This course introduces students to various methods of critical reflection on religion and some of their applications to fundamental topics such as knowledge, value, the sacred, the individual, and society.  Students will cover a variety of religious phenomena, beliefs, and practices mediated by a cross-cultural focus on concepts such as soteriology, theodicy, cosmogony, and secularization. 

Why should I care about religion?

Why do bad things happen to good people? Is religion irrelevant in our fast-paced technological world? Does the sacred look the same across traditions? How can the study of religion help us understand current events? Is religion a creative or destructive force? How does the study of religion relate to your major? These are just some of the questions that we will explore throughout the semester.

This course is interested in examining the different expressions, practices and interpretations of religion from an interdisciplinary perspective. Although no particular tradition will be favored, materials from several traditions will be chosen to exemplify thematic topics in the experience of the Sacred. We will also focus on the tenets of religions, dispelling common misconceptions and assumptions and looking into the emergence of new practices among the post-denominational generation.

How can this course help you advance in your career?

You do not need to be personally religious, majoring in religious studies, or in a field within humanities to benefit from this course. Whatever your academic field is, this course will train you to make important connections between your career and the world of the sacred and the profane. You will be able to understand the complexity of the definitions of religion and secularization, and the role religion plays in local and international affairs.

Religious illiteracy can greatly impact our ability to understand personal and social motivations behind financial decisions, political engagement, science and technological advancement, environmental and migration policies, family planning, diet and food production, gender relations, war and terrorist attacks, and more. Whether you notice or not, religion is a universal phenomenon that continues to transform and be transformed by our societies.

Our approach is interdisciplinary, which means you will be critically reflecting from many fields of study such as philosophy, psychology, cultural studies, history, economics, gender studies, among others. This enhances your ability to think critically, communicate effectively, respond sensitively, collaborate with others and creatively resolve conflict.

At the end of this course, students will able to:

1. Explain the basic history, development, and belief systems of various religious traditions.

2. Recognize religious themes and concepts found in other cultures.

3. Identify the meaning behind religious concepts and symbols.

4. Evaluate their own religious views in regards to other cultures and paradigms of religious thought.

5. Apply critical thinking to various topics in the field of religious studies.

6. Demonstrate creative thinking about religious issues in the contemporary world.

7. Conduct field research about a particular religious community.

8. Analyze topics in the field of religious studies from multiple perspectives.

9. Assess how global issues and trends are interrelated with the development and practice of religions.

This course satisfies the University Core Curriculum for Humanities Group Two (FIU required) as supported by the learning outcomes for our course – see Course Objectives above

There are no prerequisites for this course. More information about prerequisites can be found in the FIU course catalog.

This course fulfills the Gordon Rule requirement; a “C” or better must be earned to receive credit for this course.

This course fulfills the Global Learning Foundations requirement. To learn more, please visit the Global Learning graduation requirement page.

This class does not require proctored exams.

Please review the FIU's Policies webpage. The policies webpage contains essential information regarding guidelines relevant to all courses at FIU, as well as additional information about acceptable netiquette for online courses. For additional information, please visit FIU's Policy and Procedure Library.

As a member of the FIU community you are expected to be knowledgeable about the behavioral expectations set forth in the FIU Student Conduct and Honor Code.

One of the greatest barriers to taking an online course is a lack of basic computer literacy. By computer literacy we mean being able to manage and organize computer files efficiently, and learning to use your computer's operating system and software quickly and easily. Keep in mind that this is not a computer literacy course; but students enrolled in online courses are expected to have moderate proficiency using a computer. Students will be expected to have reasonable proficiency in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Please go to the "What's Required" webpage to find out more information on this subject.

Privacy Policy Statements for Partners and Vendors

• Canvas
• Microsoft
• Adobe
• Google
• YouTube
• Zoom

Please visit our Technical Requirements webpage for additional information.

The Disability Resource Center collaborates with students, faculty, staff, and community members to create diverse learning environments that are usable, equitable, inclusive and sustainable. The DRC provides FIU students with disabilities the necessary support to successfully complete their education and participate in activities available to all students. If you have a diagnosed disability and plan to utilize academic accommodations, please contact the Center at 305-348-3532 or visit them at the Graham Center GC 190 (BBC: WUC 139, 305-919-5345).

For additional assistance please contact FIU's Disability Resource Center.

Web Accessibility Statements for Partners and Vendors 

• Canvas
• Microsoft
• Adobe
• Google
• YouTube
• Zoom

Please visit our ADA Compliance webpage for additional information about accessibility involving the tools used in this course.

Florida International University is a community dedicated to generating and imparting knowledge through excellent teaching and research, the rigorous and respectful exchange of ideas, and community service. All students should respect the right of others to have an equitable opportunity to learn and honestly demonstrate the quality of their learning. Therefore, all students are expected to adhere to a standard of academic conduct, which demonstrates respect for themselves, their fellow students, and the educational mission of the University. All students are deemed by the University to understand that if they are found responsible for academic misconduct, they will be subject to the Academic Misconduct procedures and sanctions, as outlined in the Student Conduct and Honor Code. Academic Misconduct includes:

Cheating is:

• The unauthorized use of any materials, information, study aids or assistance from another person on any academic assignment or exercise, unless explicitly authorized by the course Instructor 
• Assisting another student in the unauthorized use of any materials, information, study aids, unless explicitly authorized by the Instructor. 
• Having a substitute complete any academic assignment or completing an academic assignment for someone else, either paid or unpaid.

Plagiarism is:

• The deliberate use and appropriation of another's  work without any indication of the source and/or the representation of such work as the student's own.
• Assisting another student in the deliberate use and appropriation of another’s work without any indication of the source and/or the representation of such work as the student’s own.

Learn more about the academic integrity policies and procedures as well as student resources that can help you prepare for a successful semester.

If you are looking for help for yourself or a fellow classmate, Panthers Care encourages you to express any concerns you may come across as it relates to any personal behavior concerns or worries you have, for the classmate’s well-being or yours; you are encouraged to share your concerns with FIU’s Panthers Care website.

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) offers free and confidential help for anxiety, depression, stress, and other concerns that life brings. Professional counselors are available for same-day appointments. Don’t wait to call (305) 348-2277 to set up a time to talk or visit the online self-help portal.

This course will serve to embrace the diversity and inclusivity found within Florida International University. We appreciate and respect diversity, equality, equity, cooperativeness, community, and sustainability within our online courses. We are committed to the ongoing education of our students and their participation within the course regardless of gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, geographical location, religion, and disability. We strive in encouraging collaboration by preparing our students to value the differences in others. At the core of our intentions is the encouragement of acceptance and appreciation of differences within our student population and community.

This is an online course, which means most (if not all) of the course work will be conducted online. Expectations for performance in an online course are the same for a traditional course. In fact, online courses require a degree of self-motivation, self-discipline, and technology skills which can make these courses more demanding for some students.

Students are expected to:

• Review the how to get started information located in the course content
• Introduce yourself to the class during the first week by posting a self-introduction in the appropriate discussion forum and an appropriate photo
• Take the practice quiz to ensure that your computer is compatible with Canvas
• Interact online with instructor/s and peers
• Review and follow the course calendar
• Log in to the course 4 times per week
• Respond to discussion board postings within 2 business days
• Respond to emails/messages within 2 business days
• Submit assignments by the corresponding deadline
• Check official FIU email and Canvas Messages daily

The instructor will:

• Log in to the course 3 times per week
• Respond to emails/messages within 2 business days (excluding holidays and weekends)
• Grade assignments within 7 business days of the assignment deadline

Assignments from the text and other resources are listed for each class session. Students are expected to pace their learning according to the posted course assignments.

It is expected that interactive learning and teaching will enrich the learning experience of all students, and that each student will work in partnership with the professor to create a positive learning experience for all. Student engagement is a necessary condition for an effective learning experience and includes contributions to debate and discussion (if any), positive interactive learning with others, and an enthusiastic attitude towards inquiry. Everyone is expected to be a positive contributor to the class learning community, and students are expected to share the responsibility of teaching each other.

Communication in this course will take place via the Canvas Inbox. Check out the Canvas Conversations Tutorial or Canvas Guide to learn how to communicate with your instructor and peers using Announcements, Discussions, and the Inbox.  

It is recommended that students log in to Canvas daily and review their Inbox for private messages and/or Announcements from the instructor.

All work must be submitted through Canvas. Canvas does not allow instructors to submit on behalf of students. Please do not email your assignments to your instructor.

If you encounter errors or issues submitting an assignment, click on “Help” inside Canvas Course (located on the left-hand panel inside the course) and select Chat with Canvas Support (student). A live chat with Canvas support can fix the issue immediately.

There will be four (4) discussions in this course. These discussions are meant to stimulate critical thinking about how religions manifest in our globalized world.

Discussion topics will become available Monday, 12:00 PM to Sunday, 11:59 PM of each week that a discussion topic is posted. See the course calendar for the weeks that have discussion topics posted.

 To receive full credit for the discussion assignments, students must post a minimum of 3 discussion threads per discussion topic:

• One post in response to the main discussion topic
• Two responses to other students’ posts

Please refer to the rubric within each discussion for details on what criteria your assignments will be evaluated on. Canvas Tutorial: How do I view the rubric for my graded discussion?

Keep in mind that this is an academic forum; all students in the course will see the discussion posts. When criticizing or agreeing with another student’s position on a given topic, please make sure to include supporting facts and specific examples to strengthen your arguments. Contribute links to articles, news stories, and/or other media whenever possible.

A time-restricted, multiple-choice quiz will be given on each week's religious concept. The questions in the quizzes will draw from the weekly course content, including audio lectures and assigned readings. 

There is also a Global Learning Quiz at the end of the semester which does NOT count toward the final grade in this course. However, it is necessary to answer all questions on this quiz in order to meet FIU's Global Learning Graduation Requirement. 

Quiz Availability: Open from Monday, 12:00 AM to Sunday, 11:59 PM (see Course Calendar for specific dates.)

Quiz Duration: Students will have 20 minutes to answer 10 multiple-choice questions.

Quiz Attempts: Quizzes may be attempted twice. The highest of the two attempts will count towards the student’s final grade. It is not mandatory to take each quiz twice.

Quiz Resets: Please limit quiz reset requests to instances when technical issues compromised both quiz attempts. The second attempt is meant to be a “backup” attempt for situations where the first attempt was not completed successfully. Reopening quizzes after the due date has passed will require verifiable documentation.

Quiz Grading: Quizzes will be graded automatically. Students will be able to see their scores immediately after submitting the quiz.

Quiz Answers: The correct answers for quizzes will not be released to students. Students will be able to see submitted answers only. Students should refer to their course materials for the correct answers.

In order to mitigate any issues with your computer and online assessments, it is very important that you take the "Practice Quiz" from each computer you will be using to take your graded quizzes and exams. It is your responsibility to make sure your computer meets the minimum hardware requirements.

All assessments will auto-submit when (1) the timer runs out OR (2) the closing date/time is reached, whichever happens first. For example, if a quiz has a closing time of 5:00 pm but the student begins the exam at 4:55 pm, the student will only have 5 minutes to complete the quiz.

Assessments in this course are not compatible with mobile devices and should not be taken through a mobile phone or a tablet.If you encounter any technical difficulties, please contact the FIU Canvas Help Team. Please ensure you contact support immediately upon the issue occurring.

The essay prompts for Written Exam 1 and Written Exam 2 will become available in the Assessment area during the exam availability time (check the weekly calendar).

All assignments can be submitted via Canvas in the Assignments content area.

The written exams should each be approximately 500-750 words long.

All written assignments will be automatically checked for plagiarism. See section titled Course Policies to learn more about what plagiarism is and how to properly cite your work.

Exams will be graded manually. Students will be able to see their scores within 7 business days of the assignment deadline.

Please refer to the rubric within the assignment page for details of the criteria your exam essays will be evaluated on.

Research Paper 1 | Site Visit Essay

All written assignments will be automatically checked for plagiarism. See section titled Course Policies to learn more about what plagiarism is and how to properly cite your work.

 **Students May Not Submit Work From A Previous Semester Or From Another Class For This Assignment Or Any Other Assignment In This Course.

Assignment Details and Instructions:

• Format: MLA Format Required
• Content: Field research and supplementary research
• Length: 1800-2000 Words, Not Including Your Works Cited Page
• Double –Spaced, 12-Pt Font, Arial Or Times New Roman Font
• Sources: 3 Academic Sources Minimum
• Works Cited Page required

 For this Site Visit, students will perform field research by attending a religious service outside of their own religious tradition. The goal is to immerse each student in an unfamiliar religious context (example: Christians should perform field research on a non-Christian religion, like Buddhism, Hinduism, etc.)

 At the top of your paper, please include the name of the religious site visited, the date visited, the names of any individuals you may have interviewed, and the particular sect or denomination of the religion that practices at the site.

[If you visited a Muslim mosque, was it Sunni or Shi’ite? If you visited a Jewish synagogue, was it Orthodox, Conservative, or Reform? If you visited a Buddhist temple, was it Theravada or a Mahayana sect?] You may want to ask this when you call to find out if your visit is acceptable.

 Your research should ideally progress in three stages:

1. Preliminary Research
   • Before going to the service, it is a good idea to do some preliminary research on the religious tradition. For example, if you’re attending a Hindu ceremony, you will want to read the textbook chapter and watch the PowerPoint presentation on Hinduism. Additionally, I strongly recommend that you call the site you’ll be visiting and let them know you’re coming to do research for a class project. Ask them if there’s any dress code requirements, or anything else you should keep in mind. You may also want to ask if they will allow you to take notes during the service. (Some Jewish denominations, for example, do not allow writing on Shabbat {Saturday}.)
2. Field Research
   • Attend the service and observe closely. You may want to take notes. Some students have found it helpful to attend services in groups, and you’re welcome to do this.
3. Supplementary research
   • After your visit, research any elements of the experience that were unfamiliar and that left you with questions, including but not limited to the practices, symbols, dress code, and conversations encountered at the site. In other words, research each practice and find out why it’s done in this particular sect.

Examples:

 If you go to a Jewish service and you see the men wearing kippahs (or yarmulkes), you don’t want to write in your essay, “There were these men and they were wearing these funny hats but I don’t know why.” This is where your additional research comes in. Find out what the hats are called, and find out why they’re worn.

 If you go to a Muslim mosque and you see the worshippers washing their hands and feet, you don’t want to write in your essay, “Everyone was washing their hands and feet but I don’t know why they did that and it was pretty weird.”

Upon completing these three stages, write a detailed and insightful essay. It should demonstrate a general understanding of the religious tradition; use your research to explain your experience at the site. What did you see around you? What did the place of worship look like? Did you see any religious art or religious symbols there? How were people dressed? What rituals were performed?

 Finally, include your personal reaction to the service. How did you respond? Did you enjoy the visit or did you feel uncomfortable? Were your opinions about the religion challenged or confirmed by the site visit?

Please refer to the rubric within the assignment page for details of the criteria Research Paper 1 will be evaluated on.

Research Paper 2 | Appiah Analysis Essay

 This assignment requires two parts:

1. Discussion (20 POINTS of your assignment grade) and
2. Essay (80 POINTS of your assignment grade)

 Assignment instructions:

 PART 1 – Discussion Board Portion (20 points)

Read the article “The Case for Contamination” by Kwame Anthony Appiah and post your initial response to the following questions in the Discussion Board: "What roles do religions play in Appiah’s analysis? How is your approach similar to or different from his?”

 Once you have posted your answer, respond to at least three of your fellow students' posts and explain how you agree/disagree with them.

In order to receive full credit for this part, a total of 4 posts will be required: 1 original thread + 3 comments

 Each response should be at least 100 words and should demonstrate knowledge of the article as well as class readings and PowerPoints.

 The discussion posts are due one week prior to the essay deadline. Check Course Calendar in Syllabus for exact due dates.

Please refer to the rubric within the assignment for details on what criteria the Research Paper 2 Discussion will be evaluated on. Canvas Tutorial: How do I view the rubric for my graded discussion?

PART 2 - Essay (80 points)

**Students May Not Submit Work From A Previous Semester Or From Another Class For This Assignment Or Any Other Assignment In This Course. It Will Be Flagged For Plagiarism By Turnitin.      

Instructions:

After reading your classmates' responses and considering your initial response in Part 1 of this assignment, read the article: “The Case for Contamination” by Kwame Anthony Appiah again.  Write a well-structured essay that answers the questions: "What roles do religions play in Appiah’s analysis? Do you agree or disagree to his approach towards religion? How does it differ from your individual approach towards religion?”

Guidelines: 

• Format: MLA Format Required    
• Length: 1000 Words, Not Including Your Works Cited Page    
• Double –Spaced, 12-Pt Font, Arial Or Times New Roman Font    
• Sources: Class Readings And PowerPoint Lectures    

Submit your essay to Assignments via Canvas.

Keep electronic receipts and/or paper copies of all submitted work.

In every Gordon Rule course at FIU, students must demonstrate “college-level writing skills.” College-level writing must exhibit the following characteristics:     

• It has clear purpose and thesis or controlling ideas.    
• The thesis is supported with adequate reasons and evidence.    
• It shows sustained analysis and critical thought.    
• It is organized clearly and logically.    
• It shows knowledge of conventions of standard written English.    
• It shows awareness of disciplinary conventions in regard to content, style, form, and delivery methods.    
• Moreover, sources must be cited as appropriate. 

Thesis Statement:  The thesis is the central idea of your paper around which all your evidence and claims are organized. Every single paragraph should be dedicated in a clear way to proving your thesis. In your essay, the thesis should be stated as quickly and as clearly as possible. In fact, many teachers will expect your thesis statement to appear in the last sentence of your essay's first paragraph. A vivid thesis statement will announce the steps of its argument, not just provide a flat statement of the essay's ultimate goal. Think of the thesis as a roadmap that gives directions to your reader rather than as a picture of your final destination. 

A good thesis should not state something that is obviously true. When your thesis is too easy to prove, your essay can become repetitive and you may feel that you do not have enough to write about. A complex thesis, on the other hand, requires you to convince your reader that your argument is logical and will reveal ideas that cannot be easily anticipated. A worthwhile thesis will always outline an argument with which a reader can readily disagree.

These are two links to guide you to write a good thesis statement:

• "How to Write a Thesis Statement" by Writing Tutorial Services, Indiana University Bloomington
• "Thesis Statements" by The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Please refer to the rubric within the assignment page for details of the criteria Research Paper 2 will be evaluated on.

Late submissions will NOT be accepted, except in cases of genuine and documented emergencies.

Avoid leaving assignment/quiz submissions for the last minute before a deadline. “Heavy user traffic” during this timeframe may cause delays and/or errors, which can lead to students missing crucial deadlines.

The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the syllabus by means of announcements or messages with ample time allowed for students to respond and adjust appropriately.

No extra credit will be offered or accepted in this course.

The University's policy on religious holy days as stated in the University Catalog and Student Handbook will be followed in this class. Any student may request to be excused from class to observe a religious holy day of his or her faith.