Social Mobility Of Poor Kids Should Depend On College Education

These claims have been well documented. However, the connection to the graduation gap may be clearer with an answer of how other factors such as financial and other family problems brought about by poverty affect them. The rest of the book provides possible solutions to questions of invisibility such as respecting and valuing black students. Another solution is removing remedial programs for challenging curricula and supports that are appropriate.

Jay Macleod’s ethnography, Ain’t No Makin It, sheds light on the institute of education in America and how the country’s capital economy both mirrors and produces inequality by creating hierarchies that make social mobility obsolete. He does this through the use of two groups of predominantly Caucasian and predominantly African American youth who reside in the same low income neighborhood and attend the same school. He soon learned that in contrast to the Hallway Hangers, the predominantly white group who for the majority believed that there was no escape from their socioeconomic background, the Brothers, the predominantly African American group do aspire to hold middle class jobs in the future that provided stable incomes and commit to long term relationships with significant others. However, in his pursuit to conclude his research on the two groups MacLeod found that with the exception of one or two, members from neither of the groups were able to climb up the social ladder and bring about change to their status. Although the two groups did share a common upbringing, they differed in race, beliefs, ideas, and attitudes and therefore their failure to achieve success cannot be seen as mutual.

“Who Gets to Graduate’ by Paul Tough, publish May, 2015 in the New York Times discusses. The story of a young girl’s mindset on college. It begins with her starting in college and first failure on a test. It highlighted the doubts she had in her abilities. This opening introduces the article’s man discussion, which involves low income students who want to earn a four year degree but experience “troubles” along the way. It then discusses statistics that show dropout rates are highest with low-income students. The author included ability versus economics status.

One month, the family is struggling to pay for groceries and rent, the next they are all living in mansion, driving expensive cars, and eating at expensive restaurants. In White households, the expectancy to go through many stages of school and earn various degrees in order to achieve this level of living is more standard. “The percentage of associates degrees attained increased by a small amount over bachelors degrees attained by Blacks in the academic year of 2000-2001. In all of the masters degrees acquired, Blacks were accountable for 8%, and a small portion of first professional and doctoral degrees, only accounting for 7% and 5% of those. Whites were said to have obtained the highest number of degrees,” (Hoffman, 2204: 1). It is our goal to use our research to prove this point.

Recently there has been a lot of debate about the importance of college education. Students are asking if it’s worth the debt to attend a four year university or community college. Some are thinking what are the benefits of a degree is in the workforce. With college tuition increasing and state fundings lowering, low income students are struggling to attain a higher education. College institutions should have a role to provide students higher education and equal opportunity to students to increase social mobility yet intergenerational reproduction of privilege has produced inequality in education.

America’s education system is one of the most respectable, reputable and sought after commodities in our society, but it is also the most overcrowded, discriminatory, and controversial system ever established. Most people yearn for a higher education because it 's what 's expected in this society in order to get ahead. It means a better job, more money, power, prestige and a sense of entitlement. But this system has let down the children that are supposed to benefit from it. Education discriminates against minorities, and poorer class students are not expected nor encouraged to attain a higher education. The education system is set up to ensure that every child get a basic

This country’s education system was built on the back of meritocracy and was created to function as an objective measure of a child’s performance and their intelligence. It was the gateway to the American Dream, and provided everyone with an equal chance of success in America. It was a place of not only intellectual, but also personal growth. In her essay “From Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work,” Anyon argues that this is no longer the case. Anyon’s study concludes that from the fifth grade, students in poorer communities are groomed to succeed in low-class, blue collar jobs, while children in wealthy communities are prepared for more desirable careers. Anyon analyzes four different types of schools that all varied based on

In the United States alone, minorities have struggled for centuries to earn the basic rights and opportunities as others. African Americans have always worked harder and been treated maliciously just because of the color of their skin. There have been numerous movements, peaceful protests, and brutal battles by black leaders against whites for equality, justice, and a fair chance at a better life. It is safe to say that in the past, blacks were not allowed to progress or have a mind of their own. In comparison to the past, the educational sector for minorities still remains as an extreme societal challenge. For many years, African Americans have been denied educational advancement opportunities. The higher education area suffers greatly for the black population but very few people will address why this matter occurs. Do black families’ socioeconomic status affect the children’s education? The socioeconomic status is easily defined as an individuals or families’ economic and social rank based on income, education level, and occupation. The socioeconomic status of black families does affect their children’s academic success, however; it does not determine their children’s success. This educational disadvantage for black students needs to be addressed because of the lack of financial and emotional support that minority students receive due to their parents lack of experience and knowledge with higher education. Many black students become a product of their environment because

Julie Bettie’s book Women Without Class, she describes social groups in Waretown High and their race, gender, and social class composition. Bettie is an observant who is really interested in “women from working-class families across racial/ethnic identities…” (Bettie, pg. 8). She started her project in a community college, where she talks to the first generation of families attending college. Bettie observes that 20 percent high school graduates transfer to community colleges to four-year schools nationally. In addition to this “another 28 percent of Waretown graduates go directly to four-years schools; 3 percent attend trade schools; and the remaining 16 percent are without plans for post-secondary education” (Bettie, pg.11). In other

With the growing importance of higher education, more people than ever are attending college. According to a middle-class parent, “[Higher education] seen as a means of developing a career and getting secure employment.” (30, Higher Education, social class and social mobility) Moreover, “parents believe that their children need a university education to get on in life… over the past decades (parents) fearful that without a degree their children will be in danger of downward social mobility. (32, Higher

A conversation ingrained in my memory involved two adolescent boys from San Antonio Independent School District (SAISD). When asked about their future ambitions, one student casually responded that he would “go to prison like his father.” The other expressed a desire to rise above his inner city milieu, but had little sense his abilities or of his options. In stark contrast, students from Alamo Heights, an affluent neighboring district, held ambitions to become doctors, lawyers, and politicians, and demonstrated an understanding of the prerequisites for their desired career path. The graduation rate of Alamo Heights stood at 98% while SAISD’s graduation rate lingered around 60%. The contrast between these two districts grows more disturbing when considered through the lens of racial equality. While SAISD’s population is 98% minority, the Anglo population in Alamo Heights totals slightly over 55%. Yet, 74% of Alamo Heights graduates achieve a four-year college diploma, while only 4% percent of SAISD alumni attain a bachelor’s degree. An opportunity gap results from this discrepancy, ultimately proving detrimental to social mobility.

Imagine a brilliant high school child named Michael who has a high GPA and is enrolled in the honors and AP curriculum; he precipitates in multitudes of extracurricular activities including sports and clubs. He gets accepted to many schools and received many scholarships. However, even with financial aid, he and his family are economically deprived and therefore incapable in funding a college education. This scenario is not an imagination but a common event in modern day America. Fifty percent of eighteen to twenty-five year old adults who did not attend a higher education institution experienced a similar situation (Why). These people belong in a university, an establishment whose nature is to judge base on the intelligence not on the

Michelle Obama’s “Bowie State University Commencement Speech” and Mike Rose’s “Blue-Collar Brilliance” both address the similar theme of a higher education. Obama motivates her audience by connecting to the fight for education by African Americans and the drive required to complete a higher education throughout history. Obama’s central argument is to inspire the graduates, such as previous generations have done, to encourage future generations to care about their education, continue on with higher learning, and also to get them back on track if they begin to stray. Obama cites multiple statistics such as ones that declared educated African Americans actually live longer and make more money than those without a degree or who have dropped out of high school. On the other hand, Rose addresses the common held belief that work requiring less schooling also requires less intelligence. Rose provided two stories; one about his mother Rosie, and one about her brother Joe, neither of whom finished high school. Rose declares that their lack of institutionalized education did not mean they were not educated in other ways. In their lines of work, one at a factory and one at a restaurant, required a combined demand of both body and mind. The primary thesis Rose is trying to point out is that our society today devalues everyday learning and we offer limited educational opportunities that cause us to reinforce cultural divides. My feelings on the issue of higher education are mixed. While I

The Danger of Telling Poor Kids that College is the Key to Social Mobility While reading the text "The Danger of Telling Poor Kids that College is the Key to Social Mobility" it helps the reader to identify many issues on why students want to attend college. Andrew Simmons stated that “Higher education should be promoted to all students as an opportunity to experience an intellectual awakening, not just increase their earning power which I am in favor of. College promotion should be used to motivate students in a critical thinking way instead of a financial advantage. The author’s purpose was to identify the separation between how college can be an educational opportunity instead of a financial opportunity to grow from poverty. The main idea

The Danger of Telling Poor Kids that College is the Key to Social Mobility by Andrew Simmons starts off with Simmons sitting down with his 12th grade student, to help her write an essay about wanting to get into college. They bring up the idea that motivation for kids who come from lower income families is typically to go to college as the “opportunities that four years of higher education could unlock” could allow them to “gain financial independence” along with having the ability to “give back” to the people who had helped them. The student declared this as shortsighted and simplistic. A bit after this idea is acknowledged in the article, it goes to what she actually wrote about – which is that she seeks to “focus first on nurturing her intellectual