Critique and sociology: towards a new understanding of teaching as an integral part of sociological work

Abstract This paper aims to shed light on teaching as an integral part of sociological work. The aim of sociologists to contribute to critical inquiry can be traced back to Enlightenment ideas. Based on empirical findings from my doctoral research on the self-understanding of sociologists, I will argue that teaching does not receive the attention it deserves as a way of living the critical traditions within sociology. In spite of decreasing readerships for a rapidly rising number of academic publications, research is better rewarded than teaching. Notwithstanding teaching having been structurally devalued, my research suggests that teaching seems to play a far more significant role in the self-understanding of sociologists.