Course Descriptions - Undergraduate Calendar 2023-2024

An overview of the broad field of recreation and leisure emphasizing the understanding of various leisure phenomena. As such, it provides the student with an introductory understanding of the nature and scope of leisure, leisure behaviour, and affiliated recreation activity.

Using a wide variety of leisure service agencies as examples, this course introduces students to the nature and scope of leisure provision. Topics include program components, the classification and management of resources, professionalism, and current managerial trends and future developments.

This course emphasizes the application of design thinking principles to develop, implement, and evaluate recreation experiences as solutions to the needs of targeted users. Students will gain relevant and practical skills through hands-on design of outcome-driven experiences in project teams.

This course is designed to examine models, theories, tools, and techniques required in the design, facilitation, and evaluation of therapeutic recreation services for individuals and groups.

One or more term courses will be offered from time to time as announced by the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department. Subjects will be dependent upon special research and/or instructional interests of faculty.

A critical analysis of definitions, concepts and assumptions of classical, recent and modern theories of play with implications for programming, planning and evaluating children's play.

This course focuses on what social justice means in leisure studies and explores why social justice matters by introducing issues related to inclusivity, privilege, power, marginalization, and oppression. Areas of exploration may include but are not limited to age, class and poverty, (dis)ability, non-human interactions, race and ethnicity, sexual and gender identities, and status.

This course considers the historical impact of Western sport. It traces the history from individual play through amateurism to professionalism, big business, and media. It examines sport's social role within local, national, and international communities, and its relationship to class, gender, leisure, race, and politics.

This course examines sport in modern societies and the distinctive features of Canadian sport. Attention is directed to the relationship between sport and other institutions, including the economy and political system. Contemporary issues, including racial and gender inequality and controversies over violence and drugs are also considered.

This course uses the tools of philosophy to ask important questions about sport, such as: What is sport? What is the value of sport for participants or fans? Are violent sports unethical? Should performance enhancing drugs be banned? What is luck, and how is it different from skill?

This course explores the business of professional sport around the world. Topics may include league policy and governance, strategic growth and development, media, team building, analytics, financial management, and business ethics.

Exploration of marketing concepts and methods available to public, commercial and private recreation, sport and event organizations. Topics may include the marketing philosophy, market research, market segmentation, and marketing mix strategies related to programming, distributing, pricing and promoting recreation, sport, and event experiences.

This course examines social entrepreneurship as a means for improving individual and community well-being. Focus will be placed on learning and implementing tools which businesses, citizens, and consumers can use to address social issues. Students will complete the course with an understanding of their personal responsibility and role as community/ global citizen which will aid them in their career development. Particular emphasis may be placed on the role of social entrepreneurship in addressing issues related to social justice, inclusion, and sustainable management practices.

This course will offer students a broad understanding of event studies from theoretical and applied perspectives. Particular emphasis will be placed on exploring issues relevant to event management, defining and categorizing events based on their purposes and outcomes, and understanding and critiquing the role of events in society.

The course examines human-nature relationships in leisure and tourism contexts from an interdisciplinary perspective. It integrates experiential learning with theoretical and critical inquiry to understand and analyze values, attitudes, cultures, programming, impacts, management, and contemporary issues and trends.

This course is designed to explore the etiology of disability and the role of therapeutic recreation in the lives of people with developmental and emotional disabilities.

This course is designed to explore medical, sociocultural, and experiential understandings of physical disability and the role of therapeutic recreation in the lives of people disabled by physical, natural, and social environments and structures within community.

This course involves an unpaid practical experience for students in Honours Therapeutic Recreation. The placement supervisor must be approved by the academic supervisor prior to registering for the course. The practicum will require 105 hours interspersed over one academic term (15 weeks).

One or more term courses will be offered from time to time as announced by the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department. Subjects will be dependent upon special research and/or instructional interests of faculty.

The scope and nature of tourism as a contemporary leisure experience is examined along with economic, political and social ramifications, research strategies employed, and implications for the future.

This course draws on a range of feminist theories and frameworks to examine the interconnections between gender and health in local, national, and international contexts. Topics may include the medicalization of gendered bodies; reproductive experiences, choices, technologies and rights; health care systems and institutions; health policy; and the links with leisure, recreation, and health. Intersections of gender with race, ethnicity, sexual identity, (dis)ability, class, religion, aging, and other axes of oppression will also be addressed.

REC 312 involves an unpaid placement in an organization related to recreation, sport, business or tourism. Placement opportunities will be facilitated by the course instructor, in partnership with the supervising organization.The placement will require 105 hours interspersed over one academic term (15 weeks). The completion of these hours will be determined by the placement supervisor, in consultation with the student.

This course introduces students to the policies, programming, and management strategies involved in supporting the amateur sport system from early sport and recreation participation to the international stage. Students will learn about key actors, sport policy, long-term athlete development, board governance, fundraising and grants, strategic partnerships, and volunteer management. Specific emphasis will be given to critical thinking related to how effective governance systems can be implemented.

This course focuses on the core areas of event planning and design including logistics, risk management, human resources, sponsorship and financial management, marketing and assessments. Students will learn through lectures and collaboration with community partners how to conceptualize and design events to achieve important outcomes such as social justice, inclusion, economic development, environmental sustainability, tourism development, sport development, and community well-being.

This course is designed to examine the scope of modalities and facilitation techniques used by therapeutic recreation professions in the facilitation of therapeutic recreation interventions for individuals and groups in a variety of therapeutic recreation settings.

This course covers concepts, theories, models, and issues relevant to understanding relationships between leisure and community. Areas of discussion may include the roles of leisure as a context for community building and development, critical understandings of relationships between community and leisure, as well as approaches to community building through leisure. Opportunities for experiential and collaborative learning will form major components of the course and a volunteer placement may be required.

This course is designed to examine theories, concepts, and evidence informing the design and facilitation of therapeutic recreation practice.

This course is designed to familiarize the student with the characteristics of the aging population, particularly as related to recreation, leisure, and lifestyle. It focuses both on the theoretical aspects of aging and their implications for leisure and on the practical aspects of recreation and leisure program development, delivery, and facilitation for all older adults.

An introduction to individual and population aging. Topics discussed include: aging from a historical and comparative perspective; aging in subcultures; aging and the social structure; aging and social processes; aging and the environment; work and retirement; and aging and leisure patterns.

This course provides students with skills to collect, organize, visualize, analyze, interpret, and communicate quantitative data. Students will develop their analytic and problem-solving skills and develop solutions with the use of statistical analysis. Students will learn to use data management software tools.

One or more term courses will be offered from time to time as announced by the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department. Subjects will be dependent upon special research and/or instructional interests of faculty.

An exploration of qualitative methodologies used in the fields of leisure. Philosophies, theoretical orientations, and ethical considerations will be emphasized as students discuss and participate in various approaches to research design, data collection, analysis, and representation.

The course examines the nature, significance, and costs and benefits of tourism in the context of tourism destinations in developed and developing countries. It employs an international perspective to assess the economic, environmental, social, and cultural impacts of tourism in diverse settings.

This course is designed for senior students who are interested in the social sciences as a way of understanding factors that influence leisure behaviour and the role of leisure in the lives of individuals and their communities and social institutions. Students will have an opportunity to expand their understanding of leisure issues and problems facing society, thereby building on previous course work, personal experience and media. The small group setting of the seminar will provide students with the opportunity to explore their leisure research interests.

This course examines relationships between various aspects of leisure and well-being from a holistic perspective. Both positive and negative implications of leisure and recreational pursuits for well-being are considered for individuals, communities, and environments.

This seminar course focuses on recent theoretical and empirical research on the relationships between gender and leisure. Topics will include analysis of men's and women's leisure experiences, attitudes, constraints, challenges, and behaviours. Gendered aspects of leisure will be explored in a variety of social and cultural contexts, including families, informal and social settings, organized leisure, and the media.

This capstone course allows students to reflect upon and integrate insights and skills they have gathered during their studies. Specifically, students will draw upon knowledge gained in previous courses and relevant work experience to identify and address complex managerial challenges. These challenges may be social and/or organizational in scope, and approaches used may be multi-sectorial in nature. Students will develop plans and measures that confront those challenges in innovative ways that best achieve stated goals and objectives.

This course explores the effective implementation and leverage of events to achieve event impacts. Students will also examine various quantitative and/or qualitative event evaluation methods.

Students will acquire knowledge and skills to plan and conduct evaluations of leisure services and programs. The course will cover pre-evaluation, needs assessment, goals and outcomes, evaluation designs, process and outcome evaluation, report preparation, evaluation politics, and ethics.

This course examines the employment of recreation, sport, and tourism to transform, enliven, and/or alter community spaces. In doing so, it explores the potential of (re)shaping, (re)territorializing, and (re)making the built environment with the intent of interpreting, narrating, and imagining places to inscribe them with meaning and value. With an emphasis on principles of transformative placemaking, students are encouraged to envision meaningful alterations of places to better meet the needs of communities.

The role of cultural heritage in the community context is examined. Varying forms of heritage preservation, its function and organization are covered. This course may include a field component.

This blended course includes a field and online learning experience and focuses on the philosophical, socio-cultural, health, and ecological dimensions of ecotourism, and the skills and practices necessary for planning and managing ecotourism for community development and well-being. The course will involve one or more overnight excursions to ecotourism destinations in Ontario (e.g., Muskoka or Haliburton region).

This internship course provides an opportunity for students to use the therapeutic recreation process and demonstrate core competencies of professional and ethical conduct in an approved therapeutic recreation setting. The student must engage in minimum 560-hour (typically completed over a minimum of 14 consecutive weeks) internship at or with an approved organization under the shared supervision of a qualified Therapeutic Recreation professional and an academic supervisor. The student has one opportunity to attempt the internship and must achieve a minimum grade of 70% to obtain the course credit.

This course is designed to facilitate an in-depth exploration and analysis of philosophical issues and interdisciplinary theories to discuss how they relate to therapeutic recreation practice and research.

The honours recreation and leisure studies undergraduate thesis is an independent research project on an approved topic supervised by a faculty member. To complete the honours thesis, students are expected to complete both REC 471A and REC 471B. REC 471A includes an approved design and completion of the research proposal.

The honours recreation and leisure studies undergraduate thesis is an independent research project on an approved topic supervised by a faculty member. The thesis is comprised of REC 471A and REC 471B. Enrolment in REC 471B requires the approval of the academic supervisor.

One or more term courses will be offered from time to time as announced by the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department. Subjects will be dependent upon special research and/or instructional interests of faculty.

This course allows students to pursue a particular topic in depth through guided independent study. Students will be encouraged to synthesize evidence and/or scholarship from a number of sources to mobilize knowledge in a way that makes information accessible, relevant, and actionable for the needs of a particular audience, including academia, community, organization, or sector.

This seminar-type course provides students an opportunity to situate their past learning and work experience with broader contemporary and critical issues associated with tourism development, sustainability, society, and both individual and community well-being.