Agents of God Boundaries and Authority in Muslim and Christian Schools
threads: each school community holds to a conservative approach to gender and sexuality, a hostility towards the theory of evolution, and a deep suspicion of secularism. All possess a double-sided image of America, on the one hand as a place where their children can excel and prosper, and on the
other hand as a land of temptations that could lead their children astray. He shows how these school communities use boundaries of politics, gender, and sexuality to distinguish themselves from the secular world, both in school and online. Guhin develops his study of boundaries in the book's first
half to show how the school communities teach their children who they are not; the book's second half shows how the communities use external authorities to teach their children who they are. These external authorities -- such as Science, Scripture, and Prayer -- are experienced by community
members as real powers with the ability to issue commands and coerce action. By offloading agency to these external authorities, leaders in these schools are able to maintain a commitment to religious freedom while simultaneously reproducing their moral commitments in their students. Drawing on
extensive classroom observation, community participation, and 143 formal interviews with students, teachers, and staff, this book makes an original contribution to sociology, religious studies, and education.
Publisher Name | Oxford University Press USA |
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Author Name | Hagendorf, Col |
Format | Audio |
Bisac Subject Major | SOC |
Language | NG |
Isbn 10 | 0190244747 |
Isbn 13 | 9780190244743 |
Target Age Group | min:NA, max:NA |
Dimensions | 00.96" H x 00.06" L x 10.00" W |
Page Count | 296 |
Jeffrey Guhin is an Assistant Professor of sociology at UCLA. He is the director of the Social Thought minor and is affiliated faculty for the Islamic Studies program and the Center for the Study of Religion. He teaches courses on Islam, the sociology of religion, the sociology of education, and social theory. He has published widely in magazines and academic journals. Before becoming an academic, Guhin taught high school English in Brooklyn, New York.