Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities

Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities PDF Author: William G. Tierney
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 1438478232
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 204

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Book Description
Brings relational sociology to bear on educational research. Relational sociology was conceived by theorists frustrated by what they viewed as an incomplete accounting of social reality. Torn between notions of structural rigidity, on the one hand, and rational choice individualism, on the other, relational sociologists have sought new units of analysis. Social reality, they have argued, is manufactured through relationships. People are who they are, and society is what it is, not because of some individual or collective “essence” but because of the networks that social beings build among one another. Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities demonstrates the value of introducing new relational methods and epistemologies in educational research. The contributors examine the roles and significance of ongoing transactions among connected social actors—students, peers, families, teachers—in a variety of institutional contexts. The book explores various uses and applications of relational sociology in education, while highlighting its promise to provide fresh insight into intractable problems of inequity in US schools. “I have read few books in my lengthy career where I said to myself: It’s long past time for both scholars and practitioners in the field of education to embrace this innovative theoretical lens both in their scholarship and their everyday practices. But this is such a book. It will be a needed ‘awakening’ for most scholars and practitioners and, in turn, is likely to have a profound impact over time on their scholarship.” — Clifton Conrad, coauthor of Educating a Diverse Nation: Lessons from Minority-Serving Institutions

Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities

Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities PDF Author: William G. Tierney
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 1438478232
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 204

Get Book

Book Description
Brings relational sociology to bear on educational research. Relational sociology was conceived by theorists frustrated by what they viewed as an incomplete accounting of social reality. Torn between notions of structural rigidity, on the one hand, and rational choice individualism, on the other, relational sociologists have sought new units of analysis. Social reality, they have argued, is manufactured through relationships. People are who they are, and society is what it is, not because of some individual or collective “essence” but because of the networks that social beings build among one another. Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities demonstrates the value of introducing new relational methods and epistemologies in educational research. The contributors examine the roles and significance of ongoing transactions among connected social actors—students, peers, families, teachers—in a variety of institutional contexts. The book explores various uses and applications of relational sociology in education, while highlighting its promise to provide fresh insight into intractable problems of inequity in US schools. “I have read few books in my lengthy career where I said to myself: It’s long past time for both scholars and practitioners in the field of education to embrace this innovative theoretical lens both in their scholarship and their everyday practices. But this is such a book. It will be a needed ‘awakening’ for most scholars and practitioners and, in turn, is likely to have a profound impact over time on their scholarship.” — Clifton Conrad, coauthor of Educating a Diverse Nation: Lessons from Minority-Serving Institutions

Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities

Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities PDF Author: William G. Tierney
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438478259
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 204

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Book Description
Relational sociology was conceived by theorists frustrated by what they viewed as an incomplete accounting of social reality. Torn between notions of structural rigidity, on the one hand, and rational choice individualism, on the other, relational sociologists have sought new units of analysis. Social reality, they have argued, is manufactured through relationships. People are who they are, and society is what it is, not because of some individual or collective "essence" but because of the networks that social beings build among one another. Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities demonstrates the value of introducing new relational methods and epistemologies in educational research. The contributors examine the roles and significance of ongoing transactions among connected social actors—students, peers, families, teachers—in a variety of institutional contexts. The book explores various uses and applications of relational sociology in education, while highlighting its promise to provide fresh insight into intractable problems of inequity in US schools.

Routledge Handbook of the Sociology of Higher Education

Routledge Handbook of the Sociology of Higher Education PDF Author: James E. Côté
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000538729
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 529

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Book Description
Higher education has come under increasing public scrutiny in recent years, assailed with demands for greater efficiency, accountability, cost reduction, and, above all, job training. Drawing upon examples from across the world, with an emphasis on Anglo-American higher-education systems, this handbook employs sociological approaches to address these pressing concerns. The second edition is thoroughly updated and adds several new chapters to shed further light on the transformations wrought by the interrelated processes of massification, vocationalization, and marketization that have swept through universities in the wake of neoliberal reforms introduced by governments since the 1980s. The handbook explores recent developments in higher-education systems and policy as well as the everyday experiences of students and staff and ongoing problems of inequality and diversity within universities. In doing so, the chapters address a number of current issues concerning the legitimacy of higher-educational credentials, from the continuing debate regarding traditional pedagogies and the role of universities in social class reproduction to more recent concerns about standards in mass systems. Collectively, this handbook demonstrates that the sociology of higher education has the potential to play a leadership role in improving the myriad higher-education systems around the world that are now part of an interrelated set of subsystems, replete with both persistent problems and promising prospects. This book is therefore necessary reading for a variety of stakeholders within academia as well as professionals and policy-makers interested in understanding higher education and the acute challenges it faces.

Get Real

Get Real PDF Author: William G. Tierney
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438481292
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
Higher education always seems to be in crisis. Governments, foundations, professional associations, and the occasional scornful professor all tend to lament one or another problem plaguing America's colleges and universities. The more apocalyptic claims state that the United States is a "nation at risk," that our students' minds have been closed, or that radical faculty have run amok and are brainwashing our youth. In Get Real, William G. Tierney, a leading scholar of higher education, cuts through this noise, drawing on his experience and expertise to provide a thought-provoking overview of the many challenges confronting higher education and how to deal with them. In forty-nine short, engaging essays, he aims not to stoke the flames of controversy or promote a particular stance but to provoke creative, forward-looking public discussion about what higher education could and should look like in the twenty-first century. Tierney clearly distills and offers his take on critical issues—from diversity and free speech to the rise of for-profit colleges and student debt—but the goal is always to give readers the background and tools to form their own opinions. Written in a conversational tone and laced with personal anecdotes, Get Real is informed by scholarly literature without being weighed down by it and includes suggestions for further reading.

Trust in Schools

Trust in Schools PDF Author: Anthony Bryk
Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation
ISBN: 161044096X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
Most Americans agree on the necessity of education reform, but there is little consensus about how this goal might be achieved. The rhetoric of standards and vouchers has occupied center stage, polarizing public opinion and affording little room for reflection on the intangible conditions that make for good schools. Trust in Schools engages this debate with a compelling examination of the importance of social relationships in the successful implementation of school reform. Over the course of three years, Bryk and Schneider, together with a diverse team of other researchers and school practitioners, studied reform in twelve Chicago elementary schools. Each school was undergoing extensive reorganization in response to the Chicago School Reform Act of 1988, which called for greater involvement of parents and local community leaders in their neighborhood schools. Drawing on years longitudinal survey and achievement data, as well as in-depth interviews with principals, teachers, parents, and local community leaders, the authors develop a thorough account of how effective social relationships—which they term relational trust—can serve as a prime resource for school improvement. Using case studies of the network of relationships that make up the school community, Bryk and Schneider examine how the myriad social exchanges that make up daily life in a school community generate, or fail to generate, a successful educational environment. The personal dynamics among teachers, students, and their parents, for example, influence whether students regularly attend school and sustain their efforts in the difficult task of learning. In schools characterized by high relational trust, educators were more likely to experiment with new practices and work together with parents to advance improvements. As a result, these schools were also more likely to demonstrate marked gains in student learning. In contrast, schools with weak trust relations saw virtually no improvement in their reading or mathematics scores. Trust in Schools demonstrates convincingly that the quality of social relationships operating in and around schools is central to their functioning, and strongly predicts positive student outcomes. This book offer insights into how trust can be built and sustained in school communities, and identifies some features of public school systems that can impede such development. Bryk and Schneider show how a broad base of trust across a school community can provide a critical resource as education professional and parents embark on major school reforms. A Volume in the American Sociological Association's Rose Series in Sociology

Connecting in College

Connecting in College PDF Author: Janice M. McCabe
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022640952X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 235

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Book Description
The book provides a treatment of college students' friendships that is long overdue. Students, parents, and anyone concerned with maximizing student success will learn much about how friendship networks matter for students' lives in college and beyond

The Relational Subject

The Relational Subject PDF Author: Pierpaolo Donati
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107106117
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 361

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Book Description
Argues that relations are real and generate real relational 'goods' and 'evils', affecting those involved and other people.

Higher Education for Democracy

Higher Education for Democracy PDF Author: William G. Tierney
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438484518
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 370

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Book Description
Bronze Winner, 2021 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award in the Education Category Democracy and higher education are inextricably linked: universities not only have the ability to be key arbiters of how democracy is advanced, but they also need to reflect democratic values in their practices, objectives, and goals. Framed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing crisis of structural racism, Higher Education for Democracy explores academe's role in advancing democracy by using a cross-national comparison of Los Angeles, New Delhi, and Hong Kong to develop strategies that universities can employ to strengthen democracy and resist fascism. William G. Tierney argues that if academe is to be a progenitor in the advancement of democracy, then we need to consider five areas of change that have been significant across national contexts amid both globalization and neoliberalism: inequality, privatization, the public good, identity, and academic freedom. Taking a comparative approach and drawing on scholarly literature, archival research, and interviews, Higher Education for Democracy aims to understand these changes and their implications and to position higher education in defense of democracy in a globalized economy framed by fascism.

Multivariate scaling methods and the reconstruction of social spaces

Multivariate scaling methods and the reconstruction of social spaces PDF Author: Alice Barth
Publisher: Verlag Barbara Budrich
ISBN: 3847418564
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 259

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Book Description
Der Sammelband vereint Beiträge von führenden Forscherinnen und Forschern im Bereich statistischer Methoden und deren Anwendung in den Sozialwissenschaften mit einem besonderen Fokus auf sozialen Räumen. Multivariate Skalierungsmethoden für kategoriale Daten, speziell Korrespondenzanalyse, werden verwendet um die wichtigsten Dimensionen aus komplexen Kreuztabellen mit vielen Variablen zu extrahieren und Zusammenhänge in den Daten bildlich darzustellen. In diesem Band werden statistische Weiterentwicklungen, grundsätzliche methodologische Überlegungen und empirische Anwendungen multivariater Analysemethoden diskutiert. Mehrere Anwendungsbeispiele thematisieren verschiedene Aspekte des Raumes und deren soziologische Bedeutung: die Rekonstruktion „sozialer Räume“ mit statistischen Methoden, die Illustration räumlicher Beziehungen zwischen Nähe, Distanz und Ungleichheit, aber auch konkrete Interaktionen in urbanen Räumen. Der Band erscheint zur Würdigung der wissenschaftlichen Leistungen von Prof. Jörg Blasius.

Education and Society

Education and Society PDF Author: Thurston Domina
Publisher: University of California Press
ISBN: 0520295587
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 325

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Book Description
Drawing on current scholarship, Education and Society takes students on a journey through the many roles that education plays in contemporary societies. Addressing students’ own experience of education before expanding to larger sociological conversations, Education and Society helps readers understand and engage with such topics as peer groups, gender and identity, social class, the racialization of achievement, the treatment of immigrant children, special education, school choice, accountability, discipline, global perspectives, and schooling as a social institution. The book prompts students to evaluate how schools organize our society and how society organizes our schools. Moving from students to schooling to social forces, Education and Society provides a lively and engaging introduction to theory and research and will serve as a cornerstone for courses such as sociology of education, foundations of education, critical issues in education, and school and society.