RC
Orin Starn has a unique and interesting way of communicating his ideas and knowledge. The course has helped me to deepen my knowledge about the relation of sports and society.

Sports play a giant role in contemporary society worldwide. But few of us pause to think about the larger questions of money, politics, race, sex, culture, and commercialization that surround sports everywhere. This course draws on the tools of anthropology, sociology, history, and other disciplines to give you new perspectives on the games we watch and play. It's the new and improved version of Professor Orin Starn's original "Sports and Society" for Coursera, which drew more than 40,000 students. We will focus on both popular sports like soccer (or “football,” as anyone outside America calls it), basketball, and baseball, and also lesser-known ones like mountain-climbing and fishing. You will never watch or think about sports in the same way again.

RC
Orin Starn has a unique and interesting way of communicating his ideas and knowledge. The course has helped me to deepen my knowledge about the relation of sports and society.
CL
Informative, rich, all-embracing. I wish I could take it again! Fortunately, it left me with so many things to think about that it will stay with me for a long time.
MR
Videos were awesome and readings were still applicable even in 2020. Only feedback would be update some of the readings to more current and a section on E-Sports.
MM
I loved this particular course. The topics are relevant. Each topic is supported by historical facts and examples and how is it relevant in the present time. It was a great learning experience!!!
SJ
very interesting informative sports. specially the knowledge we grasped in this course about indoor and outdoor sports and the extreme sports pleasure. good work. thanks team
MO
This course is RAD! I loved learning the entire time. The professor was incredibly passionate and knowledgeable! The concepts presented are both clear and fascinating.
RP
Excellent one,the way of presentation by the instructor is fantabulous,He gives a positive energy to the learners. Also his lecture is crystal clear. Thank you sir.
VM
Loved every Bit of this course!Sports illustrated with so many different perspectives, this course is a must for anyone who want to strengthen their bond with sports..
MM
Great Course on Sports and Society, Excellent insights into the History and Culture of popular sports across the globe. Thank you Duke University and Prof. Orin Starn
LS
Professor Starn gives insight into the sports world and explains complex topics using anthropological reasoning in a way that makes sense to the average person. Great class!
BY
a very interesting course..... I hope it might be updated someday to discuss all the changes in sports that have occurred to date (I took this course in March 2025).
RK
This course tells us about how social customs and traditions have contributed to the evolution of sports and how sports has vice versa reflected the changes in social order of any age.
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I loved this course. The content was well-designed around key themes, the readings and lectures were entertaining, and the course felt rigorous even though it only took a couple of hours to complete each week (including all of the reading). I will definitely think about how I participate in and watch sports quite differently from now on. There have been many recent developments related to gender and sport, and I'd love to hear what Professor Starn has to say on this - is he any more hopeful about gender equality in sport in 2020 than he was when he developed the course? I'd also be interested in a deeper discussion around cheating in sport. Thanks so much for offering this course!
This was a really interesting course, gives lot of insight into the various types of sports in the world, explains the science and detailed theory behind some of the worlds most popular sports, not to mention a lot of trivia and history behind the sports and how it relates to society and the various cultural relations it has all across the world.
A wonderful course and a very fun ;earning experience.
Special thanks to Professor Orin Starn and everyone at Duke University for bringing this course and making it possible. Cheers
I Enjoyed the course the most.
Best part of the course is the it involved the professors to enhance our knowledge and understanding about sports and its relevance in the society.
This is without a doubt my favorite class that I have ever taken (especially online)! The videos were well done with the right balance of lecture, visuals, and videos. The quizzes were challenging, yet not impossible. My sincerest gratitude to Professor Starn and his team. I'm hoping Professor Starn creates more courses like this one! Thank you for stimulating my mind and keeping me intrigued!
Orin Starn has a unique and interesting way of communicating his ideas and knowledge. The course has helped me to deepen my knowledge about the relation of sports and society.
Really interesting course, definitely one of those I would recommend to everyone, especially sports enthusiasts around me. The course is not very deep or difficult in any sense, it's more about providing you with a comprehensive structure of questions that modern sports are associated with, and then offering a wide variety of materials that you can explore on your own, that includes both popular movies and academic publications. So for people planning to enroll, please don't forget to check out those amazing resources listed in the discussion section. I am very much looking forward to a more advanced version of this class. Thank Professor Orin Starn and the team from Duke University for the amazing work, it's been a great journey for me!
I would like to extend lots of thanks to the author of the course, professor Orin Starn and the whole team who helped in creating this course. I enjoyed and learned a lot about sports world and the society who is keen on sports. I would like to say that it was a great idea to provide us with the list of words beforehand( though I would have provided them not in one list but in separate sections right before watching videos) And I also enjoyed reading articles and extracts from books. Special thanks for the list of movies about sports that I unfortunately haven't seen earlier and thanks to the quarantine I will have time to do.
All in all, I would like to say that it is one of the best courses that I've takn om foursera.
An academically challenging, and remarkably insightful course, suited both to those who seek greater understanding and/or enjoyment of observing, documenting or participating in sports. Professor Starn puts his whole self -- literally, socially and intellectually -- into his teaching, making this one of the best courses I have ever taken up-close-and-personal or online. Thank you and bravo, Dr. Starn! You just may find me on campus at Duke in the not-too-distant future . . .
This was a great course! I went in not knowing much at all about sports, and I think I learned a lot. Everything was easy to understand, and the lectures were easy to follow. Some of the readings were challenging, but in a "hey, I learned a lot and this made me think" way rather than a "this is too hard, I give up" way.
Sports and Society is tied for my favorite course that I have taken on Coursera.org. I majored in Sport Management, so I was familiar with a good portion of the materials. However, I learned new and interesting facts in the lectures and readings. Orin Starn made the lectures informative and the class very enjoyable.
This course tells us about how social customs and traditions have contributed to the evolution of sports and how sports has vice versa reflected the changes in social order of any age.
This course was outstanding! Professor Starn is excellent. He's very knowledgable, very engaging and genuinely excited about the topic of sports & society. The lectures were interesting and easy to follow. The readings provided a good supplement to the lectures and the quizzes were straight forward. So far, this is the best course I have taken on Coursera. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!
A terrific professor with various-angled knowledge of sports. This course offers me a chance to know more about sports theoretically and comprehensively. I very appreciate all the hard work of Professor Starn. Wish I could meet you in person one day! Thank you!
Professor was awesome. Very knowledgeable about various sports and how sports fits into the bigger picture of life. I really enjoyed the lectures and felt the reading was perfectly matched to the videos.
I loved this particular course. The topics are relevant. Each topic is supported by historical facts and examples and how is it relevant in the present time. It was a great learning experience!!!
One of the best courses that mixed interesting facts with theories. I study sports management, it's really intriguing to see how sports social values entwined with each other in history!
I got insight in a whole new part of sports. I am a sports journalist, but did not know in depth about extreme sports and USA based sports, such as American Football and Baseball
Широкий охват тем: Курс охватывает широкий спектр тем, начиная от истории и культуры спорта до социальных и политических аспектов. Это позволяет получить комплексное представление о том, как спорт взаимодействует с другими сферами жизни. Историческая перспектива: Вопросы о древних Олимпийских играх, например, показывают, как спорт был организован в прошлом, а современные примеры, такие как секс-скандал Тайгера Вудса, демонстрируют, как меняются взгляды на спортсменов и их личную жизнь. Социальные и культурные аспекты: Концепции, такие как "товарный фетишизм" Карла Маркса и "империалистическая ностальгия", показывают, как спорт и другие культурные явления могут быть связаны с более широкими социальными и экономическими теориями. Разнообразие вопросов: Вопросы касаются различных видов спорта и аспектов, включая бейсбол, гольф, и Олимпийские игры. Это помогает увидеть, как разные виды спорта влияют на общество и как общественные и культурные тенденции влияют на спорт. Актуальность: Вопросы о современных спортсменах, таких как Леброн Джеймс и Тайгер Вудс, показывают, как современные спортивные звезды взаимодействуют с общественностью и медиа. Социальные контексты: Вопросы о расовых и культурных аспектах, таких как "расовая сделка" или влияние племени семинолов на название спортивных команд, помогают понять, как спорт может быть связан с социальными и этническими вопросами. В целом, этот курс кажется не только образовательным, но и провокационным, стимулирующим размышления о многих аспектах спорта и здоровья, а также их влиянии на общество.
Thank you to all the faculty and staff who has helped in designing such a wonderful course. I am social work student and wanted to work in sports sector, for me this course has helped a lot in understanding the society in much better way. There were many points where I could relate my field experience during my course. I got the clear understanding about various concept which plays an impact on sports especially social, cultural, political, and economical. I would also like to highlight the point made about globalization, nationalism, and politics in sports. One of new learning for me was about brand and how it impacts on gender. There is much more learning. I would recommend this course to students to want to work for the society by working in sports. My dream for working for the society as a clear path after completion of this course. Thanking You
"I enjoyed this course!" - Evan
Orin Starn (Professor at Duke) gives a great presentation over the seven weeks in the course (wow, seven... heheh). I truly learned about the 'societial component' of sports and that [people like to play] ...that 'play' is an intregal part of human culture; that sports 'evolved' out human's 'need for play' (for lack of a better way to put) ...and that... has become something truly 'phenomenal' in our 'modern age.'
"There were also many great 'tid-bits' about sports and human culture in here too! Thanks!"