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Internal Assessment for Sociology of Education

Context:
I was taking the course sociology of education, unit one on Understanding Sociology of Education and unit two on Social Context of School. This is in the 3rd semester of M. Ed. two year programme and I was taking this area of study for the first time.  During the introductory class we usually analyse the content, plan time frame, modality of transaction of the content and assessment.  I always think that giving 30 marks of writing for one hour is against the philosophy of continuous and comprehensive assessment that we hold high.  For all the courses that I take, I give some activity along with the traditional way of internal assessment the questions and answers.  With lots of discussion based on students’ convenience we decided this semester we will go for different modes of assessment and no writing long answers to questions.

Objectives

  • To develop the habit of self learning and taking responsibility of one’s learning
  • To reduce the pressure of learning especially learning for exam
  • To enhance cooperative learning strategy

The process:
The modes for assessment was decided as follows

  1. One online course completion                                                                                                                    :   5 marks
  2. Discussion on online course and write up on the learning process                                                            :   5 marks
  3. Presentation of group work on selected topics from the units one and two, submission of assignment    :   5 + 5 (10) marks
  4. Multiple choice test covering the content of two units                                                                               :   10 marks

                                                                                                                                                                Total      :   30 marks

Online course:
The self blend model of blended learning where students choose an online course to augment the traditional learning was made use of as an additional input to the course of study.  I had to be on my toes to guide the students into online course.  There were resentment and apprehension by many on the first day.  Made use of the educational technology cell to explore the availability of courses and feasibility of taking them.  The duration of the course had to suit our requirement as it had to be complete within the semester.  Along with students who were good with technology, a demonstration of how to enroll into the course and access video lessons, assessment was organised.  This demonstration and step by step guidance in a open house prepared all the students to take up the course.  We decided to take a free, 4 week, self paced course comprising of 4 modules, each module further divided into units, with assignment at the end of each.  Students chose the course on sociology that comprised of four modules – the sociological imagination, inequality in the 21st century: local and global stratification, social structures and from concrete to the elastic.  All of us used Open2study an Australian leader in accredited online education.  Open2study was chosen because of its flexibility and ease of use by a new online learner.  The date of opening of assignment and closing of assignment were informed through email.  Mail alerts were given to indicate days and hours left to complete the modules.  I enrolled into the same courses with students hence increasing the competition!

Submission of certificate irrespective of the marks scored would give the students 5 marks. 60% score was the mandate for course completion.   In the tutorial sessions the progress made by each one in the course and the new learning was shared.  Simultaneously they were writing their reflections on the learning which was submitted for assessment.

Assignment:
The unit was divided into nine topics for assignment.  Materials were collected from colleagues working in the constituent units of NCERT the RIE Bhopal and NIE New Delhi. Video conference for introducing the objectives of the course and for clarifications of basic concepts of sociology was organised.  They also sent materials to supplement learning the unit.  Tutorial classes were used to read the material in small groups and make note of the points for discussion during presentation.  The students prepared a write up of the topic after the class hours that was refined and submitted after the presentation.  As it was a guided group work there was no hesitation in presenting the points and initiating discussion even by the students who were otherwise not very vocal.  The class used to turn into a debate with certain issues of contradiction which gave courage to students to speak their thought irrespective of being judgemental.  The presentation was individually assessed and the write up was assessed in group. (topics of assignment is given at the end of this write up)

Multiple choice test items:
covering the complete two units ten multiple choice items were prepared.  Ease of administration and scoring made up for the preparation time and effort.  More rewarding was the discussion that followed after the test on each item and the distracters in the choice.  As this was a demand of the students with the intention of preparing for competitive exams, they were looking forward to the day to take up the test and it was enjoyed by all without any exception. 

Outcome:
There was no pressure of one test. The activities for assessment were distributed in semester woven throughout the learning engagement.   There was absolutely no stress mainly because some of it was going on at their pace and others in groups.  Though the multiple choice test put some pressure on them, they were confidant because of their thorough exposure to the content in various forms of involvement.  Moreover as they already had performed well in the 20 marks, getting any score in the test was welcome.  Students enrolled in other online courses though the requirement for assessment was only one.  This is a clear indication that they enjoyed learning additional topics on their own pace.  Students used this learning to develop online course in their 3rd semester as a requirement of ICT in education thematic specialisation in the internship.  This experience motivated them to take up a course in the 4th semester also to complement the classroom learning which was again used for internal assessment.

It was a total learning experience for me as for the first time I was teaching a course on sociology of education.  The online course, the module end self checks, unit end assessments with feedback gave enough chance for me to be clear of the concepts.  The group work for assignment and presentation gave time to read with the group and collect points for discussion.  Making multiple choice items was the best experience as I had to read and re-read the texts to give the right choice and distracters.   

The feed-back collected at the end of 4th semester from the first batch of two year M Ed regarding the transaction modalities and assessment, the 3rd semester sociology of education was the most liked by all.

Topics for assignment:
1.   Nature, Scope, Need and Relevance of Sociology of Education
2.   Social Structure: Meaning and Definition of Social Structure; Role and Function of Education in Social Structure
3.   Sociological Concepts and their relationship with Education:
Social Stratification: Concept, Theories and Types of Social Stratification, Education and Social Stratification
4.   Sociological Concepts and their relationship with Education
Social Mobility:  Concept, Forms of Social Mobility Factors affecting Social Mobility, Education and Social Mobility
5.   Sociological Concepts and their relationship with Education
Social Institution: Concept of School as a Social Institution : Analytical understanding
6.   Schooling as a socio-cultural process, School as a Social Organization Sociological function of School
7.   Socialization: Stages, Types and Theories
8.   Schooling and Socialization of Learners : Analyzing the Continuum and the Processes
9.   Peer Groups and Media: Role in Socialization of Learners

Multiple Choice Test
M Ed III Semester – Sociology of Education 1st internal assessment

Name:                                                     Roll number:                                         Date:

  1. Who is the proponent of functionalism?
    1. Emile Durkheim
    2. Karl Marx
    3. Max Weber
    4. Ghassan Hage
  2. Process of socialization starts
    1. As a member of the family
    2. as soon as the child gets into the school
    3. starts with interaction with neighbors
    4. starts by knowing the role in the society
  3. According to which sociological theory, ideas of individual can change society
    1. Functional theory
    2. Symbolic interactionism
    3. Conflict theory
    4. Social exclusion
  4. Through which social institution society deliberately transmits its accumulated knowledge, skill, values from one generation to another
    1. Family
    2. Economy
    3. Education
    4. Religion
  5. The basic purpose of social institution is
    1. To satisfy the needs of the individual
    2. Specify and function
    3. Promote interdependence
    4. All the above
  6. Education is thought to serve as a mechanism for reproducing the class structure of society, thereby reproducing the privileges of the dominant culture.
    1. Functionalist
    2. Internationalist
    3. Marxist
    4. Materialist
  7. At the macro level sociologists view education as getting affected by
    1. Social forces
    2. School administration
    3. Students and school
    4. Family
  8. Which one of the following is an example for horizontal social mobility?
    1. Employment
    2. Social status
    3. Migration
    4. Income
  9. Which of the following is not a factor affecting social mobility?
    1. Industrialization
    2. Modernization
    3. Satisfaction
    4. Legislation
  10. Under which of the following criteria school can be considered as a social institution
    1. As it is concerned with a welfare of the society
    2. As it targets the social evils.
    3. Takes up social issues
    4. Shapes future society

Models of Blended Learning – There are five suggested models in blended learning as:

  • Face to face (teacher drives the instruction and augment with digital tools)
  • Flex (most of the curriculum is delivered via digital platform, teaches are available for face to face consultation and support)
  • Labs (all of the curriculum delivered by a digital platform but in a consistent physical location)
  • Self blend (students choose to augment their traditional learning with online course work)
  • Online driver (student complete an entire course through an online platform with possible teacher checking. All curriculum and teachings are delivered via a digital platform and face to face meetings are scheduled and made available if necessary).