Social Class CREQ Essay

The essential question that I am focusing on for this CREQ is “Why do we have an “achievement gap” between students from different communities, racial and ethnic groups, and social class groups?” I feel that chapters 3 and 4 of the Johnson text allow me some insight on this particular essential question, considering the focus is on the relationship between capitalism and racism. This chapter reminded me of a question asked in our taping project, “How often do you think of your skin color?” and the response from the Johnson text is: when you’re white, you don’t have to. When you are a white, heterosexual, middle class student, you are able to attend school with learning as your only priority. The only obstacle in the way of that student’s success is

themselves. However, this is not the case for students from different communities, racial and ethnic groups, and social class groups. They do not have the privilege of “forgetting” their identity because the dominant group will not allow them to; a fact that is especially true for students of color. Unfortunately, academic achievement is not necessarily a matter of who is trying the hardest.

Students outside of the bubble of “white, cis-het, middle class” have to ask themselves “Is my teacher racist, homophobic, transphobic? Are my classmates?” The micro-aggressions add up; a teacher constantly mispronouncing or not remembering POC students’ names, POC students not being called on, POC students only being called on when the classroom discussion involves their race/ethnicity/culture. It is not fostering an environment where these individuals feel free to simply learn, like their white, more privileged classmates. These groups are constantly plagued stereotype threat, the fear of confirming an existing stereotype of their group. When they participate in class, they are risking being viewed as a representative of their entire race/ethnic group. A quote that stood out for me from chapter 4 of the Johnson text was “Racism means living in a society that predisposes whites to see the worst in people of color and ignore the best, a society in which acceptance must be won anew every day.” How can we expect students of color close the achievement gap without providing them an environment in which they are safe

learn.
I focused primarily on the reasons why we have an “achievement gap” between different racial and ethnic groups, but that is because there is likely to be overlap between students of color and students living in poverty due to POC being paid less than white people and in general being discriminated against under capitalism. There are several reasons as to why living in poverty would put a student at a disadvantage compared to peers in different socio-economic classes. One reason is a limited access to materials. Teachers assign projects that require materials that students have to go out and purchase, or use technology that some students might not have access to. Additionally, many students in poor financial situations might have to prioritize working jobs as an extra source of income for their families over completing school work. To summarize, I imagine it must be incredibly difficult to learn and thrive in a school setting when “real world” issues are constantly looming over you.