We are still in the process of finalizing seminar offerings for the 2011-2012 academic year. Check back often for additional seminar listings!
TERM ONE:
Birth, Breastfeeding, & Maternity Care from a Feminist Perspective
WMST 425D 001 (Wed 2pm-5pm, BUCH D315)
Coordinator: Zoe Jordan
Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Becki Ross
In this course we will explore a range of historical and contemporary approaches to childbirth, breastfeeding and maternity care through a critical feminist perspective. The course will attempt to provide seminar participants with a basic understanding of the nuts and bolts of the childbirth process (eg. what birth looks like from early contractions until delivery) and maternity care options (eg. midwifery care, obstetric care, doula support, home or hospital births) while examining the theory that underpins the different interpretations of and approaches to childbirth and maternity care. With the social determinants of health as a basis, we will critically examine the biomedical approach to childbirth, looking at how birth has been medicalized, how the physician came to supersede the midwife as the primary care provider to childbearing women in Canada, and how trends in natural childbirth, pain relief and other medical intervention have come and gone (or come and stayed).
Specialized topics will include Childbirth in the Media, Midwifery and the Law, Rural and Remote Birthing (with a case study on the Inuit community of Nunavik, QC), Birthing in other cultures, Breastfeeding – biopsychosocial considerations, and Birth among vulnerable populations to be determined by the class (topics to choose from in this week will include birth among incarcerated women, women with substance abuse concerns, teen pregnancy and motherhood, HIV+ women, or survivors of sexual abuse, among others). The course will conclude with a forum-style discussion of the future of maternity care including our collective intentions for future policy, research, collaboration and education.
The Case for Dramaturgy in Business
COMM 486B (Thurs 11am-2pm, IBLC 461)
Coordinators: Eunice Hii, Selena Shannon
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Marc-David Seidel
Want to find out how your passion for theatre holds a place in the business arena? This course will explore how we can take from the skills dramaturges (a role integral to theatre companies) possess in executing successful plays, and hone these skills in businesses.
Managing and working in teams is a complex activity central to the success of any organization. The question remains however, how to best navigate teams towards reaching goals. This course will explore the art of dramaturgy and the role of a dramaturge within the theatre, and directly apply these learnings to an organizational context. We will learn and adopt the skills dramaturges regularly rely on to successfully bring a play to the stage. Students will then apply this study to an applied term project, working with an on campus organization to help them reach their organizational goals.
United Nations & Diplomacy
ASTU 400T 001 (Mon 5pm-8pm, BUCH D207)
Coordinator: Lindsey Richardson
Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Richard Price
United Nations and Diplomacy is a Student Directed Seminar designed to introduce 3rdand 4th year students to international organizations and parliamentary procedure. The course will explore different bodies of the United Nations by examining their history, mandate and applicable case studies. All students enrolled in the seminar will be required to direct and co-chair a committee at UBCMUN 2011 in January, where they will apply their knowledge of the purpose of the United Nations and the use and format of parliamentary procedure.
TERM TWO:
Books on Trial: Modernism, Aesthetics, + Obscenity
ASTU 400B 001 (Mon 12pm-3pm, BRKX 2367)
Coordinator: Justin Yang
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Lorraine Weir
This seminar will investigate four novels of the Modernist period (Madame Bovary, The Well of Loneliness, Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Lolita) that were the subject of controversial obscenity trials in their time. In particular, we will examine questions of literary aesthetics, jurisprudence, and Modernist art. Students who may be offended by course content are seriously advised to reconsider enrollment in this course.
Challenging Ideas and Today’s Science
BIOC 490 001 (MWF 11am-12pm, FSC 1003)
Coordinator: Nicolas Coutin
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Jason Read
The aim of this seminar is to attain a greater understanding of the critical tools, techniques and mindsets which are fundamental to great works of science. We will investigate modern cutting-edge techniques in Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology; providing a survey of their current applications as well as their potential in answering some of the most challenging questions in Biology today.
Emerging Technologies and Business
COMM 486 201 (Tu 6-9pm, ANGU 293)
Coordinator: Mimi YuFan You
Faculty Sponsor: Ronald T. Cenfetelli
Systematically explore advancements in the core areas of emerging technology, including natural computer-user interfaces, data connectivity, biotechnology and sustainability. Discussions on these potentially disruptive technologies will focus on gaining a 360 degree view of the future competitive landscape through group research, debate and analysis
Immigration and Multicultural Community Development: A Community‐Based Evaluation Research Approach
SOCI 433A (Tu/Th 12:30pm-2pm, ANGU 293)
Coordinator: Amanda Cheong
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Wendy Roth
In this Student Directed Seminar, students will engage in debates around immigrant incorporation, examine Canadian immigration policy from a comparative perspective, and become familiar with multicultural community development strategies. Throughout the term, students will take part in a community service learning partnership with a local immigrant service provider in order to explore first-hand how local organizations work with the government and at the grassroots level to build community among Vancouver’s diverse population. For more information, or to register, please contact student facilitator Amanda Cheong at amanda.r.cheong@gmail.com.
Multiculturalism: Menace, Myth, or Wave of the Future?
ASTU 400Y (Tu/Th 12:30pm-2pm, BUCH D323)
Coordinator: Keshav Kelkar
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Michel Ducharme
This course investigates whether Multiculturalism is a viable theory for peaceful coexistence or is it simply a policy tool restricted to certain geopolitical environments (i.e. Settler nations). To unravel this myth, menace, or the new wave for the future, the course will engage in a comparative analysis of selected case studies from around the world. In doing so, offering an interdisciplinary learning experience with a wider scope and flexibility. Case studies include: Canada, Germany, and Japan.
Rationality + Human Decision Making
PSYC 417A 001
Coordinator: Erik Thulin
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Lawrence Ward
Incorporating research from Psychology and Behavioral Economics, this Student Directed Seminar will study the capacities and limitations of human decision making. Looking from both Psychological and Behavioral Economics perspectives, we will investigate human departures from rational choice and the possible implications of those departures. If interested in registering or would like more information, please email rationality.sds@gmail.com.
Reading Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit
PHIL 486A 001 (Tues 3pm-6pm, BUCH D229)
Coordinator: Kenji Hayakawa, kalessin@interchange.ubc.ca
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Christina Hendricks
In this seminar, students will read Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit and meet once a week in order to discuss the weekly assigned sections. Hegel’s philosophical work catalogues the different ways in which phenomena are experienced in the world. While such a level of abstraction makes this work a challenging read, students will have ample opportunities to grow their own capaticites to understand other people and other worldly phenomena in general.
The Politics of Food: History and Theory of North American Cultivation
ASTU 400F 001 (Mon 2pm-5pm, IBLC 260)
Coordinator: Nicholas Ellan
Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Glenn Deer
This seminar will explore the current and historical material landscape of North America, with a specific focus on BC, to examine how contemporary practices of cultivation (gardening, farming, forestry, landscaping, etc) arose from specific historical contexts and became widespread doctrines negotiating the composition of urban, suburban and rural spaces. It will also engage with criticisms of each practice, and examine alternative strategies as practiced historically and contemporaneously in indigenous as well as academic contexts
Understanding Canadian Identity Through Representations of Food
ASTU 400U 001 (Tu/Th 12:30pm-2pm, IBLC 260)
Coordinator: Serenade Yu
Faculty Sponsor: Dr Laura Moss
This class will be focused on how food is presented in Canadian literature, which ranges from fiction, short stories, and articles in a contemporary context. Students will be relating qualities of Canadian identity to works written by Canadian authors that feature different cuisines and food cultures. This class will provide a much more focused look at the food culture side of Canadian literature. It will be suitable to students who have already had some experience with Canadian literature, as it will allow them to spend the entire term on a topic that may have previously been addressed in only one or two weeks of a broader Canadian literature course. Furthermore, students without any Canadian literature experience may be attracted to this more focused course, if the idea of sweeping over a wide range of Canadian texts and topics is intimidating.
