Department of Education-Region

III TARLAC CITY SCHOOLS

DIVISION
Juan Luna St., Sto. Cristo, Tarlac City 2300
Email address: tarlac.city@deped.gov.ph/ Tel. No. (045) 470 - 8180

DISCIPLINES AND
IDEAS IN THE SOCIAL
SCIENCES
Quarter 2: Week 9
Learning Activity Sheets
 DISCIPLINES AND IDEAS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Name: ___________________________________________ Quarter 2 – Week 9

Grade & Section: ___________________________________ Date: ____________

BASIC CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES OF THE MAJOR

SOCIAL SCIENCE IDEAS

Background Information:
Throughout history man has always been placed on a higher pedestal than
women. Across geographical, cultural, and religious boundaries man has always
been considered as the more dominant sex than its counterpart. Men are physically
stronger, more skilled, and well-equipped to earn and bring home resources.
Women, on the other hand, are weaker creatures, fragile, and too soft-mannered to
be out there in the field in search for a living. This simple rationalization of the sexes
has been the foundational block of gender roles, cultural norms, and human
interaction across the globe throughout the ages. Only until recently, though, that this
idea was challenged by a series of radical thinkers and events, leading to the
formation of a new world view – a feministic paradigm.
World views and paradigms are a result of time-tested principles and values
backed up by rigorous human experience. Human experience is the universal
backbone of every culture – of every norm, law, and dogma – and is recorded in
every facet of society. Institutions are human experience incarnate. They are the
embodiment of Man’s struggle for meaning both on the intrapersonal level and the
interpersonal. Institutions are the testimony of Man’s collective history, his fear of the
past, and his utopian quest to gain control over himself and others to guarantee his
survival. In this learning material we are going to examine two relatively young
ideologies in the field of social science – the theories of Feminism and
Institutionalism.

A. Feminism in a nutshell
The term “feminism” originated from the French word “feminisme,” first used
by the utopian socialist Charles Fourier. It was in the 1890s when it was first
used in English and back then was associated with equal political and legal
rights movements for women.
Feminism can be defined as a set of ideologies characterized by social and
political movements that aim to clearly define, establish, and eventually
achieve equality of the sexes socially, economically and politically. There has
been some disagreements among feminist since it was first conceptualized
during the 19th century as to the ways women are at disadvantage and what
exactly should be done to claim equal footing with men in society. Because of
this there emerged many different kinds of feminism over generations, each of
which having its own socio-political agenda.
Historically, the development of feminist ideology can be divided into three
phases or “waves” according to Maggie Humm – professor of Women’s
Studies – and Rebecca Walker – an American writer and feminist activist:
1. The First Wave – perhaps the most dramatic and controversial of the
three phases, the first wave is the struggle of early feminists towards
political liberation. Until the late 19th to early 20th centuries, women
were under a lot of political restrictions, not to mention economic
deprivations. Realizing these limitations, women ought to fight for their
political liberty, particularly their right to suffrage and of equal legal
rights of contract and property from their husbands, if they are to gain a
degree of social recognition. Their main political agenda later expanded
to issues concerning sexual, reproductive matters showing direct
opposition to chattel marriage and ownership of married women (and
their children) by husbands. The idea of women having the same
potential as men to contribute in society and should, therefore, be
politically recognized by society has been the battle cry of the first wave
movement.
2. The Second Wave – coming off as the result of a series of activities in
the early 1960s to the late 1980s, the second wave of feminism was
born out of the time when the United States was trying to restructure
itself. Post World War II America was marked by civil unrest manifested
in various public protest such as that of the Black Rights Movement,
Anti-Vietnam Movement, Gay and Lesbian Movement and other Civil
Rights Movements fighting for equality. Many of the women supporters
of the aforementioned groups form the core of the second wave
feminist movement who felt that in order to be heard and gain respect
in society, gender equality concerns must first be genuinely addressed.
The second wave of feminism was anchored basically on two
important goals: economic and organizational equality between men
and women in the workplace, and the granting of sexual recognition
and reproductive rights of women by the state. The battle cry of the
second wave will pave the road for the next generation of feminist and
their rather radical but evolving view of equality.
3. The Third Wave – Due to the varying interpretations as to what
constitutes equality between the sexes and as to what is, or is not,
good for the females in society in the modern times, the third wave
movement of feminism took a rather radical curve towards liberalism.
The varying feminist outlooks led to the formation of subgroups of
feminism such as ecofeminism, reform feminism and ego-cultural
feminism to name a few. In the onset of globalization way back in the
1990’s, the third wave movement had a more universal appeal making
feminism quite a popular cultural ideology across nations and societies.
Modern feminism focuses on the promotion of reproductive and sexual
rights, legislation of anti-discrimination laws, and the campaign against
abuse and violence of women.
Post-feminism is the next evolved stage of this gender-related social ideology.
From the abolishment of slavery to the right to vote; to birth control and sex
discrimination issues at work, post-feminism appeals to a more subtle kind:
the fluidity of the female gender unrestricted by social roles, demands and
 expectations. This, of course, requires the restructuring of society’s
fundamental norms and institutions – something of a herculean feat for the
average realist.
Feminist theory is a framework that utilizes feminist ideas to understand
gender inequality as exemplified throughout human history. Feminist theory
provides a critique of social relations as it focuses on sexuality, gender
politics, and the power struggle between the sexes. It also highlights the
rights, interests, and the various issues that surrounded women from classical
times to the present. Feminist theory, in the academe, can be used as a
social, political, and even a literary paradigm.

Institutionalism in a nutshell

Institutionalism is a social science theoretical framework that stresses the

importance, role, and implication of institutions to human behavior. It is the
adherence to or belief in established forms or structures as a dominant force
that dictates or influences the individual and social behavior of a given culture.
As a social theory, institutionalism derives its insights from a wide range of
disciplines in the human sciences from anthropology and psychology, to
economics and political science. Institutionalism came as an aggregate of
various philosophical ideas emanating from these fields of study.
Historically, the development of Institutionalism as a major theoretical
framework, can be divided into two stages or generations: the new and the old
institutionalism.
1. The Old Institutionalism – pioneering ideas on institutionalism can be
traced back as early as classical Greece. Aristotle’s discussion of the
different political regimes laid the foundation of political institutionalism.
The types of governments identified by Plato and Aristotle and the
corresponding societal behavior it creates, is a clear demonstration of
how the government institution impacts individual and collective human
lives.
In the 18th and 19th century, in the onset of classical economics,
the radical interest in the economy as a self-regulating mechanism,
became the new philosophical paradigm particularly in Europe. Since
the dawn of capitalism, modern civilization has never been more at the
mercy (rather than in command) of the natural world from which it
extracts its material resources. From this, the idea of economic
determinism was born – that social, cultural and political phenomena is
determined by the interplay between or among the various economic
components and forces.
Combining the ideas of the early Greek philosophers (Plato,
Aristotle) with the ideas of the classical economists (Adam Smith,
Thomas Malthus, John Stuart Mill and Karl Marx) it can be seen quite
clearly how external forces in society such as government and the
economy can exert tremendous influence on the individual and
collective behavior of men. It can be said that old institutionalism
employs a rather philosophical and mechanical approach in
understanding Man and institutions.
 2. The New Institutionalism – picking up where the old institutionalist
tradition left off, the new institutionalism argues that Man and institution
can be better understood not through logical philosophy or
mathematical modeling, but through empirical study of it. New
institutionalism provides a viewing angle of institutions outside of the
traditional views of politeia and oikonomia, and into the world of the
socius. It explains the nature, origin and evolution of institutions and
hence, new institutionalism focuses on developing a dynamic (as
opposed to mechanical) view of institutions – the way they interact and
affect Man and society in the process.
Institutions are social structures that have established a high degree of
resilience which came as a result of the collective activities of men through
time. They are composed of definite cognitive (beliefs/dogmas), normative
(customs/traditions), and regulative (rules of control) elements and procedures
that, together with associated resources and activities, provide meaning and
direction to social life. Institutions, though subject to change processes both
incremental and discontinuous, connote stability and are recognized as an
effective means of social control. It operates at various levels of domain from
the world system up, down to localized cultures and communities. Institutions
also provide standard behavioral guidelines and constraints on interpersonal
relationships, reducing uncertainties and maximizing control over all of human
interactions.
Hence, the following are the basic premises of Institutionalism:
1. Institutions are born out of the collective behavior and activities of men
through a long period of time
2. Formal institutions (political, economic, religious, educational, family)
and informal institutions (norms, customs, traditions) are stable and
effective means of social control
3. These institutions are all interconnected with one another and ideally
should work harmoniously together and be driven by common
standards, principles and morals
4. Human behavior and activities create and shape institutions. Likewise,
institutions create and shape human behavior

Learning Competency:
Analyze the basic concepts and principles of the major social science ideas
● Feminism
● Institutionalism

​Activity 1:
​ irections: Read and carefully analyze the case of Martha narrated below.
D
Using the feminist theory, write a hypothetical justification of Martha’s behavior and
rationalize her attitude towards men and relationships.
 Martha is a smart, beautiful, and attractive young woman. She was a
consistent beauty pageant contender during her high-school and college years and
was a consistent honor student as well. Martha graduated summa cum laude from a
prestigious university and is now a rich, successful and famous practicing lawyer at a
very young age.
However, Martha is not as equally successful when it comes to relationships.
There are a number of wealthy, good-looking men who are interested with her and
would love to court her, but Martha doesn’t want to go too far as to develop any
romantic interest in them. For Martha, all men are basically the same – that they are
weak, deceitful, and difficult to be with.
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*you may write at the back of this paper or on a separate sheet of paper in case the space provided above is not enough

​Activity 2:

Directions: Ponder philosophically on the quote provided below. Reflect and

uncover its meaning by keeping in mind the essence of the lesson in Institutionalism.

“Schools serve the same social functions as

prisons and mental institutions – to define,
classify, control, and regulate people.”
-- Michel Foucault --
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*you may write at the back of this paper or on a separate sheet of paper in case the space provided above is not enough
 Activity 3:

​ irections: Using the Venn diagram below, write an analysis comparing and
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contrasting the traditional institutionalized view of women with the modern, feminist
view. Reflect on your own personal view of women and synthesize your answers
thereafter.

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Reflection: ​Complete the statements below.

I have learned that feminism, as a social science theory, is

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I have learned that institutionalism, as a social science theory,

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References:

Abulencia, et al. First Edition, 2017. Disciplines and Ideas in the Social Sciences. Teacher’s
Guide. Department of Education. Pasig City: Haus of Serah Printing and Trading Corp.

Dela Cruz, et al. 2016. Disciplines and Ideas in the Social Sciences. Quezon City:
Phoenix Publishing House, Inc.

Answer Key

Activity 1:
Answers may vary depending on the learner’s personal experiences, views and opinions. This activity is designed to
demonstrate to the learners how the meaning of a particular object, situation or event is extracted more clearly when it
is stripped of cultural and societal prejudices.

Activity 2:
Answers may vary. The quote chosen in this activity exemplifies the essence of Hermeneutical Phenomenology.
Learners are expected to come up with an in-depth analysis of the quotation that is indicative of a clear understanding
of the ideas presented in the philosophical method.

Activity 3:
Answers may vary. By contrasting and reconciling these basic human demands, the learners will be able to exhibit a
clear understanding and analysis of the basic precepts of the Human Environment System theory.

Prepared by:

NOEL M. GUTIERREZ
Teacher II