Dr. Abercrombie's
MTC Faculty Website Page

1        Updated: 10-17-09

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SOC 101
Introduction to Sociology

CRJ 125
Introduction to Criminology

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Teaching philosophy might mean different things to different people.  I am approaching teaching philosophy as a product of three things: first,  my goals as an educator, secondly the methods I choose to pursue those goals, and finally what I recognize as challenges those decisions create for both the students and myself.  I've attempted to economically address each of these elements below.

Guiding students' exploration of the general character of society and the social phenomena it produces is my central goal at this institution. Social phenomena can cover a broad range of subjects and may include culture, crime, politics, religion, war, terrorism, bereavement, class structure, globalization, art, socialization, deviance and more.  

In approaching this goal I strive not to teach students what to think, but to teach students a different way of thinking.  I do this by introducing students to two critical forms of thought: the scientific method and the sociological imagination. These two approaches often offer a more richer and credible understanding of social phenomena for students compared to the narrow insights afforded by anecdotal evidence most seem to rely upon. 

The scientific method provides an unbiased format for students to conduct research, develop an understanding of a social subject and test that understanding.  Secondly, I introduce students to the "sociological imagination." This is an intellectual perspective that builds social understandings upon large scale variables external to the individual.  Both approaches function by limiting the scope of investigation to the empirical realm or "real world."

These approaches generate the major challenge for me as a teacher: getting students to realize "common sense" is gained from empirically derived understandings that are socially generalizable and not from isolated, individualized beliefs.  

In summary, my philosophy consists of introducing the student to the advantages of imaginative, independent, systematic and critical thinking.  If I succeed, students should leave their course with the understanding of how little they know, a newfound confidence in what they do know, and a yearning to know more.