‘Thigh Gap’: Reflections On Teenage Girls’ Latest Obsession
By Sylvia Pagan Westphal Guest Contributor A few weeks ago, my 13-year-old daughter brought up the issue of the “thigh gap.” A thigh-what? I thought. I Googled it and was appalled by the latest teenage girl obsession: having ultra-skinny thighs, so much so that one can see a space in between them when feet are touching (hence, the gap) is a trait many teenagers now covet. topgold/flickr, creative commons I was relieved when my daughter said she found the trend unhealthy. “You hear about it from your friends, it just travels,” she says. (It’s true, some of these sites are a parent’s nightmare, from Cara’s Thigh Gap on twitter, which I’m not even linking to it because of the inappropriate content, to less-bad-but-still-troubling Operation Thigh Gap. It’s a tough world out there for our teens. The pressure to be thin is nothing new. She says nobody really knows yet whether social media is more powerful than other media, since the research on this is just getting started. 1.
Sharing the Story of Your Own Community
Printer-friendly version Objectives: Students will: Understand the role of an ethnographerKnow how to research and analyze U.S. Census informationPrepare for and conduct an interviewCollect various forms of information into one projectShare information with a wider audienceMake a prediction about November’s elections Essential Questions: What are the advantages and tradeoffs of a changing community? Discussion Questions · What is an ethnography? Exploring Census Data 1. 2. 3. 4. The Voices of the Community In “America by the Numbers,” we heard from both old and new residents of Clarkston: the mayor, who grew up as a disenfranchised member of the town; a longtime resident who longs to return to the Clarkston of earlier years; business owners who are adjusting to the changing population; and refugees anxious to participate in the economic growth and political voice of the community. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Common Core State Standards
Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service - About the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service's mission, history, and goals.
Media only: Christin Chism (202) 633-3159; chismc@si.edu Media website: Smithsonian Shares Compelling Story of the Bracero Program with Communities Nationwide through Educational Poster Set The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) will feature a little-known chapter in American history as its fall 2012 free resource for schools, migrant education centers, museums and libraries across the country. The goal of the poster sets is to celebrate the impact and achievements of migrant farm workers by enabling people of all ages to learn more about the stories behind the Braceros. The contributions made by these laborers have had significant impact on the political, economic and social climate of both the United States and Mexico. SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for 60 years. For Smithsonian information, the public may call (202) 633-1000.
Anti-Arab Racism in the USA: Where it Comes From and What it Means for Politics | Teaching for Change's Busboys and Poets Bookstore
Today is a difficult time to be both Arab and American. Since 9/11 there has been a lot of criticism of America's involvement in the middle east. Yet there has been little analysis of how America treats citizens of Arab or middle eastern origin within its own borders. Steven Salaita explores the reality of Anti-Arab racism in America.
In Class Activities » Sociology Source
It all started with such a simple question. “What are the rules parents follow when they pick a name for their child,” I asked a sea of students with my hands on my hips at the front of the movie theater I teach my Soc 101 class in. “Start by writing down your thoughts and in a moment we’ll share them with each other.” When most of the class was pens down, I asked them to discuss in pairs the rules they’d written down. “Okay, so tell me what you think parents think about when naming their kiddos.” “Michael, Peter, Chris, Bob, John, Gary, Tony, Nathan, Tom, Adam, Paul, Steve, Jason, Nick” Hands in the air I cut them off, “Hold on a second. “So if employable names all sound like ‘white people names’, then what does this tell us? Instead of asking my students this simple question, I could have shown them the research on name discrimination in hiring by Bertrand and Mullainthan (2004). References: Bertrand, Marianne and Sendhil Mullainthan. 2004.
Sociology is Rarely About You | SociologyInFocus
Sociology classes are often conversations about the scientific data surrounding controversial subjects. It’s really easy for students to feel challenged or even leave class upset. In this essay Nathan Palmer explains how something called the ecological fallacy can lead students to misinterpret sociological data and get their feelings hurt. Sociology is great because it challenges us to rethink what we know and learn about things we never knew existed. You should expect to occasionally leave class frustrated or maybe even a little angry. I Bet You Think This Stat Is About You Sociology is about the social. However, that doesn’t stop students from taking things personally. For instance, look at the chart above. First, a rate of incarceration for a racial ethnic subgroup cannot tell us anything about every member of that subgroup. Conclusion When we personalize sociological findings, we are misinterpreting them. Dig Deeper: References: Alexander, Michelle 2010.
sociologythroughdocumentaryfilm / FrontPage
SocAtMovies.html
Sociology at the Movies These 55 movie reviews first appeared in various editions of Robert J. Brym and John Lie, Sociology: Your Compass for a New World (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth and Toronto, ON: Nelson, 2003-2013). All material is copyright (c) 2003-2013. This site is optimized for the Firefox and SeaMonkey Web browsers. For suggestions on how to write a sociological movie review, click here. Introducing Sociology Shake Hands with the Devil (2004) Minority Report (2002) Forrest Gump (1994) Research Methods Kinsey (2004) The Blair Witch Project (1999) Culture Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006) Paradise Now (2005) Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997); The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999); Goldmember (2002) The Joy Luck Club (1993) Socialization The Wedding Crashers (2005) Monster (2003) Affliction (1997) Social Interaction Avatar (2009) Miss Congeniality (2000) Bureaucracy Shake Hands with the Devil (2004) Ikiru (1952) 1. 2.
