The United States of America is based on freedom: freedom of beliefs (religious or otherwise), practice, speech, etc. Yet, not all people in the United States feel they are completely free. These people feel they are stranded in a certain social class without means of escape. By definition of Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language, class is “a group of people considered as a unit according to economic, occupational, or social status; especially a social rank or caste; as the working class, the middle class” (334). Educational opportunity in the United States is affected by social class. To begin with, social class affects educational opportunity in the U.S because of the educational institution. Most students go …show more content…
Depending on the type of school a student attends, the availability of books and materials varies from school to school. Tehachapi High School is a distinguished school. At Tehachapi High School all the students have access to the materials they need in order to succeed as a student at the school, this includes: books, reading materials, time with teachers, access to computers and access to the library. According to the SARC report for the 2014-2015 school year at Tehachapi High School, all the textbooks and instructional materials needed for the classes are the most recent adoptions of the materials supplied (SARC 5). Most recent adoptions meaning that the textbooks and materials are the newest versions available for the schools. Furthermore, the students do not just have the newest and latest versions of textbooks, all of the students have access to the materials that are required for their classes. In the SARC report for Tehachapi High School, it states that 0% of students lacked their own assigned copy (SARC 5). With that, we can see that a school with more available textbooks and required materials makes it easier for students to succeed. Tehachapi High School is a California Distinguished School; the California Distinguished Schools Program:”Honors some of California's most exemplary and inspiring public schools. Schools …show more content…
As mentioned above, Tehachapi High School is a California Distinguished School and as well has high testing scores. Jefferson High School is unlike Tehachapi High School. Jefferson is “an improving school that exemplifies all the challenges of urban education” (Landsberg 7). These challenges define the type of social class that the students are a part of and the challenges include: violence, unavailability of textbooks or materials, home violence, etc. Due to the challenges that the students in this community face, they have less educational opportunities. When plagued with the thought of your safety or doing well on a quiz, a person is more likely to put more thought into their safety. On the first day of class at Jefferson High School some people worried about their safety. “at 10:30 a.m., a man with an AK-47 was spotted firing shots a half-block from campus” (Landsberg 9). The students do not have the opportunity to solely focus on their education because events are happening around them that understandably make school and education seem not as important. In another school, La Canada High School, the situation is different. At La Canada High School, “violence is scarcely a concern” (Landsberg 9). The parents of the students at La Canada High School are more well off financially. For example, Kyle, a student at La Canada
In Class Matters, Bill Keller examines the meaning of the word class and how it plays on the life of the US citizens.According to Class Matters, a class is represented as four cards, one from each suit: education, income, occupation, and wealth. Based on your cards you are put into a class. Most people end up with the same cards as their parents. Keller explains how a class can be predetermined by a person’s upbringing or how they were raised. In this book, Bill Keller suggests that it is quite difficult to move into other social classes than the one we were born in, or a class we have been associated with for a long time. Based on the reading of this book along with other resources, moving into other social classes is exceptionally
Social class refers to the system of stratification of the different groups of people in a society. Social class makes everyone’s lives extremely different. So does education. Not surprisingly, affluent students in well-off school districts have higher rates of high school graduation, college attendance and entry to the more selective colleges. This has little to do with intelligence or ability. Statistics provided by the College Board for 2013, suggest that having more money is the key to getting
The social class in America is everywhere but it is often quite hard to recognize only because it is against the American principle for the social class system to exist. Whether we know it or not, we tend to participate in the class system.. By doing so, this leads us to separate ourselves based on our social class system, including class discrimination and social mobility
Social Class and Education”. It opens by discussing research conducted in the 1960’s in an effort to identify factors contributing to differences in the academic achievement of Whites and Blacks (Banks & Banks, 2013). Researchers hypothesized that the achievement gaps were mainly the result of disparities in school resources and characteristics, but found that there is a high correlation between achievement and socioeconomic status (SES) (Banks & Banks, 2013). Furthermore, attention is drawn to the class stratification which exists in our educational system and works to maintain inequality through exclusion strategies such as ability grouping and tracking (Banks & Banks, 2013). Evidence of the correlation between social class and
Social class is a large faction of people who have similar positions in an economic system. In an exemplary world, all students would have an equal shot at success, excellent schools, and educators that dedicate themselves and their time to achieving this goal. However, social class can significantly affect a student's success, highlighting the correlation between low socioeconomic statuses and academic problems. In all social groups, class plays a significant role in the attainment of children in education. Unfortunately, this has always been the case and the effects are just more evident today. Families from high social classes are more likely to obtain a greater level of education than those in low social classes. Members of upper social classes tend to be better educated and have higher incomes; therefore, they are better able to supply educational advantages to their children as well. Being in a financially disadvantaged can also affect a child’s performance during school. It is important, therefore, to examine the way in which education is distributed through social class. Between societal pressures, expectations and parental negligence, children can be negatively impacted in their pursuit for future success through their education as exemplified through “College Pressures” and “The Sanctuary of School”.
Do teachers still teach what you expect the students can learn and remain in their social class or do you still teach them what will give them the flexibility to choose their path in life? According to Jean Anyon in the article “ Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum”, the Hidden Curriculum sets the students to remain within their economic class, which causes inequality in the society. Her findings challenged the work of sociologists who assume that the student's academic success depends on their self-motivation to succeed. I'm of the two mind that the more money you have, the better education your child receives. On the other hand, I also agree that the student success depends on their self-motivation. However, I don't concur that the Hidden Curriculum still exists in schools as at today because instructors are trying their best to rouse students towards achieving more prominent positions in life with the help of information technology, teachers also develop discipline in students and finally, education is reducing inequality in the United States. Therefore, I still maintain that the Hidden Curriculum does not exist in our schools as at present.
I think Montsios’ point that, “Class standing has a significant impact on the chance for educational achievement” (Monsios 193). I think this statement is very true, because it is very apparent that there is a huge education gap in the United States due to income. People of higher incomes can have the luxury of sending their kids to better schools, private or public, and have the ability to give them a college education without having to worry about the financial costs, while people of lower classes cannot have this luxury. This is absolutely ridiculous, because this country was founded on the idea of equality, and having an equal and free country to pursue opportunity. Just like the educational side of this, people also struggle with in the sense of survival and
There are many people throughout the world that are born into different socio-economic status. In the United States there are 3 typical socio-economic statuses, upper class, middle class, and working class. The majority of people are born into the working class and try to make their way up. The main way people believe to go up a class in America is through education, but how does socio-economic class play a role in the amount of education one will receive in their future?
Throughout time one of the most obvious class markers has been education and it still remains so. People who belong to the higher classes view education as a higher priority and have more access to the best school in the country. When stuck in lower classes people must attend schools where books, computers, and education are not found at the same level. An article in the Atantic Times mentions that “ Kids who belong to lower social classes fell behind children in the upper classes by about a year or so.” Today, that gap is close to four years.” For those in the upper class their kids are placed in an abundance of classes from an early age such as foreign language, art, and many sports. Children who are in lower classes have no way of getting a head start when compared to children in higher classes Sarah Garland also mentions how “ When children have plenty of time to build social skills and bigger vocabularies in short term reduce their chances of
Social class is a very important factor proving everyone does not have an equal chance to become successful. The American Dream idea
“If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.” Those words were the famous phrase spoke by Johnnie Cochran, one of the defense attorneys, in the case of “People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson.” This eminent motto marked a key turning point in what is known as the most publicized criminal trial in American history. This case brought about many social issues in the country and the American Criminal Justice system. Of the many social topics raised by the case, a few that are most imperative are social class, education, and race.
In this essay I will be analyzing “Class in America--2012” by Gregory Mantsios from Rereading America.The author is getting opinions and using his knowledge to figure out if social or economic classes that people are in mean that they have a disadvantage or an advantage to becoming successful. Do you think that social classes impact the road to success or not?
Social Class is a division of a society based on social and economic status. In today’s society there are three main social groups in America: upper, middle, and lower class; these rankings are contributed by mass amounts of factors, but one of the main factors that people cannot control is their race and ethnicity. Race and ethnicity, likewise as gender, can also play a part in a variety of other concerns such as, education level, income, and where you reside.
On the surface, high school sports are represented as extracurricular activities that provide positive opportunities and experiences for students involved. People often don’t think of high school sport beyond this and are either blind or choose to ignore how socioeconomic status can affect students’ opportunities to be involved in these activities. This choice to ignore how class plays a role in high school sports is often tied to ideological beliefs. Ideologies are basic ideas and beliefs that are used in society that most commonly benefit people with power and wealth by justifying why they have the experiences and opportunities that they do. As well as benefiting the powerful and wealthy, those with lower economic status often buy into
Socio-economic class is reflective of occupation and education, combined with wealth and income to position one relative to others in society. These factors play a significant role in shaping someone's life chances and choices. Social class has much to do with who we are today. For example, access to jobs and education is often determined through the categories of social location and identity. White, middle-class/wealthy, men and women, statistically speaking, are given more access to college entrance and corporate executive employment than to any other persons of any