This document outlines the syllabus for an undergraduate course titled "Why Masculinity Matters: Men in American Higher Education". The course will be taught on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:00-5:15pm in Cedar Hall room C116 by instructor Kody Sexton. Through analyzing popular media representations and exploring how masculinity impacts areas like academics, health, and leadership, students will work to answer the central question of why masculinity matters in higher education. By the end of the course, students should be able to analyze masculinity using gender studies principles, articulate its functions in college, and integrate the material with their own experiences.

1. EDUC-U212 Syllabus: Fall 2015 1
EDUC-U212: Current Issues in Undergraduate Life—Fall 2015
Why Masculinity Matters: Men in American Higher Education
Meeting Time: Tuesdays/Thursdays, 4:00-5:15 p.m.
Meeting Location: Cedar Hall room C116
Instructor: Kody Sexton
Office: Career Development Center, 625 N. Jordan Ave
Email: kksexton@indiana.edu
Phone: (812) 856-2739
Office Hours: Thursdays, 9:00-11:00 a.m. or by appointment
“We don’t need to reinvent manliness. We only need to will ourselves to wake up from the bad dream of the
last few generations and reclaim it, in order to extend and enrich that tradition under the formidable demands
of the present.” – Waller R. Newell
Course Description
Depictions of college-aged men surround us, from the characters we see in film and television to the songs
we hear on the radio. In many ways, the media has shaped our expectations and understanding of college
men. Throughout this course, we will turn a critical eye to popular representations of college masculinity in
order to analyze how these representations manifest within higher education, both in and outside the
classroom. More specifically, we will explore how masculinity impacts academic settings, health and
wellness, and student leadership roles. Although this course draws on gender studies as a foundation for
studying masculinity, you will also be asked to think deeply about your own perceptions and experiences. A
central question—why does masculinity matter?—will guide this course, encouraging you to consider the
relevance of all course material. By the semester’s end, the goal is for you to have acquired the knowledge
needed to propose an informed answer to this complex question.
Student Learning Outcomes
Pending your active participation (defined below), upon completing this course, you should:
• Be able to analyze masculinity and its representations in popular media using the core principles of
masculinity studies
• Be able to articulate how masculinity functions in various aspects of higher education and describe
the most common stereotypes and expectations of college men
• Be able to use and strengthen critical communication skills—including writing, speaking, listening,
and presenting—to share and scrutinize ideas
• Be able to integrate course knowledge with personal experiences in order to draw connections
between masculinity studies and college student life
Course Expectations
As with any college course, what and how much you learn will depend on the amount of effort, work, and
dedication you are willing to put into your studies. In order to complete this course successfully and gain
new, meaningful bits of knowledge from it, you must take ownership of your education and go beyond
simply earning a passing grade. In other words, while my role as the instructor is to facilitate your learning, it
is ultimately up for you to decide the extent to which you engage with the course material and make
meaning from it. Consistent with the learning outcomes listed above, the following expectations are
designed as guides for optimizing both your learning experience and classroom performance.