Soc 402 – Jessie’s Gift Fall 2006 and Spring 2007
Instructors – Len Berkey & Terry Langston Office Hours: by appointment
Website: http://courses.albion.edu/...................
Seminar Description
Jessie’s Gift is a research/mentoring program that links Albion College students with local at-risk
elementary school children in an intensive service-learning partnership. Albion College students commit
one unit both fall and spring semesters to tutoring and mentoring local youngsters who exhibit behavioral
and/or academic difficulties that threaten their future school success. The specific goals for each child will
be worked out in collaboration with teachers and parents, along with the children themselves. In general
terms, then, the goals of this program are to build strong relationships between Albion College student
mentors and local at-risk kids, raise these children’s aspirations for the future, deepen their attachment to
school, improve their basic academic skills where possible, and reinforce their positive social skills.
Jessie’s Gift Research Seminar: 2006-07
Jessie’s Gift honors the legacy of Jessie Driscoll Longhurst who participated in an earlier Building Assets
in Middle School Girls program during the 2001-02 academic year when she was still a senior at Albion High
School. Jessie’s passion, wisdom, energy, generosity, and incredible sense of humor, along with her heartfelt
commitment to racial justice in America, are the benchmarks against which we will be measured. Her dedication
to the Albion community and its children was truly a gift to us all.
But let’s be clear: this is also a research seminar in which you will be expected to articulate a specific research
question related to childhood, inequality, race relations, gender, or some other factor that shapes the lives of
children in the Albion community, and to explore this question in depth over the course of this academic year.
We intend to emphasize the learning component of “service-learning” and to contribute to your preparation
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for both personal and professional lives
after Albion College. Most of the class sessions
themselves then, especially during the first semester,
will be devoted to learning about qualitative research
methods, early childhood development, racial and
ethnic identity, and other relevant topics, and to
consulting with local community leaders and activists.
You will be expected to develop a research proposal,
build a bibliography, begin intensive reading, and to
submit your research proposal to the IRB (Institutional
Review Board) this fall. You will also be expected to
post regular ethnographic fieldnotes to a class folder,
based upon your interaction with the mentees and
others in the community. Finally, you will be required
to submit a first draft of your research paper by the
end of the semester.
Here are some deadlines to keep in mind:
Friday, September 22 Research proposal and bibliography are due.
October 16-20 Class presentations on research topics and progress.
Friday, December 1 First draft of research paper is due.
Course Materials
The following books are required reading for this course:
1. John Lofland, et al., Analyzing Social Settings: A Guide to Qualitative Observation and Analysis,
4th Edition (Wadsworth Publishing, 2005).
2. Thomas W. Dortch, Jr., The Miracles of Mentoring (Broadway Books, 2001).
3. James P. Comer, Leave No Child Behind (Yale University Press, 2004).
4. Erin Horvat and Carla O’Connor (Eds.), Beyond Acting White (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2006).
Method of Evaluation
For the fall semester, one third of your course grade will be based upon the quality of your class participation and the
fieldnotes that you post on the course web. One third of your grade will reflect the diligence with which you approach
your mentoring/tutoring responsibilities. And the final third of your grade will be based upon the quality of your research
paper, a rough draft of which will be due at our last class meeting on December 1st.
Assigned Readings
1. August 21-25
What was your childhood like? What are your most vivid memories of school as a child? Who really influenced the
most then and how? What does your background suggest about the strengths and weaknesses that you bring to this
program? What concerns do you have as we begin?
Write your response in a lengthy email (by Wednesday) and post it to our course folder.
2. August 28- Sept 1
Read Thomas Dortch’s The Miracles of Mentoring (pages 1-61 for Monday, 63-130 for
Wednesday, and 131-195 for Friday). Also, check out at least four of the websites listed in the
back of that book, including The National Mentoring Partnership’s www.mentoring.org .
3. September 6-11
Margaret Anderson, “Studying Across Difference.” (distributed in class)
Patricia and Peter Adler, “The Promise and Pitfalls of Going Into the Field.” (distributed in class)
John Lofland et al., Analyzing Social Settings, pages 108-117 first, then 1-53.
4. September 13-15
Greg J. Duncan and Katherine A. Magnuson, “Can Family Socioeconomic Resources Account for Racial and Ethnic
Test Score Gaps?”
http://www.futureofchildren.org/usr_doc/pg35_duncan-magnuson.pdf
Jeanne Brooks-Gunn and Lisa Markman, “The Contribution of Parenting to Ethnic and Racial Gaps in School Readiness.”
http://www.futureofchildren.org/usr_doc/pg_139_markman_&_brooks-gunn.pdf
5. September 18-October 6
James P. Comer, Leave No Child Behind.
6. October 11-13
Fieldnotes, experiences and insights. What are your impressions thus far?
7. October 16-20
Student presentations on research topics.
8. October 23-27
John Lofland et al., Analyzing Social Settings, pages 54-80.
9. October 30- November 17
Erin McNamara Horvat and Carla O’Connor (eds.), Beyond Acting White.
10. November 20- December 1
Research progress reports – ten minutes a piece.
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Great Websites for Jessie’s Gift:
Everything you ever want to know about mentoring at the national level, plus information on standards and evaluation
of programs.
2. http://www.servicelearning.org/
What other high school and college folks around the country are up to.
3. http://www.futureofchildren.org/
Great source for current research and support for projects related to the lives of children and their families.
4. http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer
Premier lobbying organization in the United States for children’s interests.
Great data source for data on children.
6. http://www.aecf.org/kidscount/sld/databook.jsp
Even more data!!
7. http://www.professorgarfield.org/pgf_Intro.html
Fun site to use in mentoring.
8. http://www.albionecalendar.com/
What’s up in our community!!