Moulder's fantastic reader

Dear All,

If you are teaching General Sociology or social problems, you should obtain
a copy of Frances Moulder's _Modern Social Problems_ (free below).   I've
been using it this excellent reader this semester and I highly recommend it
for several reasons.

One, it is not US or European centric.  Although perhaps 40% of the articles
relate to the US, most articles cover social problems around the globe with
specific examples from a wide range of countries.  One of the strongest
aspects of this great text indeed is that it demonstrates that "local"
social problems are not "local" but bound up in global processes.  Moulder
argues, "Today's social problems are global social problems, problems that
concern large numbers of people worldwide, have global social-structural
causes, and require global social-structural solutions" (italics in
original).

There are 14 chapters and some sixty articles which cover these areas:

 world economy and world poverty
 democracy and human rights
 gender and sexual orientation
 population growth
 environmental destruction
 war and militarism
 the global media
 the cultural survival of indigenous peoples
 racial/ethnic conflicts and the danger of genocide
 global crime
 world health

Two, this text can make teaching more interesting (and less burdensome for
instructors) at all student levels and it promotes Active Learning.  The
readings are not difficult and are thought and discussion provoking.
Indeed, I have students make two classroom presentations (and hand out an
outline of the reading) on two different readings from different chapters.
I guide discussions that follow the presentations and/or embellishes with
lecture-like comments.

Three, there are a variety of web-based exercises and "Action projects" at
the end of the chapters that get students using computers to research
material (for, in my classes, writing a paper not based their two classroom
presentations).

Four, but not least of all, the chapters include sections on activism and
efforts by people (groups, organizations) to find solutions to the problems
raised.  I found this particularly useful because it strengthens critiques
of our world system by showing that it can be changed, that people are
trying.  Thus, students not only learn about their world and its
inequalities and problems, but in addition, this text helps them realize
that they don't have to accept the world the way it is, which gets them more
engaged.  For instance, some of my students have contacted activist groups
and presented in class on what they learned, which really brought home the
reality of the topic and the global connections.

For more details, see:
http://e-catalog.thomsonlearning.com/150l/lpext.dll?f=XMLHitList&qf=DCQuery&;
ht=catalog.xml&q=%5Bfield,ProductIsbnIssnFormatted%3A0-534-56682-0%5D&xsl=pr
oductdescription.xsl&2.0

For a free desk copy:
http://www.thomsonlearning.com/samples/samp_order.asp

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO YOUR COLLEAGES

Elson E. Boles
Assistant Professor, Historical Sociology