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GIS 3040- Cross
Cultural/Gender Studies - Women in Development
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Call No:
981/96800 Semester:
Office Hours: Thurs 2 - 3 PM
Location: Room # 0219 Cohn; 9:30 AM - 12:40 PM
SYLLABUS
Course Description
Objectives
References
Syllabus
Grading
Description
This is an interdisciplinary Social Science
workshop designed to build analytical skills and develop research writing of
students through lectures, discussion and preparation of research essays on the
study of women in Third World societies.
Over the last 10 to 15 years, the burgeoning rise
in academic interest in women's studies on US campuses has catapulted this field
to incredible heights and promoted it to a recognized academic discipline.
Though many courses on women's status and roles are offered on campus, there is
a void on academic offerings on women in Third World societies. The premise of
this course is that it will expose students to the existing paradigms on women
in the Third World economies and the resulting peripheralization of women due to
factors such as colonialism, capitalism and religion (Boserup, 1970; Obbo, 1982;
Barnes 1983; Nasimuyu, 1985). An opportunity to assess and evaluate the factors
and forces militating for and against women, the challenges and tasks of women
in the process of industrialization and modernization, the strategies necessary
to bridge the gender inequality gap will all be explored. Critical areas of the
course will include education, both formal and nonformal, cultural status and
existing theoretical models of gender such as feminism, Africana Womanism, black
feminism etc.
Course Objectives
The goal of this course is to:
a) Provide an overview of women's roles and
status in contemporary developing societies in order to study and understand the
issue of "gender inequality" within the context of development.
b) take an interdisciplinary approach to the
exploration of issues and explanation of phenomena that draw from social science
disciplines
c)Demonstrate how knowledge of social
institutions enhance one's understanding of human behavior
d) use literary essays to examine and review the
question of gender inequality within the context of non-Western societies
particularly women in Africa and the Caribbean while paying close attention to
the urban/rural dichotomy present in these cultures
e) de-emphasize ethnocentrism and show how
cultures interact or interface to highlight similarities
f) integrate computer conferencing into
students’ course activity to promote writing and sharing of ideas
Class Resources
- Video cassettes
- Books
- Guest Speakers (when possible)
- Library Resources
Audio-visual materials (video)
- Global Feminism Series: Angola is Our
Country
- Black Women of Brazil
- Global Assembly Line
- The Arabs - Family Ties
- The Politics of Food
Reading Materials
Required Texts
- Bloch, Marianne; Beoku-Betts, Josephine A. and
Tabachnick, B. R. Women and Education in Sub-Saharan Africa: Power,
Opportunities and Constraints, Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 1998.
- Scott, Catherine V. Gender and Development.
Boulder: Lynne Reiner Publishers, 1995.
- Ntiri, Daphne Williams (ed.), One is not a
Woman, One Becomes: The African Woman in a Transitional Society, Bedford
Publishers, Inc., Troy: MI. 1983.
Recommended References
Novels
- McMillan, Terri. Disappearing
Acts
- Marshall, Paula. Praisesong
for a Widow
Other Texts
- Steady, Filomina C. The Black Woman
Cross-Culturally, Rochester: Schenkman Books, Inc. 1985.
- Duley, Margot & Edwards, Mary I. (eds)The
Cross-Cultural Study of Women, New York: The Feminist Press, 1986
- Robertson, Claire. Sharing the Same Bowl: A
Socio-Economic History of Women and Class in Accra, Ghana, Ann Arbor: U
of MI Press, 1984.
- World Bank, Women in Development: A
Progress Report on the World Bank Initiative, 1990 (document available
in class)
Book Purchases
Marwil Bookstore,
Warren and Cass, Detroit, Michigan
Tel: (313) 832-3078
Syllabus
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Week #
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Class Topic &
Assignments |
| 1 |
- Introduction to the Course - Women and
Change in society via selected class texts
- Incorporating student perspectives -
Remembrances of Growing up Female
- Handout: ---Duley’s Cross-Cultural
Study of Women Male Dominance: Myth or Reality (Chap. 2)
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| 2 |
- Definitions of Basic Concepts of
Development
- Male Dominance: Myth or Reality -
Chap 2 (Duley
Readings
- ---Ntiri, One is not a Woman: One
Becomes: the African Woman in a Transitional Society
- ---Brydon & Chant, Women in the
Third World: an Overview (pp. 1-46)
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| 3 |
- Why Women ? Women, Colonialism and
Development Gender as a Critical Variable
- Toward a Theory of Gender Stratification
- Video: Global
Assembly Line
Readings:
- Brydon & Chant, Women in the
Third World: an Overview (pp. 1-46)
- Bloch, N. Beoku-Betts & Tabachnick,
B. R.,
- Beyond the Three Food Groups:
Nutrition Education for Women
in Africa
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| 4 |
- Why Women ? Women, Colonialism and
Development Gender as a Critical Variable
- Toward a Theory of Gender Stratification
- Agriculture - Women & Food/ Rural
Production
- Video: Politics of Food
Readings:Ntiri , See Morsy and
Hamman
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| 5 |
Defining Third
World Women
The Family, Status and Religion
Ntiri’s - Morsy’s “Gender Identity
and Social Status & Hamman’s Women Industrial Workers ...”
Readings: “Women in Education” Chaps. 1
& 2
Bloch, N. Beoku-Betts & Tabachnick, B.
R. |
| 6/7 |
Gender and
Education (Chaps. 1 & 2)
Theoretical and Empirical Problems and
Prospects
Agents in Women’s Education |
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Class #6 - Quiz #1 - Basic Development
Concepts
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| 8/9 |
- Class Debate: The Gender Question Option
1 - Marriage, Gender and Reproduction
- Option 2 - Advantage &
Disadvantage of Single-Sex Schooling
- Option 3 - Is Education a help or a
hindrance for Women
- Readings: Rites
and Reason: precolonial Education and its Relevance... Lynda Day
Ntiri’s article - The
Case of Somalia Experimenting with Family Life Centers ... - A Case
Study
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RECESS
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| 10/11 |
- NonFormal Education
- Study of precolonial Education and
Non Formal Ed
- Who are Third World Women ?
- Ntiri - The Case of Somalia -
Readings: --- Africana Womanism:
Reclaiming Ourselves” by Clenora Hudson-Weems, Chaps. 1 & 2.
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| 12/13 |
- Categorizing Theories about Women
- ***Feminism
- ***Africana Womanism
- ***African Feminism
- *** Black Feminism
- Models of womanhood
- Video: Black Women of
Brazil
-
Readings: --- Africana
Womanism: Reclaiming Ourselves” by Clenora Hudson-Weems,
- Chaps. 6, 7 & 9.
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| 14 |
- Categorizing Theories about Women
(cont’d)
- Individual Presentation of Development
projects
- Quiz # 2 - On Theories
- Class Evaluation
- Video: The
Bandit Queen
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| 15 |
- Class Review
- Final research papers due
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Writing & Research Assignments
Research Assignments - This class will involve
two research paper assignments and a development project.
| Research
Paper #1 |
Due |
Due
back |
| Subject: |
Women in
Food/Agricultural Production - Advantages and disadvantages (5pp)
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| Research paper
#2 |
Due |
Due Back |
| Subject: |
History or Politics
of Gender and Education in Africa
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| Assignment #3 |
Development
Project: A Case Study of a Village
Design a Development Project for an African
or Third World Village. Subjects can include but are not limited to the
following: Nutrition, Water Supply, Health, Sanitation, Ecology,
Environment, Family Life, Leisure |
- Define goals, objectives, and rationale for the
project
- Show how you will help secure funds to help
this village
- Show expected outcomes
- Include limitations
For
assignment #3 - students
will work in groups of two or three during the course to review different
configurations of development projects in developing countries. An individual
case study of an existing or fictitious village choosing one of the subject
areas listed above is encouraged ( 6-8pp).
In preparation of your papers, pay attention to
the following:
Subject matter assigned
Organization of data
Research
Clarity & spelling
Personal Reflections
Final Grades
| Participation and debate |
10% |
| Research papers &
Development Project |
80% |
| Quizzes |
10% |
Punctuality and attendance are essential. The
instructor needs to be notified of an absence ahead of class. Students are
downgraded for one grade point for three absences. Class participation is
strongly encouraged.
PLAGIARISM is
strongly discouraged in this class. Please try to be original and creative.
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