To piggyback on Andi's comment, I do something similar on the first day
of class -- I buy a jar of Vegemite (I can find it at international food
stores, such as Cost Plus World Market), which is popular in Australia
and is basically just yeast extract, and spread it on crackers for the
class. After everyone has tried it, I pass Oreos around, and we talk
about why we like one but not the other. It is a great attention
grabber, and works well for the construction of food (the myth that
everyone has individual tastes definitely evaporates when thirty people
are trying to scrape the Vegemite off their tongues at the same time!).
Catherine Siebel
Andi Stepnick wrote:
We had a global dinner for the students to talk about global hunger
issues. Good, but it can take a lot of planning.
I've offered to bake "chirpie cookies" with a grasshopper recipe I've
got...chopped fresh hoppers...or maybe I could bring in fried ones
like in Oaxaca. Mmm…Crispy salty snack. (Seriously.) Nobody's ever
wanted them...but *just offering* led to many students making
“faces”....then to great discussion about how we literally learn
taste, follow "food rules" (e.g., pancakes for breakfast, not dinner).
This line of discussion, of course, leads to dialogue about cross
cultural openness and ethnocentrism in regard to how people do other
things (what they wear, what/who they worship, sexual practices…you
name it.)
Lastly (and, again, ages ago), I did an activity where I gave students
cups of m&ms (peanut and plain) and smarties. I asked them to sort
them in as many ways as possible....We got lots of options....primary
colors vs pastel, oval v round, peanut v not, etc...the list got long.
(Some students even sorted candies into "good" vs "bad" with all the
candy in just one group--the good, yummy group!) Believe it or not
from there, we talked about the social (and arbitrary) labeling of
people and the meaning that has been attached to certain races
(although it could be relevant for any kind of labeling). I know it
sounds a bit odd, but students seemed to really like it...and it
warmed us up for "serious" discussion about race. Sorry I can't recall
details. I can dig out the directions but this was years ago...done on
a whim....and since then have moved on to better/newer methods. (I've
yet to read the sneeches to them but have wanted to. Mostly we dive
in. BTY, last term I gave a bonus quiz to the "brown eyeds" and told
the blue eyeds to sit there.. that they didn’t deserve one and would
probably fail anyway. It wasdone on a whim...and I can't believe they
believed I'd do such a thing...but they did! Fantastic responses! I
ran into several students last week who remarked on it...loved
it....called home about it...blogged about it. But I digress...back to
food)
Teach Soc has an article about gumballs and strat. Was that Don Sabo
who wrote it? And I recall someone bringing in a big cake and divding
it by "class"...with some students getting crumbs and others getting
big pieces. Do you all remember these?
A compilation sounds good. Great to know about the Soc of Food manual,
too.
Andi
Jackie & Others:
Betsy Lucal & I edited a new (2005) ASA teaching
resources guide on The Sociology of Food that includes
a number of exercises and other teaching techniques
incorporating food. You might find the volume useful.
-Denise Copelton
--- Jacqueline Bergdahl
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas for using food
to teach that they
would be willing to share. I use m&ms to show
students how samples and
populations work and I've used starburst candies to
show the inequality
of wealth distribution. I'd be happy to compile the
results.
Thanks,
Jackie
Jacqueline A. Bergdahl, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Sociology
Wright State University
3640 Colonel Glenn Highway
Dayton, OH 45435
937-775-2272
Fax: 937-775-4228
--------------------------------
Denise A. Copelton, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Sociology
SUNY Brockport
350 New Campus Drive
Brockport, NY 14420
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