Allegheny College Joshua Searle-White, Ph.D.

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     Welcome to this course on Conflict Resolution!  This course has two purposes.  First, it is designed to help you make your transition to Allegheny successful and productive.  Second, it is designed to give you insights and skills for resolving conflict in your own life.  Conflict, after all, is an inevitable part of human existence, and the more honestly we face it and work through it, the more free our lives are likely to be.  As the course progresses, we will examine conflict within couples, among friends and neighbors, at the workplace, and between large groups of people both in the U.S. and in other areas of the world.  Over the course of the semester, I hope you will develop a broad intellectual understanding of how to resolve conflict as well as learn skills that you can use in your own lives.  You will also have extensive practice in writing and speaking clearly – skills that will serve you well throughout your Allegheny career and beyond

     During the class sessions we will engage in a number of activities, including discussing readings, learning communication and conflict resolution skills, engaging in interviews with conflict resolution specialists, role playing conflicts, and making in-class presentations.  The class sessions are obviously central to your getting the most out of the course, and I hope you will find them interesting and engaging.  In any case, class attendance is mandatory, and if you do not attend all of the class sessions (aside from legitimate circumstances such as illness or family emergency), you can expect your grade to be reduced significantly. 

How we will use the readings

    There is one required book for the course, plus a course pack available in the bookstore that contains other required readings for the course.  I will also give you several additional articles in class.  I have not assigned large amounts of reading, but since we will discuss the various readings in close detail, you will need to have read the articles carefully (which may mean reading them two or three times) before class.  To encourage you to do so, on the days during which we are discussing an assigned reading, one class member’s name will be up on the blackboard when you walk in the room.  That person will then begin the class by giving an analysis of the reading, noting the main points, suggesting any questions that arose while he or she read it, and evaluating its conclusions.  Don’t be dismayed by this -- as long as you do the assigned reading and think about it before class, you will do fine.  I will also give you a separate handout in class that describes this procedure and suggests ways of preparing well for class.  That handout can also be found here.  

Written assignments

     Part of the purpose of this seminar is to help you analyze complex situations and express your conclusions soundly and powerfully in writing.  As you will see, I care very much about your writing, and I will pay close attention to it over the semester.  I also have very high standards.  You can find a description of my grading criteria, called “What I expect in a psychology paper,” by clicking here.

     You will complete a number of written assignments over the course of the semester.   The assignments will be posted as the semester goes on here.

 Group presentation

     Group presentations can be one of the most creative and exciting aspects of the course.  You will work with 4 or 5 of your classmates to prepare an in-depth case study of an instance of conflict resolution and then present it to the rest of the class.  I will give you detailed instructions for this assignment early in the semester. 

     The interaction between class members is one of the most important aspects of this course.  When we discuss a reading, film, or experience, we will talk with each other – not just have each of you talk to me.  We will practice listening to what each other says and responding.  Does the comment make sense?  Does it leave anything out?  If what this person said is true, what are the implications for the theory or practice of conflict resolution?  We will take each other’s comments seriously in the class sessions, and, hopefully, learn from each other.    

  Thinking about your future here at Allegheny and afterwards is also an integral part of this course.  Throughout the semester we will spend time developing the skills you will need in college as well as talking about course planning and decisions about what new areas you might explore.  Periodically I will ask you do to short writing assignments about your plans for the future.  Please feel free to seek me out for individual appointments if you have issues about your life in college, potential majors, or whatever else.  I am your advisor for at least this first year, and I look forward to getting to know you!

Your final grade will result from the number of points you earn over the semester.  The points will come from the various assignments as well as your participation. Your participation grade is based on your class attendance, your preparation for class (as evidence by your analyzing the readings when called upon and your participation in the discussion), your understanding of the readings and issues we are examining, your critiques of your colleagues’ papers, your attentiveness and performance during the role plays, your writing of role plays, and your performance on any ungraded assignments I assign.  Here is how it all breaks down:
 
 

At the end of the semester, I will assign your grade according to the percentage of points you have earned (90-100% = A, 80-89% = B, etc.).

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