Social Sciences
11.469 Urban Sociology in Theory and Practice
Synchronous, In Person
This course serves as an introduction to core writings in urban sociology. Students explore the nature and changing character of the city and the urban experience, providing context for the development of urban studies research and planning skills. Topics include the changing nature of community, neighborhood effects, social capital and networks, social stratification, feminist theory and critical race theory, and the interaction of social structure and political power. This course is taught to a mix of MIT students and incarcerated students.
ES.S90 Designing Adaptive Prison Solutions
Synchronous, Remote
This seminar partners with experts within the criminal justice system, and with incarcerated individuals with and without disabilities. The goal of this seminar is to understand how incarcerated people with disabilities are treated within the system, and to discuss how that treatment could be improved. This seminar welcomes both MIT students and incarcerated students.
ES.S90 Incarceration and Society: the complexity of the criminal justice system
Synchronous, In Person
The objective of this course is to explore an overview of criminal justice issues and policies, and to identify/assess crime prevention and recidivism interventions. The context of this writing workshop is to help participants develop technical skills that ultimately assist in self-expression. Issues considered in this course include: Are punishments fairly implemented throughout the population (race, gender, etc.)? What is the role of rehabilitation in corrections? What role does corrections play in American society? Is the current corrections system working? Why or why not? This course is taught to a mix of MIT students and incarcerated students.
ES.S92 Measuring Success in the Criminal Justice System
This project-based course is conducted by the Middlesex County District Attorney's Office. Students learn the life cycle of criminal justice procedure through meeting all the significant players in the process. They then work with the D.A.'s office to achieve actionable answers to questions such as: (1) How can we better collect and analyze our data to meet our racial justice goals? (2) When making data assessments, whose determination of race or ethnicity should control the input? (3) What are ways we can track and better report on recidivism to evaluate policies that are intended to decrease recidivism? (4) Can we track recidivism without making a citizen feel constantly watched? (5) How can we study and prevent generational harm starting today? (6) How can we evaluate and improve our diversion and conviction integrity programs and make sure that every community has equal access?
Political Science 145
This course explores the role of work in the context of American politics and society. Students study how work has been understood in political and social theory by considering the scholarship of John Locke, Karl Marx, Max Weber, Judith Shklar, Pierre Bourdieu, Zygmunt Bauman, Luc Boltanski, and others. Students also consider ethnographic studies that explore how workers experience their lives inside organizations and how workplaces transform in response to changing legal regulations. These theoretical and empirical explorations will provide a foundation for reflections about how work structures opportunities in democratic societies and how re-imagining work might unleash human potential. This course grounds these questions about the role of work in the context of American politics and society.