Teaching: The Importance of Sociology

This week’s post is inspired by “This I Believe.” This I believe is a project “engaging people in…discussing the core values and beliefs” of their lives. This project helps explain my core beliefs about sociology and education. I entered the field of sociology because I wanted to teach, but I did not start with a sociology major. In high school I realized that I wanted to motivate people to do great things. Through this I discovered that I wanted to teach, specifically high school math. The first two and half years at the University of Southern California were spent studying math. After completing all the concrete math courses, like calculus and linear algebra, the classes that were left were abstract theoretical courses. These classes were not enjoyable to me, so I decided to switch majors. The switch from math to sociology occurred because of my desire to teach, and sociology provides an excellent understanding of people and situations. Through the courses this semester, sociology of childhood, deviance, and theories, I am learning how children think and react in situations. This will provide me with tools to better educate students.

Through observations in elementary and high schools, I have seen the effect of a sociological background. My mentor, Dr. Barbara Gereboff was a sociology major in college and then continued to get her graduate degree in education. She is now a principal of an elementary/middle school. I have seen her work with students and she has a better understanding of social situations and is better equipped to deal with different types of students and families. Compared to the other principals that I have had, she has far surpassed them on the level of understanding her students. If more teachers had this background then classes would run more smoothly and the needs of more students would be met.

To be a good teacher one must first have a mastery of the material one wishes teach. I want to teach math and I have taken all concrete math classes available, I feel that that this is enough knowledge of math to teach all levels of high school. Second, a teacher must be able to control the classroom and all the situations that will arise. This does not come easily for some people, this is why sociology is helpful; one can predict certain situations and fix them quicker and more easily than others, providing more time for actual studies. Classes like childhood sociology are especially helpful. This course teaches how children and childhood are conceptualized and perceived from an adult perspective. Knowing this I will be able to take more of children’s actions into account.

Two important sociologists that have influenced my beliefs are Barrie Thorne and Valerie Ann Moore. In Barrie Thorne’s “Girls Boys Together…But Mostly Apart: Gender Arrangements in Elementary Schools,” Thorne explains through her observations in her ethnography how she saw children created their own ideas about gender. In Valerie Ann Moore’s “The Collaborative Emergence of Race in Children’s Play: A Case of Two Summer Camps” she explores how children construct race at summer camp.

Knowing and understanding these situations help prepare teachers for situations in the classroom. It help prepares them to understand children’s backgrounds and why they act the way they do. Sociology provides tools to overcome many obstacles brought by students in school. The amount of research and information on these subjects reinforce my core belief that sociology and education go hand in hand. I do not feel that educators today are fully prepared for the situations they will encounter. But those will a sociological background will have a much easier time fixing the problems. I know that these skills that I will acquire from my sociology major will benefit me in the future.

Student Vanity: Needed to Survive Competative World

An article posted on CNN.com titled Vanity on the Rise Among College Students, claims that students today are more self centered and narcissistic than before. According to the author, these behaviors are not good for our society. The article starts out saying that children should not always be told they are special. This is where the author believes the narcissistic nature comes from. But positive reinforcement is important in child development. No one likes to constantly be told no, therefore when children exhibit good behaviors they should be rewarded. Studies have shown that children respond much better to positive reinforcement than to negative. Also the article talks about surveys that were conducted. Students were asked what the world would be like if they ruled or if they thought they were special. Many responded that the world would be better if they ruled and that they are special. But who does not think that they would be able to make the world better if they ruled? To get anywhere in today’s world students need to think they are special. They need to think that they can add something. The world is getting more and more competitive and therefore people must get more competitive; part of that requires having more self esteem and confidence. Even if a person does not really think they are the best, they need to create the illusion that they are. Only the best are wanted to be hired, therefore people must exhume as much confidence as possible. But this article argues that too much confidence is not good.

They use MySpace.com as an example. They argue that youth today want all the attention on them. On myspace.com people can create profiles with pictures and information about themselves. Yes, this website does shout “look at me look at me” but it is also a great networking tool. Similarly, there is facebook.com. The same argument can be said here that people just want to show off and make sure everyone knows how special they are. But there are so many great uses to facebook.com. Similar to myspace.com, facebook.com provides networking. You can see who is in your class if you need notes or want to study and you can find old friends that you otherwise would not be able to find. These profiles are not purely vanity. More and more facebook.com profiles are used for recruitment for jobs. With this shift, it is obvious that people will put their best on facebook.com and show off. They want to show that they are the best and deserving of the job, even if they personally do not feel this way.

The student run newspaper at the University of Southern California, called The Daily Trojan, responded to this article. The article was titled; You Probably Think This is About You. This article responded to the survey conducted. In response to the question of ruling the world, the author argues that students do not really think they could make the world better, they think that with how the world is today they cannot really make it worse. The author ends her article by saying “hey, I am special. And the world would be a depressing place if everyone thought they were average”. The world would be a depressing place and an unproductive place if everyone thought they were average. No one would strive to be the best and change things.

Perhaps youth of today are more self absorbed and narcissistic, but the world requires them to be. Being timid and reserved does not guarantee a job.