Socioeconomic Classes

Associate Level Material
Appendix D
Educational Implications of Socioeconomic Status Matrix
Directions: Based on your personal experiences and on the readings for this course, answer the questions in the green section of the matrix as they apply to each of the listed socioeconomic classes. Fill in your answers and post your final draft as directed by the course syllabus.

Socioeconomic Classes
Questions Unemployed and Homeless Working Class Middle Class Upper Middle Class Upper Class
Who is most likely to be a part of this socioeconomic class? Those not having a job, suffering from family illness, lack of money to afford housing, women living in violent situations, suffering from poverty. People with basic jobs like labor workers and people who work under someone. People who work part time, work in jobs college graduates and upper class don’t want to work. People with income of $30,000 to $80,000 (Gollnick & Chinn, 2006, p.63). These people typically live from pay check to pay check with little savings if at all. People who have professional jobs, managers and those holding administrative positions. Most people in this class have a college degree. People having a high amount of wealth or income, may have inherited money, includes highly paid administrators and professionals.
How do teacher expectations positively or negatively impact this socioeconomic class? Teachers shouldn’t hold any opinions about students who are part of this class. Teacher expectations may be higher to help these students to succeed who come from homelessness or unemployed parents. Teachers may feel these students may not be able to have a good or high academic level. Teachers may favor some students. There are students who will pass and some who may just go through classes in this class. Teachers may expect students in this class to succeed better. They may treat these students better than students of a lower class. Teacher expectations of this class would be more like to pass and have high honors rather than the lower class students.
How does tracking positively or negatively impact this socioeconomic class? Tracking can positively impact this class because they are place with students who may also be struggling within the class. It could also have a negative impact because these students don’t have access to everything like other students in the class. These students are typically placed in a class so they can learn at a lower speed. Students in this class may be tracked in the lower performing students because they may not have the same opportunities as those in higher class. These students may also be placed within a slower paced classroom. Students may be placed in a tracking group where they can succeed. Students might excel from being placed in classes that help them do so. Tracking can benefit these students. These students are likely to be placed in courses that allow them to move onto college. Tracking can benefit these students more because they get placed in courses that allow them to be ready to enter college.
How is financial support for schools serving this class different from or similar to from the other socioeconomic classes? For this class, public schools must provide the same rights to students who are homeless. School districts must provide proper transportation to them. Teachers may have to provide school supplies for the students in these classrooms. This class may have more students in the schools and may not have advanced courses for the students. Teachers may need to supply school supplies for these students and may not have much to work with. The schools may receive financial assistance but may also need to purchase new supplies for the classroom. These students are typically more likely to go to a school that has more funding. This allows the teachers to have access to more supplies needed in order to teach. The schools have more funding available and receive more money per student. Teachers have access to supplies needed and don’t worry about running out of anything.
How well does the curriculum reflect this socioeconomic class’s experience? Explain your answer. This class struggles more with the curriculum because the students don’t usually have the supplies they need as they can’t afford it. This class is somewhat similar to unemployed/homeless as they still may need supplies and may not have the best curriculum available to them. The curriculum is more directed for this class. These students may get more out of the curriculum than students in a lower class. These students in the higher class get the most out of the curriculum.
What changes need to be made to the curriculum for this socioeconomic class to receive an equal educational opportunity? The students need more supplies available to them to learn better. These students should also be able to use the same things available as students in higher classes so learning is equal. The curriculum should have more examples of those who struggle and still made it as a hero. The curriculum should show areas of all people living in different classes. The curriculum should include more examples of how everyone is not the same or grows up in the same class. This is similar to the upper-middle class. The curriculum should also include more examples of how everyone is not the same or grows up in the same class.

350- to 500-word Summary:

Now that I have completed this matrix I can clearly see how the different socioeconomic status plays a large part in students and how they learn. People who are in the unemployment/homeless and working class are seen as students who need more help and may not succeed. Students in these classes may have fewer supplies in their school and less concerning their curriculum. Teachers may need to use their own money to help with supplies needed so students can learn. The students in these classes aren’t always given the same option but there should be changes made to allow these students be a part of better quality classes. Students in the middle-class appear to be in the middle. Their family can afford certain things but they have to choose what is more important. They typically live pay check to pay check and have little for savings. The curriculum in this class is directed around them and they may have a better understanding of what is being taught. The teachers may expect these students to fall in the middle where some students excel and others graze by with grades being in the middle. In the middle class, teachers may start to favor a certain student over others. In the upper middle and upper class, the teachers and parents start to expect their child to start exceeding and spend more time preparing for college. In these two classes, teachers favor students more because they are in higher quality classes and receive more supplies for the classes because the school receives more funding for each student. Being that the school receives more funding and supplies, it allows the school to afford books so students can be taught more during class time. Tracking the socioeconomic status on these classes can be a benefit for each class. Tracking students in the lower socioeconomic class may cause students to be placed in lower learning classes so they learn at a slower pace. This could slow the students down from learning to their fullest potential. Students in higher socioeconomic classes may be expected to take classes to prepare them for college but the students may not always be ready to take those classes. While many may say school is an equal opportunity for students, there are many stereotypes and backgrounds of these classes that may hold back or push students while they are in school. Students who are in the lower class are not able to get the equal learning as those who grow up in a higher social class. We need to look at each student independently and how they succeed rather than go by what socioeconomic class they come from. By doing so, it can be assured each and every student will get the proper learning they deserve so they can succeed and feel good about themselves.