one’s awareness and understanding of the role of cultural heritage in customs and lifestyles. Lectures will provide students with an organized, focused, and academic understanding of Italian history, art, architecture, food, religion, and culture. The course provides additional enrichment through basic notions of Italian language and terminology along with assigned readings and a final paper. On-site teaching is a significant part of this course and aims to provide the student with an incomparable experience of studying important sites of artistic, architectural, and social relevance in present-day Italy. Students are encouraged to observe the sites through active participation and to discuss their observations using specific and analytic social assessment skills. This class includes field learning hours. Field learning is a method of educating through first-hand experience. Skills, knowledge, and experience are acquired outside of the traditional academic classroom setting and may include field activities, field research, and service learning projects. The field learning experience is cultural because it is intended to be wide-reaching, field-related content is not limited to the course subject but seeks to supplement and enrich academic topics. Students will have the opportunity to integrate theory and practice while experiencing Italian culture, art, and community within the Italian territory. Faculty will lead students in experiencing Italian culture through guided projects and field experiences as planned for the course. Field learning will be developed through classroom preparation, follow up projects, and guided learning outcomes. Field learning will provide students with the opportunity to develop skills and appreciate the multifold components of Italian Culture through direct experience. Field education will advance student learning as a relationship-centered process.

6 semester credits. The aim of this course is to study Italian culture through action and participation, and to build awareness from the perspective of active engagement beyond mere observation. The course concept is intended to give students a better understanding of contemporary Italian society and culture – politics, economy, social environment, traditions – and compare their current expressions with historical contexts by using hands-on and interactive participation in cultural integration programs that involve the local community. An important element of this course is the Italian language component, which acts as a bridge to Italian culture based on communication skills. Throughout the course, students will be encouraged to apply their basic knowledge of Italian language to fulfill course requirements. The course is designed to expand the student’s global prospective through constant reflection and constructive criticism in order to incorporate intercultural knowledge into a richly articulated awareness of the self-intended as the individual, as the individual within a community, and the individual within a culture. The course comprises a multitude of visits and activities that seek to provide a comprehensive overview of the Italian culture in its real-life applications. In order to fulfil this experiential component of the course, students will engage regularly with activities related to journalism, conversation, volunteering, field learning, and social gatherings, for a total of 90 hours. The course focuses on cognitive development, cultural awareness, and intercultural and interpersonal communication by integrating and placing the student in direct contact with local culture.

3 semester credits. One week of on-site field learning in different locations before session start: Italian-French Riviera. The course engages the student in the exploration of the history and culture of the French and Italian Riviera, a region that still today preserves a peculiar identity, and builds a bridge between the Mediterranean and Northern Europe. Strategically placed in the north of the Mediterranean, Provence and the city of Nice have always attracted civilizations from all over. Throughout its long history, people of many nationalities have docked here and been assimilated into the city, turning it into a cultural and culinary melting pot: Greeks, Romans, North Africans, Corsicans, Sicilians, Arabs, have all left their mark. The course examines the many culinary identities of the area creating a unique culinary cornucopia of different cultures and flavors, as seen in establishments such as restaurants, markets, boulangeries, Maghreb spice stalls, Mediterranean fishmongers, and Sub-Saharan vegetable vendors. The course also focuses on the relevance that the area had in the development of Europe. During the Middle Age, in monasteries and abbeys, the roots of cultural and religious traditions of Europe were continued. Furthermore, thanks to the work of the monks, the techniques of agriculture and viticulture were preserved and improved. Two of the great ancient pilgrimage routes have their start in Provence, the Camino de Santiago (Way of Saint James), through the Roman Via Aurelia to Santiago di Compostela, and the Via Francigena, which leads from France to Rome. Places of culinary, historical, and religious relevance, such as ethnic restaurants and local markets, archaeological sites, and monasteries, will be studied in order to contextualize an interdisciplinary understanding of the culture and history of the Italian and French Riviera. Group discussions and personal research assignments are essential forms of re-elaborating the course topics. The course emphasizes the development and evolution of religion, its connection to food, and their heritage in the contemporary society. Field learning is a method of educating through first-hand experience. Skills, knowledge, and experience are acquired outside of the traditional academic classroom setting and may include field activities, field research, and service learning projects. The field learning experience is cultural because it is intended to be wide-reaching, field-related content is not limited to the course subject but seeks to supplement and enrich academic topics. Students will have the opportunity to integrate theory and practice while experiencing Italian culture, art, and community within the Italian territory. Faculty will lead students in experiencing Italian culture through guided projects and field experiences as planned for the course. Field learning will be developed through classroom preparation, follow up projects, and guided learning outcomes. Field learning will provide students with the opportunity to develop skills and appreciate the multifold components of Italian Culture through direct experience. Field education will advance student learning as a relationship-centered process.

3 semester credits. The course engages the student in the exploration of the history and culture of the French and Italian Riviera, a region that still today preserves a peculiar identity, and builds a bridge between the Mediterranean and Northern Europe. Strategically placed in the north of the Mediterranean, Provence and the city of Nice have always attracted civilizations from all over. Throughout its long history, people of many nationalities have docked here and been assimilated into the city, turning it into a cultural and culinary melting pot: Greeks, Romans, North Africans, Corsicans, Sicilians, Arabs, have all left their mark. The course examines the many culinary identities of the area creating a unique culinary cornucopia of different cultures and flavors, as seen in establishments such as restaurants, markets, boulangeries, Maghreb spice stalls, Mediterranean fishmongers, and Sub-Saharan vegetable vendors. The course also focuses on the relevance that the area had in the development of Europe. During the Middle Age, in monasteries and abbeys, the roots of cultural and religious traditions of Europe were continued. Furthermore, thanks to the work of the monks, the techniques of agriculture and viticulture were preserved and improved. Two of the great ancient pilgrimage routes have their start in Provence, the Camino de Santiago (Way of Saint James), through the Roman Via Aurelia to Santiago di Compostela, and the Via Francigena, which leads from France to Rome. Places of culinary, historical, and religious relevance, such as ethnic restaurants and local markets, archaeological sites, and monasteries, will be studied in order to contextualize an interdisciplinary understanding of the culture and history of the Italian and French Riviera. Group discussions and personal research assignments are essential forms of re-elaborating the course topics. The course emphasizes the development and evolution of religion, its connection to food, and their heritage in the contemporary society. This course includes cooking labs, food and wine tastings, and visits.

6 semester credits. One week of on-site field learning in different locations before session start: Italian-French Riviera. Upon completion of the field learning week, the course continues as a regular academic session in Florence. The course engages the student in the exploration of the history and culture of the French and Italian Riviera, a region that still today preserves a peculiar identity, and builds a bridge between the Mediterranean and Northern Europe. Strategically placed in the north of the Mediterranean, Provence and the city of Nice have always attracted civilizations from all over. Throughout its long history, people of many nationalities have docked here and been assimilated into the city, turning it into a cultural and culinary melting pot: Greeks, Romans, North Africans, Corsicans, Sicilians, Arabs, have all left their mark. The course examines the many culinary identities of the area creating a unique culinary cornucopia of different cultures and flavors, as seen in establishments such as restaurants, markets, boulangeries, Maghreb spice stalls, Mediterranean fishmongers, and Sub-Saharan vegetable vendors. The course also focuses on the relevance that the area had in the development of Europe. During the Middle Age, in monasteries and abbeys, the roots of cultural and religious traditions of Europe were continued. Furthermore, thanks to the work of the monks, the techniques of agriculture and viticulture were preserved and improved. Two of the great ancient pilgrimage routes have their start in Provence, the Camino de Santiago (Way of Saint James), through the Roman Via Aurelia to Santiago di Compostela, and the Via Francigena, which leads from France to Rome. Places of culinary, historical, and religious relevance, such as ethnic restaurants and local markets, archaeological sites, and monasteries, will be studied in order to contextualize an interdisciplinary understanding of the culture and history of the Italian and French Riviera. Group discussions and personal research assignments are essential forms of re-elaborating the course topics. The course emphasizes the development and evolution of religion, its connection to food, and their heritage in the contemporary society. This course includes cooking labs, food and wine tastings, and visits. Field learning is a method of educating through first-hand experience. Skills, knowledge, and experience are acquired outside of the traditional academic classroom setting and may include field activities, field research, and service learning projects. The field learning experience is cultural because it is intended to be wide-reaching, field-related content is not limited to the course subject but seeks to supplement and enrich academic topics. Students will have the opportunity to integrate theory and practice while experiencing Italian culture, art, and community within the Italian territory. Faculty will lead students in experiencing Italian culture through guided projects and field experiences as planned for the course. Field learning will be developed through classroom preparation, follow up projects, and guided learning outcomes. Field learning will provide students with the opportunity to develop skills and appreciate the multifold components of Italian Culture through direct experience. Field education will advance student learning as a relationship-centered process.