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Getting Started: Note to Instructors Many Chapters in Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life, Fifth Edition end with a photographic essay that allows students to "see" the phenomenon being discussed. While the power of the photographic essay is in its visual representation, it is equally important that a sociological context be provided to help students understand how these photographs relate to the larger social world. Thus, both visual and textual cues help students understand and appreciate how private experiences (depicted in the photos) are related to broader cultural and social forces. The photographic essay is an exciting and effective pedagogical technique that is ideally suited for Sociology courses. After all, many students already have available rich photographic data (i.e., photo albums). When students use their own photos as "data," they are required to step outside their intimate, personal space and consider how their lives and experiences have been shaped by social forces. By looking at familiar photographs with a sociological eye, students can begin to understand how demographic, racial, economic, and religious influences, among others, have shaped their lives. Many students enjoy analyzing their own photographs, but they should also be given the option of gathering their photographic data from other sources. These may include books, magazines, the Internet or a variety of other sources. Although the use of such sources may make the experience less personal for some students, it is equally effective in helping students think about and visualize how the private and public spheres are connected. One example would be to have students identify a research question (e.g., the teenage experience; after school jobs) and take their own photographs to document the situation. In short, there are a variety of ways to engage students in photographic essays, all of which help them understand how their own personal experiences are shaped by larger social forces. Most students thoroughly enjoy working with visual data and seeing sociology in a new way. For instructors, photographic essays provide an additional and interesting way to assess students' sociological imaginations. The photographic essay assignment is grounded in the tradition of visual sociology. For further information about visual sociology and ideas for class projects, see Douglas Harper's "Visual Sociology: Expanding Sociological Vision" ( American Sociologist, Vol. 19: 54-70, 1988 ), Richard Chaflen's Snapshot Versions of Life (Bowling Green: Bowling Green University, 1987) or Erving Goffman's Gender Advertisements (NY: Harper Colophon Books, 1979). |
