The Alienation of Social Sciences from “The Social”: The Experience of Sociology Education at Kurdish Universities (KUs), Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Abstract

This paper examines the extent to which sociology in Kurdish Universities (KUs), Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) is connected to the reality of Kurdish society. In this regard, the reflections of Kurdish “the social” in teaching and sociological research have been studied. Methodologically, the research employed qualitative research techniques by conducting (16) semi-structured interviews with professors and three focus-group interviews with students from sociology departments at three prominent universities in KRI. Findings show that the alienation of sociology as a discipline has apparent manifestations in teaching sociology and to a lesser extent in sociological research. Sociology curricula in the three departments have not effectively made Kurdish society, culture, politics the subject matter for sociology education. Writings about Kurdish society, though not plentiful in Kurdish language, have scarcely if ever, been used in teaching. Assignments remain primarily traditional (paper-based exams) and the field work is not systematically oriented and supervised. As to sociological research in KUs, in spite of the connection of those projects to a wide array of social issues in Kurdistan, challenges remain with the usage of research in teaching and lack of methodological diversity in most of the projects.