Teaching Sociology at the Community College: Focusing on the Social Construction of Race and Culture

• In Event: 2222 - Teaching and Learning Symposium Roundtable Session
  In Informal Discussion Roundtable: Table 01. Teaching About Race

Abstract

Teaching Sociology at the Community College
Focusing on the Social Construction of Race and Culture
Michael L. Sanow, Ph.D.

The Community College of Baltimore County serves a diverse multicultural population. “Introduction to Sociology” and “Racial Relations” classes, are typically a quarter African American, a third to a half first generation Americans, with the remaining native born white.

Sociology opens a window into an exciting new consciousness of the world and an educated citizen’s role in society. For most of our students a sociology course is their first opportunity to critically examine American society, culture and race.

There are a variety of pedagogical strategies that I utilize to raise students’ consciousness of the meaning of race and culture in our society and to embrace the sociological imagination in their educational journey and their life.

The focus of this forty-five minute presentation will be a discussion and group processing of how these strategies are implemented.

We begin the semester with an icebreaking exercise, in which all students present a discussion of their socio-cultural background, sharing an important cultural symbol that is meaningful for them. This is a critical step in understanding the cultural diversity of their classmates, which teaches cultural relativism and enhances interaction and learning throughout the semester.

In a follow up class, students discuss the intergenerational interviews they conducted. With this assignment they appreciate the intersection of biography and history and their peers’ cultural differences.

Throughout the semester I integrate documents, the book “Just Mercy,” film, and a field trip to the National Museum of African American History and Culture to facilitate students’ learning about intolerance in American history.

All of these learning experiences broaden community college students’ consciousness of the other in American society, challenge their ethnocentrism, and encourage empathy, so critical to breaking down racial and cultural barriers.

Author

• Michael Lewis Sanow, Commuiity College of Baltimore County