What does COVID-19 teach us about ourselves, and about the societies we live in? How can we take care of one another and the planet during this unknown pandemic time? In this innovative and timely course, learn how coronavirus impacted social inequalities, and what we can do about it.
Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see EdX's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.
What lessons can we learn from COVID-19? How was society organized leading up to the pandemic, and how could it be organized for the future? This course, regardless of your academic background, will teach you core ways of approaching health, climate change, and social justice in the COVID-19 era.
This special collection of expert lectures is curated by your instructor, Dr. Katherine Lyon. Join Professor Lyon weekly for sociological insights on the pandemic as well as selected readings and activities to deepen your knowledge. Broaden your perspective on COVID-19’s societal impacts through dialogue with course participants around the world.
Learn through the award-winning teaching approaches of faculty members from the University of British Columbia. This course will bring a sociological lens to complex pandemic challenges, and aid in situating COVID-19 as a global issue that requires a collective, collaborative response.
What you'll learn
This course will prepare you to:
- Think sociologically about COVID-19 in local and global contexts
- Analyze COVID-19 impacts on health inequalities
- Draw connections between COVID-19 and lessons for climate change
- Explain how pandemic policies affect marginalized workers
- Consider how ageism and racism exacerbate the coronavirus
Syllabus
Week 1: Social Inequality under COVID-19
What does inequality look like in the pandemic era?
Week 2: COVID-19 Health (In)Equity
How is COVID-19 health risk distributed? Why do different groups face different risks?
Week 3: Aging, Aged, Ageism under COVID-19
Ageism is rampant in coronavirus discourse. What does this tell us about our societies? Where can we go from here?
Week 4: Racism Under the Pandemic
Why did racism flare up in this unknown time? What lessons from history can we draw upon to tackle pandemic racism?
Week 5: Climate Change & COVID-19
What environmental lessons can we take from COVID-19 for preventing climate change?
Week 6: Marginalized workers Under COVID-19
How have marginalized workers been affected by pandemic policies in different parts of the world?
Week 7: Key take-aways and wrap-up