sociology
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This next installment begins with my personal intellectual curiosity about big data, offers resources for using the Contingent Faculty Index, and concludes with a practical how-to about extracting data from pdf tables into csv format (for use in Excel, SPSS, Google Fusion Tables, etc.) How to Get a Humanist-Sociologist Excited about Big Data Wendy Hsu,…
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In this second installment of this open research process series I will more closely examine the 2006 data from the AAUP’s Contingent Faculty Index for what it has told us, how the data have been used, and what else the data can show. [Go to the beginning of the series on contingency] What the AAUP…
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Today in my Social Movements class Kevin Simowtiz of Virginia Organizing shared his experiences as a student organizer of the Living Wage Campaign. He also facilitated a useful discussion with the class on the obstacles and resources for student led movements. Here are the highlights of their conversation: What are the obstacles to student* involvement…
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This is the question asked by Andrew Cedermark, songwriter and recording artist/rock journalist, in the current issue of C-Ville Weekly. The reasons are social, cultural, and historical – stretching back to constraints on women’s ability to be “alone” in public spaces, to ongoing girlhood socialization as quiet and non-aggressive. The article covers the experiences of…
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The University of Virginia has developed a growing community of scholars involved in academic community engagement, which is elsewhere sometimes known as community based research or service learning. At an end of the semester reflective luncheon this afternoon, over twenty faculty gathered to discuss their previous experiences and their plans for the upcoming year. The…
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A colleague of mine commented today on facebook that it is better to give than receive, and this is particularly true during exams. But I often find myself nervous to see how my students perform. Did my intentions for their learning get realized? This semester I taught a new course on Community Arts that had…
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Today in my Social Problems class I let students choose a topic for me to discuss. They chose drug abuse. Since drug abuse is not really an area I study, I was at a loss for a good hook that could get me interested in the topic. I found that hook when I caught the…
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Limitless opportunity creates incapacitating uncertainty. The academic job market has bottomed out due to the Great Recession, but it has been faltering for years as universities, like other industries, turn toward part-time contract workers. Recent PhDs, primed for a lifetime of learning and knowledge production within the institution of academia, have diminishing opportunities to put…
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There has recently been a lively discussion on the CITASA (Communication and Information Technology section of the American Sociological Association) listserv about using blogs for teaching college-level sociology. The discussion contained a lot of practical advice as well as pedagogical insight. I started a summary of the conversation and asked those who had been a…
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This week seems to be filled with the angst and anticipation of a new year as the kids (and lifelong learners) head back to school. My first day was today, and after holding my first class with bright students eager to learn more about sociology and media, I remembered why I love the classroom and…
jacob alden sargent 