AGE AND HAPPINESS (1-2page)

FIELD ASSIGNMENT 2

AGE AND HAPPINESS

Goals and Skills: Students are asked to apply specific concepts, happiness theories, or research findings they have learned in class to life experiences and specific out-of-class activities. Using a concept in a new circumstance as well as connecting sociology to other relevant material in students’ lives allows for greater student understanding.

Specific Instructions: Find someone over age 65 (ideally even older) and ask them about happiness in order to gain a broader view of happiness and write about it. This is a qualitative research interview so substantive questions you may wish to ask can include:

 What was the happiest moment of your life?

 How do you define happiness?

 What makes for a happy life in general?

 What would you have done differently to make your life happier?

 What can you still do to improve your happiness?

 Did you have the same idea of happiness at age 20 as you do at your current age? You may include direct quotations, but DO NOT simply include a transcript of the conversation. Write substantively about the conversation and relate it to class material. Also, please omit real names or other identifying information about your research subject. This is a good research practice to adopt now.

Substantive Discussion/Debriefing: On the class day after the assignment is due, there will be an in-class discussion about this assignment. Students should be prepared to talk about their paper.

DUE: A digital copy should be uploaded to D2L into correct folder by 11:59pm on the due date (exact dates are noted on the syllabus under Course Calendar and Assignments).

Feedback: Students will be given numerical grades using the rubric below:

FIELD ASSIGNMENT GRADING RUBRIC

POINT VALUE

GRADING CRITERIA POINTS

RECEIVED

1 Covered subject of assignment/stayed on topic

1 Included at least ONE direct quotation from a class reading that was appropriately cited using an ASA-style in-text parenthetical citation (Author Year: Page#)

1 Clarity of writing style/ease of reading

1 Grammar and spelling

1 Format (typed, double-spaced, 12 pt. font, 1 page minimum, 2 pp. max)

TOTAL SCORE (Out of 5):