SOC 295-03 - Special Topic: The Sociology of Higher Education

4 credits (Fall)

Why do consistent, differential education and economic outcomes exist in American society, and what role does higher educaton play as a change agent, equalizer, and/or reproducer of society’s inequalities? Students will expolore theoretical and practical perspectives on social, scientific, economic, and political forces that shape approaches to higher education and its reform. Students will conduct individual inquirey-based, action-oriented projects of their own design. In their final projects, students will critically examine and generate solutions to higher education questions they care about at Grinnell and beyond, with particular emphasis on gender-, race-, and class-based “achievement gaps” in American higher education. With their projects, students will produce personally relevant knowledge that they can share with the campus community and beyond.

Prerequisite: SOC 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Janson