SOC 131 Principles of Sociology Exploring Public Sociology

This assignment asks you to explore the public relevance of sociology in

today’s world by becoming familiar with a particular application of

sociological research. According to Ritzer, public sociology is

sociological work that addresses “a variety of local, national and

global groups,” “most of which are outside the academy” (Ritzer, 2015:

22).

• Explore the website called Public Sociology Live [http://isapublicsociology.wordpress.com/] .Begin your quest with the summary lecture by Michael Burawoy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJgWAcOctCQ#t=386
• You can choose from one of the international sociologists listed on the website or you may propose another public sociologist:
  – Manuel Castells
  – Nandani Sundar
  – Cesar Rodriguez-Garavito
  – Ramon Flecha and Marta Soler (*NOTE: most of their articles appear in Spanish)
  – Walden Bello
  – Karl Von Holdt
  – Sari Hanafi
  – Michael Wieviorka
  – Frances Fox Piven
• Conduct
  library research about your chosen example to understand this public
  sociologists’ contribution to the discipline of sociology, and his or
  her efforts to bring these insights into the public domain. Keep a
  record of the places that you search and the search terms you use – what
  worked and what did not work (this will be included at the end of your
  paper). Start your search using the links on the Public Sociology Live
  web page. From there, continue by looking at what is available in
  MyLibrary. Select information from both scholarly journals and other
  reliable sources of information[i]. Investigate the following questions as you conduct library research:
• Write
  a 1000-1500 word research report analyzing your case of public
  sociology, responding to the above questions, and discussing the
  potential for public sociology to make important contributions for
  positive social change. Include a description of your search process as
  an appendix to the paper. Be sure to cite your sources properly, using
  the ASA format in the text of your report as well as to generate a list
  of works cited[ii].

• Describe the public work of this sociologist.
• What sociological concepts and theories does s/he use to illustrate their work?
• To
  whom is this sociologist talking (their public)? Locate any press
  coverage that enables you to assess how this work was received.

Evaluation Criteria

NAME: ___________________________________________

Public sociologist profiled _________________________________

______ Excellent work [90 -100 points]

• Includes a focused, detailed description of this example of public sociology.
• Applies multiple sociological concepts and theories from text accurately
• Discusses how these sociological ideas were shared with the broader public
• Includes a detailed record of the search process (terms, results)
• Cites sources properly, using the ASA format.

______ Good work [80 – 90 points]

• Describes of this example of public sociology.
• Applies sociological concepts and theories from text accurately.
• Mentions potential impact from this sociological knowledge.
• Cites sources properly, using the ASA format.

____ Acceptable work [70 – 80 points]

• Description of this example of public sociology would be strengthened by additional detail.
• Identifying sociological concepts and theories would strengthen the essay
• Impacts of sociological knowledge is unclear
• Cites sources properly, using the ASA format.

_____ Try Again [65 points]

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[i]
Sources of information can include: (1) materials written by the public
sociologists themselves, both in scholarly outlets and the popular
media including personal websites or blogs; (2) journal articles citing
the work of your public sociologist (you can find articles through our
library’s electronic databases, see http://marymount.libguides.com/sociology); and (3) academic books contained in the WRLC collections.

[ii] See http://www.asanet.org/documents/teaching/pdfs/Quic….