The teaching of Sociology of Education aims to provide students with the fundamental concepts related to traditional and new socio-identity training paradigms, the prevailing theoretical framework and the interconnections with the other social dimensions and the new informal socializing agents: the group of peers and the new communicative-digital realities. The latter constitute a sort of "intermediate sphere", along the axis of the adaptive process to the environment, intervening with their non-formal action, to give organization and coherence to the patterns of objectification of experience.
Knowledge and understanding
- provide historical, theoretical and methodological knowledge related to the transition from educational models based on the control paradigm, positivist-functionalist, to the current interaction
Applying knowledge and understanding
- develop skills and competences in the analysis of educational models regarding the socio-individual identity configuration, the development of learning and the various forms of transmission: institutional (through specific agencies, from the family to the school); inter-generational (from adults to young people) that especially today is not only vertical, from one generation to the next, but can also be horizontal, from a juvenile lever to the other.
Making judgements
- develop the critical thinking to analyse the evolution and transformation of educational models, especially regarding the passage from the traditional unidirectional, cumulative, normative, teleological model to the current more symmetrical, informative, negotiable and prone to a "form of polycentrism", to a "shared construction" of knowing, thinking and practicing education as a social relationship.
Communication skills
- know how to communicate the acquired knowledge, in terms of ideas, problems, themes and possible solutions, related to the appropriate educational strategies to the contemporary socio-cultural context and to promote the ability to manage the multiplicity of communicative and experiential challenges.
Learning skills
- to develop the learning skills that are necessary for them to undertake further studies, related to many of the sociological, pedagogical and psychological disciplines that deal with the themes of identity building, training processes and educational-communicative relationships, with a high degree of autonomy.
Knowledge and understanding
- provide historical, theoretical and methodological knowledge related to the transition from educational models based on the control paradigm, positivist-functionalist, to the current interaction
Applying knowledge and understanding
- develop skills and competences in the analysis of educational models regarding the socio-individual identity configuration, the development of learning and the various forms of transmission: institutional (through specific agencies, from the family to the school); inter-generational (from adults to young people) that especially today is not only vertical, from one generation to the next, but can also be horizontal, from a juvenile lever to the other.
Making judgements
- develop the critical thinking to analyse the evolution and transformation of educational models, especially regarding the passage from the traditional unidirectional, cumulative, normative, teleological model to the current more symmetrical, informative, negotiable and prone to a "form of polycentrism", to a "shared construction" of knowing, thinking and practicing education as a social relationship.
Communication skills
- know how to communicate the acquired knowledge, in terms of ideas, problems, themes and possible solutions, related to the appropriate educational strategies to the contemporary socio-cultural context and to promote the ability to manage the multiplicity of communicative and experiential challenges.
Learning skills
- to develop the learning skills that are necessary for them to undertake further studies, related to many of the sociological, pedagogical and psychological disciplines that deal with the themes of identity building, training processes and educational-communicative relationships, with a high degree of autonomy.
Canali
scheda docente
materiale didattico
The course is divided into two parts: the first general part on an overview of issues on the sociology of education with reference to the construction of social identity, from modernity to the age of globalization, not forgetting the convergent and connected cultural processes. Focus will be on the primary, secondary and peer-related socialization processes, with particular reference to the evolution of sociological thinking as applied to education and to the most common communicative models.
The second monographic part will be on the relations between expression and identity in Erving Goffman, focusing particularly on the relational dynamics linked to play, roles and theatricality within (and beyond) educative spaces, including the informative practices that determine behaviours, types of knowledge and choice (individual and collective).
The strategic topics of this part of the course are the construction of identity through the expressive and relational practices inherent to informative and play interactions. Recalling the fundamental study of Johan Huizinga on nature and the meaning of play. Goffman considers the structure and dynamics of this and of other daily interactions, and also their anchorage in the innermost depths of the human being. Play takes possession of those corridors of reality left ungoverned by the organization of social life, where it is free to distance itself from the habitual, and at times enforced, roles, and where it can express its own identity, above all that most directly in contact with emotions and feelings.
Topics of the lessons
Unit 1
Education in modernity. The keywords of sociology
Education as life: Georg Simmel.
Unit 2
Socialization. Keywords
The socialization of the child (Parsons). Interiorization and social structure (Berger and Luckmann). The ultra-socialized conception of man in modern sociology (Wrong).
Unit 3
Identity and the social self: keywords
Social aspects and individual aspects of the spirit (Cooley). The formation of “Self” in the social situation (Mead). Certain types of character and of society (Riesman).
Unit 4
Education. Keywords
The effects of education as instruction (Meyer). Teachers and authorities (Becker). Students and socialization processes in higher education (Parsons and Platt). Social capital and social development (Coleman).
Unit 5
Expression and identity. Role play, theatricality, in-formation (Goffman)
Maddalena Colombo (a cura di), E come educazione. Autori e parole chiave della sociologia, Napoli, Liguori, 2007.
Erving Goffman, Espressione e identità. Gioco, ruoli, teatralità, Bologna, il Mulino (2003, or any edition)
For a 2CFUs or 3CFUs supplement:
Elena Besozzi, Educazione e società, new edition, Roma, Carocci, 2025.
For a 4 CFUs supplement:
Maddalena Colombo (a cura di), E come educazione. Autori e parole chiave della sociologia, Napoli, Liguori, 2007 (the above mentioned four thematic units, no. 1-4)
Programma
The sociology of education between expressione and identity: Erving Goffman's legacyThe course is divided into two parts: the first general part on an overview of issues on the sociology of education with reference to the construction of social identity, from modernity to the age of globalization, not forgetting the convergent and connected cultural processes. Focus will be on the primary, secondary and peer-related socialization processes, with particular reference to the evolution of sociological thinking as applied to education and to the most common communicative models.
The second monographic part will be on the relations between expression and identity in Erving Goffman, focusing particularly on the relational dynamics linked to play, roles and theatricality within (and beyond) educative spaces, including the informative practices that determine behaviours, types of knowledge and choice (individual and collective).
The strategic topics of this part of the course are the construction of identity through the expressive and relational practices inherent to informative and play interactions. Recalling the fundamental study of Johan Huizinga on nature and the meaning of play. Goffman considers the structure and dynamics of this and of other daily interactions, and also their anchorage in the innermost depths of the human being. Play takes possession of those corridors of reality left ungoverned by the organization of social life, where it is free to distance itself from the habitual, and at times enforced, roles, and where it can express its own identity, above all that most directly in contact with emotions and feelings.
Topics of the lessons
Unit 1
Education in modernity. The keywords of sociology
Education as life: Georg Simmel.
Unit 2
Socialization. Keywords
The socialization of the child (Parsons). Interiorization and social structure (Berger and Luckmann). The ultra-socialized conception of man in modern sociology (Wrong).
Unit 3
Identity and the social self: keywords
Social aspects and individual aspects of the spirit (Cooley). The formation of “Self” in the social situation (Mead). Certain types of character and of society (Riesman).
Unit 4
Education. Keywords
The effects of education as instruction (Meyer). Teachers and authorities (Becker). Students and socialization processes in higher education (Parsons and Platt). Social capital and social development (Coleman).
Unit 5
Expression and identity. Role play, theatricality, in-formation (Goffman)
Testi Adottati
Textbooks usedMaddalena Colombo (a cura di), E come educazione. Autori e parole chiave della sociologia, Napoli, Liguori, 2007.
Erving Goffman, Espressione e identità. Gioco, ruoli, teatralità, Bologna, il Mulino (2003, or any edition)
For a 2CFUs or 3CFUs supplement:
Elena Besozzi, Educazione e società, new edition, Roma, Carocci, 2025.
For a 4 CFUs supplement:
Maddalena Colombo (a cura di), E come educazione. Autori e parole chiave della sociologia, Napoli, Liguori, 2007 (the above mentioned four thematic units, no. 1-4)
Bibliografia Di Riferimento
Reference bibliography For the general part: Elena Besozzi (2017), Società, cultura, educazione. Teorie, contesti e processi, Roma, Carocci. For the monographic part: Maddalena Colombo, Giulia Innocenti Malini (a cura di), Infanzia e linguaggi teatrali. Ricerca e prospettive di cura in città, Milano, FrancoAngeli, 2017.Modalità Frequenza
Free attendance, warmly suggestedModalità Valutazione
Final written examination with open-ended questions to be answered briefly in a couple of hours on the general and monographic part of the course: four open-ended questions (9 CFUs program); two open-ended questions (2 and 3 CFUs); three open-ended questions (4 CFUs). The examination questions aim to evaluate the in-depth knowledge of the didactical material and shared reading material proposed, and the active participation in the lessons and the presentation of thoughts on the student’s own experiences in educative and social ambits, and on the role played by information today in the educative environment.
scheda docente
materiale didattico
Relevant issues in this area are, among others, the second generations of migrants, discrimination in education and work, intercultural competences, the role of transnational networks and migrant diasporas as educational and development agents, intergenerational dialogue and the impact of training / work dynamics on emigration processes. The importance of historical memory and the transmission of knowledge on migration through diversity education facilitate the fight against the problematization of migration and thus allow the initiation of citizenship and naturalization practices appropriate to the new multi-ethnic reality and hybrid identities of transnational migrants. To this end, case studies derived from empirical research on second generation migrants, female migration from sub-Saharan Africa to Europe and from the analysis of old and new emigration flows from Italy will be proposed in a comparative perspective.
Lesson themes
Unit 1
Presentation of the course and the theme "Society and education"
Unit 2
Society and education: a theoretical and interpretative framework
Unit 3
Society and education: models of socialization
Unit 4
Identity in the multicultural society
Unit 5
Socialization, inequalities and migration
Unit 6
International migration: a theoretical and empirical framework
Unit 7
Memory and migration: transnational migration networks and diversity education
Unit 8
Interculturality, discrimination and educational processes: the second generations
Unit 9
Female migration from sub-Saharan Africa: gender and participatory paths
Unit 10
“Why are they leaving?”: Italian emigrations
Unit 11
Ethnographic path and course conclusions
Various teaching materials will be suggested by the lecturer during classes together with ad hoc readings. Others are available online.
General part:
Besozzi, E. (2017), Società, cultura, educazione. Teorie, contesti e processi, Roma: Carocci.
Monographic part:
Koser, K. (2009), Le migrazioni internazionali, Bologna: Il Mulino (Edizione originale: International Migration: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007)
Another text to be chosen from:
Gehnyei, A. M. (2023), Il corpo nero, Roma: Fandango Libri.
Lapov, Z., Campani, G. (2017), Donne africane oltre le frontiere. Percorsi partecipativi in prospettiva di genere, Firenze: Nerbini.
Pugliese, E. (2018), Quelli che se ne vanno. La nuova emigrazione italiana, Bologna: Il Mulino.
Ruspini, P. (2024), Memoria e migrazioni. Percorsi di ricerca tra Svizzera e Italia in prospettiva transnazionale, Milano: Mimesis.
Programma
The course is divided into two parts: a first general part dedicated to a review of topics pertaining to sociology of education with reference to the construction of social identity in multicultural context and to the processes of primary, secondary and peer socialization; a second monographic part, dedicated to an in-depth study of international migration dynamics and their impact on formal and informal educational processes from a comparative perspective.Relevant issues in this area are, among others, the second generations of migrants, discrimination in education and work, intercultural competences, the role of transnational networks and migrant diasporas as educational and development agents, intergenerational dialogue and the impact of training / work dynamics on emigration processes. The importance of historical memory and the transmission of knowledge on migration through diversity education facilitate the fight against the problematization of migration and thus allow the initiation of citizenship and naturalization practices appropriate to the new multi-ethnic reality and hybrid identities of transnational migrants. To this end, case studies derived from empirical research on second generation migrants, female migration from sub-Saharan Africa to Europe and from the analysis of old and new emigration flows from Italy will be proposed in a comparative perspective.
Lesson themes
Unit 1
Presentation of the course and the theme "Society and education"
Unit 2
Society and education: a theoretical and interpretative framework
Unit 3
Society and education: models of socialization
Unit 4
Identity in the multicultural society
Unit 5
Socialization, inequalities and migration
Unit 6
International migration: a theoretical and empirical framework
Unit 7
Memory and migration: transnational migration networks and diversity education
Unit 8
Interculturality, discrimination and educational processes: the second generations
Unit 9
Female migration from sub-Saharan Africa: gender and participatory paths
Unit 10
“Why are they leaving?”: Italian emigrations
Unit 11
Ethnographic path and course conclusions
Testi Adottati
Bibliographic references (attending and non-attending students)Various teaching materials will be suggested by the lecturer during classes together with ad hoc readings. Others are available online.
General part:
Besozzi, E. (2017), Società, cultura, educazione. Teorie, contesti e processi, Roma: Carocci.
Monographic part:
Koser, K. (2009), Le migrazioni internazionali, Bologna: Il Mulino (Edizione originale: International Migration: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007)
Another text to be chosen from:
Gehnyei, A. M. (2023), Il corpo nero, Roma: Fandango Libri.
Lapov, Z., Campani, G. (2017), Donne africane oltre le frontiere. Percorsi partecipativi in prospettiva di genere, Firenze: Nerbini.
Pugliese, E. (2018), Quelli che se ne vanno. La nuova emigrazione italiana, Bologna: Il Mulino.
Ruspini, P. (2024), Memoria e migrazioni. Percorsi di ricerca tra Svizzera e Italia in prospettiva transnazionale, Milano: Mimesis.
Bibliografia Di Riferimento
Recommended reading Bourdieu, P. (2015), Forme di capitale, A cura di Marco Santoro, Roma: Armando. Colombo, M. (2007), (a cura di), E come educazione. Autori e parole chiave della sociologia, Napoli: Liguori. Wihtol de Wenden, C. (2015), Il diritto di migrare, Roma: Ediesse (Edizione originale: Le droit d’émigrer, Paris: CNRS Éditions).Modalità Frequenza
Free but recommended attendanceModalità Valutazione
Final written examination with three open questions to be elaborated briefly in a couple of hours on the general and monographic part of the course. The test questions are designed to assess the in-depth study of the proposed teaching materials and the recommended readings, but also participation in the lectures and the presentation of reflections on one's own experiences in the field of education, migration and cultural diversity, including possible participation in the ethnographic course.