The 2017 Mauksch Address invites readers to consider how the field of sociology might benefit from greater inclusion of the science of learning into its pedagogy. Results from a survey of 92 teaching and learning experts in sociology reveal the degree to which the discipline's understanding of teaching and learning is informed by the science of…

Previous research has examined the use of nontraditional readings, particularly fiction, as a tool for teaching sociological concepts. Few studies have specifically looked at nonfiction monographs and ethnographies. This paper extends prior research by exploring how in-person and online book clubs using nonfiction texts can be used as a tool to…

Discussions of the core in sociology have focused on faculty members' perspectives regarding what should be taught in introductory sociology courses. Because the development of curricula is and should be a social process, we argue that students' perceptions of learning outcomes also should be considered when curricula are developed. This study…

To increase students' engagement and achievement in introductory sociology courses, teachers should make them relevant to students' lives. Students' relevance perceptions may vary within the classroom, depending on the degree of fit between their sociocultural position and the teaching methods. To test this prospect, an experiment among 1,325…

Scholarship examining the educational potential of semester-long research projects in non-methods undergraduate sociology courses is limited. To address this gap in knowledge, I drew from active learning and problem-based learning literatures to develop a term research project in two sections of an undergraduate sociology course at a large public…

To what extent, and why, do social science undergraduates experience anxiety about taking statistics courses? Despite holding assumptions of rampant statistics anxiety among students, sociologists have conducted few empirical studies of this issue. We extend the literature by analyzing data from a survey of sociology, social work, and criminal…

This paper presents a foundational classroom exercise used to help introduce the systemic and interactional aspects of the binary gender system, using 12 occupations selected from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and personality characteristics from the Bem Sex Role Inventory. This activity was conducted in an introductory Diversity course at a…

This article demonstrates a method for teaching students to conduct audit studies of discrimination. The assignment can be used in courses on quantitative methods, race, gender, or other topics. Audit studies test for unequal treatment by having otherwise identical pairs of people who vary on a single trait, such as race or gender, apply for the…

Scholars have long emphasized the importance of teacher training in higher education, including in sociology. Such calls have led to modest improvements in opportunities for graduate students to develop teaching-related skills and experience. However, many of these opportunities are not specific to sociology and may lack a teaching component. In…

Over 50 years ago, Stanley Milgram and colleagues published a short article detailing an unobtrusive experimental design they called the lost-letter technique. The technique involves placing stamped, unmailed letters in a community and using the relative rate of return to infer local attitudes toward political issues and social groups.…

Cornerstone courses bridge introductory content from lower-level survey courses with the more advanced theoretical and methodological content of upper-level, major-only courses. Cornerstones are implemented with the goal of better preparing students for advanced coursework and/or assisting them with understanding their major and its associated…

We argue that the literature on critical thinking in sociology has conflated two different skill sets: critical sociological thinking and higher-level thinking. To begin to examine how sociologists weigh and cultivate these skill sets, we interviewed 20 sociology instructors and conducted a content analysis of 26 assignments. We found that while…

Fostering a sociological imagination in students is a central goal for most introductory sociology courses and sociology departments generally, yet success is difficult to achieve. This project suggests that using elements of asset-based community development can be used in sociology classrooms to develop a sociological perspective. After…

Introduction to Sociology at a large public university was taught in two separate formats, blended learning and lecture, during the same semester by the first author. While some similarities existed, the distinction was in delivery of course content. Additionally, the blended class had one-third less in-class time that was primarily devoted to…

Sociology research methods students in 2013 and 2016 implemented a series of "real world" data gathering activities that enhanced their learning while assisting the department with ongoing program assessment and program review. In addition to the explicit collection of program assessment data on both students' development of sociological…