Course Descriptions
Honors Colloquium HON
101 (1) (Freshmen)
This course seeks to
guide students in understanding honors education, academic majors and minors,
determining career possibilities resulting from those areas of study, and
preparation needed for graduate study or successful placement in the field.
Students will have opportunities for professional and personal development,
including discussions with faculty and professionals in the fields of study
offered by Shaw University. It also seeks to help them understand the purpose
and value of higher education, to develop positive attitudes toward the
teaching-learning process, and to acquire coping skills that are essential for
successful college life.
Honors Colloquium HON
102 (1) (Freshmen)
This introductory,
immersion course in African American philosophy and social thought will explore
the historical and modern-day connections between society, race and class and
those social institutions which influence such divisions. It will delve into
origins of opinions and self-perceptions of elite groups within society or
privilege for certain people. Emphasis will be placed on historic notions of
class and present-day understanding of social status through major social
institutions particularly focused upon by W.E.B. DuBois and E. Franklin Frazier
-- education, the Black Church/religion, politics, the Black press and Black
business. Classic works as well as contemporary studies and media are used. It
seeks to train students to become well-read, how historic perspective continues
to impact contemporary thought on race, class and society.
Honors Colloquium HON
201 (1) (Sophomores) Prerequisite HON 102 or by permission
Through readings,
discussions and presentations by persons from different areas of expertise in
leadership capacities, students will develop an awareness of challenges to and
ideals of leadership, particularly emotionally intelligent leadership. Students
will be encouraged to investigate their own leadership ideals, shortcomings and
challenges. Students will learn the responsibilities of leadership within a
group, and how leadership is exemplified through planning, meeting management
and time management.
Honors Colloquium HON
202 (1) (Sophomores) Prerequisite HON 201 or by permission
This immersion course
in ethnography uses classic works/texts as a basis of ethnographic study – a
first hand, detailed account of a particular culture or event which may contest
and/or sustain stereotypes of particular groups, with particular emphasis on
the African American experience.
Honors Special Topics HON
221 Honda Campus All-Star Challenge (3) (OPEN
to ALL Shaw University students)
This course is
designed to expose students to a diverse field of knowledge, to include current
events, African-American history, American history, geography, math, science,
social science, art, religion, fine arts, music, literature, sports, and pop
culture in an atmosphere of preparation for academic competition. In the
context of the subjects covered, the students will be instructed in “structured
knowledge acquisition” as well as instruction in the fundamental techniques,
rules, basic team strategies and the research processes for academic
competition. The course uses metacognition approaches to research strategies
and technologies for data collection as a paramount methodology in academic
knowledge competition. Students will be offered opportunities of an
experiential nature through participation with the Shaw University Honda Campus
All-Star Challenge program.
Honors Colloquium HON
301 (1) (Juniors) Prerequisite HON 202 or by permission
This course guides
students in necessary planning for a successful launch into the future after
college. It emphasizes how practical issues such as devising a realistic
budget, determining employment possibilities, planning for graduate school, and
securing living arrangements can add to the confidence of new college
graduates.
Honors Colloquium HON
302 (1) (Juniors) Prerequisite HON 301 or by permission
This course will focus
on graduate study preparation, with the task of planning and the implementation
of a plan of action for evaluating potential graduate/ professional schools,
graduate school examinations, applications, personal statements, and graduate
school finance planning, among other activities.
Honors Colloquium HON
401 (1) (Seniors) Prerequisite HON 302 or by permission
This introductory
course offers an overview of general research methods in preparation for their
senior projects. This course aims to: introduce students to the basic elements
of research design; improve students’ ability to critically evaluate the
research of others; enhance students’ understanding of what it means to be a
researcher; familiarize students with the problems and limitations of studying
the critical issues through firsthand experience with data collection; and
demonstrate the relevance of general research methods to one’s everyday lives.
Honors Colloquium HON 402
(1) (Seniors) Prerequisite HON 401 or by permission
This CAPSTONE class focuses on senior students’ last few months in college -
reviewing their experiences, planning immediate needs of their final semester,
and planning for their futures as active members of the work force or graduate
students. Students prepare final resumes, graduate school essays, and elevator
speeches to confidently present themselves. Students complete their senior
research projects for presentation in a public forum.