Socioeconomic Class In Relation To Education

In Mantsios article “Class in America” he states that Americans hold beliefs that blind them to social classes, citizens in America have four myths they use to ensure talk about the classes never take place. America has the largest gap between rich and poor in the world, and the lower class has no means to an end they can’t afford health care or quality education. The upper class avoids talk about social class the most; wealthy people don’t want to admit that they are better off than others. While the lower class sees how much better off others are than them, but they still don’t like to label themselves. I agree with Mantsios that most Americans avoid talk about classes although I am not one of them. Also I

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

“The percentage of Americans who say they are in the lower-middle or lower class has risen from a quarter of the adult population to about a third in the past four years, according to a national survey of 2,508 adults by the Pew Research Center” (http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2012/09/10/a-third-of-americans-now-say-they-are-in-the-lower-classes/). Today’s adults stating that they are in the lower class are most likely to have had a rough life growing up, and can now not escape the lower class. Social class is the idea of “a division of a society based on social and economic status” (http://www.dictionary.com/browse/social-class). Social class has the greatest impact on who a person turns out to be and what decisions they make because those

Have you ever referred to someone as “high class,” “middle class,” or “low class?” The article “Class In America” is a very educated read and describes the way people are characterized by their “class.” I think that this article informs all types of readers and allows people to see how people are grouped based on themselves. “Class in America” is written to show and prove to society that people do not talk about “class” anymore, because of the way the world looks at it today. Gregory Mantosis is the author of the article, and he uses many facts and data to prove his points.

Mantsios believes that people in the United States do not like to talk about classes, whether it is upper class, middle class, or lower class. He outlines four beliefs that are widely held about class in the United States, and then thoroughly refutes them with statistical evidence. He argues that the class

Despite the debates about social class, the United States is usually described as having four major social classes, the elite or upperclass, the middle class, the working class, and the lower class (Goldscmidt). Classes are generally differentiated by income, education, and occupation although other factors do have an effect. The upperclass consists of about 1% of the population making 750,000 dollars or more a year as investors, top executives, or heirs to large fortunes (Hughes and Jenkins). There tends to be no question about who is in the upperclass as they are pretty clearly isolated in their power and wealth. The middle class makes up about 40% of the population making anywhere from 40,000 to 749,999 dollars a year (Hughes and Jenkins). The large disparity in income and wealth have led to a further division of this class into upper-middle class and middle class in some circles. The middle class usually work white collar jobs as professionals and managers, however some highly skilled blue collar workers are included. Those in the middle class have usually obtained higher education degrees and place a high value on individual responsibility for one’s class (Goldschmidt). The working class is composed of about 50% of the population earning 13,000 to 39,000 dollars a year (Hughes and Jenkins). Some also divide this class into a working class and a

Thus, globalization forces researchers to understand the influence of mobility, in addition to education, on social class (Banks & Banks, 2013). This articles I chose to investigate social class and its implications for educational outcomes are Social class and the hidden curriculum of work by Jean Anyon and Reappraising the importance of class in higher education entry and persistence by John Field and Natalie Morgan Klein.

The very poor class contains all citizens that have a very low economic status. Most have no economic security, are unemployed, and have no education after high school. American citizens in this class have just enough money to survive. The poor class includes any American citizen who does not have enough money to have basic necessities. The working class includes American citizens who have enough to provide basic needs for their family. They do not have some of the simple luxuries; if they do; they have to save up to buy it. In the middle class, most citizens go to college. People in the middle class do not necessarily live paycheck to paycheck, but have enough money to spend on leisure. The next social class in America is the upper middle class, whose citizens mainly attend private or charter schools. ( Hancock, 1998). They hold professions such as doctors and

In the first article titled “Class in America” by Gregory Mantsios the discussion on class affecting the United States negatively is brought up. Gregory talks about the fact that people do not choose to be poor but they are put into situations where they cannot move up in class. Due to the fact that class creates an immense gap in communities, there are many issues linked to being categorized as the lower class. In the article Gregory states that “class affects more than lifestyle and material well being. It has a significant impact on our physical and mental well-being as well.” CITE) The author connects the idea that if you are in the lower class than you will also deal with other issues include your mental and physical health declining. Alongside this idea, the author also states “All Americans do not have an equal opportunity to succeed, and class mobility in the United States is lower than that of the rest of the industrialized world. (CITE) This goes along with the idea that once your born into a class, breaking out of it is virtually impossible. The author is also making the point that in the United States class is more problematic than other developed nations and because of this not everyone is given the chance to break free from a poor lifestyle.

The United States is often seen by many as a country of equal opportunity. A place where social classes do not exist. Unfortunately, thoughts such as these are wrong because the US is far from being the only country to escape this exception. When observed closely there are signs that each person manifests that distinctively show what social class they belong to. Although money is the most common marker of class, education along with health related topics such as heart disease and eating habits are strong inicators of class.

Rendon (1994) points out “students from underrepresented backgrounds often experience isolation, a lack of self-efficacy, and a lack of a sense of belonging in college contexts”(p. 48). Furthermore, one needs to take it one step back and realize that most students of color are much more likely to attend schools where most of their peers are poor or low-income. Therefore, socio economic status (SES) determines the education a person receives throughout K-12. Walpole (2004) also describes how “low SES parents are more likely to define success as a secure full-time job after graduating from high school. College attendance is not an expectation and often means enrolling in a community college or technical school when it does occur” (p. 47). When a student reaches the

“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.

Every year, thousands of students attend schools from an array of socioeconomic backgrounds. The term Socioeconomic refers to the amount of education you have completed, your gross income and the overall professionalism of a person or a people. Even though institutions see students from all walks of life go through their corridors, the influence of wealth on a child’s education is not ignorable. Students from a lower socioeconomic lifestyle in most cases, face more obstacles from social problems like bullying or hazing to a lack of learning resources at their homes or in some cases in their schools, and they indeed affect their academic performance and career outlook. This essay will look at what and how multiple factors play a major role in manipulating students’ academic outcome in institutions.

In the United states, social classes is a controversial issue in terms of defining the actual nature of the classes themselves. Many individuals have categorized the society into three elementary groups that is the “poor”, “middle class” and the “rich”. Additionally, a more complex system of social classes is derived from the three elementary classes. In this regard, a four-class system includes “the capitalist/upper class”, “the middle class”, “the working class” and “the lower class” (Thompson, 2005). Moreover, sociologists have expanded the for-class system into a six class system includes “the capitalist or upper class”, “the upper-middle class”, “the middle class”, “the working class”, “the lower-working class” and “the lower class”.

It took me years to understand that humans generally divide themselves according to their socioeconomic status. I realized that the clothes I wear, the car I drive, and the way I live is all a way to prove to my peers that my family is in the upper-middle class. In the last few years of my life, I realized that some of the people who I call my friends are only my friends because we are in the same socioeconomic class. They didn’t choose to be my friend solely on personality and common interests. Somehow, my friend group was always viewed as the “popular” group in school, but what does that mean? I’ve always been perplexed at the fact that socioeconomic class nearly always plays a role in who the “popular” kids are no matter what school, town, or grade you are in. This social dynamic caused me to research how socioeconomic class contributes to the creation of friend groups in adolescents and what social class tends to hold popularity and power in these school years.