Since we are starting a new section in this class that will begin talking about education and equality, I wanted to ask that question on the syllabus to yall about this topic!
How does social class impact educational outcomes?
I feel that a person's social class has a huge impact on a person's educaitonal outcome. I have read and learned about in many of my classes that children that come into school with any background home life learn in different ways than all other kids will. This background history can be based of pervious learning or even social class. Both of these facts can affect students in a positive or negative way.
The true question is how are we going ot deal with different social classes in our classroom to make it as fair as we can?

I think that dealing with students in a variety of social classes is going to be a challenge. It will be difficult to create activities in all subjects that will benefit children of different levels of learning. I think one of the biggest things to remember when trying to even the playing field for children is that they may not have access to extra help and materials at home. We should keep this in mind when assigning projects or other homework that will require adult assistance or use of other materials that may not be in every home or that a family may have to purchase. It would be difficult and unfair to assign a project that required adult assistance or store bought materials. I also think that it is important to have a large classroom library that could allow children to "check out" books from you and take them home to read. This would be helpful because some children may not have access to a lot of literature at home. I also think that it is important to provide as many in class materials as possible such as drawing/writing paper, crayons, pencils etc. so that all children will have access to these things. Students will be influenced and affected by their home life but also by their life at school. It is important for students to be treated as equally as possible and have equal opportunities for success in a classroom setting.

Students coming from different social classes will create a challenge in the classroom, but I think a good challenge. I think it is very important to understand that community you are working in and research where the students will be coming from. Not only that but get to know your students and how they learn best and more about their background. No student will be a like and as a teacher we have to find that balance so that each students receives the best quality of education. Some students will take longer than others to understand so there need to be back up plans for the farther along students and a classroom where even the students can help each other. Different social classes forming a classroom is a great form of diversity for the teacher as well as the students. It's just finding that balance that can become difficult.

Casey Gill

I agree with all the replys so far that it will be a challenge having students coming from different social classes. I agree with Katie Stover about making the classroom equal and thinking about the student home life before assigning projects that require adult assistance or extra materials that are not provided. This makes me think of a situation that I saw when I interned in highschool for a preschool class. The students were learning how to write their names and the teacher sent home a worksheet so they could practice. She knew that some of the parents were not around to help their children so she also planned time in the mornings when the students came in to go to a table where the teacher and I helped them write their names about three times on a line and they did this every morning. So the kids might have not been getting help at home but they were still getting the adult assistance they needed at school. That teacher also had a system that if a student needed supplies to do a project, like crayons, or paper, the teacher had a "rental system". If a student took a supply home she had a sheet on the wall that she would write the students name and what they took from the classroom. This seemed to work very well.

Social class doesn't always have to be an issue if you just address it correctly.

I think that teachers have to be really careful about social class in the classroom. It can greatly upset some students and in some situations cause a problem between the student and the teacher if it is brought up in the wrong manner. I noticed that even with a college class (ours) some people were uncomfortable standing up or sitting down for the questions Dr. Turner asked, but I know those are not topics to be discussed in school. I agree that you do have to be careful about assigning work that may require help from parents because some children don't have access to that kind of help. Also, with some assignments dealing with family trees or other activities I remember from school could pose problems. Social class is just a very touchy issue with me, I do not like making people feel uncomfortable or giving some people the gateway to poke fun at others.

I agree with most of what has already been said. Social class is a very difficult topic, but unfortunately we will all have to deal with it in the classroom. I agree that as teachers we need to be sure that we don't assume anything about our students home life.
Assigning projects that require adult assistance or store bought materials may be no problem for some students and others may have no access to that. I like the idea about the teacher being available to the students if they do need assistance and can't get it at home. I also like the idea about letting students "rent" materials for projects if they do not have them at home. However, I think it is important not to draw too much attention to these situations. Students may become embarassed if their classmates find out that they have to borrow materials from the classroom or use the teacher for assistance because they don't have a parent or guardian available at home. I would probably make sure that the students know they can talk to me in private if they need help or materials and try to keep it as private as possible.
Overall, I think I would try to just be aware when teaching and using references to the fact that all students come from different backgrounds. I would also try to make sure that my students knew that they could come to me for assistance and keep their situation as confidential as possible.

I agree with what everybody else has said, and theres been a lot of good points. I think that dealing with social class can be difficult only if we make it that way. I believe that by treating every student equally we can really impact lives. If we try our hardest to be as fair of teachers as we can be then we can show the "upper class" that they don't always get their way, and the "lower class" that they can be treated equally, too, regardless of class. I've always tried to make it a point in my life to talk to everyone, no matter what other people think of them, or what their class is. Stepping out of your class comfort zone isn't really easy at first, but once you do in your personal life then once you are a teacher treating your students fairly will be easier.