First Graders in a College Sociology Classroom: A Reflection

Frances Chaput Waksler

doi:10.18778/1733-8077.8.3.03

Authors

Frances Chaput Waksler Wheelock College, USA

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-8077.8.3.03

Keywords:

Ethnomethodology, Phenomenological Sociology, Sociology of Childhood, Sociology of Education, Symbolic Interactionism

Abstract

Once a year from 1995 until 2008 I offered a sociology class session in which first graders from a local private school joined college undergraduates who were enrolled in my advanced theories course entitled Sociological Studies of Children. The sessions had two goals: to have college students interact with the first graders guided by what we had been learning in class and to introduce first graders to college and to sociology. These joint classes are worthy of further reflection for what they suggest about the potential theoretical, methodological, and practical uses of ideas drawn from the “new sociology of childhood.”

This paper is a retrospective description of and reflection on these joint classes. It begins with a presentation of the theoretical background that framed the event. It then details the preparations for the class with the college students; the class itself, including the format and content of lectures and discussions; and the post-visit discussion with the college students. Additional issues described are the influences of the adults (parents) who accompanied the children and some unexpected matters that arose in some of the classes.

The first graders’ participation in a college sociology class drew on the ideas of taking children seriously as learners about sociology and recognizing children’s expertise about what it is like to be children. Taking seriously children’s actions, comments, and concerns in non-judgmental ways provides insights into children’s ways, alternative modes of interaction, and new approaches to studying children.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Frances Chaput Waksler, Wheelock College, USA

Frances Chaput Waksler is a Professor Emerita of Sociology at Wheelock College, Boston, MA. Her theoretical work is grounded in phenomenological sociology, ethnomethodology, and symbolic interactionism. Her substantive interests include the general topic of face-to-face interaction and the sociology of childhood, of deviance, and of medicine.

References

Atkinson, Mick A. 1980. “Some Practical Uses of ‘A Natural Lifetime.’” Human Studies 3(1):33-46. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02331799

Cavin, Erica. 1994. “In Search of the Viewfinder: A Study of a Child’s Perspective.” Visual Sociology 9(1):27-41. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14725869408583729

Danby, Susan J. 1998. “Theoretical Perspectives Informing Research on Early Childhood Education.” In Interaction

and Social Order in a Preschool Classroom. PhD dissertation, University of Queensland, Australia.

Harris, Judith. 1998. The Nurture Assumption. New York: Free Press.

Joyce, Mary C. 1991. “Watching People Watching Babies.” Pp. 113-18 in Studying the Social Worlds of Children: Sociological Readings, edited by F. C. Waksler. Basingstoke: RoutledgeFalmer.

Matthews, Gareth B. 1994. The Philosophy of Childhood. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.

Matthews, Sarah H. 2007. “A Window on the ‘New’ Sociology of Childhood.” Sociology Compass 1(1):322-334. Retrieved March 10, 2008: http://sociology-compass.com/social-psychology-family/ DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00001.x

Sacks, Harvey. 1972. “On the Analysability of Stories by Children.” Pp. 325-345 in Directions in Sociolinguistics, edited by J. J. Gumperz, D. Hymes. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. [reprinted in Waksler, Frances C., (ed.). 1991. Studying the Social Worlds of Children: Sociological Readings. Basingstoke: RoutledgeFalmer.]

Sheets-Johnstone, Maxine. 1996. “An Empirical-Phenomenological Critique of the Social Construction of Infancy. Human Studies 19(1):1-16. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00142853

Sheets-Johnstone, Maxine. 2003. “Child’s play: A Multidisciplinary Perspective. Human Studies 26(4):409-430. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:HUMA.0000003668.23164.7d

Stainton Rogers, Rex and Wendy Stainton Rogers. 1992. Stories of Childhood: Shifting Agendas of Child Concern. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Waksler, Frances C. 1986. “Studying Children: Phenomenological Insights. Human Studies 9(1):71-82. [reprinted in Waksler, Frances C., (ed.). 1991. Studying the Social Worlds of Children: Sociological Readings. Basingstoke: RoutledgeFalmer.] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00142910

Waksler, Frances C., (ed.). 1991a. “Beyond Socialization.” Pp. 12-22 in Studying the Social Worlds of Children: Sociological Readings. Basingstoke: RoutledgeFalmer.

Waksler, Frances C., (ed.). 1991b. Studying the Social Worlds of Children: Sociological Readings. Basingstoke: RoutledgeFalmer.

Waksler, Frances C. 1996. The Little Trials of Childhood and Children’s Strategies for Dealing with Them. London: Falmer Press.