Step 1: Different Courses that deal with institutions and Key Concepts
- SOCL – 351 Family Violence: Sociology of Family Violence was a interesting course it went over how to determine Family Violence is happening. What steps you should take in order to act on the violence happening. How to determine Family Violence is happening, and some of the different theories behind Family Violence.
- SOCL – 320 Education: Sociology of Education went over some of the different sociological perspectives regarding education. It went over the budgeting and school structure and why some schools do you year-round and some don’t and which one was most suitable. It then went into detail about teacher pay and how the curriculum is taught. It then went into depth about racial and gender inequality from a student and teacher standpoint.
- SOCL – 233 Social Inequality: Sociology Intro to Social inequality was a course that went to depth about the social world and the different inequality you will face during this time. Some of the different inequalities people face are social differentiation, social construction, social reproduction, social identity, structural inequality, and different social movements.
- SOCL – 345 Social Research: Sociology social research was one of my favorite courses that I have taken while majoring in sociology. I feel that social research is a course that can connect to other majors really well. This course went over quantitative and qualitative data and how to read and understand the data. This course was enjoyable for me because I was able to look into alot of things that I am interested in. This course also went over the ethics that go into social research and some of the key points you have to do when conducting research.
Step 2: Three papers that reflect learning
These three papers are from three different courses. The first paper is from SOCL – 320 education, the second paper is from SOCL – 351 Family Violence, and the third paper is form SOCL – 345 Research methods. I feel that there is major difference between the three papers. The first two papers are from my first year being a sociology major and the third paper is from my second year being a sociology paper. I go back and read the first two papers and the complexity, grammar, structure, and use of words is completely different. I feel that when I first became a sociology student I wasn’t confident in my writing. Now I feel that writing is one of my greatest strengths. I feel that my ability to write and the way I write has became a lot more complex and better.
Step 3: How institutions structure my behavior, attitude, and belief
When I look back at how my behavior, attitude, and beliefs have changed since becoming a sociology major, I think about how much more open I am to the world. I notice things that I didn’t notice before, I understand why certain things are happening and how they started to happen. When I think about some of the courses that have changed my attitudes and beliefs I think about SOCL – 320 Education, SOCL – 351 Family Violence, and SOCL – 233 Social Inequality. SOCL-320 Education was a class that really taught me a lot about the school system and some of the things that happen. The things I learned about are things that you never realized while being a student. Some things that caught my attention in this class are how teachers will give their attention to different students based on race, gender, and economic class some of the benefits of different school year structures, and the different budgeting in schools based on where the school is located. Now that I know about some of the things that are going on in the school system it will allow me to have a better understanding of things happening when my child is going through school. SOCL -351 Family violence also changed my beliefs and attitudes. This class allowed me to understand why family violence was happening and why sometimes the victims of the violence don’t just leave the relationship. It makes me understand that anyone can be going through family violence and just because the relationship seems happy doesn’t mean that the relationship is healthy. This class allowed me to notice when family violence is happening. A lot of times people never realize family violence is happening because normally the women are too afraid to speak out but after taking the class it has allowed me to pick up on clues that it may be happening. SOCL-233 Social Inequality is a class that allowed me to see everyday problems that go on in America. The inequality that is going on in the world is undeniable. I feel like before this class I was almost oblivious to the social inequalities in the world. Whether it was because I didn’t know it was going, or even know how to realize it was going on I feel people should have to take this class. Social inequality is something that happens every day in America right in front of our faces and if you don’t know what it is or how to realize it’s happening then the inequalities are going to keep happening.
Step 4: How can I use the skills and knowledge I have learned
Something that I enjoy a lot about sociology is most of the things are real-world problems where you can make a change, you can help with inequalities in the world and many people don’t realize that you can. Sociology has shown me some of the different ways I can go about making change and doing better for the world. Sociology – 345 Research Methods is a class that I think connected with me a lot. When I first came to Longwood I was a junior majoring in business. However when I transferred I had to change to Sociology, therefore research methods was a class that I enjoyed and felt I could apply to jobs I would like to do in the future. Something that I’ve been interested in doing is being a professional baseball player. I feel that a lot of the classes I have taken in sociology can apply to that. Whether it’s a Sociology race and racism class or a social inequality class. Sociology has given me a better understanding and a more open view of the world. I feel before I started taking sociology classes I was very oblivious to the things going around on around however now I have a sociological eye and can see certain things I wouldn’t notice before.