The Social Worlds of Children and Youth

Catalog description

How do experiences of childhood vary historically and cross-culturally? What inequalities are most salient in children's lives? At what age do children understand things like race and gender? This course answers these questions and more by exploring various aspects of the social worlds of children and youth. The course considers theoretical approaches to studying children's experiences from a sociological perspective, and how socialization and the new Sociology of Childhood perspective differs from dominant narratives in other disciplines. The course also covers how children and youth navigate different social settings including relationships within their families, in their peer groups and in their schools. Finally, the course critically examines the ways that social inequalities among and between groups of children shape their experiences both as children and over the life course. Prerequisite(s): A SOC 115.