Research has consistently shown the high value of mentorship for graduate students in various areas--program satisfaction, professional self-image, confidence, productivity, and so on. However, specific templates of how to best mentor graduate students, especially in the vital area of teaching, are lacking. This article outlines the mentoring…

Diverse college campuses have been conclusively associated with a variety of positive outcomes for all students. However, we still know very little empirically about how student diversity directly impacts the core task of the university: classroom learning. While students vary based on race along a broad spectrum of experiences and backgrounds, we…

Sociology instructors strive not only to teach their students the essential aspects of sociology but also to help students develop their critical thinking abilities. One way to help students become better critical thinkers is to assign projects that encourage students to critically assess their world by relating the course content to their…

In this article, the authors argue that one approach to teaching Introduction to Social Problems is to structure the course content around taken-for-granted beliefs that many students have about the social world. In doing so, the authors discuss the social construction of social problems, how sociology differs from common sense, and the importance…

On the basis of analysis of student responses to a case study titled "Drinks and Dinner," the authors evaluate the pedagogical potential of using constructive controversy case studies to teach about inequality. "Drinks and Dinner" is designed to capture the complexity of social interactions that defy simple solutions to engage students in…

This article discusses pedagogical exercises developed to help students appreciate the power of sociological perspectives as they seek to better understand their own lives and the world around them. The assignments are focused on fulfilling the particular course learning goal that highlights student mastery of the application of diverse…

Much of the sociological curriculum often represents society as tragedy. This article explores the incorporation of a society as comedy component in introductory courses at two institutions using the sociological insight and social critique of comedians. A general discussion of parallels between the comedic eye and the sociological imagination is…

In 2006 and 2007, two workshops on teaching work-family courses were held at the annual meetings of the American Sociological Association. This article examines the current challenges and strategies of teaching work-family, as identified by workshop participants, and the resources that are available through the Sloan Work and Family Research…

This paper discusses a joint project of the American Library Association and the American Sociological Association. The goal of this collaboration is to guarantee that students of sociology, particularly sociology majors, develop strong information literacy skills during their undergraduate experience. The article talks about national standards…

Teaching that intentionally integrates cognitive learning with students' affective lives is the kind of pedagogy that can leave a long lasting, even transformative impression on students that outlives the details of course content. Because this author wants her students to truly engage with the subject of domestic violence, she finds it essential…

This article presents a written assignment designed to achieve several goals. First, it offers students the chance to identify and examine the "pre-understandings" with which they enter the class, and to consider how these were formed. Once they have been elaborated, these "pre-understandings" inform the instructor and the student about biases and…

This research note provides some basic information about the courses that are typically offered in community colleges, and whether these courses have prerequisites. As higher education becomes more accessible to the general public, community colleges have received more students. Furthermore, an increasing number of students transfer from these…

Research has documented that collaborative learning groups improve student learning and increase the likelihood that students will have positive attitudes about both the subject matter and their peers. However, researchers know much less about how collaborative learning groups may influence student behavior and the extent to which their utility…

To explore the effects of web-based instruction (WBI) on math anxiety, the sense of mastery, and global self-esteem, we use quasi-experimental data from undergraduate statistics students in classes assigned to three study conditions, each with varied access to, and incentive for, the use of online technologies. Results suggest that when statistics…

Although the literature on social networks has made a considerable contribution to the sociological imagination in recent years, it has been largely ignored in conventional course materials. Such an omission is curious, considering social networks' intuitive imagery, broad theoretical relevance and extensive empirical application. This article…