As we come to the end of this chapter you may be feeling a little out of breath. We have covered a span of time that includes centuries, and a breadth of knowledge that covers all levels of human relationships.

We discovered that sociology was and still is a revolutionary response to the study of social problems. Instead of relying on political and religious authorities to tell the truth, scientists find out for themselves. In exploring the problems of the world, sociologists observe carefully, learn deeply and propose complex answers to complicated problems. Their assertions are based on evidence.

We learned that theories are ideas about how the world works. They help us explain and predict patterns in the social world. Each theoretical framework has a unique lens to see the world. The patterns that you see depend on the lens that you use. We added a key model of social structure that will help us locate social problems as we explore them further in this book.

Finally, we explored the tools that social scientists use to explore the world. Like biologists, they use the scientific method in some way to come to conclusions based on evidence. They may use numbers or stories to find the truth, but in either case, they report their results to others. This allows us to understand our world more carefully.

Now that you have some sociological tools and techniques at your fingertips, it’s time to use them to explore the social problem of education. Let’s go back to school!

2.5.1 Review of Key Terms

Link to glossary: SOC 206 key terms list.xlsx

Action Research: a family of research methodologies that pursue action (or change) and research (or understanding) at the same time.

Code of Ethics: a set of guidelines that the American Sociological Association has established to foster ethical research and professionally responsible scholarship in sociology

Conflict Theory: a sociological approach that views society as characterized by pervasive inequality based on social class, race, gender, and other factors

Critical Race Theory: emerged in the 1980s out of a concern by legal scholars of color that the measures installed by the Civil Rights Movement to alleviate racial injustice were no longer ameliorating the problem, or never did. This group of scholars took a systemic view of racism. They saw racism not as an aberration within our society, but as an everyday occurrence within many, if not all, facets of life

Dependent Variable: the effect of a change in another variable

Feminist Perspective: “despite the variations between different types of feminist approach, there are four characteristics that are common to the feminist perspective:

· Gender is a central focus or subject matter of the perspective.

· Gender relations are viewed as a problem: the site of social inequities, strains, and contradictions.

· Gender relations are not immutable: they are sociological and historical in nature, subject to change and progress.

· Feminism is about an emancipatory commitment to change: the conditions of life that are oppressive for women need to be transformed.”

Hypothesis: a testable educated guess about predicted outcomes between two or more variables

Independent Variable: the cause of the change in another variable

Interpretive Framework: a research method that involves detailed understanding of a particular subject through observation, not through hypothesis testing.

Macro Theory: a theory which examines larger social systems and structures, such as the capitalist economy, bureaucracies, and religion.

Matrix of domination: a matrix of domination sees social structure as having multiple interlocking levels of domination that stem from the societal configuration of race class and gender.

Micro Theory: a theory which examines the social world in finer detail by discussing social interactions and the understandings individuals make of the social world.

Objectivity: the unrealistic idea of conducting research with no interference by aspects of the researcher’s identity or personal beliefs

Qualitative Research: non-numerical, descriptive data that is often subjective and based on what is experienced in a natural setting

Quantitative Research: data collected in numerical form that can be counted and analyzed using statistics

Queer Theory: an interdisciplinary approach to sexuality and gender studies that identifies Western society’s rigid splitting of gender into male and female roles and questions the manner in which we have been taught to think about sexual orientation and gender.

Scientific method: an established scholarly research process that involves asking a question, researching existing sources, forming a hypothesis, designing a data collection method, gathering data, and drawing conclusions

Society: a group of people who live in a defined geographic area, who interact with one another, and who share a common culture

Sociology: the systematic study of society and social interactions to understand individuals, groups, and institutions through data collection and analysis.

Stigma: the social process whereby individuals that are taken to be different in some way are rejected by the greater society in with they live based on that difference

Structural Functional Theory: a sociological approach which maintains that social stability is necessary for a strong society, and adequate socialization and social integration are necessary for social stability. Society’s social institutions (such as the family or the economy) perform important functions to help ensure social stability.

Symbolic Interactionist Theory: a sociological approach that focuses on the study of one-on-one social interactions and the meanings that emerges from them.

Theory: a statement that proposes to describe and explain why facts or other social phenomenon are related to each other based on observed patterns.

2.5.2 Discussion Questions

1. Why is sociology a revolutionary response to social problems historically and currently?
2. How does sociological theory help us to understand and explain our world?
3. Who are our sociologists, particularly the scholars who are traditionally ignored? How does the social location of sociologists influence what they see?
4. How do sociologists apply the tools of science to understand society?
5. Based on the video on Particpatory Action Research with Shiran Haasan:

1. What is participatory action research?
2. What are the benefits of this type of research? Who holds the “power” in this type of research?
3. When do we see the effects of participatory action research?
4. What are some ways that elements of this type of research are transferable to other settings? What examples does Shirah Haasan give?