Teaching and learning sociology in higher education

 

Sandro Serpa

Prof. Dr., University of the Azores, Faculty of Social and Human Sciences, Department of Sociology; Interdisciplinary Centre of Social Sciences – CICS.UAc/CICS.NOVA.UAc;

Interdisciplinary Centre for Childhood and Adolescence – NICA – UAc, PORTUGAL, sandro.nf.serpa@uac.pt

 

Abstract

The teaching of Sociology (general or in its specialties) in the context of Higher Education is a challenge. This communication has the objective of being an contribution on how to make this teaching more effective and efficient. To this end, a bibliographical research is done. It is concluded that there are several difficulties to be surpassed such as students' preconceived ideas about culture and society, about the (ir)relevance given by some students to Sociology for their formation as well as the idea of (false) facility in their learning that may emerge, among other aspects. As implications, it is suggested that a teaching less based on the transmission of knowledge and more oriented to the active involvement of the student will have greater success in their learning. The implementation of action-research, if there are the conditions for its implementation, could be one of the success strategies.

Keywords: sociology, teaching, learning, action-research, higher education.