ANTH 1713 Introduction to Anthropology Syllabus W01 Fall 2026

Credit Hours 3.00 Lecture Hours 3 Clinical/Lab Hours 0
Type of Credit
CIP Code
45.0201
Course Meeting Time

Online only.  No synchronous meeting time. 

Course Description

This course provides an introduction to the nature of humans and their development and relationship to the physical and social environment today and in the past. The class surveys the major subfields of anthropology, cultural anthropology, physical anthropology, archaeology, and linguistics.

Course Alignment

IAI Number
S1-900N
IAI Title
Anthropology, Introduction
General Education Outcomes

General Education Outcomes are the knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and behaviors that students are expected to develop as a result of their overall experiences with any aspect of the college, including courses, programs, and student services, both inside and outside of the classroom. The General Education Outcomes specifically learned in this course are:

  1. Communication
  2. Responsibility
Explanation of Course Alignment

ANTH 1713 was designed to meet specific student needs either individually or within a program and is designed to transfer to other colleges and universities. KCC participates in the Illinois Articulation Initiative(IAI), a statewide transfer agreement for general education courses. All colleges and universities participating in the IAI agree to accept a collective “package” of IAI general education courses; transfer of courses separately is not guaranteed. For more information about IAI and the transferability of courses to specific four-year institutions, go to itransfer.org and mycreditstransfer.org

Faculty Contact Information

Faculty Name
Liz Scott
Faculty Email
Faculty Phone
815-802-8766
Faculty Office Number
R203
Faculty Student Support Hours

Tuesday/Thursday: 8:30-9:30

Wednesday 9:30-12:30

Course Information

Course Outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Understand the various subfields within Anthropology and their respective research methods which guide the understanding of social/cultural phenomena.
  2. Identify social/cultural phenomena and place a given research question into the appropriate subfield or subfields within Anthropology.
  3. Apply the basic concepts used in Anthropology.
  4. Recognize whether or not a given set of data supports various theories of biological and cultural variation.
  5. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the range and variety of human patterns of belief and behavior.
Textbook/s and Course Materials

Textbook (Required)

Your textbook is required and can be FREE online through this link: https://openstax.org/details/books/introduction-anthropology

If you would like a printed version of the textbook you can order one from the above link for the cost listed on the site.

If you have questions regarding whether you are purchasing the correct textbook, please ask me.

In addition to the textbook, there will be supplementary material assigned throughout the semester that you will be expected to read as well.

Methods of Evaluation
AssignmentPoints
Quizzes-20 points (x4)80 points
Course Final50 points
Homework assignments-10 points (2 per week)320 points
Discussion questions-5 points (21 total)105 points
Research presentation55 points
Miscellaneous assignments11 points
Total possible points621 points
Letter GradeOverall percentage
A90-100%
B80-89%
C70-79%
D60-69%
FBelow 60%

***When computing report card grades, I round to the nearest whole number, so 69.5% rounds to a 70%, for a C, but 69.4%, which is a D, does not round up to a 70.

Academic Division

Liberal Arts & Sciences

Dean, Jennifer Huggins; 815-802-8484; R310; jhuggins@kcc.edu; Division Office- W102; 815-802-8700

Course Policies

This is an online course. You will work at your own pace, meaning there are no required meeting times. However, there are required weekly due dates for completing work. There are technology requirements. CANVAS will be used extensively.

Technology Requirements: This is an online course, so computer and internet access and camera for recording are necessary. If you do not have the necessary technology, please let me know right away. In some cases, you may be able to borrow resources from the KCC library.

CANVAS will be used for everything. All course content and communications will be facilitated through CANVAS, KCC’s learning management system. All courses at KCC use CANVAS to some extent. If you have taken a KCC course in a previous semester, you are probably familiar with CANVAS to some extent. If not, you may access the Student Passport to Online Learning in your CANVAS account which will introduce you to the components of CANVAS and online learning. When you log into CANVAS, you should see the Navigation Panel to the left. If you click on the Dashboard button, all of your classes will show up and Student Passport to Online Learning should be one of them. If you find yourself struggling with any component of online learning, please reach out to me as soon as the issue arises.

If you are struggling with the use of technology, please let me know and we can arrange a face to face meeting on campus so that I may help you with the use of the technology.

Communications: I will post any announcements in CANVAS; you will find them under the Announcements tab in the navigation panel to the left of the screen in canvas. I will also send emails in CANVAS. You may email me through CANVAS as well. It is very important that you check CANVAS Announcements and your CANVAS and KCC email often. Please only use your KCC email for correspondence with me.

Each week by 8 AM on Mondays, a new weekly Module(s) will be posted in CANVAS. All your assignments will be housed in weekly Modules. Modules will be posted on Mondays and will be due 8 days later on Tuesdays at 11:59 pm, so you will have just over a week to complete a Module(s).

For each Module students will usually do the following:

  • Reading assignment and/or watch short videos.
  • Homework/Activities: These will be based on the topic we are discussing for the week. The activities will consist of discussions, essay questions, etc.

Quizzes

Quizzes could be a combination of multiple choice, short answer and essay. Quizzes will be timed. All of the Module activities leading up to the quiz are intended to prepare you for the quiz.

Quizzes must be taken by the deadline. The deadline will not be extended unless the student has a valid excuse, as deemed by the professor.

It is expected that students will not accept or give help or assistance regarding quizzes. Accepting or giving help regarding a quiz is considered cheating.

Due Dates

It is expected that work will be turned in on time.

Extenuating circumstances will always be considered. If you find yourself in any situation that makes meeting deadlines difficult, please reach out as soon as you can, so we can make a plan that is fair and reasonable.

All work that is to be graded must be turned in by the last regular day of the semester. The final exam will not be accepted late.

Final exam

The student must complete the final exam to pass the course. The final exam will be due by 11:59 pm on Wednesday of the last week of classes. The final exam can cover any material presented in this course.

 

Expectations for Classroom and Online Behavior

It is expected that students will not accept or give any outside help or assistance regarding any exam, excluding what is explicitly stated to be allowed (notes, for example).

Accepting or giving help regarding the final exam is considered cheating.

Academic Honesty: It is expected that you will turn in your own original work. Turning in anything but your own original work is plagiarism and is academically dishonest. Any instances of academic dishonesty could result in an F for the assignment grade, or, depending on the circumstance, an F for the course grade.

Knowingly or even unknowingly portraying someone else’s work as your own or allowing someone else to portray your work as theirs is considered to be academic dishonesty. If ever you are not sure if a situation is considered to be honest or not, please reach out.

Expectation for Artificial Intelligence (AI) involvement: Any assignments turned in are expected to be a result of your own work and research. Any sources used for research are to be properly cited, including any AI software. For any assignment or exam in which you violate the student code of conduct you will receive zero points on the assignment after the first violation and will fail the class after the second violation and may face further disciplinary action.

When assignments are submitted through CANVAS, many are automatically checked for plagiarism through a feature called SimCheck.

If you are not familiar with the definition of Plagiarism, please review the definition from Dictionary.com here: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/plagiarism

College Policies, Resources and Supports

College Policies

For information related to the Student Code of Conduct Policy, Withdrawal Policy, Email Policy, and Non-Attendance/Non-Participation Policy, please review the college’s Code of Campus Affairs and Regulations webpage, which can be found at catalog.kcc.edu.

Course Calendar
Course Calendar
Week numberTopicReadings
1Class Intro/What is AnthropologyChapter 1
2Methods-Cultural and Archaeological AnthroChapter 2 and assigned reading
3Culture Concept TheoryChapter 3
4Biological Evolution and Early Human EvidenceChapter 4
5Genus Homo & Emergence of UsChapter 5
Sep 18 EXAM 1 (Ch. 1-5)
6Language and CommunicationChapter 6
7Work life & ValueChapter 7
8

Authority, Decisions & Power

Social Inequalities

Chapter 8 &

Chapter 9

9Global Impact of Human MigrationChapter 10
Oct 16 EXAM 2 (Ch. 6-10)
10Forming Family through KinshipChapter 11
11Gender & SexualityChapter 12
12Religion and CultureChapter 13
13Anthropology of FoodChapter 14
Nov 13 EXAM 3 (Ch. 11-14)
14

Anthropology of Media

Art, Music & Sport

Chapter 15 &

Chapter 16

15

Medical Anthropology

Human-Animal relationships

Chapter 17 &

Chapter 18

Dec 4 EXAM 4 (Ch. 15-18)
16

Indigenous Anthropology

Anthropology on the ground

Chapter 19 &

Chapter 20

Dec 10 Final Exam open Dec 8-Dec 10

College Policies, Resources and Supports

College Policies

For information related to the Student Code of Conduct Policy, Withdrawal Policy, Email Policy, and Non- Attendance/Non-Participation Policy, please review the college’s Code of Campus Affairs and Regulations webpage, which can be found at catalog.kcc.edu under the Academic Regulations & Conduct Guide. 

Resources

KCC offers various academic and personal resources for all students. Many services are offered virtually, as well as in person. Please visit Student Resources - Kankakee Community College to access student resources services such as:

  • Clubs and organizations
  • Counseling and referral services
  • Office of disability services
  • Student complaint policy
  • Transfer services
  • Tutoring services, etc.