College Seminar (101-7-1)
Instructors
Bennett B. Goldberg
Meeting Info
Shepard Hall Classroom B05: Tues, Thurs 11:00AM - 12:20PM
Overview of class
Title: Creating Inclusive Science: Advancing Equity to Overcome the Exclusive Social Constructs in Physics
Description: Throughout history the famous scientists, the most recognized scholars, and university and
national laboratory leaders have been largely white and Asian males, excluding many minoritized groups.
This continues today, enshrined by sociological and structural policies and processes. We will explore
this history of oppression and examine current efforts to create more inclusive science and engineering
environments. This seminar posits that to study in a discipline and be an inclusive practitioner requires
both an understanding of that discipline's sociological origins as well as skills in its constituent elements
(e.g. math, physics, etc.).
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to critically analyze the current as well as historical situations of exclusion in
STEM disciplines at different career stages.
Students will be able to evaluate various perspectives around the potential causes of exclusionary
policies and behaviors.
Students will be able to propose potential solutions, identify potential pitfalls and evaluate the
success of interventions to create more inclusive science.
Students will advance their oral and written communication skills, their diagnostic and analytical
reading skills, and their logical, inquisitive and interpretive writing skills
Evaluation Method
Step 1: We will decide as a class what the important categories are that should be reflected in your
grade. These categories can be associated with effort, performance, participation, timeliness, peer
feedback and more. Step 2: Once we have constructed the categories, I will distribute a survey to ask
each of you individually how you would like to be assessed; specifically what weighting or percentage for
each category you'd like to be used to assess your success in this class. Step 3: Once in the middle of
the quarter, and once at the end, I will ask you to assess yourself, and to provide evidence within each of
the categories you chose to support your self-assessment. Step 4: We will meet individually after each of
these to decide together on your mid-quarter and final grade.
Class Materials (Required)
All readings and other course materials will be posted on Canvas Course Management Site.
Class Attributes
WCAS College Seminar