CGDS Introduces New Courses in Gender & Philosophy and Gender, Ethnicity & Class

For the 2006/7 academic year the Centre for Gender and Development Studies, (CGDS), St Augustine Campus, will be introducing three new courses:

1. GEND3501: The Philosophy of Gender Semester 1

2. GEND3502: The Philosophy of Gender in Caribbean Thought Semester 2

3. SOCI3038 Gender, Ethnicity and Class in the Anglophone Caribbean:
Issues of Identity, Nation and Citizenship Semester 2

What kind of society do we want gender to create? What are we saying about the roles, responsibilities and relationships between men and women in society that make for a more equal distribution of labour, power and privilege? Why should we aim to build societies in which equality and justice of gender, race and class, are the cornerstones of our civilization?

If you are interested in these and acquiring the tools of critical thinking and analysis then these are the courses for you. Distributed over two semesters, these first two courses engage you in a feminist critique of western thought and knowledge, equips you with the tools and concepts to guide analysis and challenges you to consider the ethical and moral dilemmas abounding in the contemporary world we inhabit. While exposing you to the universal and generic issues raised in all human philosophy, the material of the first and particularly that of the second course is grounded in Caribbean reality. We look at the writers and thinkers of the region in particular to examine how we have come to know what we know and think what we think about in Trinidad and Tobago and in the region.

The third course (Gender, Ethnicity and Class) is based on the theory that issues of race/ethnicity, colour, and their relationship to identity, culture and class are central to the Caribbean histories and contemporary realities. Students examine simplistic and uninformed analyses of ‘race’ and ethnic relations which take place everyday, for example on radio talk shows and in popular music, and contribute to misunderstandings and intra - and inter-group tensions within our societies. Gender is strongly implicated in these processes and must be included in our analysis of ethnic processes. This course seeks to raise the level of discourse on ‘race’ and ethnic relations on our societies and establish the centrality of gender to issues of ‘race’, ethnicity and culture. At the end of this course the student should be more familiar with the historical background to contemporary relations; have a better understanding of the ways in which women and men are differently located within the discourse on race and class in the region; and an appreciation of the new ways in which scholars have sought to understand and conceptualise these complex interactions. It is hoped that this course will contribute to a more informed approach to inter-ethnic and gender relations in the region.
These new courses are highly recommended for anyone desirous of obtaining an increased understanding of, and training in gender as a tool of analysis as well as gaining a deepened appreciation of gender in philosophical discourses. Students of the Minor in Gender Studies and Gender and Development Studies or those who wish to pursue gender or gender related studies at the post-graduate level, are especially encouraged to register.

For more information contact the Centre at gender@cgds.uwi.tt, tel: 662-2002 ext 3573 or visit us Upstairs Chemistry Bldg. 2.

LOOKING FOR INNOVATIVE COURSES? CAN’T DECIDE WHAT TO STUDY BUT WANT SOMETHING MEANINGFUL, EXCITING AND WITH GOOD CAREER PROSPECTS?
THEN THINK OUT OF THE BOX.
THINK GENDER!!