TEXT TO BE PURCHASED BY STUDENTS

George E.B. Morren, Jr. When the Chips are Down: Individual and Community Responses to Environmental Problems University Copy (2003) [A draft text book created for this course and available for purchase at the Cookie Jar]

COURSE OUTLINE, ASSIGNMENTS & USEFUL LINKS

WEEK 1 Introduction: The Plan of the Course 4 September

Text: Morren, Preface, pp. i – iv.

Handout: (1) Course Outline

(2) Learning Style Inventory to be completed at home

WEEK 2 Learning and Problem Solving 8 - 11 September

Text: Morren, Chapter 1, pp. 1 - 34

Handout: (1) Lost at Sea

WEEK 3 & 4 Awareness, Perception and Empowerment 15 September – 25 October

Text: (1) Morren, Chapt. 2, pp. 35-77; Case Studies D (Michigan), pp. 357-366; J (Donora) 438-

Handout: What's Risky?

Assignment: Following the procedure in the text, what are the 'latent functions' of higher

education in American society?

WEEK 5 An Introduction to Environmental Problems in New Jersey 29 September – 2 October

Text: (1) Morren, Chapter 3, pp. 78-173; Case Studies G (Dioxin and the Ironbound) pp. 392-406; I (Rocky Hill), pp. 440-449;

Assignment: Complete Residential Hazard Survey and Essay on 'The Place Where I Live' (3+ pp. essay with Survey attached) and debriefing due on 9 October]

Download: Residential Hazard Survey (03)

Data Links: New Jersey Dam Inventory NJNID

New Jersey Former Military Facilities

Known Contaminated Sites2001

Superfund List 1999

EPA’s National Superfund List http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/

EPA’s Toxic Release Inventory http://www.epa.gov/tri/

WEEK 6 Gathering Information about Novel Situations 6 - 9 October

Download: Research Tools and Information Sources

Assignment: Prepare a proposal of several paragraphs describing the community based situation you intend to research for your semester project. You should also indicate how you plan to gather information and how much you have done already to assure the feasibility of your chosen topic. Your case study will focus on a specific community or population that is experiencing (or has experienced in the past) a problematic situation. Your concern will be to use course concepts to examine people's responses to problems and hazards (or, possibly, opportunities); the relationship between the characteristics of the situation and features of people's responses; the role of past experience and actions in affecting the foregoing (otherwise known as history!); and the general context in which the community finds itself. Your central task is to grasp the particularities of the physical situation as well as the perceptions, actions and antagonisms of (and among) the ordinary people, authorities, scientists, etc. involved in it.

WEEK 7 Thinking about Problems 'Whole' 13 - 16 October

Text: (1) Morren, Chapter 4, pp. 174-199; Case Study F (Bangladesh) 377-391

Download: Hazard Dimensions Outline Form

Assignment: Apply the Hazard Dimensions Outline Form for the Arkansas Tornado Case A

WEEKS 8 & 9 How to Assess and Measure Problematic Situations 20 - 30 October

Text: Morren, Chapter 5, pp. 200-231 Case Study C (Mississippi River) pp. 345-356

Download: Hazard Dimensions Outline Form for Take-Home Midterm Exercise

WEEKS 10 & 11 Responses, Conflict and Organization 3 – 13 November

Text: Morren, Chapters 6, pp. 232 - 260; & 7 pp. 261 - 290, Case Studies B, pp. 328-344

WEEKS 12, 13, & 14 What Comes Next: Intervention for Improvement 17 November - 11 December

Text: Morren, Chapter 8, pp. 273 - 298; Case Study H, pp. 430-439

Final Research Report Due – 12/11

COURSE WORK, REQUIREMENTS, EXPECTATIONS, AND GRADES

1. OVERVIEW As the introduction in the opening sessions indicated, this course is oriented towards experiential and problem-based learning. Accordingly, your progress depends on attending class and participating fully in learning opportunities and group experiences. In addition, class meetings facilitate learning by helping you to make sense out of complex and messy situations. In this course, the class is the text! Attendance will be taken and only two unexcused absences will be permitted during the semester.

2. OBJECTIVES Your learning objectives in the course -- the reasons for taking it -- include acquiring or improving competencies in the such areas as learning, inquiry, knowledge creation, planning, and problem solving.

a. all-round learning ability. This implies self-conscious efforts to deal with your weaknesses as well as playing to your strengths.

b. ability to work effectively with people of other learning preferences and world views;

c. the ability to encounter and explore novel situations openly and without bias, to immerse yourself in new situations, and to apply relevant observational and data gathering skills;

d. assimilative abilities including thinking abstractly and consciously developing and using mental frameworks, concepts and theories including the 'holistic thinking' presented in this course;

e. convergent abilities in applying abstract knowledge to decision-making and planning;

f. accommodative and executive competencies in communications, people-skills such as leadership, implementing plans, and otherwise taking action; and

g. generally increasing your fund of knowledge and experience regarding the substantive focus of the course, how people assess and take action to improve problematic situations in their environments as individuals and as members of communities and other groups.

3. GRADES Your accomplishments in the course will be assessed as follows:

a. Familiarity with the readings as expressed in class participation (see below).

b. Homework exercises will only figure in the final grade if you fail to do them seriously (or at all)! They are intended to contribute to your growing competencies, facilitate participation, and document effort and achievement along the way.

c. A graded take home exercise (see Week 8 & 9) at mid-term counting 25 %.

d. Attendance and participation, counting 10 %. From time to time, you will be called on by name and expect a pop quiz on current readings at anytime.

e. Residential Hazard Survey and report on ' The Place Where I Live' Essay 25%

f. A final report on an approved topic (see Week 6). Paper topics are subject to my prior approval. You should select a topic that focuses on a specific community or population such as a town or neighborhood that is experiencing or has experienced one or more problematic situations and, using frameworks developed in class, analyze the situation(s) and people's responses. This 'final' will count 40 % and is the 'Final Exam' in the course.

4. ACADEMIC INTEGRITY Cheating in this course means, essentially, representing the work of others as your own. This includes (but is not limited to), copying another student’s take-home exercise, sharing your work with others, ‘recycling’ papers and take homes from other years , copying published work (including web documents) at length without attribution. Any of these offenses may earn a summary ‘F’ and/or official disciplinary action.

5. CELL PHONES AND PAGERS Such personal communications devices must be ‘turned off’ in class. Exceptions may be made for ‘emergency responders’ and others who make their circumstances known to the instructor. Offending devices are subject to destruction.