Category Archives: Teaching

Teaching Sociological Theory Practically

Posted on August 1, 2024 by Seth Abrutyn

As I’ve written on the topic of teaching classical theory several times previously (here, here, and here – and spoken a bit here and here), this post is devoted to thinking about teaching theory differently. Moving forward, if you will. … Continue reading →

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So, You Are Assigned Classical Sociological Theory in the Fall…

Posted on July 17, 2024 by Seth Abrutyn

My best advice: RUN! Of course, this is tongue-in-cheek. This is the first of two essays I am writing on teaching theory. It’s been some time since I put words to paper on this (here, here, and here), and my … Continue reading →

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Sociology, Science, Suicide…and Durkheim (Part 1)

Posted on July 4, 2023 by Seth Abrutyn

It has become fashionable, once again, to argue that sociology is an impossible science (perhaps it is a constant feature of sociology and not a fad at all). The logic, despite being cloaked in a wide range of new ideologically-drenched … Continue reading →

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Initial Results: Teaching Grad Theory

Posted on April 15, 2020 by Seth Abrutyn

Well, the term is over. Not simply because of Covid, but because UBC is on a 13-week semester and class ended last week. I am reporting, unscientifically, initial evidence from my experiment. First, a note on how the class ended … Continue reading →

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What Is the Point of Sociological Theory?

Posted on January 8, 2020 by Seth Abrutyn

This morning, I will be embarking on graduate contemporary theory for the eighth time in my career. Every year, it has evolved – sometimes quite significantly – making me the guy who won’t commit to a recurring syllabus and, thereby, … Continue reading →

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The Pedagogical Dead-End Known as “Classical” Sociological Theory

Posted on September 20, 2019 by Seth Abrutyn

This is the first in a series of (increasingly more practical) posts about teaching classical theory; or, perhaps, not teaching it. I have written about  this elsewhere, recently tweeted a thread, and recently recorded two different podcasts (here and here) … Continue reading →

Posted in Musings on Sociological Theory, Teaching | 4 Comments