World in Conversation (WinC) at Penn State is a center that trains students to lead dialogues using a method designed to address social issues that are timely and complex. Our student facilitators will lead the dialogue you join. No matter what the topic, your group will have the chance to consider divergent perspectives, disagree meaningfully, and think together.

This is an essential part of the course and we want to emphasize that getting an “A” in this class is almost impossible if you don’t complete this assignment. Here are clear instructions to help you complete it.

First, let us introduce Darniesha Pressley (Niesh). She is the Operations Assistant at WinC as well as the Stream Team Leader for SOC 119. You will meet her in class during the first week and see her throughout the semester working on things in the background. Niesh manages WinC’s system, providing you:

  • access to a personalized registration dashboard (via your Penn State email)

  • a variety of dates and times for dialogues in any given week

  • multiple reminder emails with your registration and attendance status 

If you have questions about WinC dialogues, fill out this form on the WinC Website. Niesh will respond to your emails within 48 hours, when you use this form. But, if you email her via her WinC or PSU email you are less likely to receive support.

Throughout the semester, you need to complete three World in Conversation dialogues. Each dialogue is worth 8 points. 

  • You will be contacted via your Penn State email at specific points in the semester to register for each dialogue (see the schedule below).

  • Dialogues will occur outside of your regular SOC 119 class time at a variety of dates and times throughout the week - you will select one when you register.

  • Each dialogue session lasts 95 minutes. You must be present for the entire period of time to receive credit. And keep in mind: You will not be able to attend the dialogue (or receive credit) if you are more than 5 minutes late. In order to receive credit, your attendance will be recorded at the end of the session. 

  • The majority of these dialogues will occur in-person in Pond Lab.

WHAT YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR:

  • Register the day you receive your emails. 

    • Refrain from changing your registration. Pick a time and plan ahead to be there.

  • Attend. While WinC offers more than enough seats, they do not offer unlimited seats. 

  • Communicate in a timely manner when issues arise at any point. 

We cannot guarantee you an opportunity for make-up dialogues because the system is planned around the numbers we have to ensure everybody gets a seat for the three dialogues. In other words, your opportunities to complete this assignment is not endless. Therefore, do not register for a group and not show up for it. DON’T MISS GROUPS!!! And if you do happen to miss a group more than once, then you likely will not earn the 8 points for that block and your final grade in SOC 119 will suffer.

There will be competition for the seats available for make-up dialogues, and you might not get registered. Our best advice is that you do not slack on this assignment, or you will be in dire straits at the end of the term.

*If WinC sees registration or attendance rates that are wasting seats, (i.e. excessive registering and unregistering), individual student registration and attendance histories will be reviewed to determine if additional seats can be offered. 

Ultimately, you are part of a larger system between WinC and SOC 119. You need to uphold your end by successfully completing this assignment in a convenient and timely manner.

World in Conversation Dialogue Schedule for SOC 119:

All dates are approximate and subject to change.

In each block, the class is split into two (2) groups by people’s first names according to their PSU email (i.e., a student who goes by the name Billy with email rbc1234@psu.edu would register in Group L-Z for each block, not in Group A-K):

BLOCK 1 - First Dialogue:

  • Group A - K: First names that begin with A - K will have dialogues between
    September 8 - September 21

  • Group L - Z: First names that begin with L - Z will have dialogues between
    September 21 - October 2

BLOCK 2 - Second Dialogue:

  • Group A - K: First names that begin with A - K will have dialogues between
    October 5 - October 16

  • Group L - Z: First names that begin with L - Z will have dialogues between
    October 15 - October 30

BLOCK 3 - Third Dialogue:

  • Group A - K: First names that begin with A - K will have dialogues between
    November 2 - November 13

  • Group L - Z: First names that begin with L - Z will have dialogues between
    November 16 - December 4

Some of you may have the chance to schedule a global dialogue during Blocks 2 and 3. This is a unique opportunity to connect with students from countries such as Afghanistan, Yemen, Iraq, Colombia, Brazil, and Russia. Because you are connecting with students around the world, these specific global dialogues occur on Zoom, which you will see on the registration site.

REMEMBER, YOU MIGHT ALSO BE REQUIRED TO HAVE A WinC DIALOGUE IN ANOTHER CLASS BESIDES SOC 119.

YOU CANNOT DOUBLE COUNT.