Sociology by Teachers, Senior Students and Professional Master Students for Teaching

Methodology

Study of literature; Participating Survey; Questionnaire

Study of Literature

Sociology is the study of human social life. Human social life is complex and encompasses many facets of the human experience. Because of its complexity, the discipline of sociology has been subdivided over time into specialty areas1. Sociology can perhaps be best regarded as an attempt to name that which secretely keeps society going ( Whitty and Young, 1976).

One of its basic concepts is culture. It consists of the beliefs, behaviors, objects, and other characteristics common to the members of a particular group or society. Through culture, people and groups define themselves, conform to society's shared values, and contribute to society. Thus, culture includes many societal aspects: language, customs, values, norms, mores, rules, tools, technologies, products, organizations, and institutions. 2 That’s why the study of sociology is very important. It is the process by which humans learn how to function in a particular society. Another basic concept of sociology is socialization. Although it is observably essential among humans, it is important to note here that socialization is very much culturally-relative, meaning that the process and outcomes do vary from culture to culture. Sociology extends its object of study anywhere people find themselves. It is connected with:

Social Life, such as Society, Culture, Socialization, Groups

1www.cliffsnotes.com/.../Culture-and-Society-Defined.topicArticleId-... 2Sociology of Education

Social Inequality, such as Stratification, Race and Ethnicity, Gender Social Institutions, such as Economy, Family, Religion, etc.

Arnett1 in presenting a new theoretical understanding of socialization, outlined what he believes to be the three goals of socialization:

impulse control and the development of a conscience role preparation and performance, including occupational roles, gender roles, and roles in institutions such as marriage and parenthood the cultivation of sources of meaning, or what is important, valued, and to be lived for.

In short, socialization is the process that prepares humans to function in social life. It should be re-iterated here that socialization is culturally relative - people in different cultures and people that occupy different racial, classed, gendered, sexual, and religious social locations are socialized differently.

Studying issues such it becomes necessary for study in schools. In existing pre-university curriculum, it is an optional subject in our schools. At the core curriculum subjects such place that retrieve information from 2-3 times during high school, such as: training for life, citizenship, biology, etc2. Sociology provides information on social problems. Its impact on civic participation is very large. Sociology gives information on social issues. Its effect on an active citizenly participation is very important. We need the sociology of education. It is the study of how public institutions and individual experiences affect education and its outcomes. It is mostly concerned with the public schooling systems of modern industrial societies, including the expansion of higher, further, adult, and continuing education. 3

Participating Survey

Being a teacher of sociology for 20 years among high school students has helped me to watch and study: Change in their behavior from their first year of high school to the last one

Their indifference towards disturbing issues in community at the beginning of the high school Their active participation to effect the others;

This is completed through: educative classes, different activities, regular relations with social groups in need such as orphanages, asylums, competitions between classes and schools, having a continuous communication with colleagues of other schools from different regions of Albania, training sessions for our curricula which are always in process of changing, training sessions for the standards of learning, training sessions for the standards of teachers of social studies school subjects.

All these activities have been useful for a continuous exchange of experiences on how better it could be the education of the youth who lack the necessities of a normal life.

Questionnaire

There were asked 91 senior students, 70 teachers, and 239 professional master students for teaching subjects such as sociology, literature, math, history and geography. 82% of the questioned people were females and 18% were males.

1Arnett, Jeffrey J. 1995. 2www.izha.edu.al 3Gordon Marshall, 1998

Question number 1:

They were asked to choose three of these values they esteemed the most.

The following table shows the frequency of each chosen value listed on the table. It shows the percentage for each one and its accumulative percentage. (this is for professional master students)

It results that education has the biggest frequency chosen by the questioned people as the most precious value. It is the same result for the teachers and the senior students, too.

The second with the biggest frequency is chosen Personal Dignity. ( the 2nd listed on the table) The 3rd with the biggest frequency chosen is Correctness. (the 14th listed on the table) Question number 2:

In evaluating the knowledge which helps them in knowing better themselves, 118 of them have answered that knowledge on sociology has helped them; 84 of them think on artistic literature.

There are almost the same results for teachers and senior students.

Some of the explanations on how and why this knowledge has helped them are: It has made me more courageous in certain situations

In defining my individual characteristics Seeing what type of individual I am Knowing my aggressive temperament

Discovering new things that I wish I had in my real life and possibly use them Analyzing all the phases of my personal development since I was a child Making me more optimistic, braver, and more communicative in many aspects Knowing sociology better, we know ourselves better and make a challenge to it Knowing your best friend better, we know ourselves better at the same time Putting myself in different book’s situations

Finding myself in different characters of literature

Creating a new concept on me, my character and my behavior Taking much more knowledge useful for daily life

Learning something new, you know yourself better

Life experience has learned me much more; learning by doing, learning from mistakes Learning different cultures of living

Setting yourself in different situations

Learning about behaviors we learn who we are and what we do Categorizing myself helps me in my daily behavior

Being more tolerant; having an easier communication Defining my own character

Learning individual’s different socio-psychological characteristics

Knowing the past of the peoples and their cultures we can make conclusions for their special attributes Studying man’s life and all his problems through life, I can understand my advantages

Being a respectable member of the society, makes me understand how important is to me as a member of this society that surround me

Reading topics on cultures and behaviors, we learn how to be more conscientious

Systematizing my sociologic knowledge, I can see better the differences between me and other people Thinking how I would act as I were the character of the book, I understand how I am;

Question number 3:

From 239 students of professional master in teaching profile, 116 of them haven’t read any sociologic book; 6 of them have read 5 books, and 15 of them have read

10 books.

Analyzing the number of artistic books read during last 5 five years, results that:

Form 239 students of professional master in teaching profile, 56 of them haven’t read any sociologic books; 14 of them have read 5 books, and 102 of them have read 10 books.

From 70 teachers, 12 of them haven’t read any sociologic book; 11 others have read 3-5 books; 47 of them have read 5- 10 books.

From 91senior students, 49 of them haven’t read any sociologic book; 18 others have read 3-5 books; 24 of them have read 5-10 books.

This is a situation we have to do a lot for sociology and the students.

Conclussions and Recomandations:

Study sociology is very important. Sociology helps personal development.

Sociology must be a compulsory subject at our pre-university curriculum.

Bibliography