Study of the U.S. Constitution and how it has been interpreted and amended over the years. Emphasis on debates at the Constitutional Convention, the role of checks and balances, and the division between state and federal control. Discussions of judicial review and landmark Supreme Court decisions. Analysis of the circumstances in which amendments have been added, their impact, and resistance to them. Exploration of relevant topics of debate, including citizenship, gun rights, abortion rights, affirmative action, and the Electoral College.
Towson Seminar
Focusing on exploration and discovery, TSEM 102 introduces students to the academic expectations for college-level work and to the intellectual, communication and collaborative skills needed for academic success. Seminar format emphasizes active learning, with variable content in different Towson-Seminar courses. Introduces multiple perspectives and may draw from more than one discipline. Must be taken during either of your first two semesters. Must earn a 2.0 grade or higher.
Towson Seminar Topics Fall 2024
TSEM 102.001, 015, 016 Risky Business
Focuses on the ways in which families experience risk. Places emphasis on the diversity
of risk both within the family unit as well as how risk is perceived by social forces
outside the family. Introduces multiple perspectives on risk and resiliency using
a multidisciplinary approach. Special attention will be paid to how individual differences
have the potential to increase risk for individuals, families and communities.
TSEM 102.003 China Today: Challenges and Opportunities
China is now the second largest economy in the world, a growing military power, and
an increasingly influential model for other countries. Students will discuss
China’s strengths and weaknesses in order to develop a balanced view of the challenge posed to the United States and the nations of East Asia. Students will
examine internal problems that threaten to destabilize China, as well as external pressures to limit Beijing’s international influence.
China’s strengths and weaknesses in order to develop a balanced view of the challenge posed to the United States and the nations of East Asia. Students will
examine internal problems that threaten to destabilize China, as well as external pressures to limit Beijing’s international influence.
TSEM 102.004-005 The U.S. Constitution
TSEM 102.006, 010, 038, 039 America in the 1960s: Decade of Conflict and Change
An introduction to the cultural, political, social conflicts of the 1960s in America,
with emphasis on development of research and critical thinking skills. Through their
study of major figures, movements and events of this period, as well as through guided
study of research methodology, students will become acquainted with historical ways
of thinking and writing.
TSEM 102.007 Towson University Students in the Upheaval of the 20th Century
Investigates the history of students at Towson University in the 20th century. These
decades were years of rapid transformation in American politics and culture as the
rights revolution, the Vietnam War, the rise of counter culture, and student activism
reshaped society. At the forefront of driving these movements were students. Away
from home for the first time, exposed to new ideas, and surrounded by new friends
students pushed against cultural and political boundaries and helped reshape the United
States. Working closely with the materials in the Towson University Archives students
will endeavor to understand this turbulent period through the eyes of Towson students
who went before them. Students will be expected to read critically, participate in
class discussions of readings, movies, and music videos, and be willing to work interactively
and collaboratively.
TSEM 102.008-009 To Hell and Back: Images of the Underworld in Pre-Modern Societies
A survey of literary and historical documents from several pre-modern civilizations
in order to investigate the manners in which the ancients conceptualized the idea
of the Underworld.
TSEM 102.011 Notable Music Makers: Social Activism through Jazz, from Billie Holiday to Jon Batiste
Immersive study of composers / performers / improvisers, their creative output, their
historical and cultural context, and their continuing relevance in today’s music cultures.
A robust study of the historical relationships between jazz performance and socio-political
discourse, examined through the works and activism of influential jazz artists throughout
the 20th and 21st centuries.
TSEM 102.012 Notable Music Makers: Nina Simone - Singer, Songwriter, Pianist and Civil Rights Activist
Immersive study of composers / performers / improvisers, their creative output, their
historical and cultural context, and their continuing relevance in today’s music cultures.
A study of the life and socially-conscious music of singer Nina Simone, grounded in
historical and social context.
TSEM 102.013 Notable Music Makers: The Beatles: Innovators and Appropriators
Immersive study of composers / performers / improvisers, their creative output, their
historical and cultural context, and their continuing relevance in today’s music cultures.
An examination of the musical and cultural influences on and innovations of The Beatles
throughout all stages of their career.
TSEM 102.014 Notable Music Makers: Music Under Soviet Tyranny: Dmitri Shostakovich and Mieczyslaw Weinberg
Immersive study of composers / performers / improvisers, their creative output, their
historical and cultural context, and their continuing relevance in today’s music cultures.
This course explores the development of Soviet classical music as affected by the
totalitarian regime after Lenin and before perestroika (1924-1985). Special attention
will be paid to the intersecting lives and works of Dmitri Shostakovich and Mieczyslaw
Weinberg.
TSEM 102.017, 018, 102, 103 Current Issues in Education: Living and Learning in a Digital Society
Current issues in education related to living and learning in a digital society. This
course emphasizes that critical, self-reflective understanding of the contexts of
our technology use is central to becoming digital practitioners and effective teachers
in a participatory culture. Students will be introduced to effective strategies for
gathering, evaluating and communicating information.
TSEM 102.019 Current Issues in Education: Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns
Explores current issues in education related to how students learn and the need for
a customized learning approach to maximize each student’s ability to learn. Technology’s
role, in the process of individualizing learning for students will be explored. Students
will examine reasons why technology has not been the panacea to improve academic achievement
it was first touted to be by applying the theory of disruptive innovation to technology
implementation in schools. Students will be introduced to effective strategies for
gathering, evaluating and communicating information. Students will use critical thinking,
team collaboration and problem solving to examine the most current scholarship surrounding
their topics.
TSEM 102.020, 021 Body Image Through History
A survey of attitudes toward the human body in different fields, eras, and cultures.
TSEM 102.022, 023, 024, 025 The Limits of Reason
The role of reason throughout the history of Western philosophy, beginning with the
Platonic formalism of the ancient era, continuing into the Renaissance and Age of
Enlightenment with Rene Descartes’ rationalism, David Hume’s empiricism, and Immanuel
Kant’s transcendentalism, and culminating in the contemporary perspectives of Friedrich
Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Emmanuel Levinas, and Alphonso Lingis on the limits of
reason.
TSEM 102.026, 027 Sleep- Who Needs It and Why?
Effects of sleep and sleep deprivation on optimal functioning. Exploration of sleep,
sleep disorders, long term effects of sleep deprivation and treatment options.
TSEM 102.028, 034 Mass Media and Medicine
Through reflective writing, roundtable discussions, skills workshops, a research paper,
and a group presentation, students will be introduced to the rigors of academic scholarship,
explore collaborative learning, and engage in critically evaluating the content and
impact of mediated messages on the practice and consumption of health care across
cultures.
TSEM 102.029 Food Politics: Agriculture, Industry, Policy and Health
Explores various aspects of food politics, including issues surrounding how and where
food is grown, sustainability, genetically modified food, the food industry, the obesity
epidemic, food insecurity, food policy and national dietary guidelines.
TSEM 102.030 Biology in the Age of Misinformation
Even though we live in the information age, we are surrounded by misinformation and
disinformation. Students will explore the nature of science through the lens of biology.
Students will investigate how the portrayal of science in the popular media by politicians,
famous people, social media, or the news, affects the public’s perception of scientific
fact and the scientific process. Students will read case studies and participate in
activities to determine what is good science, bad science, and pseudoscience.
TSEM 102.032 American Murals
Murals are paintings placed on culturally meaningful walls. “American Murals” will
examine the creation and use of murals across many American ethnic and racial groups
from pre-Colonial Native Americans, through the Colonial period, to the 21st Century
including the 1930s Mexican Mural Movement, Works Progress Administration and mid-20th-century
Civil Rights Movements.
TSEM 102.033 Baseball: Beyond the Game
An interdisciplinary exploration of the game of baseball and its impact on American
culture. Will study the history and development of the game, key figures in the game,
the growth of the game, the effects of integrating the game, the cultural impact of
the game, the sense of community the game gives, the ethical debates of performance
enhancing drugs, labor relationships between owners and players, and the future of
the game.
TSEM 102.035 The Worlds of a Play
Employs dramaturgical analysis and research as the focus of an interdisciplinary learning
experience. Every play creates its own unique world that reflects both the society
in which it is written and the way that the playwright wishes to respond to that society.
Theatre artists employ particular analytical strategies in considering how to bring
the world of a play to life in performance. They also conduct extensive research in
order to inform their understanding of a play’s world and enrich the ways they may
share it with an audience. Students in this course will actively engage in this research
and analysis in order to make their study of plays the point of departure for learning
about a range of topics. Communication skills will be developed through class discussion,
writing assignments and a formal group presentation.
TSEM 102.036, 037, 906 Living a Meaningful Life: Well-Being and Occupation
Introduces students to skills needed to function successfully at college, in the context
of an exploration of the relationship of occupational engagement to well-being. Students
will gain an understanding of the concept of occupation, and investigate the influence
of various occupations on health, happiness, and well-being.
TSEM 102.040 Philosophical Perspectives on the Self: Identity, Free Will, and Consciousness
A philosophical examination of the nature of the human self, with emphasis on three
fundamental and interrelated issues: the identity of a person over their lifetime;
the nature of free will and autonomy; the nature of human consciousness.
TSEM 102.041, 042, 043, 108 Reading the Sacred
Investigation of the idea of the sacred as expressed in sacred texts. Exploration
of foundational religious texts (such as the Hebrew Bible and New Testament) alongside
foundational secular texts (such as the U.S. Constitution), and their roles in various
communities. Emphasis placed on reading strategies and the challenges of interpretation.
TSEM 102.106 Journey and Quest in World Literature-From Roots to Routes: A Literary and Visual Journey into the Latine/x Experience in the U.S.
The theme of the journey as the most enduring and complex in world literature. The
epistemological value of the journey as exploration of self and others’ identities,
the notions of quest and epic hero, the issue of ancient and modern migrations as
a crossing of geographical and cultural borders.
TSEM 102.403,404 Writing Baltimore
Baltimore is a city of connections and contradictions. This class looks closely at
texts written about the city from diverse perspectives: historical, sociological,
environmental, journalistic, and literary. Approaches the city itself as a text to
be explored; students will generate their own texts in response to their encounters
with the city. Various themes will include the Chesapeake Bay, the sights and sounds
of Baltimore, and urban history.
TSEM 102.101, 900, 901 Current Issues in Education: Excitement and Challenge of Extreme Teaching with focus on “Education in the Environment.”
Explores teaching - a most exciting and challenging profession – through inspiring
examples of excellent teaching practices in order to incorporate these best practices
into every challenging teaching situation. Introduction to effective strategies for
gathering, evaluating and communicating information. Students will use critical thinking,
team collaboration and problem solving to examine the most current scholarship surrounding
these topics.
TSEM 102.902, 903 African American Contributions to the Arts: 20th Century
Unpack the enormous, and often unsung, contributions by African Americans to various
artistic disciplines in the 20th century.
TSEM 102.904 The Senses
Asks students to think critically about the sense experiences – their cultural significance,
political consequences, and representations in written texts and visual media. Students
will observe how representations of sense experiences shift through stylistic choices
in the descriptive writing of marketers, artists, filmmakers, and social critics.
TSEM 102.905 Earth’s Changing Climate – Past, Present, and Future
Understand the critical and often contentious issue of climate change, and to introduce
students to scholarship. Scientific evidence and analysis, and an interdisciplinary
perspective are needed to deal with the pressing issue of global climate change. This
course will provide students with the critical thinking and analytical skills needed
to weigh the evidence supporting or refuting claims of climate change or its consequences
and to help students develop the research and writing skills required of college graduates.