Program Announcement 2013 - 14 - Institute of Business ...

Description of Courses148and animal behavior. Students will engage withhistorical and contemporary debates about cognitiveprocesses and neurological disorders, identityformation, human and animal interaction, individualand social development, perception and sensation,learning and memory, and biological and evolutionaryperspectives on human and animal development.SSC221 South Asian HistoryThis survey course introduces students to majordevelopments in South Asian History from theemergence of the early Harappan period to the strugglefor independence. Students will investigate keyhistorical forces and individuals that shaped SouthAsian politics, society and culture including theintroduction of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam, thedevelopment of languages, the production of majorcultural and scientific works, interactions with regionalneighbors, the formation of ethnic communities, andmajor political incursions and social reconfigurations.SSC231 Fundamentals of SociologyThis course introduces students to basic concepts,theories, and methods of thinking and analysis in theSocial Sciences. Students will develop a sociologicalimagination by learning how social scientists formulatequestions about human identity, agency, and behavior;the nature of social life and social interactions; andthe historical development of civilizations and societies.It will also introduce students to methods of theoreticaland empirical analysis through which social scientistshave proposed answers to the complex questions theyask.SSC232 Introduction to Historical MethodsThis course will introduce students to historiographyand historical methods of research and analysis. Thecourse will emphasize how historians frame theirexplorations of the past; investigate issues and debatesin current historical practice; articulate questionsabout conventional periodization; and distinguishbetween oral, artifactual, and written evidence, betweenobjective and subjective narratives, and between privateand public histories.SSC233 Introduction to Social and CulturalAnthropologyThis course serves as an introduction to the study ofsocial and cultural development, and of diversity inhuman societies. Lectures and discussions will focuson:1. Questions of anthropological heterogeneity,and on how varying social and cultural forcesdefine and describe these regional, national,and local differences;2. Case studies offered by major figures in the fieldthat help illuminate how anthropologists conductresearch, synthesize evidence, and arrive atprovisional analyses of the social groups theystudy;3. Theoretical and historical readings on the majorsubjects anthropologists address: kinship andfamily, gender, religion, race and ethnicity,language and communication, magic, ritual andsymbolism, human and animal evolution, socialtransformation, and economic exchange.SSC234 Introduction to Urban StudiesAn introduction to the history, formation, planning,economics, social structures, and cultures of urbanenvironments, this course will help students understandhow urbanization, inner-city migrations,industrialization, available housing, economic, ethnicand racial segregation, environment, crime, municipalefficiency, telecommunications, and politicalgovernance affect the development and growth of cities.SSC235 Introduction to LinguisticsAn introduction to the fundamental properties oflanguages, their morphology, phonology, and syntax,their semantic and pragmatic functions, their historicaldevelopment, and the ways in which they are shapedby different cultural and social contexts.SSC239 History of Ideas IIdeas have shaped how we think about and respond toour world. History is replete with instances thatdemonstrate how small changes in ways of thinkinglead to creative tensions and large shifts in social andcultural thinking. This two-semester course exploresthe metaphysical and material histories of such ideasas freedom, justice, ethics, reason, the self, the real,identity, faith, citizenship, rights, etc. It introducesstudents to methods of critical and philosophicalanalysis that investigate the sources and limits ofhistorical, empirical, and theoretical knowledge.SSC238 History of Ideas IIIdeas have shaped how we think about and respond toour world. History is replete with instances thatdemonstrate how small changes in ways of thinkinglead to creative tensions and large shifts in social andcultural thinking. This two-semester course exploresthe metaphysical and material histories of such ideasas freedom, justice, ethics, reason, the self, the real,identity, faith, citizenship, rights, etc. It introducesstudents to methods of critical and philosophicalanalysis that investigate the sources and limits ofhistorical, empirical, and theoretical knowledge.SSC240 Personal Effectiveness CourseThis course is designed to improve the levels of personaleffectiveness in the cooperate environment. It aims atincreasing students self awareness and confidencelevels by teaching them tools of effective behavior. Thiswould include developing and understanding of therelationship between their own values, attitudes,believes and behaviors and how it influences othersperception of them. It would also work towards