TASC Sociology study plan
TASC Sociology · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 6 hours per week
Sociological Perspectives and Methods
Distinguish the three major theoretical paradigms (functionalist, conflict, symbolic interactionist) and state what each would examine in a given scenario
Identify the steps of the scientific method as applied to a sociological research question and explain why replication matters
Compare quantitative and qualitative methods, listing one strength and one limitation of surveys, experiments, ethnography, and secondary analysis
Explain the difference between correlation and causation and identify spurious relationships in short examples
Your checkpoint
A one-page comparison table of the three paradigms plus a 300-word written critique of a hypothetical study design that names at least three validity threats
Social Stratification and Inequality
Define stratification and differentiate caste, class, and estate systems with concrete historical examples
Explain how sociologists measure socioeconomic status and interpret the difference between absolute and relative poverty
Apply the concepts of social mobility (intergenerational, intragenerational, structural) to a described life history
Summarize how race, ethnicity, gender, and age intersect with class to shape life chances
Your checkpoint
A 400-word analysis of a fictional family's three-generation mobility pattern using at least five stratification terms correctly
Social Stratification and Inequality & Culture and Socialization
Explain institutional discrimination and distinguish it from individual prejudice
Identify the components of culture (norms, values, beliefs, symbols, language) in a described community
Trace the stages of socialization across the life course and compare Cooley, Mead, and Goffman on the self
Distinguish ethnocentrism from cultural relativism and apply both to a cross-cultural case
Your checkpoint
A 10-item matching quiz you write yourself covering stratification and culture terms, with an answer key and one-sentence justification per item
Social Structure, Groups, and Organizations
Classify groups as primary, secondary, in-group, out-group, and reference groups using everyday examples
Explain how formal organizations and bureaucracies operate, including Weber's ideal type and its dysfunctions
Describe how status, role, role conflict, and role strain operate within a described workplace
Analyze how group size and conformity pressures shape individual behavior
Your checkpoint
A 350-word case memo diagnosing role conflict and bureaucratic dysfunction in a fictional organization, citing at least four concepts
Social Institutions
Compare the functionalist and conflict perspectives on the family, education, religion, and health care
Explain how education reproduces or reduces inequality through tracking, funding, and hidden curriculum
Describe how family structures and religious institutions have changed over the past century
Identify the main models of health care delivery and the social determinants of health
Your checkpoint
A two-column chart contrasting functionalist and conflict views of all four institutions, with at least two examples per cell
Social Change, Movements, and Collective Behavior
Differentiate social movements from other forms of collective behavior such as crowds, fads, and panics
Explain theories of social movements, including resource mobilization, political opportunity, and relative deprivation
Trace the typical life cycle of a social movement from emergence to decline
Identify push and pull factors in migration and describe major demographic transitions
Your checkpoint
A 400-word profile of a fictional social movement that names its type, its resources, its political opportunities, and its likely stage in the life cycle
Social Interaction and Everyday Life & Sociological Perspectives and Methods
Explain dramaturgical analysis and distinguish front stage from back stage behavior
Describe how nonverbal communication, personal space, and impression management shape everyday encounters
Apply ethnomethodology to explain how people repair disrupted social order
Revisit research ethics and identify violations in short scenarios
Your checkpoint
A field-observation log of three everyday interactions, each annotated with at least two interaction concepts and one research-ethics note
Sociological Perspectives and Methods & Culture and Socialization & Social Structure, Groups, and Organizations & Social Stratification and Inequality & Social Institutions & Social Change, Movements, and Collective Behavior & Social Interaction and Everyday Life
Synthesize all seven domains by mapping each key term to its domain on a single master list
Complete a timed 60-question practice set and score it by domain to find weak areas
Re-teach the three weakest concepts aloud or in writing without notes
Review flagged terms and correct every missed item with a written rationale
Your checkpoint
A scored practice exam with a domain-by-domain error log and a one-page final review sheet of the ten most-missed concepts
Milestones
Week 2: Can define stratification, class, status, and mobility from memory and correctly apply each to a new example without notes
Week 4: Scores at least 80 percent on a self-written 20-question quiz covering domains 1 through 4, with every miss explained in writing
Week 6: Can contrast functionalist and conflict views of all four institutions in under five minutes of spoken explanation
Week 8: Scores at least 80 percent on the timed 60-question practice set and has a written rationale for every missed item