CONFLICT RESOLUTION , SSCI 121, Spring, 2003

Goal and objectives | Materials | Assignments | Schedule | Evaluation

Dr. Jock McClellan   jmcclellan@qvcc.commnet.edu 860.774.1160 x353

CATALOG DESCRIPTION:     An exploration of the sources of conflict and creative alternatives for resolving it. The perspectives of psychology, sociology, anthropology and political science will be used to explore how to improve social relations at all levels of interaction -- interpersonal, interpersonal, inter-group, and international. The course will involve both theoretical understanding and practical applications.

OFFICE HOURS:  Room 120D, Danielson.  Tu. 11:00-12:30 and 3:30-4; Weds. 4-5; Thurs. 11:30-12:30 and 3:30-4

CLASS:  Room 219, Danielson Th.  12:30 - 3:25 p.m.

FLEXIBLE SYLLABUS

Although this syllabus gives the overall structure of the class, please feel free to discuss ways you might alter it to fit your own learning needs.

OVERALL GOAL:

To grow in your understanding of conflict and your skill in dealing with it.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

By the end of this course, everyone will know Week’s steps and Fisher’s principles so well that you apply them automatically in conflict situations. Beyond that objective, you will describe your own unique learning objectives at the beginning of the course and will be encouraged to take responsibility for meeting them. While different students may focus on different aspects of conflict, all will be expected to address all the four major objectives listed below, weighted according to individual needs. For the second class, circle the objectives below that are important to you, and put a star next to the three most important ones. By the end of the term, you should:

                1. GROW IN UNDERSTANDING

o    be able to explain the causes, dynamics, and resolution of a range of conflicts - intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational, and inter-group (including societal and international)

o     be able to describe, evaluate, and discuss a variety of theoretical approaches to conflict

o   understand methods used by social scientists in the study of conflict

o    understand yourself better, how you respond to conflicts, how you learned to do so, and how your behaviors affect others

o     similarly understand others, especially those important to you

o      understand how differences in personalities, gender roles, and cultural expectations contribute to conflict

o        be able to articulate how you learn, how you change your behavior, and how to use this awareness in the future to grow in your ability to deal with conflict

                2. GROW IN YOUR SKILL IN DEALING WITH CONFLICTS

o       be more willing to address conflicts

o       regularly apply your understanding of theory

o       enlarge your repertoire of ways to prevent and deal with conflict, keeping a list of rules of thumb, and know which to use when

o       communicate better, listen, read body language, assert, persuade, and argue constructively

o        be more skilled at negotiating win/win solutions

o         have addressed many conflicts using what you have learned, with special attention to one or two important and recurrent conflicts

                3. GROW COGNITIVELY

o        be more effective at learning, with increased skill in observing, reading, researching, using the methods of the social sciences, reflecting, collaborating, inventing, overcoming cognitive conflict, and changing your behavior

o        have a slightly altered and strengthened worldview, with a greater appreciation for the possibility for win/win solutions instead of win/lose ones, a keener and more coherent sense of your positions on ethical questions embedded in conflict, and a more positive attitude toward conflict as a necessary part of life and growth for social beings

                4. GROW EMOTIONALLY

o      be more aware of and accepting of the full range of your emotions, with an appreciation for the role of openness and authenticity in dealing with conflict

o       learn productive ways to deal with anger, stress and other seemingly negative feelings

o       balance emotion and intellect in resolving conflict

o       separate ego from issues, personalities from problems

o       grow in empathy and compassion for others

APPROACH

o       Collaborative, for support and the pooling of insights, with the possibility of a group project

o       Individualized, with occasional conferences with the professor, to meet your needs and interests

o       Purposeful. Choose activities that feed your deep life purposes

o        Adult. This is not high school. This is college. You will be required to take responsibility for a) becoming a self-educating person, with the role of the professor more as a guide and facilitator than as the sole source of truth and for b) conducting yourself in class in a civil, adult manner.

o        Multi-styled, with a mixture of activities to fit the variety of learning styles among the students

o        Conversational, with small and large group discussions in an open, supportive atmosphere

o         Good-humored and accepting, with a little help from our friends

RULES OF BEHAVIOR IN CLASS

In order to assure an atmosphere that promotes mutual respect, productive learning, and effective conflict resolution, we will develop a set of rules to which everyone can agree. Your grade will be affected by how faithfully you adhere to the rules. Consistent violation of the rules will be cause for dismissal from the class.

To assure that we all feel confident in discussing our own situations openly so that we can learn from the discussions, one requirement for the course will be to sign a statement promising that you will repeat any personal information outside of class. If you cannot honestly agree to such a confidentiality agreement, please see me as soon as possible.

ATTENDANCE

Since much of our learning will come from class activities, a good grade will require regular attendance. Please be in the classroom early, and no later than 12:00 noon. You will automatically be marked absent if you are more than 5 minutes late, or if you leave class early. I will not review materials for people late to class. Every absence will decrease your grade 3 points on a 100-point scale. Exceptions will only be made with substantial documentation, such as a letter from a doctor on his or her stationery.

MATERIALS

Your experience, and that of classmates, will be the raw material from which you will learn; the more observant, attentive, and reflective you are, the more you will benefit. Pay close attention to what you see at home, work, on television, in the paper, on dates, at movies and shopping malls - everything is grist for your mill in this class.

Some readings will be photocopied. Of the authors used in class, important ones will be Weeks, Fisher, and Ury. Others may include Beck, Goleman, Thomas and Kilmann, Pneuman, Breuhl, Deutsch, Janis, Meyers-Briggs, and Jandt. We will use the Internet to explore resources on conflict resolution, examine prior term's student projects, and possibly communicate with each other and add "homepages" of your own.

Books required for the class are 

1.  Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement without Giving In, second edition, 1991, by Roger Fisher and William Ury, 208 pp, published by Penguin, and 2
2.  The Eight Essential Steps to Conflict Resolution: Preserving Relationships at Work, at Home, and in the Community, by Dudley Weeks, reprint published in 1994 by Putnam Publishing. Week’s steps will form the body of this course.

    Buy a notebook for your journal. Using the library's computerized search tools and its interlibrary loan service, bring in one article and one book for perusal by the class. Extra credit is given for bringing in other articles, books, cartoons, tapes, games and other materials. If at all possible, please buy one "self-help" book for yourself.

Buy a file folder in which to keep all your abstracts of readings.

We will have a WebCT site for online discussions and other activities.

ASSIGNMENTS

The College expects three hours of homework for each one and a half hour class. The more you put in, the more you will get out. This is a college level course and will expect you to take responsibility for keeping up with the readings and for applying ideas thoughtfully. Think in your journal as often as possible, with a minimum of two entries of three paragraphs per week, and with the goal of one entry per day. Try to do more. For each required reading, summarize its essence in an abstract, give your reactions and discuss how you can apply the ideas in your own life. Talk with friends and family about the ideas, and ask them to do exercises along with you. Compare ideas with classmates when possible. Come to class prepared and ready to share ideas and questions. Use the skills and knowledge you have gained in other courses - in writing, speaking, thinking, and researching. Find links between your work in other courses and in this.

GROUP PROJECT

The class will discuss whether to have a class project. Past classes that have chosen to do group projects have benefited from the collaboration and conflict resolution skills learned through the process of working together. One possibility would be to select a broad topic of general interest to all, and to tie them together as a set of homepages on the Internet. One term's class did that on conflicts faced by teens and parents. Other classes have produced materials for the public, developed a game, done research, and developed a conflict resolution questionnaire.

 

SPECIAL NEEDS

Students with disabilities who may need academic accommodations should discuss options with me as early as possible in the semester, preferably during the first two weeks of class. You will need to provide documentation of your disability to the Director of Learning Services, Dr. Marie Kilbride, in the Learning Center. Also if you have do not understand English well or have any special situations, please tell me so I can respond to your needs.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

I purposely do not follow a rigid schedule, so that I can vary the pace and topics according to class members’ interests. The tentative schedule is as follows:

               

Abstracts on readings will be due most classes. Quizzes may be given at any time without notice. The class will decide in early November if it wants to do a group project. Attendance is required for a wrap-up class in the time normally scheduled for finals during exam week. If you withdraw from the course, you must notify the Student Services by the deadline posted in the QVCC spring schedule.

EVALUATIONS

I could decide our evaluation procedures unilaterally, but that could be in conflict with your individual goals and learning style.  So I will ask the class to agree on grading system acceptable to every person.   For the third class, describe the activities through which you learn best, and suggest possible activities, topics, and projects you might like to engage in for this course.  Then use the following chart as a worksheet on which to indicate your suggestion for a grading system that would be best for you.  You may add or delete factors.  I have indicated the range of weightings acceptable to me for each factor. My minimums allocate 80% of the grade; you may allocate the other 20% to weight the grading system in a way that favors your style of learning.  Your total for all factors must add up to 100%.   You will be allowed to tweak your weightings near the end of the semester.

 

 

You may negotiate with Jock anytime for credit for extra work. If, in Jock's judgment, the performance of the class as a whole is excellent, he may give an equal bonus to everyone for good collaborative learning.  Twice during the term you will be asked to evaluate your work and the professor's.

 

You do not need to be a genius to do well in this class. If you do your work regularly and apply ideas from class to your own life, you will do well. If you do that you should get a "B," which is for good, solid work. If you go beyond that, think seriously, and show strong growth in your conflict resolution skills, you will get an "A,' which is for excellent work. A "C" is for satisfactory work. A "D" is for marginal work. An "F" is for unsatisfactory work or for anyone who cheats or plagiarizes. Throughout, view me as a resource to help you learn as much as you want. This course is about real life, and it is fun. Let’s enjoy!

 

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