A Quarterly Publication of The American Sociological Association ABSTRACTS--Volume 27, Number 3, July 1999 ARTICLES Turning Theory into Theorizing: Collaborative Learning in a Sociological Theory Course.....Jane A. Rinehart The Colors of Teachers, the Color of Students: The Multicultural Classroom Experience.....Joyce E. Williams, Amitra A. Hodge, Lisa Garza, and Anissa Breaux NOTES Demonstrating the Social Construction of Race.....Brian K. Obach Unconventional First Days: Encouraging Students to Wonder About Social Life and Learning.....Paul Higgins SPECIAL SECTION Teaching Chicano Sociology: A Response to the Academic Stock-Story About Ethnic Studies Classes.....Adalberto Aguirre, Jr. On the Necessity of Antiracist Praxis: An Experience in Teaching and Learning.....Pinar Batur-VanderLippe Teaching Mexican American Experiences Through Film: Private Issues and Public Problems.....Avelardo Valdez and Jeffrey A. Halley WEB SITE REVIEW ESSAY Targeting Sociology on the Internet Using Gateway Directories.....Annette Haines Turning Theory into Theorizing: Collaborative Learning in a Sociological Theory Course (Jane A. Rinehart) This article describes the ways collaborative learning methods can enhance the undergraduate course in sociological theory. When instructors employ collaborative learning methods, student passivity and fears about theory are transformed into an engaging practice of theorizing. Such practice is not without conflicts and failures, but it acts as a powerful form of resistance to lethargy and routine. Collaborative learning addresses the problems associated with student consumerism in higher education by constituting students as responsible interpreters expected to accomplish rigorous inquiry in the classroom community. Further, these methods are particularly suitable for teaching theory because they overcome the intimidation that students often feel about this subject. This article presents an explanation of collaborative learning, distinguishes it from active learning, identifies its challenges, and describes some specific ways that instructors can use it to teach classical sociological theory. Return to top of page. The Color of Teachers, the Color of Students: The Multicultural Classroom Experience (Joyce E. Williams, Amitra A. Hodge, Lisa Garza, and Anissa Breaux) This research examines students' experiences taking a one-semester race and ethnic relations course in different sections with instructors who are African American, Mexican American, and Euro-American. The instructors designed a before-and-after survey as a crude measure of student change between the expected influence of the instructor's race/ethnicity at the beginning of the semester on grading, course content, teaching methodology, and pedagogy and the actual perception of this influence at the end of the semester. Findings show that, with the exception of grading, approximately one-fourth to 40 percent of students did expect, at the beginning of the semester, that the instructor's race/ethnicity would influence the previously mentioned items. However, at the end of the semester, with the exception of grading, the proportion of students who actually thought the instructor's race/ethnicity did make a difference had declined substantially. Return to top of page. Demonstrating the Social Construction of Race (Brian K. Obach) Abstract forthcoming. Return to top of page. Unconventional First Days: Encouraging Students to Wonder About Social Life and Learning (Paul Higgins) Abstract forthcoming. Return to top of page. Teaching Chicano Sociology A Response to the Academic Stock-Story About Ethnic Studies Classes (Adalberto Aguirre, Jr.) There is an academic stock-story that portrays ethnic studies classes as limited in substantive content, noncomparative, and only useful if they meet specialized curriculum needs. This paper discusses how a Chicano sociology class can be structured as a response to the academic stock-story. In addition, the paper argues the distinct advantages for academic departments that offer classes to meet a university's diversity requirement. Return to top of page. On the Necessity of Antiracist Praxis: An Experience in Teaching and Learning (Pinar Batur-Vanderlippe) This paper discusses the role of antiracist praxis in teaching and learning, concentrating on the experience and reflections of the participants of the course "Racism and Intellectuals." Participants of this class decided to write this article as a way to convey alternative methods of establishing antiracist praxis. These involved creating and maintaining a community among students and faculty members, and developing collaborations with antiracist student organizations to extend beyond the walls of the campus, and to participate in a collective educational effort for antiracism. Return to top of page. Teaching Mexican American Experiences Through Film: Private Issues and Public Problems (Avelardo Valdez and Jeffrey A. Halley) This article focuses on the use of feature films as a pedagogical tool in sociology classes. Sociological and cinematic representations are used to contribute to an understanding of the Mexican American experience. An interpretive procedure, or hermeneutics, is used as a methodology that provides an encounter between the student's experience, film, and social science texts. As well, the Millsian relation between personal problems and social issues are developed within the context of the material. The cinematic construction of reality is analyzed as the effect of the constraints of the Hollywood production system, and the operation of ideology, including representations of ethnicity and gender. Return to top of page. Targeting Sociology on the Internet Using Gateway Directories (Annette Haines) Abstract forthcoming. Return to top of page. The Editor of Teaching Sociology is Helen A. Moore. For articles, notes, and conversations, send manuscripts to: Helen A. Moore, Department of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0324. Phone: 402-472-6081, Fax: 402-472-6070. For book, video, and software reviews, send manuscripts to: Laurie Scheuble, Department of Sociology, Doane College, 1014 Boswell Drive, Crete, NE 68333. Phone: 402-826-8220, Fax: 402-826-8278. For questions about manuscript processing, contact Bennie Shobe, Department of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0324. Phone: 402-472-6038. The Webmaster is Pauline H. Pavlakos. Observations on form and egregious spelling may be directed to Ms. Pavlakos. The Teaching Sociology Web Page is located at the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Le Moyne College, the Jesuit College of Central New York. Page last updated: April 2, 2001