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A Quarterly Publication of
The American Sociological Association
Comments from the Editor
Volume 32, Number 1
January 2004DURING MY FIRST SEMESTER of graduate school, whenever I was asked what I planned to do in the future, I would answer “teach.” After seeing a few raised eyebrows, I realized I needed to silence those ambitions if I were going to be taken seriously. Slowly, as the arduous work of graduate school took hold, my thoughts about teaching drifted further and further from my mind. At that time, I had no idea there was a possibility of becoming a “teacher-scholar” and merging my budding interests in research with my desire to teach.
This journal was partially responsible for guiding me back to the path of teaching. When I first saw an issue of Teaching Sociology, I understood that my desire to teach was not a private endeavor. Indeed, I discovered a strong community of scholars devoted to improving teaching and helping students learn. This gave me confidence to be open about my passion for teaching. (I also have Reece McGee to thank for that.) Later, as I came to understand the role that the American Sociological Association has played in creating and supporting the teaching of sociology, my appreciation and connection to this community of teacher-scholars deepened. Teaching Sociology represents, in my mind, a concrete reflection and reminder of the importance placed on teaching by the ASA.
We all try hard to get our students to understand the importance and personal significance of the sociological imagination; sometimes we are the ones who are transformed by that insight. That happened for me when I first saw an issue of Teaching Sociology. So it is deeply gratifying now to have the opportunity to give something back by serving as editor. It is a high point of my professional career.
Stepping into the role of editor is exciting but also a bit intimidating. I am keenly aware that I have very big shoes of past editors to fill. Fortunately I have been guided and supported by some wonderful people over the past few months, as the journal was transferred from the University of Nebraska to my home institution, Purdue University. I am especially grateful to Helen Moore, the outgoing editor. Had she not walked me through each step in the process and answered my constant stream of questions, I think I would have been catapulted off the steep learning curve. She has been an invaluable source of support and wisdom. I have also benefited from the knowledge and experience of two previous editors, Kathleen McKinney and Jeff Chin. Both have provided reassurance and guidance for which I am most appreciative.
Jay Howard is the new Deputy Editor of Teaching Sociology. He has already been busy managing the book, film and software reviews that will be published in the journal. He has also been there when I needed another opinion or perspective. I feel fortunate to have him on board.
Behind the scenes, there has been a group of individuals who have worked hard to keep things on track. Jeannie Jewell, production manager at the Nebraska office, has led me through each stage of the production process and is largely responsible for getting this issue into your hands. Kathy Acosta, managing editor at Nebraska, was tremendously helpful, especially to the new managing editor, Jori Sechrist. And to Jori I am especially indebted. In addition to staying on top of the heavy demands of graduate school, she has managed to organize the Teaching Sociology office, process new and revised manuscripts, keep track of production, and answer numerous inquiries. Thanks to her, I have survived these past few months intact. Special thanks also go to Pauline Pavlakos, who served as desktop production and electronic editor for the past two editors and has agreed to stay on during my term as editor. She is my source of institutional knowledge and experience. Her confidence that all will happen as planned and on schedule has been most reassuring.
Karen Edwards, ASA’s director of publications and membership, has helped me navigate the bureaucratic waters and has been a critical source of information. Thanks also go to Carla Howery who, as many of you know, is the force at ASA who keeps teaching and learning of sociology at the forefront of our discipline. Also, a special thanks to Redante Asuncion-Reed, production manager at ASA, for creating the cover you see on the front of this issue.
Clearly, I have had a lot of help, including that from individuals too numerous to mention here. This includes the many reviewers of manuscripts who have been so generous with their time and expertise. But most of all, a special thanks goes to you, the reader. I know that what appears in concrete form in this journal is a miniscule reflection of the many creative ideas and passion for teaching sociology that you share with students day after day, usually with little recognition. It is this dedication that keeps teaching at the heart of our discipline.
Volume 32, Number 2
April 2004NEXT YEAR MARKS the American Sociological Association’s centennial. This is a unique opportunity to take a retrospective look at how sociology has changed over the past 100 years and to look toward the future. I feel strongly that the history of teaching in sociology be a critical part of that discussion—both at the 2005 annual meetings and in the pages of this journal. Thus, I am pleased to announce that a special issue in 2005 will be devoted to “100 years of teaching sociology.”
Although the discipline will turn 100, the recognition of teaching and its importance to the discipline is much more recent. The first issue of Teaching Sociology appeared in 1973 and it became an official journal of the ASA in 1986. But while official recognition of teaching in the discipline is relatively new, teaching has always played a critical role in our discipline. Before publishing our work took on such great importance, most of the transmission of sociology occurred in classrooms (and probably still does). We talk about renowned sociologists who were the students of other sociologists. All of us can point to important mentors in our professional lives who taught us not only about sociology but about surviving in academia. Teaching has always mattered.
The special issue seeks to examine the history and future of teaching in sociology from a number of angles. Some of these questions include, but are not limited to:
- How has the scholarship of teaching and learning in sociology evolved?
- What has been sociology’s contribution to the broader scholarship of teaching and learning?
- What is the status of teaching within the discipline and how has this changed, and why?
- How have classroom practices and norms changed over time?
- What social, cultural, economic or political factors have shaped what and how we teach?
- What is the history of sociology textbooks? What changes can be observed in these?
- What are the persisting problems, questions and challenges we face?
- What is the future of teaching in sociology?
If teaching has always mattered in our discipline but was not publicly acknowledged until about three decades ago, there must be some wonderful stories about teaching in the early days. Thus, I invite “conversations” among these individuals and the many pioneers that helped elevate the importance of teaching in sociology.
The format for manuscripts will follow the general guidelines for the journal. Manuscripts may be in the form of articles, notes or conversations. Articles are generally empirical, analytical and approximately 25 pages in length. Notes are shorter (about 10 pages) and analyze one aspect of the problem. Conversations may be in the form of brief comments, arguments, conversations, interviews and responses. These are typically fewer than 10 pages.
Direct manuscripts or questions to: Liz Grauerholz, Editor, Teaching Sociology, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, 700 W. State Street, Stone Hall, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907. Deadline for submission is October 1, 2004.
Correction: The reviewer for Building Partnerships for Service-Learning in the January issue was Lee D. Millar Bidwell.
Volume 32, Number 3
July 2004I USED TO GET ANNOYED, now I just laugh to myself when acquaintances tell me how great it must be to have the whole summer off! Perhaps I should view it as a “teaching moment” and educate them about what it really means to be a social scientist during the (unpaid) summer months, but like most of us, I’m too busy working.
For teachers, summers are always busy and exciting times as we plan new courses for the fall or envision reviving old ones. And, of course, many of us are actively teaching during the summer, in traditional or nontraditional settings. Some, like David Cunningham and Cheryl Kingma-Kiekhofer (Comparative Collective Community-Based Learning), are taking their classes far outside the classroom walls—hundreds of miles, in fact—in order to expose students to very “hands-on” learning experiences. Many of us are bound to our campuses and classrooms but have discovered creative ways to engage students physically as well as intellectually, as Audrey MacNevin describes in her note (Embodying Sociological Mindfulness). Others, such as Monica Snowden (Learning Communities as Transformative Pedagogy), are working within the model of learning communities.
Even if you’re planning a more traditional class, I believe you will find the ideas in this issue useful. For those teaching social theory, check out Jan Thomas and Annis Kukulan’s article on women in classical theory (“Why Don’t I Know about These Women?”) for insights into expanding the theory curriculum (also see reviews by Bruce Friesen and Susan Alexander on theory books). Sean Lauer and Carie Yodanis (The International Social Survey Programme) describe a wonderful resource for incorporating international data into the classroom, while Chris Predengast (The Typical Outline of an Ethnographic Research Publication) offers a tool for helping students read and conduct ethnographic research. Finally, for those in departments with graduate students, Angela Lewellyn Jones and her colleagues describe ways to enhance their training, drawing from their experience in the Preparing Future Faculty program.
If you’re still looking for a new project to occupy the rest of the summer, consider submitting manuscripts to one or both of the upcoming special issues: 100 years of Teaching Sociology and Cultivating Quantitative Literacy (see announcement in this issue).
I hope to see many of you in San Francisco for the annual ASA meetings. This year the Section on Teaching and Learning has organized numerous teaching-related sessions, roundtables and workshops that are certain to stimulate more creative ideas for our teaching.
So much for summers off.
Volume 32, Number 4
October 2004LAST JULY I ENJOYED a rare teaching experience when Purdue University hosted 16 Arab high school students from the Middle-East and North Africa, as part of a program to help improve Middle-East—U.S. relations. The students were here to learn about American culture—which is where I came in—but I found myself learning as much about their cultures as they did mine. I was immediately confronted with my own ignorance and stereotypes of Arab youth. For instance, I had expected the students, especially the women, to be relatively quiet, even deferential. The reality was very different! Never before have I had such animated class discussions about issues many American students, sadly, seem to find passé (abortion, single parenthood, the gaps between cultural rhetoric and practice, and on and on).
The experience taught me a lot about myself. I had to face the uncomfortable fact that I had chosen to remain in my own comfort zone for too long by failing to explore, much less appreciate, the diversity and richness of Arab cultures and peoples. And it challenged me as a teacher. I was left wondering what we—I—must do to awaken a passion in students and make them hungry for understanding and knowledge about society and the world. What issues will provoke them? What will make them long to see and learn about other parts of the world? How can we, as teachers, inspire this desire to learn?
It was during this time that I began putting together this issue of Teaching Sociology and these same questions resurfaced, along with possible answers. The first two articles explore ways to teach about race and as you’ll see, the approaches differ greatly. Reba Chaisson opts for a more confrontational style to challenge students’ deep-seated beliefs about race, while Rebecca Bordt approaches the issue more indirectly, in a way students probably find less threatening. Which is the best way? I used to think we needed to create a safe, comfortable place in order for students to explore difficult issues, but I’m not sure about that anymore. Perhaps students—at least some—will never learn unless they are made uncomfortable and confronted with issues they otherwise would not examine.
And how can we confront our own biases? One way is to turn a critical eye toward seeing and questioning assumptions about white privilege in the classroom materials we use, as Charlotte Dunham and her colleagues do here in their analysis of race in family textbooks. There are also wonderful resources available—this issue of TS contains six reviews of books that deal with diversity. I am convinced that what we do in the classroom should be, and is, connected to the large, even global conditions and conflicts we witness daily. The method we choose is less important than the commitment to challenge ourselves and our students.
Rounding out this issue are three teaching notes that describe ways to enhance our teaching and students’ learning of any topic through the use of technology, class “book clubs,” and “living-data” exercises. I hope you enjoy.
The Editor of Teaching Sociology is Liz Grauerholz.
For articles, notes, and conversations, send manuscripts to: Liz Grauerholz, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Purdue University Stone Hall, 700 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2059. Phone: 765-494-5874, Fax: 765-496-1476.
For book, video, and software reviews, send manuscripts to: Jay Howard, Department of Sociology, Indiana University Columbus, 4601 Central Avenue, Columbus, IN 47203-1769.
For questions about manuscript processing, contact Jori Sechrist, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Purdue University Stone Hall, 700 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2059. Phone: 765-494-5874, Fax: 765-496-1476. Phone: 765-494-5874, Fax: 765-496-1476.
The Webmaster is Pauline H. Pavlakos. Observations on form and egregious spelling may be directed to Ms. Pavlakos.
The Teaching Sociology Web Page is located at the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Le Moyne College, the Jesuit College of Central New York.
Page last updated: September 15, 2004
