Education Commons^™

A Culture Of Aggression: School Culture And The Normalization Of Aggression In Two Elementary Schools, Brent D. Harger

Sociology Faculty Publications

Since the late 1990s, increased public and academic attention has been focused on topics related to bullying and peer aggression in schools, yet these behaviors have proven difficult for schools to address. Using data from an ethnographic study of two rural elementary schools in the Midwestern United States, I make both methodological and theoretical contributions to the literature on this topic. Methodologically, I show that examining ‘minor’ aggressive behaviors in schools reveals the way that more serious issues are also normalized. Theoretically, I show that students and adults actively construct shared understandings in these schools regarding the normalization of aggression, …

On The Margins Of Friendship: Aggression In An Elementary School Peer Group, Brent D. Harger

Sociology Faculty Publications

This article uses qualitative data from a larger study of two elementary schools in a rural city of about 15,000 people in the Midwestern United States. Here, I focus on a single peer group and those who are on its margins to provide insight into the intersection of friendship, aggression, and masculinity. In doing so, I address the lack of research examining how aggression functions within peer groups and why those who are victimized choose to remain in these groups.

To Tell Or Not To Tell: Student Responses To Negative Behavior In Elementary School, Brent D. Harger

Sociology Faculty Publications

In this article I examine the factors that influence fifth grade student decisions regarding whether or not to report negative interactions to adults. Data from observations and interviews with students and adults show that there are many factors influencing the reluctance to tell on others. Among them is a school context in which verbal attacks are downplayed and telling is seen as ineffective and stigmatized. This context prevents bystanders from reporting what they have observed and places those with a lack of social support at a significant disadvantage when dealing with negative behavior.

Teaching With Audacity: A Board Game For Urban Studies, Colby King, Matthew Cazessus

Sociology Faculty Publications

In order to improve undergraduate students’ mastery of urban theory, we developed an active‐learning module that allows participants to compete with one another in a board game of strategic planning and coalition formation called “AudaCity.” Utilizing a games‐based learning design, the game places players in the roles of adversarial property developers, political actors, and zoning committees all seeking to build and raise rent from developments within a spatially constrained urban grid. Game mechanics such as proximity bonuses and limitations to available space compel players to simultaneously compete against and collaborate with their peers to advance their development agenda while thwarting …

Race, Gender, And Research: Implications For Teaching From Depictions Of Professors In Popular Film, 1985-2005, Mari Dagaz, Brent D. Harger

Sociology Faculty Publications

When students enter college classrooms for the first time they inevitably have preconceived images of professors. According to research on student evaluations of teaching, these preconceptions have important implications in college classrooms. This study explores one avenue through which these preconceptions are perpetuated – popular film. Using content analysis we examine popular films released between 1985 and 2005 that contain professors in either primary or secondary roles. Our findings show stereotypical depictions beyond glasses, bow ties, and tweed jackets. Specifically, we find stereotypical images of race and gender as well as an emphasis on the importance of research, sometimes at …

Challenging Colorblind Education: A Descriptive Analysis Of Teacher Racial Attitudes, Melanie S. Hinojosa, Amanda Moras

Sociology Faculty Publications

Research suggests that many public school teachers are not prepared to deal with the growing number of diverse students in the schools. Questions are raised by researchers about the ability of the current teaching force to adequately meet the needs of the growing number of students of Color in the schools. Small-scale qualitative studies find that many White teachers feel unsure of their ability to teach students of Color, tend to hold stereotypical beliefs about urban students and/ or students of Color, and tend to use cultural deficiency models for explaining their academic performance. To date, no quantitative studies have …

Casting A Critical Glance At Teaching “Critical Thinking”, Michael Decesare

Sociology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Using 'The Autobiography Of Malcolm X' To Teach Introductory Sociology, Brent D. Harger, Tim Hallett

Sociology Faculty Publications

In this chapter, we make the case for using The Autobiography of Malcolm X to teach introductory sociology classes. While The Autobiography of Malcolm X is an autobiography and not a novel, we summarize the literature on using novels in sociology and compare this literature to our own experiences using autobiographies in the classroom. We then describe how autobiographies are particularly helpful for introducing students to the concept of the ‘‘sociological imagination’’ before highlighting this with an in-class exercise. Finally, we discuss student feedback and some of the drawbacks to using autobiographies and the extent to which these drawbacks can …

College Students’ Perceptions Of Their "Best" And "Worst" Courses And Instructors, Debra S. Emmelman, Michael Decesare

Sociology Faculty Publications

This paper presents results from a content analysis of college students' descriptions of their "best" and " worst " courses and instructors. We were interested primarily in two issues: how college students evaluate their courses , and the extent to which they emphasize various dimensions in their evaluations. We found that students evaluated their course experiences along seven interrelated dimensions: factors external to the course, level of tedium, classroom activities, classroom atmosphere, instructor's comportment, workload/assignments/grading issues, and acquisition of knowledge and skills. These dimensions were emphasized to different degrees and tended to vary in oppositional manners according to the type …

Promise And Practice Of Service-Learning, Linda Havir, Elizabeth Scheel, Margaret J. Pryately

Sociology Faculty Publications

Service-:-learning can help to address the tension between liberal arts cumcula and an increasing demand for a university education to be "relevant," career oriented, and to serve the community. By integrating service.:learning into our courses we have demonstrated the practical relevance of our disciplines to students and the community and have also enhanced student learning while maintaining our commitment to a liberal arts education. This paper records how three faculty members integrated service-learning into courses in sociology and speech communication. We briefly describe our work in integrating service-learning into our courses, focusing on the learning potentials for our students. We …

Communications Challenges In A Smaller World, John G. Richardson, Stephen J. Lilley, Robert B. Gregory

Sociology Faculty Publications

Technological change and overlapping social, environmental. educational and political issues have increased the need for understandable communications among the different countries of the world. Because English is wldely used. many Americans have no other language capability and are at a disadvantage in many situations. In addition, changes in the ethnic composition of the United States have intensified the need for skills in other languages. The need for second-language skills is perhaps greater among agriculturalists than it is for other areas. The Cooperative Extension System has Important roles to play in expanding these communication skills.

Role-Playing For Different Viewpoints (Review), Nicole Cauvin

Sociology Faculty Publications

Review by Nicole Cauvin.

Duncombe, S. and M.H. Heikkinen. "Role-Playing for Different Viewpoints." College Teaching 36 (1988):3-5.

Breaking Away: A Study Of First Generation College Students And Their Families, Howard London

Sociology Faculty Publications

Detailed family histories were taken of students who were the first in their families to go to college. This paper utilizes the psychoanalytic and family systems theory of Helm Stierlin and others to explore (1) how college matriculation for first-generation students is linked to multi-generational family dynamics, and (2) how these students reconcile (or do not reconcile) the often conflicting requirements of family membership and educational mobility. The same modernity that creates the possibility of opportunity for these students is seen also to create the potential for biographical and social dislocation.

The New Vulnerability Of Higher Education, John W. Cole, Gerald F. Reid

Sociology Faculty Publications

Shifts in attitudes toward the academy is a product of changes in the American political economy, especially the rapid expansion of the white-collar sector and corporate takeover, and social movements of the post-war era in which people previously without power began to assert themselves.