_In this assignment, students locate and analyze online video clips in a similar way that is presented on the Videos page of this website. Students post their video to a class blog where they summarize the video, define course concepts used in the video, and then explain how the video illustrates the concepts. In the process, students do the same analytical exercise that we instructors often do in the classroom. The learning outcomes are for students to 1) become familiar with using and applying sociological concepts; 2) use their sociological imagination to engage familiar content; 3) teach each other through the course blog; and 4) become more critical media consumers. For some additional comments on this assignment, refer to this blog post.

Submitted By: Paul Dean, University of Maryland

In this assignment we ask students to write about what C.W. Mills calls the intersection of biography and history. Specifically, we ask them to write about the ways a social structure has had an impact in their own lives and to consider the broader impact the structure has had in society. Students can choose either Option A, which encourages them to draw more explicitly on the ideas of Karl Marx, or Option B, which encourages them to draw more explicitly on the ideas of Max Weber.  _

Submitted By: Lester Andrist & Anya Galli, University of Maryland

_In this assignment, we ask students to write a paper which articulates a new MPAA guideline that helps people identify racism, sexism, classism, and heteronormativity. For example, we ask students what type of content would merit an R rating for racism? What kind of sexism would merit a PG rating? After devising a new rating system, we ask students to write about the impact of positive and negative representations of people in film.

Submitted By: Lester Andrist & Anya Galli, University of Maryland

I use this writing assignment in my Sociological Theory course, in the section on Classical Theory.  For this assignment, students select a film of their choice and apply at least two theoretical concepts to interpret and explain social phenomena in the film.

Submitted By: Paul Dean, University of Maryland