COURSES

NEWS & EVENTS

 

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY AND GENDER STUDIES

Sociology and Gender Studies in Central Women’s University is concerned with real-world issues with policy relevance such as social inequality, the social basis of political conflict and mobilization and crime, changes in family relationships and gender roles. It also concentrates on ideas in sociology to explain gender divisions and theorize subordination and the domination of women in sociological discourses.

First Year

Semester -One:

BDS- 101: Bangladesh Studies (3 Credits)

This course is designed to introduce students with a general understanding of Bangladeshi nationalism and national identity, geographical distribution, society & culture, politics and environmental issues of Bangladesh.

ENG -101: Academic English-I (3 Credits)

This course is designed to help the students familiarize with different types of sentences, transformation of sentences, tense, right form of verbs, appropriate prepositions, adjectives, voices, etc. Another objective of this course is to develop students’ competence in reading skill for academic purpose. Students will be exposed to different types of passages to develop efficient reading skill. They will be taught vocabulary to increase their words stock

 

COM- 101: Developing Computer Skills-1 (3 Credits)

This course is designed to introduce students to be able to effectively use information and communications technology in today’s world. It will provide students the basic knowledge of computer such as hardware, software, computer languages, operating systems, compilers and data communication as well as practical knowledge of different types of operating systems and application packages.

Semester-Two :

SGS-101: Introductory Sociology (3 Credits)

This course covers detail discussion on sociological perspective, development of Sociology as a separate discipline, relation of sociology with other discipline. It will also cover the primary concepts of sociology, element of social organization-social relations and Institutions, role of status, social groups, social process, and social institutions, social stratification and mobility including deviance and changes.

SGS-102: Introduction to Gender Studies in Sociological Discourse (3 Credits)

The course is designed to trace the development of Women’s Studies as an academic discipline, and present the issues, themes, theories and applications in the field of women’s studies. The Course discusses the major issues concerning gender, and deals with the biases and oppression, relevant areas of concern for women, such as, Women and Work, Patriarchy, Violence Against Women and Empowerment of Women.

ENG-102: Academic English-II (3 Credits)

This course aims at improving students’ ability of writing and thinking logically based on different types of paragraphs, expository essays, formal and informal letters, business correspondence, C.V./ resume, amplification, and abstract and proposals for research papers. This course is also designed to improve students’ speaking and listening skills through practice session debate, extempore speech, recitation, role play, audio- visual listening etc.

 

COM-102: Developing Computer Skills-2 (3 Credit)

The aim of this course is to ensure that the students should a basic idea for developing static and dynamic web pages using HTMI, Java Script and PHP, creating simple database and manipulation & store any kinds of data. This course is designed to provide ideas of web technologies, tools concerns relating to information systems. So that students could be able to have to create or develop a web page and issues of emerging web technology infrastructure and multimedia application being used and proposed worldwide.

Semester-Three:

ENG-103: Academic English-III (3 Credits)

This course aims to develop students ability abstract and proposal for dissertation, report writing as well as reading and speak inf abilities

 

SGS-103: World Civilizations (3 Credits)

This course is designed to introduce students to the relationship with history and historical sociology, scopes and recent trends in social history. This course will elaborate the types of human societies, birth of civilization, feudalism, capitalism and post modern societies.

SGS-104: Women’s Movement from Global and Bangladesh Perspective (3 Credits)

This course will introduce meaning of women’s movement, reasons for its emergence and its linkage with broader socio-political movement as well as history of the women’s movement in this region. It also provides scope to relate the gains achieved challenges ahead derived out of global women’s movement, to Bangladesh keeping in view the role of state, activism and the implications of state policy on the women’s movement.

Second Year

Semester-Four:

SGC-201: Introduction to Political Sciences (3 Credits)

This course introduces students to the basic ideas in politics and governance. The emphasis will be on the political theories (i.e. Plato, Aristotle), functioning of political institutions such as the constitution, the forms and organs of governments.

SGS-202: Sociology of Marriage and Family (3 Credits)

This course tries to explain the origin of development of marriage and family in human history, its function and forms. It will also cover divorce and separation and its’ impact on future generation in the society.

SGS-203: Introduction Feminist Theories (3 Credits)

This course introduces the students to the concept of feminism and its various theories based on tome, context and concerns. It also will trace the issues and concepts that feminist theorize about. The course, therefore, will focus on conceptualizing feminism and its link with activism; different approaches to feminism and debates surrounding them; debated issues in feminism like gender, class, identity, power, ethnicity, development, globalization etc.

SGS-204: Literature and Society (3 Credits)

This course will discuss the writings that have helped to shape the images of women in history, and have helped to form feminist thought in both West and East. Concentrating on literary texts, it looks at literature starting from Greek and Indian classics; it covers Shakespeare, Ibsen, Virginia Wolf, and coming to modern-contemporary writings of the sub-continent and with special emphasis on Bangladeshi literature. The main concentration will be on understanding the diversity of women’s realities and situations in literature.

Semester-Five:

SGS-205: Sociological Theories: Comte to Pareto (3 Credits)

This course introduces the Renaissance, French Revolution and Industrial Revolution. This course will also discuss the basic theories of Sociology (i.e. Comte, Spencer, Marx, Durkheim, Weber)

SGS-206: Women, Society and Culture: Theory and Practices (3 Credits)

The course will discuss the concepts of culture and society and their inter connections. Students will gain analytical appreciation of different approaches in defining and assessing three factors in society such as family, education and religion and also how women’s position is constituted in relation to these factors. It will also address contemporary issues broadly from sociological and anthropological perspective where the students will learn to apply their knowledge in the context of policy analysis and implementation.

SGS-207: Human Rights Paradigm: National and Global Context (3 Credits)

The course introduces students to the basic concepts of human rights and the ideas about law that includes meaning, nature, utility, sources of international human rights law. It analyzed some of the basic international and regional human rights documents from gender perspective. Special emphasis will be given on the issue of equality and non-discrimination within international law, inconsistencies within international standards and difficulties in implementation.

SGS-208: Statistics for Social Sciences (3 Credits)

This course offers basic concepts and applied knowledge for the student to interpret analyze data from sociology any gender perspectives. It covers key concepts and definitions, data processing, techniques and presentation, statistical, variables and hypothesis testing etc.

Semester-Six:

SGS-209: Introduction to Economics: (3 Credits)

This course is design to introduce students to the basic concepts of economics, microeconomics and macro economics, to present an overview of development theories and then to endow them with the perspective of sociology and gender in the economy of Bangladesh.

 

SGS-210: Social Anthropology (3 Credits)

This course will provide an introduction to Anthropology as an academic discipline and its various sub disciplines devoted to the study of human life throughout history and in all its variations. The course defines the meaning, definition and scope of Anthropology and includes a critical understanding to establish linkages and processes between Anthropology as a discipline and Sociology and Gender studies and learn to apply them in the analysis of processes that shapes the gendered positioning of men and women as actors both in pre- industrial and in contemporary world.

SGS-211: Gender and Development: conceptual Issues and Debates (3 Credits)

This course will introduce students to development theories and issues related to women, gender and development. It will give an overview of socio- economic theories of development and introduced to theoretical and conceptual approaches to gender issues in the context of development (WID to WAD to GAD). It will also outfit the students with basic conceptual clarity on theoretical issues related to gender in development. Course will cover different approaches to the study of gender,

Third Year

Semester-Seven:

SGS-301: Industrial Sociology (3 Credits)

This course will provide the knowledge about the origin and the development of Industrial sociology, types of industries in Bangladesh, role Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) in women’s empowerment. It will also trace women’s contribution in the production process through the entrepreneurship development and, thus in the economic development of Bangladesh. Special emphasis will be on agro-based industries, tourism industries, and sick industries in Bangladesh.

SGS-302: Gender Based Violence (3 Credits)

The course will introduce the concept of Gender Based Violence (GBV) adopted globally. It will look in to GBV as a process, as a global phenomenon and analyze its characteristics as it cuts across socioeconomic lines all over the world. It will also describe the nature and major forms of violence in relation to public and private spheres include sexual terrorism, domestic and intimate partner violence, and state sponsored violence as well as the consequences of violence on women’s lives.

SGS-303: Sociology of Media and Mass Communication (3 Credits)

This course will be provided students to understand how social order and meanings are created through different communicative levels and contexts. It will inform how conventional views of the society lead to inequities; and how institutional, social and personal communication sustain the status quo. Additionally, Women’s participation in the media industry and their access to new communication technologies will also be addressed.

SGS-304: Introduction to Social Science Research Methodology (3 Credits)

This course will cover the basic concepts in social research along with the qualitative and quantitative methodologies and the implementing process; such as survey and field research, focus group, individual and group observation (including participatory observation) questionnaire design, content analysis, analysis of existing data, gender roles in development projects: analysis and evaluation of different projects, logical framework approach (LFA)etc. Through this course students will be able to coding and analyzing data and report writing.

 

Semester-Eight:

SGS-305: Social Problems (3 Credits)

This course will try to explore the various social problems relating to over urbanization, poverty, over population, social inequality, unemployment, and crime and justice system from Bangladesh perspective.

SGS-306: Gender and Law ( 3 Credits)

The course will introduce students with the laws of different religious groups. The scheme of the Constitution of Bangladesh and the fundamental rights granted to all citizens of Bangladesh will be discussed. There will be review of important provisions of civil and criminal laws, labour law and family law from a gender perspective. Special emphasis will be on Family law, provisions regarding marriage, dower, maintenance, guardianship, custody of children and inheritance under Muslim law, Hindu Law and Christian Law.

SGS-307: Social Poverty and Rural Development of Bangladesh (3 Credits)

The course will provide the students with the opportunity of understanding the concept of inequality, discrimination, vulnerability and exclusion from access to and control over resources, as the core determinants of poverty. The issue of ‘feminization of poverty,’ will be analyzed both from global and national perspective. Students will be provided with an understanding of the relevance of rural development approaches in the context of Bangladesh.

Semester-Nine:

SGS-308: Social Demography (3 Credits)

This course will describe demography, relates demography with other disciplines and highlights population growth world- wide together with some selected population theories of growth. The course focuses on the components of population change namely, fertility, mortality and migration, missing women – definition and determinants, along with the methods and techniques of demographic data collection and the sources and analysis of demographic data.

SGS-309: Tools for Gender Analysis (3 Credits)

This course will provide an overview of some of the principal approaches to gender analysis that have been developed over the past twenty years. This course will examine the significance of the Gender analysis and related concepts (e.g. sex and gender, changes in gender identity and gender relations, productive work and reproductive work and differential access to and control over resources and benefits condition and position, transforming gender relations etc. It also will look at gender indicators, gender auditing and analyze gender budgeting.

SGS-310: Criminology (3 Credits)

This course will introduce students to development of criminology as a separate field of study. It will also cover the etiology of crime and criminals, White Collar Crime, juvenile delinquency, penology, probation paroll and situation of crime in Bangladesh.

Fourth Year

Semester-Ten:

SGS-401: Sociological Theories: Parsons to Post –Modernism (3 Credits)

This course explains the major sociological theories such as rise and fall of Functionalism, Parson’s and System’s theory, Exchange theory, Structuration theory, Critical theory and post-modernism.

SGS-402: Inequality and Differences (3 Credits)

This course will look at the conceptual tools in understanding inequalities and differences that are created in society, structures of gender, classes, interest groups, their inter- relations, Different forms of inequality in Asia and others parts of the world ,the patterns of socio-economic-cultural-ethnic segregation, their consequences and impact on men and women.

SGS-403: Social Structure of Bangladesh (3 Credits)

This course will explain the origin and growth of villages, towns in Bengal, colonialism and social background of the emergence of Bangladesh.

Semester-Eleven:

SGS-404: Oriental Social Thought (3 Credits)

This course will discuss various oriental social thought, Islamic philosophy, Chinese Social thought and Indian Social thought.

SGS-405: Social Environmental Management -(3 Credits)

The course will define the meaning, definition and types of environment, sociological theories and environment, eco-feminism, green house effect, arsenic, cosis, flood, cyclones, and women environment and development. Section will evaluate the role of women in the environment as producers, consumers and managers and critical understanding of the adverse impact of environmental degradation on the lives and livelihoods of women.

SGS-406: Philosophical Discourse in Sociology (3 Credits)

The course is designed to gain an understanding of various philosophical thoughts. Students will also be exposed to the philosophical literature, which were written by some great thinkers in the history of philosophy. It will cover the primary sources of our knowledge i.e. Authoritarianism, Rationalism Descares, Kant and Hegel. A number of epistemological questions concentrating on theories of perception will be examined here from gender lens.

SGS-407: Women and Religion (3 Credits)

The course will cover the origin, development and theories on religion from anthropological and sociological perspectives. The course will also discuss women’s position in major religions and its impact on everyday lives of men and women. While doing so it will also examine socio historic and cultural settings of Bangladesh in relation to religion and its impact on women and their role. The course will also deal with contemporary issues taking into account of both national and international scenario.

Semester-Twelve:

SGS-408: Political Sociology (3 Credits)

This course tries to explain major concepts of political sociology, theories regarding origin of the state, relation of the State with Institutions and other organizations, sociology of movements such as fascism, conservatism, liberalism, socialism and communism.

SGS-409: Sociological Research (3 Credits)

 

SGS-410: Sociological Research (60%Research and 40% Course work) (4 Credits)