Community as a social unit

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Brief introduction to the topic

In sociology, we define community as a group who follow a social structure within a society (culture, norms, values, status). They may work together to organize social life within a particular place, or they may be bound by a sense of belonging sustained across time and space. In this chapter based on the social life, professional features, cultural life, beliefs, economic system and population, we can see that communities are divided into four major types: They are: Nomadic, Tribal, Rural and Urban.

Textbook

http://ktbs.kar.nic.in/New/website%20textbooks/class9/9th%20standard/9th-english-socialscience-2.pdf

This chapter is titled "Community" and is the second chapter of the second part of the 9th grade Social Sciences textbook.

Note to teachers

The word "negro" or "negroid" while referring to tribes is technically correct, but also outdated and potentially offensive. Even the Oxford Dictionary states: "The term Negroid belongs to a set of terms introduced by 19th-century anthropologists attempting to categorize human races. Such terms are associated with outdated notions of racial types, and so are now potentially offensive and best avoided". It is important to sensitize students about the correct usage of such terms and why it is better not to use them.

Additional resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community

This resource is useful in getting the basic definitions of a community in various perspectives.

http://www.igntu.ac.in/eContent/IGNTU-eContent-590220362838-MSW-2-AjeetKumarPankaj-TribesinIndia-1,2.pdf

This compilation is very useful in getting the in-depth analysis of tribal communities, specifically in India.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/rural-society

This article gives a lot of information about rural society specifically from a sociology perspective.

https://vikaspedia.in/social-welfare/scheduled-tribes-welfare/denotified-nomadic-and-semi-nomadic-communities

This resource is very useful to understand what are nomadic communities and also their status in law.

Project ideas

Students can discuss about the Sentinelese, indigenous people who inhabit North Sentinel Island in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and other uncontacted people. This will enable to understand the different cultures of tribal society and why it might be dangerous to contact some.