Undergraduate Courses

The course introduces elements of mathematical proof, focusing on three main themes: 1. The meaning of mathematical statements – universal/existential; 2. The roles of examples in determining the validity of mathematical statements; 3. The various forms and methods of mathematical proofs, including Direct (deductive) proof; proof by exhaustion; indirect proof (by contradiction, or by contrapositive); mathematical induction; disproof by counterexample. This is a problem-based course. Lessons are structured around activities that engage students in doing proofs that are meaningful to them and based on mathematical topics with which they are familiar

A methods course focusing on how to teach mathematics at the elementary school level. Use a variety of manipulatives & the development of concepts and skills.

A methods course focusing on how to teach mathematics at the elementary school level. Use of a variety of manipulatives & the development of concepts & skills

How mathematics is learned through the social experiences of young children. Analysis of activities in early childhood settings that help children develop insight into mathematics both as a study in itself & as a tool for applied use. Focus on the mathematical concepts that infuse young children's experiences, the use of mathematical tools in young children's learning, methods for adapting math curriculum for learners with diverse abilities, & the relationship of mathematical learning to all areas of the curriculum.

How mathematics is learned through the spatial/temporal worlds of young children. Analysis of activities in early childhood settings that help children develop emerging, unprejudiced mathematical awareness. Focus on the mathematical environment that respects all learners as a means to build upon children's existing mathematical perceptions & expand and further those reading.

Not Available.

Departing from the premise that money and finance are not simply a system but also a culture, this class considers how money, finance, and economics are shaped in part through media representations. We examine historical ways of thinking about money, the centrality of financial markets in 20th-21st century globalization, and the examination of financial systems in the wake of the 2008 financial meltdown. Students explore the role of money media in shaping attitudes toward consumerism, financial decisions, and finance systems.

This course examines the relationship between mediated forms of communications and the formation of identities, both individual and social. Attention paid to the way mediated forms of communication represent different social and cultural groupings, with a particular emphasis on gender, race, ethnicity, class and nationality.

This interactive, discussion-oriented course addresses the politics and tactics underlying five broad categories of media activism: media interventions at the levels of representation, labor relations, policy, strategic communication, and “alternative” media making. The course surveys the existing scholarship on media activism, and undertakes close analyses of actual activist practices within both old and new media. We examine a wide-range of digital media as well as local, national, and global media activist institutions.

Introduces students to methods for analyzing the content, structure, production, and context of media in society, including textual analysis, political economy, archival research, and ethnography. As students employ these frameworks in their own analyses of mediated communication, they build media-specific projects using image-editing, visualization, and web-based archival technologies.

This course examines the broad range of activities associated with the globalization of media production, distribution, and reception. Issues include: the relationship between local and national identities and the emergence of a 'global culture' and the impact of technological innovations on the media themselves and their use and reception in a variety of settings.

The course examines the role of media in the lives and cultures of transnational immigrant communities. Using a comparative framework and readings drawn from interdisciplinary sources, the course explores how media practices and media representations define and enable new conceptions and practices of national belonging, identity and culture in the context of global migration.

This course investigates the mediation of music & music-like sounds in both private & public life. Commercial venues, from restaurants to rest rooms, pipe Muzakl into its spaces; radios broadcast more music than any other content today; soundtracks imprint the texture of signifying associations for television shows & films; we carry personal playlists on mobile music players; & musical media & technological, ideological & metaphysical dimension; as well as the relation of music to mass media (radio, television, the internet) & the film and music industries.

Cultural meanings of health and disease are shaped not only by scientific and medical discourses but also by media and communication technologies. This course examines the role of media "from scientific instruments to public health campaigns to data visualization techniques" in shaping what counts as normal and pathological; governmental logics of care, public understanding of biotechnology; and the ways individuals and collectives understand and contest biomedical knowledge. Course materials are drawn from anthropology, history, science and technology studies, communication studies, and medical memoir.

This course will investigate the dominant critical perspectives that have contributed to the development of Environmental Communication as a field of study. This course explores the premise that the way we communicate powerfully impacts our perceptions of the "natural" world, and that these perceptions shape the way we define our relationships to and within nature. The goal of this course is to access various conceptual frameworks for addressing questions about the relationship between the environment, culture and communication. Students will explore topics such as nature/wildlife tourism, consumerism, representations of the environment in popular culture and environmental activism.

The course investigates dominant critical perspectives within the field of Environmental Communication, the premise of which is that the way we communicate powerfully impacts our perceptions of the "natural" world, and that these perceptions shape the way we define our relationships to nature. We access various conceptual frameworks for addressing questions of environment, culture, and communication. Students explore topics such as nature/wildlife tourism, consumerism, representations of the environment in popular culture, and environmental activism.

An examination of the great debate concerning the effects of mass media and mass communication on our society. Analysis and application of major perspectives and approaches used in formulating modern theories of mass communication.

An examination of the great debate concerning the effects of mass media and mass communication on our society. Analysis and application of major perspectives and approaches used in formulating modern theories of mass communication.

This course examines the role played by media events & spectacle in the shaping of belief, attitudes, & actions, with particular attention paid to the concept of the masses & its changed meaning
over time. The course examines concepts of mass culture, the decentralization of cultural forms, & the rise of convergence culture. It explores the history of the media event & the theories that have shaped it, & the role of spectacle in society from the Renaissance to modern society to the age of digital media.