Overview

This publication is the process and product of an effort to engage student participation and learning in sociology. This introductory sociology class was led by Professor and department chair Sharon Raz at Lake Washington Institute of Technology. She created an assignment to have students express themselves, both verbally and visually, through personal definitions of a sociology concept. Librarians Sue Wozniak and Greg Bem assisted Professor Raz providing instruction on open source licensing. Students were tasked with creating a personal definition of a sociological concept within a category, to describe and illustrate how the concept relates to their perspective of life given their culture, identity, background, and/or other factors that influence a personal lens. Students were asked to give a description and had the option of adding an image or expression in another form that illustrates the concept for them.

This project is a form of open pedagogy, engaging student ideas in the process of learning and contributing to course materials for others to learn from. Open pedagogy is part of a broader concept of open education – a philosophy that attempts to remove barriers to learning and create equity in the learning process. The glossary is a work in progress that will be available by anyone to view, including future sociology students who will build the glossary with their own additions and adaptations of the concepts.

Timeline

• Winter 2019: Project conceived
• Spring 2019: First round of contributions
• Summer 2019: Publication and sharing of the glossary