Four conferences, held in Britain in 1991/2, on particular specialisms in Sociology considered their place within the curriculum and how distinctions can be drawn between what is…
Abstract
Four conferences, held in Britain in 1991/2, on particular specialisms in Sociology considered their place within the curriculum and how distinctions can be drawn between what is essential to a first degree in Sociology and what are optional elements. The research aim was to develop a qualitative understanding of the way particular specialisms within Sociology are constituted through teaching and fined into the overall curriculum. The conferences were of practical benefit to the participants in clarifying assumptions embedded in alternative course designs, facilitating the flow of good ideas about teaching methods and learning materials and establishing personal contacts with teachers from other institutions in the same field of study. The topics of the four conferences were Sociology of Culture, Sociology of Work and Employment, Methods of Social Research and Sociological Theory.
The papers in this collection address a set of important issues facing our discipline. These issues cross national boundaries, and indeed are important far beyond the sociological…
Abstract
The papers in this collection address a set of important issues facing our discipline. These issues cross national boundaries, and indeed are important far beyond the sociological sphere. My brief comments here will use these papers as a springboard for noting several important curricular challenges and trends for sociology, in particular, and academia, more generally, as we enter the next century.