Collaborative Research: Developing a National Model for a College-level Introductory Sociology Course

这个项目正在完成由美国社会学协会（ASA）创建现代社会学入门课程的国家工作组开始的开发工作。它致力于完善ASA大学水平的课程，并进一步为大学水平的社会学入门课程开发创新的教学材料。目前还在追求第二个目标，即查明导致学生成功学习的条件，特别是在社会科学领域代表性不足的妇女和种族/少数民族成员中。目前特别注意发展他们整合、综合和解释信息的能力，并提高他们的读写能力和数量分析技能。该项目的智力价值源于这样一个事实，即新课程将导致所有类型的学生更深入、更持久的学习。它将增加我们对代表性不足的群体如何更成功地学习社会科学概念和方法的认识。广泛采用这种新的国家模式作为大学水平的社会学入门课程，最终将产生更广泛的重大影响。以下课程特点有助于产生更广泛的影响：大大加强了课程内容，增加了对探究式教学资源的依赖，学生在使用主要国家数据集和工具方面的重要经验，以及来自配套评估材料的形成性反馈。此外，作为该项目将实践社会学家、大专院校、学院和大学教师（以及高中教师）联系起来的结果，该项目正在开发新的网络，以加强教师培训和学生参与研究。项目评价采用课堂实地观察、课堂录像、师生访谈、学生评价材料内容分析、学生在新评价中的表现等方法。对这些收集到的数据的评估为进一步修改课程、教学资源和评估工具提供了基础。项目网站和讨论板允许社会学讲师分享问题、问题、策略和材料。项目完成后，将有一个完善的课程，一套与之一致的教材，以及对它们如何工作的系统评估。这些结果将在社会学家、教育研究人员和高中教师的专业协会、专业和一般公共出版物中分享，并通过美国社会学协会提供。

This project is completing the development started by the American Sociological Association (ASA) national task force to create a modern introductory sociology curriculum. It is engaged in refining the ASA college-level curriculum and further developing innovative pedagogical materials for a college-level introductory sociology course. A second goal is also being pursued, identification of conditions leading to successful student learning, especially among women and members of racial/ethnic minorities who are underrepresented in social science fields. Particular attention is being paid to developing their abilities to integrate, synthesize, and interpret information and enhancing their literacy and quantitative skills. The intellectual merit of the project derives from the fact that the new course will result in deeper and more lasting student learning by all types of students. It will increase our knowledge of how underrepresented groups can more successfully learn social science concepts and methods. Significant broader impacts will be realized ultimately from the widespread adoption of this new national model for a college-level introductory sociology course. The following course features are contributing to the broader impacts: a greatly strengthened curricular content, increased reliance on inquiry-based teaching resources, significant student experience in using major national datasets and tools, and formative feedback from companion assessment materials. Further, as an outgrowth of this projects' linking of practicing sociologists, junior college, college, and university faculty (and high school teachers), the project is developing new networks to enhance teacher training and student involvement in research. The project evaluation is employing field observations of classes, videotapes of classes, interviews of teachers and students, analysis of the content of student assessment materials, and students' performances on the new assessments. Assessment of these collected data is providing the basis for a further round of modifications of the curriculum, teaching resources, and assessment tools. The project website and discussion board is permitting sociology instructors to share questions, problems, strategies, and materials.By project completion there will be a well-refined curriculum, a set of teaching materials that are aligned with it, and systematic assessment of how they work. These will be shared at professional associations of sociologists, educational researchers, and high school teachers, in professional and general public publications, and made available through the American Sociological Association.