Active Outline

General Information

Course ID (CB01A and CB01B)
ICS D027H
Course Title (CB02)
Grassroots Democracy: Leadership and Power - HONORS
Course Credit Status
Credit - Degree Applicable
Effective Term
Fall 2023
Course Description
Applied and theoretical training for students of social justice, this course is a multidisciplinary exploration of social change and popular democratic action with a focus on the meaning and development of political power in modern democracies. Topics to be explored include: gender and race sensitive approaches to leadership style, institutional and mass forums for civic engagement, mass recruitment and mobilization, consciousness development, democratic ethics, and strategic and tactical action. As an honors course the students will be expected to complete extra assignments to gain deeper insight into the issues raised in this class.
Faculty Requirements
Course Family
Not Applicable

Course Justification

This course meets a general education requirement for °®¶¹´«Ã½, CSUGE and IGETC. This course is UC and CSU transferable and belongs on the Leadership and Social Change Certificate of Achievement. This course provides an interdisciplinary, multicultural and gendered view of democratic grassroots leadership and power in the United States. It helps our students prepare to live in a multicultural society while also providing them with the practical and analytical tools needed to engage in effective citizenship on these issues. This course is the honors version and as a result includes more advances assessments and assignments.

Foothill Equivalency

Does the course have a Foothill equivalent?
No
Foothill Course ID

Course Philosophy

Formerly Statement

Course Development Options

Basic Skill Status (CB08)
Course is not a basic skills course.
Grade Options
  • Letter Grade
  • Pass/No Pass
Repeat Limit
0

Transferability & Gen. Ed. Options

Transferability
Transferable to both UC and CSU
°®¶¹´«Ã½ GEArea(s)StatusDetails
2GDX°®¶¹´«Ã½ GE Area D - Social and Behavioral SciencesApproved
2GES°®¶¹´«Ã½ GE - Environment Sustainability and Global CitizenshipApproved
CSU GEArea(s)StatusDetails
CGDYCSU GE Area D - Social SciencesApproved
IGETCArea(s)StatusDetails
IG4XIGETC Area 4 - Social and Behavioral SciencesApproved

Units and Hours

Summary

Minimum Credit Units
4.0
Maximum Credit Units
4.0

Weekly Student Hours

TypeIn ClassOut of Class
Lecture Hours4.08.0
Laboratory Hours0.00.0

Course Student Hours

Course Duration (Weeks)
12.0
Hours per unit divisor
36.0
Course In-Class (Contact) Hours
Lecture
48.0
Laboratory
0.0
Total
48.0
Course Out-of-Class Hours
Lecture
96.0
Laboratory
0.0
NA
0.0
Total
96.0

Prerequisite(s)

Corequisite(s)

Advisory(ies)

EWRT D001A or EWRT D01AH or ESL D005.

Limitation(s) on Enrollment

  • (Not open to students with credit in the cross-listed course(s).)
  • (Not open to students with credit in the non-Honors related course.)
  • (Admission into this course requires consent of the Honors Program Coordinator.)

(Also listed as POLI D017H.)

Entrance Skill(s)

General Course Statement(s)

(See general education pages for the requirements this course meets.)

Methods of Instruction

Lecture and visual aids

Discussion of assigned reading

Discussion and problem solving performed in class

In-class exploration of Internet sites

Quiz and examination review performed in class

Homework and extended projects

Field observation and field trips

Guest speakers

Collaborative learning and small group exercises

Collaborative projects

Civic Engagement/Service Learning Project Assignments

Assignments

  1. Field Research and Participant Observation: Students will choose an individual or group civic engagement or service learning project at the beginning of the term. This will entail engagement in and observation of some effort to exercise democratic control over local political, social, educational, or economic conditions.
  2. Verbal: Students will make oral presentations based on their participant observations and their discussions carried out in pairs and small working groups. Students may also carry out interview assignments as part of research projects.
  3. Written: Students will engage in a variety of critical writing exercises which will include some combination of the following: weekly study question assignments, journal entries, short papers, term papers, creation of a comprehensive portfolio, and mid-term and/or final essay exams. In each format, students will demonstrate their knowledge of and ability to evaluate and apply the theoretical and methodological perspectives presented in class presentations or exercises, assigned readings, field research, or constructivist dyads. Students will write a minimum of 2500 words during the quarter.
  4. Reading: Students will carry out weekly reading assignments relating to the overall theoretical and methodological concerns of this course, the specific content areas relevant to their field research projects, as well as to the development, history, and social conditions relating to grassroots leadership.
  5. Critical Self Reflection through collaborative consultation, collaborative learning, narrative partnerships: Using a variety of models of self-reflection, students will engage in a regular practice of self-evaluation/critique regarding their own leadership development, especially relating both to the substance and process of their field study.
  6. The honors project assignment will include one of the following
    1. Written research project (10-15 pages)
    2. Participation in honors study group of at least 8 hours plus a reflection on each study group session
    3. An extra 10 hours of civic engagement work plus answers to extra reflection questions

Methods of Evaluation

  1. Short papers that will assess students ability to identify and practice major methodologies of social science field research such as interview, observation, and participant-observation, among other learning goals for the course.
  2. The class requires 12 hours of community engagement and reflection on that engagement.
  3. Oral reports that will assess students ability to compare and appraise the contemporary and historical micro and macro social dynamics in which democratic grassroots leaders have usually operated, among other learning goals for the course.
  4. Group collaborative learning assignments that will assess student's ability to develop models for understanding and evaluating the ways that effective leadership styles vary significantly based on gender and culture, among other learning goals for the course.
  5. Self-Assessment and Peer Assessment tools of grassroots leadership skills that assess students ability to recognize and critically assess the role of subjective experience and interpretation in both the study and the practice of democratic group leadership, among other learning goals for the course.
  6. Weekly journal, homework or note-taking assignment that will assess students ability to recognize and critically assess the role of subjective experience and interpretation in both the study and the practice of democratic group leadership, among other learning goals for the course.
  7. Final exam and/or a comprehensive cumulative research paper, project, field work reports, and/or portfoli that will: assess students ability to identify, practice and assess skills of critical thinking and emotional intelligence which enhance grassroots leadership and political democracy within a culturally diverse society; and assess students ability to summarize, integrate, and critically analyze and apply concepts examined throughout the course; and/or assess other learning goals for the course.
  8. For honors assignment, the paper or reflection will be evaluated for depth of analysis, critical thinking skills, and evidence that the student is making intellectual connections between themselves, the material we are studying as a class, and the work done for the honors assignment.

Essential Student Materials/Essential College Facilities

Essential Student Materials: 
  • None.
Essential College Facilities:
  • None.

Examples of Primary Texts and References

AuthorTitlePublisherDate/EditionISBN
Bill Lofy & Wellstone Action, Politics the Wellstone Way (Minneapolis: University of MN Press, 2005)
Marcy Levy Shankman & Scott J. Allen, Emotionally Intelligent Leadership: a Guide for College Students (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2nd edition 2015).
James Kouzes & Barry Posner, "The Student Leadership Challenge: Five Practices for becoming an Exemplary Leader" (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2nd edition 2014).
Joan Minieri & Paul Getsos, Tools for Radical Democracy (San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, 2007)

Examples of Supporting Texts and References

AuthorTitlePublisher
Julian Weissglass, Ripples of Hope: Building Relationships for Educational Change (Santa Barbara, CA: Center for Educational Change in Mathematics, 1998).
Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed (New York: Continuum, 1983).
Marshall B. Rosenberg PhD and Deepak Chopra, Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life, 3rd Edition: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships(Puddledancer Press, 2015).
Pam Roby, Creating a Just World: Leadership for the Twenty-First Century (Seattle: Rational Island Publishers, 1998).
Erica Sherover-Marcuse, "Liberation Theory: Axioms and Working Assumptions about the Perpetuation of Social Oppression," in Nicky Gonzalez Yuen, ed., The Politics of Liberation (second edition), (Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt, 1996).
Sidney Tarrow, Struggling to Reform: Social Movements and Policy Change During Cycles of Protest (Working Paper no. 1 of the project on Social Protest and Policy Innovation at Cornell University, January 1982).
Robert Weiss, Learning from Strangers: the Art and Method of Qualitative Interview Studies (New York: The Free Press, 1994).

Learning Outcomes and Objectives

Course Objectives

  • Explore the nature of the social sciences as a disciplinary field.
  • Identify and practice major methodologies of social science field research such as interview, observation, and participant-observation.
  • Develop models for understanding and evaluating effective political leadership in contemporary and historical democratic social movements.
  • Compare and appraise the contemporary and historical micro and macro social dynamics in which democratic grassroots leaders have usually operated.
  • Develop models for understanding and evaluating the ways that effective leadership styles vary significantly based on gender and culture.
  • Identify, practice and assess skills of critical thinking and emotional intelligence which enhance grassroots leadership and political democracy within a culturally diverse society.
  • Recognize and critically assess the role of subjective experience and interpretation in both the study and the practice of democratic group leadership.
  • Analyze the histories of social movements and how they have obtained their goals
  • Develop intellectual ownership of an issue in social change by working on an intensive project

CSLOs

  • Students will demonstrate the capacity to participate in political processes and leadership techniques common in the effective exercise of democratic social movements.

  • Students will compare and appraise the contemporary and historical micro and macro social dynamics in which democratic grassroots leaders have usually operated.

  • Students will develop models for understanding and evaluating effective leadership in contemporary and historical democratic social movements, including but not limited to community organizing, electoral campaigns, non-profit and social service organizations, and non-governmental organizations.

Outline

  1. Explore the nature of the social sciences as a disciplinary field.
    1. Social Science as the study of people as members of society.
    2. The study of social structures/institutions.
    3. Political science methodologies examining institutional power structures and the nature of social authority.
    4. Sociological methodologies such as macro- and micro- institutional analysis.
    5. Psychological and Social Psychological approaches to individual, social, and institutional behavior.
    6. Economic analysis that explores the micro and macro systems for the production, allocation and distribution of social and material resources.
    7. Jurisprudential approaches which examine formal and informal systems of law, regulation, and social control.
    8. Historical methodologies which explore and interpret the development of human events over time.
    9. Women's Studies as:
      1. an examination of power and gender roles and how they vary for women and men of different racial, ethnic, class and sexuality groups;
      2. an examination of the varying positions of women in society, emphasizing the diverse nature of women's experiences, including an investigation of reproductive rights, family, work, beauty images, the mass media, and social movements; and
      3. a multi-faceted discipline including such diverse perspectives as:
        1. liberal feminism
        2. socialist feminism
        3. ecofeminism
        4. radical feminism
        5. multisystems feminism
  2. Identify and practice major methodologies of social science field research such as interview, observation, and participant-observation.
    1. Differentiate the types of data available through each, and assess the strengths, weaknesses, and reliability of each methodology.
    2. Compare and contrast experiences and perspectives shared by the student and people from culturally different backgrounds.
    3. Explore the reality of social environments outside of classroom settings and use this experience to compare and analyze the theoretical models available through various social science disciplines.
    4. Engage in Social Science field work methodologies to observe and/or participate in potentially effective public policies and inter-personal strategies to enhance the emergence and development of grassroots leadership.
  3. Develop models for understanding and evaluating effective political leadership in contemporary and historical democratic social movements.
    1. Examine the meaning and uses of leadership and power, the student's and other people's, in multiple contexts.
    2. Compare and contrast the leadership histories of selected democratic social movement efforts, such as the feminist movement, the civil rights movement, the environmental movement, the labor movement and student movements.
    3. Understand, assess and practice strategic and tactical political planning for both institutional/formal and grassroots/community actions.
    4. Explore and practice effective task development and implementation in a field setting including but not limited to: mass recruitment and mobilization including the development of critical consciousness among constituents; effective management and retention of volunteers/members; development of other people's leadership; and, raising and managing material resources, including fundraising.
  4. Compare and appraise the contemporary and historical micro and macro social dynamics in which democratic grassroots leaders have usually operated.
    1. Identify and compare diverse individual and group behavior patterns and political/cultural ideologies that lead to and frame individual and group experiences of grassroots leadership, paying particular attention to issues of gender, race and social class.
    2. Identify and compare common dominant and subordinate group reactions to the emergence of grassroots leadership: e.g., resistance, acceptance, cultural patterns of "internalized domination"and "internalized oppression," internal and external attacks on leaders, feelings of efficacy versus feelings of powerlessness, etc, paying particular attention to issues of gender, race and social class.
    3. Identify and explore critical substantive issues facing our society around which grassroots leadership is developing (e.g., environmental sustainability, gender roles and gender inequality, the collapsing economy, joblessness, rising school fees, racism, etc)
  5. Develop models for understanding and evaluating the ways that effective leadership styles vary significantly based on gender and culture.
    1. Examine the historical and contemporary impact of women's leadership on U.S. and international social movements including women's leadership in the anti-slavery movement, the suffragist movement, the emergence of feminism in the late 1960s and its impact on the New Left, as well as contemporary (4th wave) feminism.
    2. Identify and compare the relationship between social categories such as race, class, gender, and sexual orientation and the development of grassroots leadership.
    3. Identify and explore key issues relating to the diverse population/demographic groups in our society (e.g., race, gender, class, sexual orientation, immigration status, disability, religion (or absence thereof), etc).
    4. Explore the ways that the leadership of women can be misperceived and underestimated as well as the virtues of forms of leadership typically associated with women.
  6. Identify, practice and assess skills of critical thinking and emotional intelligence which enhance grassroots leadership and political democracy within a culturally diverse society.
    1. Develop and explore critical thinking and planning skills as a core component of grassroots leadership development.
    2. Use and assess "listening partnerships," "dyadic relationships," or other forms of "narrative partnerships" to listen to, comprehend, and communicate cognitive and affective experiences relating to the course material (see, for example, Weissglass's "constructivist listening" groups, Jackins' "sessions" or Roby's "dyads").
    3. Use and assess essential skills of emotionally intelligent and critically thoughtful grassroots leadership including but not limited to: development and communication of a vision for one's community and world; development and nurturing of human relationships that foster caring communities and cooperative action; self-reflection and emotional insight; the communication and use of democratic ethics.
  7. Recognize and critically assess the role of subjective experience and interpretation in both the study and the practice of democratic group leadership.
    1. Explore the essential role of subjective interpretation, varying perspectives, and difference inherent in democratic societies.
    2. Critically assess and practice the art of compromise and balance in grassroots leadership while attending to the importance of maintaining an ethical core.
  8. Analyze the histories of social movements and how they have obtained their goals.
    1. Investigate the history and methods used by environmental movements in the twentieth century to build a sustainable society.
    2. Investigate the history of and methods used by civil rights and cultural identity movements of US people of color in the twentieth century
    3. Investigate the history of and methods used by anti-colonial and anti-capitalism movements around the world.
  9. Develop intellectual ownership of an issue in social change by working on an intensive project
    1. Personal exploration of an area of specific concern to the student
    2. Analysis and reflection on the connections between an intensive project and the course materials.
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