Professor: Symonds Course format: Seminar Number of respondents: 22 Total Enrollment: 31 Class Composition: Froshs: 5 Sophs: 13 Jrs: 8 Srs: 5 Concs: 5 Non-Concs: 14 Don't Know: 0

Instructor Average: 1.47 Course Average: 1.33

Anthropology 102, “AIDS in International Perspective,” is listed in the BioMed-Community Health Department as well as in Anthropology Department. This course is an upper-level class with the goal of giving students a good cross-cultural awareness of the social and political issues surrounding the HIV/AIDS pandemic and sexually transmitted diseases. It is concerned with the knowledge, treatment and perception of AIDS. There are no prerequisites, though some background in community health and basic biology would be helpful.

The students were very approving of Professor Symond’s organization of the class. She lectured during one of the two meetings per week, and the other meeting was devoted to class discussion. The reviewers found that this format encouraged independent thought and gave them a chance to hear different viewpoints. Professor Symonds was described as receptive to students’ ideas and sensitive to the often painful nature of the topic.

The assigned readings were all useful and necessary to the class, though some students mentioned the course packet in particular as being helpful. The reading load per week was moderate; the rest of the work included a midterm, three papers (two short and one long), two group presentations, and one individual presentation.

Reviewers spend an average of four to five hours on outside work for this class per week, which was about what they had anticipated. The advice that the students have for you is absolutely to take it, to be sure and pre-register, and to prepare for your views on HIV/AIDS to be changed forever.

View AN/0105 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.