Mangala Subramaniam

My teaching involves working with students to understand the social forces and systems of inequalities that impact people, both in the US and around the world. As a teacher, I aim to help students develop critical-thinking skills and gather tangible knowledge, nurture their love of learning and constantly questioning the world around them. The comparative/global focus of my research enables me to bring a unique perspective of social and cultural issues into teaching. I have extensive experience and success in teaching at both the graduate and undergraduate level as well as mentoring graduate and undergraduate (including honors) students in sociology and other disciplines.

 

I am an award winning teacher. Since joining the faculty at Purdue, I have taught thirteen different courses in Sociology (and Women’s Studies). I have taught required courses in the methods and statistics sequence (undergraduate statistics and graduate research methods) as well as substantive courses in the areas of gender and social movements at the undergraduate and graduate level. While jointly appointed in Women's Studies I have taught the following courses: Interdisciplinary Studies 280 and 280 Honors: Introduction to Women’s Studies; Interdisciplinary Studies 380 and 380 Honors: Gender & Multiculturalism and Women’s Studies 680: Feminist Theory and Methodology. I have served on education related committees at the department/college level as well as that of professional associations.

 

During my term as the Director of Graduate Studies, I taught the required pro-seminar, a professionalization course, required of all graduate students in the first year. I prepared the course to cover topics that would enable students to understand the expectations of the graduate program, provide information about the profession – professional associations and conferences, disciplinary job market, and writing to publish.

 

Through a grant, I successfully developed a new course - Sociology 338: Global Social Movements- which is in the College of Liberal Arts core curriculum. This course has been offered as a regular sociology undergraduate course, as a College of Liberal Arts Honors course, and a revised version of this course was recently offered as an Honors College course. I have also successfully introduced many innovations to courses.

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Courses taught (since 2007)

In Sociology

Graduate level

Introduction to Research Methods I (required graduate methods)

Sociology of Gender – Seminar

Readings in Political Sociology: Social Movements – Seminar

Transnational Social Movements - Seminar

Independent Studies supervised (topics): Media Coverage of Protest; Immigration and Social Movements, Global Political Economy: Sociological Perspectives; Feminist Theory and Methodology; Readings in Political Sociology; Race & Ethnicity; Black Feminist Thought; Transnational Movements; Feminist Movements; Gender & Work

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Undergraduate level

Gender Roles in Modern Society

Introduction to Methods of Social Research I (Statistics)

Global Social Movements – Honors only; Regular course section

Independent Study

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Guest Lectures for Courses

Comparative Health Policy; Women and Leadership course (ENTR 470)-senior level course in entrepreneurship); Introduction to Global Studies (for Global Studies majors and minors)

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