Research and Theory Behind the Sociology of Education

The sociology of education is a diverse and vibrant subfield that features theory and research focused on how education as a social institution is affected by and affects other social institutions and the social structure overall, and how various social forces shape the policies, practices, and outcomes of schooling. While education is typically viewed in most societies as a pathway to personal development, success, and social mobility, and as a cornerstone of democracy, sociologists who study education take a critical view of these assumptions to study how the institution actually operates within society. They consider what other social functions education might have, like for example socialization into gender and class roles, and what other social outcomes contemporary educational institutions might produce, like reproducing class and racial hierarchies, among others. Theoretical Approaches within the Sociology of Education Classical French sociologist Émile Durkheim was one of the first sociologists to consider the social function of education. He believed that moral education was necessary for society to exist  because it provided the basis for the social solidarity that held society together. By writing about education in this way, Durkheim established the functionalist perspective on education. This perspective champions the work of socialization that takes place within the educational institution, including the teaching of society’s culture, including moral values, ethics, politics, religious beliefs, habits, and norms. According to this view, the socializing function of education also serves to promote social control  and to curb  deviant behavior. The symbolic interaction  approach to studying education focuses on interactions during the schooling process and the outcomes of those interactions. For instance, interactions between students and teachers, and social forces that shape those interactions like race, class, and gender, create expectations on both parts. Teachers expect certain behaviors from certain students, and those expectations, when communicated to students through interaction, can actually produce those very behaviors. This is called the â€Å"teacher expectancy effect.† For example, if a white teacher expects a black student to perform below average on a math test when compared to white students, over time the teacher may act in ways that encourage black students  to underperform. Stemming from Marxs theory of the relationship between workers and capitalism, the conflict theory approach to education examines the way educational institutions and the hierarchy of degree levels contribute to the reproduction of hierarchies and inequalities in society. This approach recognizes that schooling reflects  class, racial, and gender stratification, and tends to reproduce it. For example, sociologists have documented in many different settings how tracking of students based on class, race, and gender effectively sorts students into classes of laborers and managers/entrepreneurs, which reproduces the already existing class structure rather than producing social mobility. Sociologists who work from this perspective also assert that educational institutions and school curricula are products of the dominant worldviews, beliefs, and values of the majority, which typically produces educational experiences that marginalize and disadvantage those in the minority in terms of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability, among other things. By operating in this fashion, the educational institution is involved in the  work of reproducing power, domination, oppression, and inequality within society.  It is for this reason that there have long been campaigns across the U.S. to include ethnic studies courses in middle schools and high schools, in order to balance a curriculum otherwise structured by a white, colonialist worldview. In fact, sociologists have found that providing ethnic studies courses to students of color who are on the brink of failing out or dropping out of high school effectively re-engages and inspires them, raises their overall grade point average and improves their academic performance overall. Notable Sociological Studies of Education Learning to Labour, 1977, by Paul Willis. An ethnographic study set in England focused on the reproduction of the working class within the school system.Preparing for Power: Americas Elite Boarding Schools, 1987, by Cookson and Persell. An ethnographic study set at elite boarding schools in the U.S. focused on the reproduction of the social and economic elite.Women Without Class: Girls, Race, and Identity, 2003, by Julie Bettie. An ethnographic study of how gender, race, and class intersect within the schooling experience to leave some without the cultural capital necessary for social mobility within society.Academic Profiling:  Latinos, Asian Americans, and the Achievement Gap, 2013, by Gilda Ochoa. An ethnographic study within a California high school of how race, class, and gender intersect to produce the achievement gap between Latinos and Asian Americans.

Essay on Payday Lending - 1785 Words

Would you pay 390% for a $400 loan? Most people would say no. Many, however, are saying yes. In the industry of payday loans or cash advances this is just the case. A payday advance or cash advance works like this. A borrower has a need arise, whether from bills or Christmas shopping, and they need a small amount of money. Now, their payday has just past and their credit it less then perfect. They do not have a savings account, and due to their credit they do not have a credit card either. So they stop in to a payday lender. The borrower writes a check for $460, and they get $400 in cash. The $60 is the fee for the loan. The lender gives the loan for 14 days, which is until their next payday. In 14 days the borrower has a couple of†¦show more content†¦A person could go the credit union and get a signature loan for just under 13%. Yet, payday lending is still one of the fastest growing businesses. May people believe that is because they prey on the financially uneducated . A good deal of borrowers is those on fixed income or in the lower income bracket. Their credit worthiness is not go, and they may not have any savings accounts. In fact some may have no financial assets whatsoever. The borrowers are apart of a segment of society that the Center for Responsible Lending have dubbed â€Å"unbanked,† According to Payday Lending:Serving the Unbanked by Mike Foley. This segment is primary comprise of the poor. So, when many of these loans are taken out the borrowers can not afford them in the first place. The borrowers only see the small fee for the loan and the fact the company just holds the check, so they see not risk in taking the loan. Most borrowers do not thing about interest rate or just do not care. They have their wants or needs and that is all they can see at the time. The lenders do not really care if the borrower can pay the loan back. Most of these payday stores are open near or in poor communities. Julian Bond, chairman of the Board of the NAACP said, â€Å"visits to day lending stores-which open their doors in low-income communities at a rate equal to Starbucks in affluent ones-are threatening the livelihoods of hard working families and stripping equity form entire communities (Foley). ManyShow MoreRelatedPayday Lending Should Not Be Banned1113 Words   |  5 PagesPhillips WR 121 Does Payday Lending Need to Be Banned? Many financially unstable Americans use payday loans as a means of escape from bills they cannot afford when their low paying jobs do not provide enough for them to live on. In the article â€Å"Many states have cracked down on payday loans. Here’s how lenders still get away with it.† by Jeff Guo, of The Washington Post, payday lenders are criticized as being â€Å"a slippery bunch† but should all payday lending be completely outlawed? Payday loans, sometimesRead MorePayday Lending : Unique Opportunities Essay752 Words   |  4 PagesPayday Lending: Unique Opportunities to Both Sides Nowadays it s very easy to come across some sort of payday loan advertisement. Whether you re watching television, reading an online article, listening to the radio, or driving to the grocery store – payday loans are everywhere. They offer fast money for those times when you need it most and often don t check your credit history. However, they do have high interest rates which means you may end up paying more than you initially borrowed. It sRead MoreShould Online Payday Lending Be Regulated?819 Words   |  4 PagesShould Online Payday Lending Be More Closely Regulated? Should Online Payday Lending Be More Closely Regulated? Payday loans generate lots of controversy because they re offered to people who have bad credit or limited credit histories, which makes them high-risk borrowers. Traditional lenders seldom approve loans for these types of borrowers and never quickly enough when a cash emergency occurs. Unfortunately, many of these same people don t use payday loans as intended -- as short-term emergencyRead MorePayday Lending Is A Convenient, Instant, And Short Term Option Essay1647 Words   |  7 Pagesinstances, payday lending can be a convenient, instant, and short-term option one may want to consider. The speed, ease, and convenience associated with payday lending enables an individual to get out of trouble quick, which has resulted in payday lending consistently growing in popularity over the last couple of decades. Since the early to mid 1990s, the payday lending industry has continuously grown in popularity as well as quantity. In fact, there are currently more than 20,000 payday lenders inR ead MorePayday Loans : Are They As Bad894 Words   |  4 PagesPayday Loans - Are They as Bad as Some Make Them Out to Be? Payday Loans - Are They as Bad as Some Make Them Out to Be? Payday loans fulfill real-world needs for families that can t cover emergency expenses from their savings. Even people with stellar credit can t always negotiate loans quickly enough when a financial emergency arises. The premise is simple: Short-term loans are available, even for people with low credit scores, and people can get money into their accounts faster than trying toRead MoreEssay On Installment Loans1276 Words   |  6 Pagesfall into debt traps according to report posted at (-- removed HTML --) qz.com (-- removed HTML --) . The report examined a report by Joseph Williams who praised the lifeline that payday loans offered while deploring the lump-sum repayment difficulties that can affect even well-educated and high-salaried borrowers. Payday loan interest rates are high for these short-term loans that only earn interest for about two weeks. People who can’t afford to repay the entire loan balance, fees and interest fromRead MorePayday Loan Bans : What Happens Whe n They Are Made Into Law916 Words   |  4 PagesPayday Loan Bans - What Happens When They Are Made into Law Payday Loan Bans - What Happens When They Are Made into Law What will really happen if payday loans are banned? The consequences could prove wide-ranging and affect multiple stakeholders in the world s increasingly fragile economy. An article posted on the WashingtonPost.com conjectured that the United States would become a wonderful garden without all the tacky neon signs for payday loans that are common in most reas of the country. TheRead MorePayday Loans Should Not Be Legal1705 Words   |  7 Pagesassuming all of the risk, and they need to charge enough to cover any potential losses if the loan defaults. Payday loans are also much quicker and easier to get than other types of credit, and the large number of payday lending outlets accompanied with typical long business hours (especially compared to banks and credit unions) only add to the borrower’s convenience. Consumers can even obtain a payday loan from the comfort of their homes simply by applying over the internet. In order to do so, all oneRead MorePayday Loans: Playing Fami lies Like an Instrument Essay922 Words   |  4 Pagesturn is payday lending, which may sound like a good idea up front, but in the long run can sink you deeper than you were before. What is a Payday Loan? At its simplest, a payday loan is simply a small, short-term loan meant to cover the borrower’s expenses until their next payday. They have many different names: paycheck advance, payday advance, and cash advances are the most popular when referring to payday loans, but the basic concept is the same. The borrower visits the payday lending storeRead MoreInstallment Loans : Let The States Decide Essay964 Words   |  4 Pagesnonbank loans, shorter term lending and Internet-based loans, installment loans work differently than most payday and short-term loans such as auto title loans. These loans allow consumers -- and a significant number of small businesses -- to borrow amounts that range from $200 up to $5,000 and repay them in equal installments over a longer repayment period, which is often six months. Many lending companies that are experiencing stricter regulations of short-term, payday-type loans are offering installment

The Ho-Chunk Nation Free Essays

Ho-Chunk Nation The Ho-Chunk Nation’s culture and beliefs have sustained them for centuries which make their tribe one of the strongest Native American Tribes in the United States today. Their tribe is made up of 7,071 members, due to the devotion of the tribe elders passing along traditions to the younger generations. Today, the Ho-Chunk Nation is a non-reservation tribe with 3,407 acres of trust land and 5,310 acres of taxable land. We will write a custom essay sample on The Ho-Chunk Nation or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Tribe had to repurchase this land that they once owned from the U. S. Government. The Ho-Chunk Native Trust Lands are located in: Adams, Clark, Crawford, Dane, Eau Claire, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Marathon, Monroe, Sauk, Shawano, Vernon and Wood Counties in Wisconsin and also in the State of Illinois. There are also large numbers of tribal members that live in Minneapolis, Madison, Milwaukee, and Chicago. In 1836, the Ho Chunk was removed from the choice land of southern Wisconsin to make room for the miners that were taking over the land. The area was also in demand for the lush farmland of the various river valleys. This land was taken from the Ho Chunk for nickels and dimes, and the people were forcibly removed on to Indian reservations in northeastern Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota and Nebraska. Ho-Chunk elders recall terrifying scenes of tribal members being rounded up at gunpoint and loaded into boxcars against their will. They were shipped to reservations far from the place they called home. Eventually, many Ho-Chunk refused to live on the poor reservations and returned to their homeland in Wisconsin. The native people with an ancestral lineage dating back to pre-history were first known as the Wisconsin Winnebago Tribe. This name was given to them by early European explorers. In 1994, when the tribe adopted its present constitution, the Nation reclaimed their original name: Ho-Chunk or â€Å"People of the Big Voice. † The Ho-Chunk were avid hunters, gatherers and farmers. They created and became known for their raised garden beds where they grew specialized plants for food. The men hunted while the women gathered. The food consisted of corn, squash, green plants, roots, berries, making maple syrup and maple candy, venison, fresh fish, and small game. After harvest, the food storage process consisted of drying foods naturally for the long winters. As Caretakers of the land, they moved as the food source did, and during seasons providing the plant life abundant to this region. Villages moved to conserve the area’s resources. Their history of living off the land helped the Ho-Chunk develop a unique relationship with Wisconsin’s terrain. Women tanned hides, wove mats from the strong grasses near the waters’ edge, made clothing, and taught their daughters. The grandmothers and grandfathers played an important part in the instruction and rearing of children. The Dagas, or Uncles, were the disciplinarians within a family unit. There was no need for a mother or father to raise their voices, for the practice was to train the children to have such respect for a Daga. The children lived in fear of punishment from their Daga that they were well-mannered and productive children. The Ho-Chunk government provides many services to their tribe. The housing program helps with home ownership and property management. The education program has four primary school districts in Tomah, Black River Falls, Baraboo, and Wisconsin Dells. The labor program which is a certification of Indian preference for contracting and subcontracting; safety, and they provide supportive services; which helps youth employment. Health services which provide Food Distribution Program, Community Health Representatives, Community Health Nurses, At-Large Health Care, Alcohol/Drug Program, Environmental Health, Benefit Coordinators, Special Diabetes Programs for Indians and a Mental Health Program. They Also provide services for veterans and social services. Bibliography 1. Wisconsin State Tribal Relations Initiative, Ho-Chunk Nation http://witribes. wi. gov/docview. asp? docid=5638locid=57 2. Ho-Chunk Nation http://www. ho-chunknation. com/UserFiles/File/OOP/04HCN_mediakit_rtpages_ACT. pdf 3. http://www. mpm. edu/wirp/icw-52. html 4. http://www. wisconsinhistory. org/whspress/pdf/247. pdf How to cite The Ho-Chunk Nation, Papers

Like the majority of the American population I hav Essay Example For Students

Like the majority of the American population I hav Essay HIVe lived in a cloud ofignorance about the HIV and AIDS crisis. I have never know anyone close to methat has been infected with either of the two viruses. So when the option toresearch something to do with sexuality arouse I felt this would definitelyfurther my education about a lethal killer that is roaming this earth. Since Iknew next to nothing about this topic I will start from the begging of thedisease and discuss where its at now. The HIV and AIDS disease has been around for awhile although no one hasbeen able to pin point its origin. There are many theories floating around themedical world but the most predominant theory is that the virus first attackedhumans in Central Africa up to 100 years ago.(Kelly 524). It is said that thevirus stayed mainly in this closed society until many years later. Many say thedisease spread when international travel began to increase. The HIV and AIDSviruses were believed to arrive in the United States sometime during thenineteen seventies. It was a common disease between gay males and intravenousdrug abusers. Now it is well known that the viruses have been transmittedthrough sexually, occasionally through blood and organ transplants. The acronym HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus, where as theacronym AIDS stands for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome. When someone hascontracted the HIV virus in almost all cases it produces the AIDS virus. Apparently there has been a controversy that HIV really isnt the cause of theAIDS virus, but careful research has proved without a doubt that it is the cause. Socially the production of the viruses has caused a lot of hate, prejudice,racism and above all homophobia. Many people only talk about the late stages of AIDS but HIV does notalways produce the AIDS virus. If the HIV virus is caught in the early stagesit is possible to get treatment and delay the effects of the AIDS virus. Whenan individual contracts HIV they can expect a fever, swollen glands, andsometimes a rash. As the bodies system tends toward these symptoms the HIVvirus may still be undetectable. This first stage is called primary HIV diseasethen moves onto chronic asymptomatic disease. With this stage comes a declinein the immune cells and often swollen lymph nodes. As time moves on thedepletion of immune cells increases leaving the body open to opportunisticinfection. This is where normal sickness, disease, and other things in theenvironment are now able to attack the bodies system. This stage is called thechronic symptomatic disease. A very noticeable symptom is a thrush, which is ayeast infection of the mouth(Kelly 532). Also at this stage there can beinfections of the skin and also feelings of fatigue, weight loss, diarrhea, etc. The actual period of the HIV virus really varies from person to person. Normally with in a year or two the serve stages of HIV set in. At this point inthe victims life it is said they have progressed into the AcquiredImmunodeficiency Syndrome(AIDS). This status is established when one or more ofdiseases have accumulated in the effected victims system. Many victims oftenhave lesions appear on their skin or they begin to acquire a pneumocysticpneumonia. The final stage of the virus attacks the nervous system, damagingthe brain and the spinal cord.(Kelly 532). This can lead to a number ofproblems in the body: blindness, depression, loss of body control, loss ofmemory. This can often last for months before the victim finally passes away. Homelessness In Our Nation EssayThere is still no really strong evidence that HIV has been transmittedthrough oral sex. Although there has been documented cases in which it has beentransmitted from a males semen through oral sex. There is far less evidence ofmales or females contracting the virus through oral sex performed on a female. It has been said that the virus can not be transmitted trough kissing butexperts can not rule out this possibility. Some have said that prolongedFrench kissing, open mouth with the switching of saliva, could possiblytransmit the virus. There has been no evidence that casual contact has or everwill transmit the disease. This is were many social problems come into effect. Many be tend to isolate people that they know have contracted the virus becausethey are ignorant to how the disease is transmitted. About 5 percent of individuals infected with HIV have remainedasymptomatic even without any antiviral treatment.(Kelly535). Its not knownwhat causes this very rare occurrence but many doctors are still researching whyit happens. Can the body reject the HIV and AIDS virus, unfortunately until nowthe answer remains no for most. The virus defeats the immune system leaving thevulnerable to other diseases. Those victims that already have a more defeatedimmune system and then contract HIV will be more likely to acquire AIDS at amuch faster rate than normal. Although someone is infected with HIV this doesnot necessarily mean they are sentenced to die. Few people that have beendiagnosed seemed to have rid themselves of the deadly virus. Most people tendto make a drastic change in their lifestyle. A change in eating habits,vitamins, exercises, and work habits. Some of these victims often live for manyyears after they are diagnosed. Testing for the HIV and AIDS virus is a process that has become aregular occurrence in most peoples lives. When the virus enters the body itreacts by producing antibodies. Unfortunately these antibodys can goundetected for sometime leaving people with the false hope that they are HIVnegative. In most people it has been estimated that these antibodys appearwith in six months or longer. This is why the medical profession suggestsregular HIV testing on a six month interval. There are two tests mainly used to detect the HIV and AIDS virus. TheELISA and the Western blot. ELISA stands for, Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay,it is an inexpensive test but often gives false positive diagnoses. When apositive result returns its often followed by the Western blot. This is a muchmore expensive and lengthy test that has to be interpreted by trainedprofessionals. The major problem with HIV testing is that it often developsvery slowly in the human body, staying virtually undetected for a long time. This is why so many people can be not carrying the disease without even knowingit. There are three possible outcome with the testing technology that isavailable now. First, positive conformation that HIV antibodies are presentthrough out the body. Second, positive conformation that the HIV antibodies arenot present through out the body. Third, the uncertain result that HIVantibodies are present in the body. Category: Science