Teaching Interests My teaching interests include globalization, ethnicity and identity, material culture studies, anthropology of tourism/travel, anthropology of Europe, kinship, language and culture, ethnographic methods, and seminars in research/writing. Courses I have taught at UC Berkeley: MUSEUMS IN ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE (Undergraduate lecture; Instructor, Summer 2009) Museums are institutions that collect, preserve, and display objects. More than that, they are sites for the expression (and often contestation) of value, ownership, and identity. This course surveys the fundamentals of contemporary museum practice, viewed in light of debates over the meaning of objects and the concept of heritage, collections and collecting, the politics of museum education, representation, and display, and the involvement or exclusion of various constituencies in museum operations. Drawing on case studies of different types of museums—including art, history, science, and anthropology—we will explore museum practices, particularly curation and exhibition, as complex cultural phenomena involving not only museum professionals but also audiences, scholars, critics, creators and collectors of objects, and people and cultures represented. The course will be of particular interest for students who plan to conduct research on or in museums, as well as those with a strong interest in material culture and representation and those who may be thinking of museum work as a career. Course texts include: Alexander, Mary. 2007. Museums in Motion. Alta Mira. Kreamer, Christine, et al., eds. 2007. Museum Frictions: Public Cultures/Global Transformations. Duke University Press. Pearce, Susan. 1993. Museums, Objects, and Collections. Smithsonian. +course packet CULTURE OUT OF PLACE: ANTHROPOLOGIES OF THE GLOBAL (Undergraduate seminar; Instructor, Spring 2009) How does globalization affect culture? What is the significance of geographical place when people, ideas, images, and material goods circulate continuously around the globe? What impact does global interconnection have on individual identities, goals, and desires? This course introduces students to a variety of ways that anthropologists have approached these questions, as well as to different ways they have sought to capture their findings in written form. Contrasting ethnographic texts with documentary films and journalistic reports, we will examine a range of analyses of the complex and shifting relationships between people, culture, and place that define the global present. Topics include, among others, international migration, the internet, tourism, and cross-cultural consumption of goods and practices (e.g., clothing, arts, foods, religious beliefs) worldwide. Throughout, we will attend to linkages between these global phenomena and individual and collective identities, feelings of belonging and exclusion, social and economic inequality, ethnicity, gender relations, representation, meaning, and value. Course texts include: ANTHROPOLOGY SENIOR HONORS THESIS SEMINAR (Advanced undergraduate seminar; Instructor, Fall 2008) This seminar is designed to provide focus and support for students formulating, researching, and writing a senior honors thesis in any subfield of anthropology. We will break down the project into smaller components, including the preliminary proposal, literature review, methodology, time management, implementing the research plan, and the craft of writing itself. As a group, we will discuss readings on research and writing, circulate and critique short written assignments, and hear from a series of guest speakers. By the end of the semester you will have produced a 15-20 page prospectus/report to share with your thesis advisor, including a literature review, statement of methodology, and a clear schedule of work for the spring semester. Course texts include: Booth, Wayne, et al. 2003. The Craft of Research, 3rd ed. University of Chicago Press. Becker, Howard. 2007. Writing in the Social Sciences: How to Start and Finish Your Thesis, Book, or Article. 2nd ed. University of Chicago Press. TOURISM AND MODERNITY (Graduate seminar; Co-Instructor, with N. Graburn, Spring 2008) This seminar is intended for graduate students and visiting scholars with interest in research involving tourism, embedded with other phenomena such as globalization, representation, museums, "branding," narrative, inter-ethnic/national exploitation, social inequality, and so on. It is intended for those who are beginning to learn about this topic, writing research proposals, undertaking research, and writing up masters or doctoral research. Note: For this seminar I designed, assigned, and led three course segments: (1) Tourism and Identity; (2) Diasporic/Roots Tourism; and (3) Tourism and Intimacy. ---------- I have also served as a Teaching Assistant for the following courses: Introduction to Social/Cultural Anthropology; Anthropology of Tourism; Anthropology of Art; Anthropology of Europe; Forms of Folklore. |
|
|
Teaching |