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All TRAILS Resources
All TRAILS Resources
May 31, 2023

Browse the entire collection of TRAILS resources here.

Bottles of hot sauce
Michael Ohsfeldt, M.J. Vickers
Teaching Research Interviewing through Analyzing Celebrity Interviewing in Hot Ones
February 4, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Art/Music, Communication and Information Technologies, Cultural Sociology, Emotions, Ethnomethodology/Conversational Analysis, Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Leisure/Sports/Recreation, Mass Communication/Public Opinion, Occupations/Professions, Other, Qualitative Methodology, Research Methods, Social Psychology, Sociological Practice, Teaching and Learning in Sociology
Resource Type(s):
Assignment, Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 200, College 300, College 400, Graduate
Class Size(s):
Medium, Small
Abstract:

This resource contains a multi-step, iterative assignment with an in-class content analysis activity followed by an out-of-class repetition of the same activity. To increase students’ engagement with the material, the assignment focuses on a celebrity interview on...

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Beads that spell "No Violence" on a black and rose colored background
Beatrice Waterhouse
Polling to Interrogate Students’ Lay Definitions of Violence
January 27, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Criminal Justice, Criminology/Delinquency, Deviant Behavior/Social Disorganization, Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Law and Society, Peace, War, World Conflict, and Conflict Resolution
Resource Type(s):
Assessment, Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 100, College 200, High School
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

Students in social problems, deviance, criminology, and similar courses often conflate crime, violence, and deviance. Defining violence sociologically is challenging, and speaking clearly about its social functions requires understanding its boundaries and...

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An outline of a family showing different sex parents, a child, and a stroller
Jamie Oslawski-Lopez, Jaclyn A. Tabor
Is it “All Right” to Refuse to Have Children With One’s Spouse?
December 9, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Family, Sex and Gender
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity, Lecture, PowerPoint
Class Level(s):
College 200, College 300, College 400
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

This lecture and class activity explores Americans’ attitudes about fertility decision-making among different-sex, married couples. Instructors use the PowerPoint slides to engage students in survey research, review findings from Oslawski-Lopez and Tabor’s (2024)...

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A red envelope with white hearts coming out of it
Elizabeth Ziff
Gloria Grams: A New Kind of Valentine
December 9, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Theory
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 200, College 300
Class Size(s):
Medium, Small
Abstract:

This activity is used in an undergraduate social theory course where we start reading All About Love: New Visions by bell hooks (2000) in the first week of the semester.  I wanted to create an activity for my theory course that is relatively low stakes...

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Two college students studying outside
Patricia Lara
Admit One: Simulation of Factors that Influence College Admissions
December 9, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Education, High School Sociology, Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Race, Class and Gender
Resource Type(s):
Assignment, Class Activity, Essay
Class Level(s):
College 100, High School
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

This activity simulates the college admissions process to help students explore what factors shape access to higher education. Working in groups as admissions officers, students evaluate six hypothetical applicants, making decisions about who to admit, waitlist,...

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A student coding field notes
Michel Estefan
Practicing Ethnography with Visual Media: A Step-by-Step Assignment Using Downtown Abbey
December 9, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Cultural Sociology, Ethnography, Political Sociology, Qualitative Methodology, Research Methods, Teaching and Learning in Sociology
Resource Type(s):
Assignment
Class Level(s):
College 100, College 200, College 300, College 400, High School
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

This applied exercise introduces students to the practice of ethnographic analysis through close observation of visual media. Using Downton Abbey as a case study, students learn to produce rich, reflexive field notes, code their observations into central...

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Two adult women sitting across from each other at a table
Amanda Mireles
Mentoring Made Simple: A Conversation Starter for Faculty and Teaching Assistants
November 12, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Economic Sociology, Education, Family, History of Sociology/Social Thought, Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Latina/o Sociology, Occupations/Professions, Political Economy, Public Policy, Race, Class and Gender, Research Methods, Sex and Gender, Social Psychology, Statistics, Stratification/Mobility, Teaching and Learning in Sociology, Work and Labor Markets
Resource Type(s):
Assessment
Class Level(s):
Any Level
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

 

Teaching assistantships (TAships) are often framed primarily as paid labor, focused on grading, discussion sections, and office hours. Yet, TAships can also serve as valuable opportunities for professional development when faculty take intentional steps...

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The sunsetting over a mountain range
Melissa Horner-Petrone
Sociology of Ongoing U.S. Settler Colonialism and Indigenous Peoples/Native Nations
October 28, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Other, Racial and Ethnic Relations, Social Change, Theory
Resource Type(s):
Syllabus
Class Level(s):
College 300, College 400
Class Size(s):
Medium, Small
Abstract:

This course centers historic and ongoing U.S. settler colonialism as a social structure. It explores settler colonialism by drawing on Indigenous scholars, Native Nations, and multimodal/disciplinary material within education, law, media, race/ethnicity, food,...

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A heart that is broken
Amanda Mireles
Break Up with a Social Norm: A Playful Writing Exercise on Socialization and Norms in Family and Romantic Life
October 28, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Family, Sex and Gender, Sexualities, Socialization
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
Any Level
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

In this creative writing assignment, students reflect on the power of social norms by writing a “break-up letter” to a social norm that influences family, dating, or romantic relationships. Using humor, drama, and their sociological imaginations, students confront...

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Words depicting artificial intelligence
Tamanna Shah
Fear, Fiction, and Futures: Deconstructing AI Dystopias through Sociological Narrative Analysis
October 16, 2025
Subject Area(s):
Science and Technology
Resource Type(s):
Assignment
Class Level(s):
Any Level, Graduate
Class Size(s):
Medium
Abstract:

This assignment guides students in analyzing dystopian AI narratives through a sociological lens. By combining media analysis with narrative deconstruction, students evaluate how cultural fears around artificial intelligence reflect broader social anxieties and...

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