UGRD > ASAMST
Asian American Studies Courses
ASAMST 110G Global Diasporas: Roots and Routes +
Description:
This course takes a cross-cultural and global approach to examining diaspora- the phenomenon of being rooted to an ancestral homeland which is other than the nation in which one currently resides. Focusing on the U.S. and other majority-white countries, we analyze diaspora as an identity formation; its relationship to ideas like ''transnational'' and ''nation'' and how notions of race, minority status, and indigenous status (e.g. American Indian) affect whether and how a group is considered a diaspora. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 200 Introduction to Asian American Studies +
Description:
This collaboratively taught course offers an interdisciplinary introduction to issues and methods relevant within the field of Asian American Studies. Possible areas of exploration may include: particular ethnic and geographic communities (e.g. South Asians and Cambodian Americans or Dorchester and Chinatown neighborhoods), women and gender, history, civil rights, media portrayals, literature, art and performance, and health or mental health issues. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 220 Special Topics +
ASAMST 221L Introduction to Asian American Writing +
Description:
A study of prose works by American writers of East Asian, Southeast Asian, and South Asian descent. In discussing texts and current issues in the field of Asian American literary studies, students consider the ways in which discourse determines identity and the responsibilities of writers-to themselves as artists and to their communities, whether defined by race or gender. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 223L Asians in the United States +
Description:
This multidisciplinary course examines the social, historical, and structural contexts defining the Asian American experience from 1850 to the present. Topics include immigration, labor, community settlement, ethnicity, stereotypes, and race relations. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 225L Southeast Asians in the United States +
Description:
This course examines issues arising from the resettlement of one million Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Laotian refugees in the US since 1975. Topics include resettlement policies, adjustment and acculturation, changing roles of women and family, and the continuing impact of international politics. Media presentations and lectures by local Southeast Asian community leaders highlight the course. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 226 Becoming South Asians +
Description:
This course examines the history and contemporary issues of people in the US with ancestry from countries such as Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Through course readings, films, guest lectures, and student projects, the course explores global migrations and immigrant patterns, The formation of diverse South Asian communities, and cross-cutting issues of race, ethnicity, class, and gender. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 227GL Multicultural Expression and Celebration: U.S. Ethnic Festivals and Transnational Belonging +
Description:
The course uses the lens of celebrating different communities' ethnicities to explore ideas of transnational belonging as they relate to diaspora, ethnicity, and race in the contemporary United States. Class discussions focus on art and display, critical race theory, and anthropological studies of culture history and cultural migration to examine the politics of ethnicity, racialized identity, and national belonging. In so doing, students assess current goals for U.S. multiculturalism and its practical connections to multi-vocality. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 228L Asian Women in the United States +
Description:
Drawing on women's voices in literature, sociocultural research, and historical analysis, this course examines the experience of Asian women in the United States from 1850 to the present. Topics include the transformation of Asian women's traditional roles as part of the acculturation process; exclusion; changing roles within the Asian American family; resistance to oppression as defined by race, gender, class; and the continuing impact of international politics. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 238L Asian American Psychology +
Description:
This course is an introduction to the psychological experience of Asian Americans, including the historical, sociopolitical, and cultural influences that shape personality and mental health in community, family, and individual contexts. The course also explores prevention and intervention possibilities through specific examples, such as trauma and intergenerational conflict, that are relevant for Asian American populations. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 250G Rise Up! Asian American Leadership and Social Change +
Description:
This course will discuss the legacy of Asian American youth since the 1960's and the present activities, directions, and perspectives of Asian American leaders and organizations. Students will learn basic theories and models of leadership and organizations within the context of social movements and Asian American history. Students will engage with essays from activists, critically analyze organizations, and develop their own plan to address a community issue to present to their peers. In addition to multi-disciplinary readings, there will be guest speakers, videos, and peer teaching. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 265L World War II Internment of Japanese Americans (A) +
Description:
The US Government in 1942 commenced the internment of 120,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry. This course considers political, economic, legal, sociological and historical matters in the examination of this chapter in American life. The course encompasses experiences beyond the internment, including early Japanese immigration, the battle for redress and reparations, and the current status of Japanese and Asian Americans. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 270 Cambodian American Culture and Community +
Description:
This course explores significant themes from the cultural and historical past of Khmer/Cambodian Americans, and examines issues concerning their cross-generational realities as refugees, immigrants, and racial minorities, including their development of communities in the U.S. and their continuing diasporic relationships to Cambodia. Local student/community examples from Lynn, Revere, and Lowell will be highlighted. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 294 Resources for Vietnamese American Studies +
Description:
This course introduces students to the field of Vietnamese American Studies - what theories, methods, resources, and voices are helpful to examine the migrations and reconstructions of identity, culture, and community for Vietnamese in the U.S. and their diasporic relationships to Viet Nam and around the world. The course will feature presentations by local Vietnamese American researchers, writers, and community leaders. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 315L Asian American Cinema +
Description:
This course examines the independently-produced films and videos by Asian American filmmakers and artists. Asian American independent cinema first emerged as early as the 1910s, but developed most significantly in the civil rights era and closely connected to both the Asian American political movement and the development of the Third World Independent filmmaking. This class begins with an exploration of the early history of Asian and Asian American son the American screen and then shifts to consider the role of Asian Americans behind the camera. We explore the post- 1960s production of Asian American film and video, ranging from documentary and narrative features to experimental, avant-garde, and short video. This is a hands-on, interactive course designed with the support of the Mellon Foundation. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 326L Multiracial Experiences +
Description:
This course explores the experiences of multiracial individuals from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. We will explore historical and current meanings of race and racialization, including the personal, community, and political implications of racial categorizations, racial purity, and newer ideas of multiraciality and changing boundaries. We will consider racial identities and the negotiation of multiple, complex and contradicting meanings of race and racialization. We will also explore the diverse meanings and experiences of multiracial individuals in specific relation to various racial groups, including White European Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos. Finally, we will consider issues related to community organizing for, by and in relation to multiracial peoples. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 333 Asian American Politics and Social Movements +
Description:
Students examine the historical development and contemporary dimensions of political and social movements in Asian American communities. Through directed readings, lectures, and critical case studies, students analyze ways in which Asian Americans have organized politically through electoral participation, ethnic/ cultural forms, neighborhood-based organizing, labor unions, multi-racial coalitions and virtual forms to affect issues in their communities, their homelands, and in US society. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 345 Asian American Cultures and Health Practices +
Description:
Students examine critical health issues among diverse Asian cultures and communities, including cultural influences on health behaviors and practices of Asian Americans, and the relationships between health of Asian Americans and social, political, and economic contexts. A field work component enables students to develop culturally sensitive health intervention strategies or policies for individuals, families, and communities. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 350L Asian-American Literary Voices +
Description:
An advanced study of poetry, fiction, drama, and autobiography by Asian American writers to explore the complex interplay between constructions of ethnic identity and literary expression. Students engage with the highly diverse face of contemporary Asian America, probing its literature for emerging themes like diaspora, transnationalism, and sexuality and analyzing their impact on the U.S. literary landscape. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 353L Community Economic Development in the U.S.: Class, Race, Ethnicity +
Description:
This course provides a framework to understand and assess local economic development issues, as well as approaches and strategies to address them. The focus is on different types of community capital central to sustainable community economic development. These community resources include physical capital, business development and entrepreneurship, financial capital, social capital, household asset accumulation, education, and workforce development. Special attention is given to challenges and opportunities of local economic development among low-income, minority, and immigrant groups in urban communities. The local economic development among low-income, minority, and immigrant groups in urban communities. The local economic development strategies involve different configurations. of policies initiated at the federal, state, and local levels - engaging governmental, corporate, and community organizations, as well as complementary social services. Students will have the opportunity to investigate in depth the economic development conditions and evolving efforts to strength sustainable economic development in a particular community.UPCD 353L and ASAMST 353L are the same course. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 355L Asian Americans and the Law +
Description:
How has the US legal system affected Asian Americans? How have Asian Americans individually and collectively had impact on the US legal system? This course critically examines historical and contemporary issues of immigration policy, affirmative action, bilingual education, civil rights, and community control of development from local and national perspectives. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 370 Asian American Media Literacy +
Description:
This course will analyze media in three ways: media content (the message); the political and economic structure of mass media; and the impact of the media on culture, identity, and group relationships, particularly in relation to dynamics of race and gender for Asian Americans. The course will enable students to develop a critical eye toward images and representations in media, to examine thoughtfully how their media use has affected their own identities, and to explore the possibilities of creating alternative media which can express their voices more fully or effectively. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 375L Indian Cinema +
Description:
This course will provide an introduction to Indian cinema and to Indian culture and society through the study of films. The Indian film industry is the largest producer of feature films in the world. In this class we will examine the films as entertainment as well as cultural narratives and commentaries on society, exploring themes such as social change, the family and gender. The course will combine content analysis of film texts with study of the public culture of film reception. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 390 Asian American Community Internships I +
Description:
This seminar course supports students involved with internships and projects working with Asian American populations and issues. Students carry out specific activities that support the development and enhance the capacity of organizations, agencies, and projects focusing on critical issues and needs in Asian American communities in the Boston area. Students also are expected to reflect critically on what they learn in the process both about themselves and about the organizational and community contexts in which they work. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 391 Asian American Community Internships II +
Description:
This seminar course supports students involved with internships and projects working with Asian American populations and issues. Students carry out specific activities that support the development and enhance the capacity of organizations, agencies, and projects focusing on critical issues and needs in Asian American communities in the Boston area. Students also are expected to reflect critically on what they learn in the process both about themselves and about the organizational and community contexts in which they work. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 397 Applied Research in Asian American Studies I +
Description:
This course enables qualified undergraduates to participate in applied research projects directed by a faculty member affiliated with the Asian American Studies Program. Students engage in the research process through clarifying questions and reviewing relevant literature, designing appropriate methods for data collection and analysis, and sharing findings and recommendations. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 398 Applied Research in Asian American Studies II +
Description:
This course enables qualified undergraduates to participate in applied research projects directed by a faculty member affiliated with the Asian American Studies Program. Students engage in the research process through clarifying questions and reviewing relevant literature, designing appropriate methods for data collection and analysis, and sharing findings and recommendations. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 420 Advanced Topics +
Description:
This advanced course offers intensive study of selected topics in the field of Asian American studies. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 423 Boston's Asian American Communities +
Description:
This advanced research seminar examines the dynamics of ethnicity and community change in Asian American communities. Using theories of community development and methods of community research, students analyze Boston's Asian American communities as case studies of complex social systems. The course also looks at current research on immigrant acculturation, ethnic enclave economies, and the community control movement. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 478 Independent Study I +
ASAMST 479 Independent Study II +
Description:
This course offers individuals and groups of students the opportunity to work with a specific faculty member on an approved project or plan of study in the field of Asian American Studies. More Info
Offered in:ASAMST 497 Teaching and Learning in Asian American Studies I +
Description:
This seminar course enables advanced undergraduates, by invitation of the program, to develop conceptual approaches and directed practice relevant to pedagogy and curriculum design in the field of Asian American Studies. Students design and implement semester-long projects that address critical issues of teaching and learning with Asian American Studies content and/or Asian American student populations. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
ASAMST 498 Teaching and Learning in Asian American Studies II +
Description:
This seminar course enables advanced undergraduates, by invitation of the program, to develop conceptual approaches and directed practice relevant to pedagogy and curriculum design in the field of Asian American Studies. Students design and implement semester-long projects that address critical issues of teaching and learning with Asian American Studies content and/or Asian American student populations. More Info
Offered in: