PROGRAMME SPECIFIC OUTCOMES:
Sociology seeks to understand all aspects of human social behaviour, including the behaviour of individuals as well as the social dynamics of small groups, large organizations, communities, institutions, and entire societies. Sociologists are typically motivated both by the desire to better understand the principles of social life and by the conviction that understanding these principles may aid in the formulation of enlightened and effective social policy. Sociology provides an intellectual background for students considering careers in the professions or business. An Honours Graduate student of Sociology should able to develop:
- Critical Thinking: The programme seeks to develop in students the sociological knowledge and skills that will enable them to think critically and imaginatively about society and social issues.
- Sociological Understanding: The ability to demonstrate sociological understandings of phenomena, for example, how individual biographies are shaped by social structures, social institutions, cultural practices, and multiple axes of difference and inequality.
- Written and Oral Communication: The ability to formulate effective and convincing written and oral arguments.
- Better understanding of real life situation: The ability to apply sociological concepts and theories to the real world and ultimately their everyday lives.
- Analytical thinking: Field survey and preparation of dissertation paper is an inseparable part of Sociology Hons Programme. Students have to collect primary data for census as well as his/her research topic and analyse the data to draw conclusions. So, qualitative and quantitative analytical skills are enhanced.
- Observation power: a sensible observation power is necessary to identify the research problems in field study. So a perception about human society slowly grows up.
- Communication skills and Social interaction power: Students of Sociology stream have to work beyond the class room boundary at the time of field study activities. As a result good communication skill develops while interacting with local people.
- Ethical and Social Responsibility: Students have to learn about institutions, folkways , mores, culture, social control ,social inequality, population composition, population policy, society and culture of India. All these help to instil among the students of Sociology a sense of ethical and social responsibility.
- Professional and Career Opportunities: Students will have the opportunity to join professional careers in Sociology and allied fields. Sociology provides an intellectual background for students considering careers in business, social services, public policy, government service, nongovernmental organizations, foundations, or academia. This programme lays foundation for further study in Sociology, Social work, Rural Development, Social Welfare and in other allied subjects.
- Awareness: Creating awareness among students about impending social issues and helping them to critically reflect upon the ways to mitigate/address such concerns.
- Promoting sensitization: This programme aims to sensitize students towards different forms of social inequalities, discrimination, bias, and stereotypes and the ways in which they can contribute towards promoting equitable and amicable work environment.
COURSE OUTCOME:
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY:
The course is intended to introduce the students to a sociological way of thinking. It provides an understanding of the discipline of Sociology and sociological perspective. It also provides foundation for other more detailed and specialized courses in sociology. Students will be able to
- Define Sociology and demonstrate nature, scope and subject-matter of Sociology.
- Demonstrate how Sociology differ from and similar to other social sciences and their areas of interdependence.
- Acquaint themselves with the basic concepts of Sociology like society, community, association, culture, social change, social stratification etc.
- Know the basic social institutions like family, marriage, kinship in a scientific way.
- Understand and demonstrate how self develops through various process of interaction. Demonstrate how societal and structural factors influence individual behaviour.
- Explain social change and the factors affecting social change. Realize the importance of cultural lag to understand social change.
RURAL SOCIOLOGY IN INDIA
The course explores substantive issues in Rural Sociology. It gives attention to Indian themes. Studying the course students will be able to
- Define Rural Sociology and demonstrate nature, subject-matter and importance of studying Rural Sociology.
- Understand and analyze social, economic and political aspects of rural society.
- Demonstrate how caste system operates and its importance in rural society.
- Define and demonstrate democratic decentralization of power and importance of Panchayati Raj Institution in bringing about changes in rural society.
- Understand the changes that are taking place in rural society with reference to agrarian reforms and rural development programmes.
INDIAN SOCIETY AND CULTURE
This course is intended to introduce the students to basic social institutions to describe Indian society and culture of different periods from pre-history to modern era. It also provides knowledge about various social processes that play significant role in bringing about changes in Indian Society and Culture. Studying the course students will be able to
- Explore the roots of Indian civilization.
- Know economy, polity and society of ancient, medieval and modern India.
- Understand and analyze the key concepts of Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Islam and impact of these religions on society.
- Understand and analyze the areas of interrelations between India and South Asia.
- Demonstrate social, economic, political transformation of Indian society under colonial rule.
- Realize the basic issues of Indian society like unity in diversity, problems of nationalism and principles of Indian Constitution.
- Define globalization and analyze its impact on social, economic, political, cultural spheres.
SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
The course aims to provide a general introduction to sociological theory and thought. The paper acknowledges the contributions of both western and Indian scholars in the development of sociology. It provides the students an opportunity to
- Define sociological theory, understand its features and describe and illustrate the role of theory in building sociological knowledge.
- Introduce themselves to the classical theories of Sociology and contributions of different thinkers in this regard.
- Know the contributions of founding fathers of Sociology in developing sociology as an academic discipline.
- Understand the concepts and contributions of Indian social thinkers in the reform of Indian society as well as to enhance knowledge about society.
- Know the contributions of Indian Sociologists in the development of sociological thought.
SOCIOLOGY OF TRIBES, MINORITIES AND OTHER WEAKER SECTIONS
The course aims to draw attention mainly to the problems, policies and programmes taken for the upliftment of the backward sections of Indian society and causes of their backwardness. The paper also throws light on the socio –economic life of the backward sections of Indian society. Studying the course students will be able to
- Introduce them with the geographical distribution, economy, polity, social organization of tribal life of India.
- Know the problems faced by the tribes and policies and programmes taken by the Govt. for the upliftment of tribes.
- Understand social, economic and cultural features of minorities and other weaker section in India.
- Learn about the Constitutional Provision for the protection of minorities and other weaker section in India.
- Learn about the Reservation Policy in India.
URBAN AND INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY IN INDIA
Urban and Industrial Sociology are two specialized branches of Sociology. This course provides an exposure to key theoretical perspectives for understanding urban life in historical and contemporary contexts. Industrial Sociology intends to familiarize the students mainly with the process of industrialization and its impact on society. Students will get an opportunity to
- Define urban sociology and demonstrate the nature and scope of urban sociology.
- Develop an understanding about trends of urbanization in India and impact of urbanization on Indian society.
- Develop awareness about urban problems and policies adopted to solve such problems.
- Define industrial sociology and demonstrate the nature and scope of industrial sociology.
- Develop an understanding of the process and trends of industrialization in India and impact of industrialization on Indian society.
SOCIAL DEMOGRAPHY AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS IN INDIA
This course provides an understanding of the interrelation between population and society. It analyzes the impact of fertility, mortality and migration on the composition, size and structure of population. The course also addresses various problems of Indian society and measures taken to eradicate these problems. Studying the course students will gather knowledge on
- Key concepts of Social Demography.
- Demographic factors of social change.
- Theories of population.
- Factors affecting mortality and fertility.
- Population policy in India.
- Various social problems in India like poverty, illiteracy, domestic violence, violence against women and measures taken to eradicate the problems.
SOCIAL RESEARCH METHODS, FIELD WORK AND VIVA-VOCE
The course is an introductory course on how research is actually done. With emphasis on formulating research design, methods of data collection, and data analysis, it will provide students with some elementary knowledge on how to conduct both, quantitative and qualitative research. Field work is an applied part of social research methods. This paper aims to aquaint students with empirical field data collection, analysis and writing analytical and standard dissertation or research report in sociology. From the course students will able to learn about
- Meaning, scope, types and significance of Social Research.
- Importance of research design in Social Research and how to formulate it.
- How to collect, analyze data and how to write a field report.
SOCIOLOGY OF KINSHIP
This course aims to impart a comprehensive study of the concepts relevant for understanding kinship, marriage and family, and to develop analytical perspectives for a better understanding of family, marriage and kinship both in historical and evolutionary perspectives. It also aims to look beyond the surface of impending societal issues to discover the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of kinship. It also explores the new possibilities and critical insights offered by new reproductive technologies in revisiting kinship.
- Introduction to the meaning, significance, types, and degrees of kinship.
- Critically discussing the approaches to kinship – descent, alliance, and cultural.
- Understanding the clan system, lineage, totemism, and taboos.
- Developing an understanding of the regional variation in kinship organisations.
- Critically analysing the re-casting of kinship as a consequence of new reproductive technologies, new forms of relatedness, and re-imagining families.
SOCIOLOGY AND GENDER
This course introduces gender as a critical sociological lens to dwell upon issues of power, subordination, and marginalisation, and reflect upon possible solutions to address or mitigate them. It situates gender in relation to other forms of social stratification to provide an intersectional lens to explore the gendering of our lived realities.
- Introduction to basic concepts like sex and gender.
- Discussing the social construction of gender and the source of gender differences/stereotyping.
- Intersectional analysis of gender in relation to other forms of social stratification like class and caste.
- Gender based movements, theories of feminism – the origins of feminist theories and the various strands of feminism.
- Reflecting on the measures for women empowerment.
SOCIOLOGICAL THINKERS
This course introduces students to classical thinkers who laid the foundation to the discipline of Sociology. A more advanced stage of this course focuses on neo-classical thinkers and their contribution to sociology. It also aims at understanding their methodological approaches. In appreciating the contribution of both classical and neo-classical thinkers, this course alsounderscores the limits of these theories in their understanding of social reality.
- Contributions by classical thinkers like Auguste Comte, Emile Durkheim, Karl Marx, and Max Weber.
- Understanding the theoretical approaches by neo-classical thinkers such as Talcott Parsons (Action Systems), Claude Levi-Strauss (Structuralism), George Herbert Mead and Erving Goffman (Interactionism), Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann (Social Construction of Reality), C.W. Mills (Sociological Imagination), and School of Critical Theory.
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION
This course introduces students to the sociological study of social inequalities. It familiarizes students with different theoretical perspectives on the diverse forms of social inequalities in all its manifestations. It aims to sensitize students towards the impending social issues and its socio-historical context, providing rich insights for theoretical and empirical endeavours.
- Introduction to the basic dimensions of social stratification and its characteristics.
- Theories of social stratification – Marxian, Weberian, Functionalist.
- Understanding the multiple manifestations of social inequality with exclusive emphasis on caste, race, ethnicity, and gender.
- Reflecting on the persistence and reproduction of social inequalities and its implications for social mobility.
VISUAL SOCIOLOGY
The objective of this course is to introduce students to the various theoretical perspectives that contextualize visual culture within the larger debates concerning politics, power, identity and resistance. It aims to acquaint students with the techniques to understand and interpret the visual environment, how visuality is a technique to assert dominance and power in society as well as locating the subversive potential of counter-visualities.
- Introducing visual sociology as a method of sociological enquiry.
- Critically reflecting on the process of ‘seeing’.
- Understanding the different aspects of visual culture such as inter-textuality, discursive formation, power/knowledge, and regime of truth.
INDIAN SOCIOLOGICAL TRADITION
This course aims to explore the sociological approaches to the study of Indian society and examine how Indian sociologists have engaged with issues of caste, tribe, gender, tradition and modernity. It dwells upon the formation of the discipline of sociology in India and how it has been influenced by Western philosophy.
- Theoretical approaches on tradition and modernity and its implications for the rise of middle-class in India.
- Caste, race, city and civilization.
- Gender and kinship
- Ideas of nationalism
- Understanding social change in India
- Developmental perspectives to the study of Indian society.
URBAN SOCIOLOGY
This course offers fundamental theoretical perspectives for understanding urban phenomena in historical and contemporary contexts. With examples from India and other parts of the world, this course will help students to critically reflect on the complexities of urban living and the subjective experiences of urban communities. In doing so, it seeks to develop policy perspectives on the urban, help students to understand their own social environment better, and engage in research on urban transformation.
- Introducing students to critical theoretical debates to gain a deeper understanding of city life and urban environment, the significance of the city and the process of urbanisation.
- To explorethe idea of urbanism, urban space, and the politics of urban space.
- To learn about key urban processes such as migration and urban problems like displacement and urban slums, as well as urban poverty alleviation programmes, resettlement policies and rehabilitation.
SOCIOLOGY OF RELIGION
This course seeks to introduce students to the basic theoretical and methodological perspectives on the sociological study of religion. It familiarizes students to the ways in which they encounter religious phenomenon in their everyday lives in its myriad manifestations, be it through religious rituals, beliefs, customs, and practises.
- Understanding the significance of religion and examining different types of religious organisations.
- Classical approaches to the study of religion.
- Discussing the major religions in India from socio-historical perspective and their socio-cultural impact.
- Dwelling upon some crucial aspects of religion like fundamentalism, communalism, secularism, and proselytism.
RETHINKING DEVELOPMENT
This course invites students to explore issues relating to development and examines the ideas of development from a sociological vantage point. It also examines the trajectory and specificities of Indian development.
- Focusing on the meaning of development and the various forms of development – economic growth, social development, human development, and sustainable development.
- Theorizing development through modernization theories and theories of dependency.
- Concentrating on the developmental regimes in India with an exclusive focus on mixed economy and liberalization.
- Issues in development praxis – population, gender, and environment.
GENDER AND VIOLENCE
This course attempts to provide an understanding of gender based violence and its varied manifestations across historical and contemporary contexts. Through an intersectional lens, it critically analyses the specificities of differently situated women as well as sensitizes students to the experiences of violence on masculine and queer bodies. It will offer awareness of the several legal battles and everyday forms of resistance against gender based violence so that students are equipped to locate and address gendered violence through ethical and pragmatic interventions.
- Analysing the social construction of gender.
- Critically reflecting on the Western feminist theories and providing an intersectional lens to understand gender based violence across different social locations such as caste.
- Understanding the structural embeddedness and institutionalisation of gender based violence through a focus on domestic and familial violence, workplace harassment, and sexual violence.
- Politics of gender violence and its implications for policy formulations.
GENDER SENSITIZATION
This course develops a comprehensive understanding of gender as a social construct and to raise awareness about gender bias and stereotypes prevalent in the society. In sensitizing students on the causes of gender bias, this course aims to understand the strategies to mitigate and address such concerns. This course provides critical lens to analyse the patriarchal power structure and cultivate empathy among students towards all individuals irrespective of the gender.
- Introducing perspectives on gender, sex, and sexuality.
- Social construction of masculinity and femininity.
- Gender stereotypes and discrimination of the LGBTQ population.
- Gender practises and policies – gender inequality, female infanticide, child marriage, and workplace sexual harassment.
SOCIOLOGY OF ENVIRONMENT
This course introduces students to the disciplinary approaches to environmental issues and environmental movements. It offers awareness that the causes and consequences of environmental concerns are significantly social.
- Emergence, nature and scope of Environmental Sociology
- Social Concerns over environmental issues with focus on population explosion, deforestation, pollution, global warming, and displacement issues.
- Environmental movements and approaches – ecofeminism political ecology, and forest-based and water-based movements.
- Policy prescriptions