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Classism in Schools
"The language that educators use to address students can maintain and reinforce class structures and classist attitudes. The antidote? Anti-classist language."
-Nichole Berg, Learning For Justice
My name is Pat and I'm at secondary ed history major. I had trouble in school and don't feel looking back that it was a very intellectually nurturing environment. I want to become a teacher because I think although making changes at a structural level is very difficult for any one person, anyone who chooses to become a teacher can do their part to create an inclusive and intellectually stimulating environment. People who don't want to learn won't learn, and those who are alienated from an institution stand very little chance of wanting to participate in it and trusting it. As future educators we ought to make it our mission to implement what we have learned. One of the most overlooked marginalized groups, the awareness of which has been eroded by media and business conglomerates heavily in the 20th century, is social class. Students from what are called "lower" classes don't only face difficulty outside of the classroom- they face a stifling influence in school walls as well.
"You don’t want to be on welfare later in life. Make sure you study and do well in school.” This sort of statement is all too commonly heard in schools. Unfortunately, this language reinforces classist structures present in almost all school districts. Students coming from working poor families will hear their parents occupations, and perhaps the family's assistance status often maligned to be lazy, stupid, or even selfish. It goes without saying this is a travesty of social justice. It immediately alienates students from poor families and creates a distrust of the school system (understandably so.) This eliminates the chances of said students getting an inclusive education that represents their backgrounds and needs. The solution, according to educator mentor and Learning For Justice journalist Nichole Berg, is to use anti-classist language. Students also benefit from the study of income inequality, part of what Berg refers to as equity literacy. Teaching students to think critically about what life is like for others and the nature of the systems that determine ones socioeconomic status is incredibly important to creating an inclusive environment. I will use this strategy by not only using anti-classist language when discussing "real world" or non curriculum matters, as well as alluding to class issues when possible in curriculum materials when possible and appropriate.
"Our most vulnerable students experience multiple and repetitive exposure to overlapping negative experiences that impact them emotionally, psychologically, and physically as a result of their intersecting identities and factors." Race and class are the most significant indicators to the achievement of black and latine students. In an article published by SCSU's Journal of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Dr. Michael McIntosh claims that Social Justice Leadership is the key to helping students overcome these barriers. This includes training on how to respond to the symptoms of chronic interpersonal trauma and stress. Learning how best to approach creating an inclusive, community-centered classroom through a trauma-recovery lens is something I will work on through my studies as well as my career.
Betty Yirga from the student newspaper at Washington College, The Elm, makes a case for affirmative action. It is refreshing as this is a much maligned policy by reactionaries. I believe Yirga is correct that this is a good strategy to at least help some people to gain opportunities they normally wouldn't have temporarily, but the reform will have to go deeper structurally than Affirmative Action to be truly equitable.
This article goes into detail about how classism affects the classroom and how to deal with it. It details how it is important for teachers to speak up about these matters but also create an atmosphere where students feel they can do the same. This article also made me think about how the terminology we use to describe those experiencing poverty turns it into their identity, such as "poor people" or "homeless people"
If classism is taught in school, and steps are taken to create an inclusive school environment, students from more privileged classes can become class allies, while those from less privileged classes will feel that their hardships are recognized. It is also important to teach students about the intersection between race and classism, and how some white people being from a less privileged class does not disprove systemic race correlation in class structure. This resource recommends using lessons directly relating to classism in the curriculum, to raise student awareness and encourage them to think for themselves how best to address this issue.
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