This teaching note describes the design and implementation of an undergraduate research team project to conduct a tent census. Previous studies highlight the importance of real-world research as a part of sociology curriculum. Tents, as a visible sign of homelessness, represent one such contemporary social problem. Our undergraduate research team…

In this paper, I use principles of civic education and social psychology to identify four main classroom contributors to students' pessimistic appraisals of their ability to improve social problems: authoritarian teaching methods, a culture of "doom and gloom," little attention to solutions to social problems, and no linkage of social problems to…

Maintains that when students learn about social problems they often feel depressed and apathetic about their ability to change these problems in society. Describes the Community Exploration Project that addresses the despair expressed by students and utilizes a student-centered approach where students discover and understand community efforts to…