Sociologists agree that the sociological imagination fosters students' critical thinking skills (Eckstein, Schoenike, and Delaney 1995; Haddad and Lieberman 2002; Logan 1976; Mayer 1986; Misra 2000). The challenge lies in motivating students to develop their sociological imaginations. Convincing them of its importance and practical value takes…

Explains that students in a research methods class analyzed and interpreted alumni attitudes and financial giving patterns, presenting their findings to university administrators and staff. Details the organization of the class, the structure of assignments, and the educational benefits of this teaching experience. (DAJ)

Describes a graduate seminar on teaching in sociology in which the students develop their own undergraduate course. Presents a literature review on critical theory, feminist theory, and humanist perspective. Discusses the outcomes of the seminar including student evaluations and the teaching performances of two former seminar members. (CMK)

This article introduces an approach to service learning based on students' collective engagement with a range of community organizations. We explore the particular benefits of this comparative collective community-based (CCC) learning model through a discussion of the "Possibilities for Change in American Communities" program, which was begun by…

The opportunities, challenges, and lessons of the pilot phase of a community development program in a small liberal arts college are presented and conceptualized in this paper. We based this program on an experiential learning model derived from Paulo Freire's critical pedagogy and Stephen Brookfield's notion of critically responsive learning. A…

The purpose of experiential education is to combine experience and learning in ways that transform both. Students have experiences outside the classroom, and these experiences are integrated into the course curriculum, enriching both the experience and the class material. Successful experiential education assignments must first provide students…