Education is one of the largest deciding factors that determines an individual 's opportunity for upward social mobility. In order to achieve upward social mobility, students must obtain the credentials required for a career in a specified field. The United States is in a postindustrial economy, leaving the two largest sectors for employment as either knowledge or service based. More often than not, serviced based jobs pay poorly and offer little chance for individual economic advancement. Traditionally, upward mobility is found through careers in knowledge-based fields. These jobs are almost always held by people who have received the specified credentials that are required for their chosen career. Educational Institutions are responsible
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The symbolic interactionist perspective is the theoretical perspective that I most disagree with for the social problem of education. I believe that almost everyone has the same basic potential for intelligence and success. Some symbolic interactionists believe that intelligence can be inherited and that some races have more potential than others. However, I believe that it is pre-existing cultural capital that largely determines how well a student will do on standardized tests which then brand a student for his/her entire academic career. However, it is the hidden curriculum that ultimately decides who will receive the credentials for higher paying jobs. For instance, children from low-income families receive a strict curriculum that is full of remedial programs designed to catch students up to make sure they succeed on standardized tests. This is done to guarantee that schools continue to receive their current amount of federal funding. But for children of middle to upper middle-class families their curriculum is designed to build critical thinking skills and stimulate creativity. In essence, middle to upper middle-class children will go on to receive the credentials required for high paying jobs while lower income children are slotted to fulfill the lower paying jobs. When class has become one of the most prevalent factors that determine success, how can we as a society expect poor and low-income families to achieve upward
The symbolic interactionist perspective is the theoretical perspective that I most disagree with for the social problem of education. I believe that almost everyone has the same basic potential for intelligence and success. Some symbolic interactionists believe that intelligence can be inherited and that some races have more potential than others. However, I believe that it is pre-existing cultural capital that largely determines how well a student will do on standardized tests which then brand a student for his/her entire academic career. However, it is the hidden curriculum that ultimately decides who will receive the credentials for higher paying jobs. For instance, children from low-income families receive a strict curriculum that is full of remedial programs designed to catch students up to make sure they succeed on standardized tests. This is done to guarantee that schools continue to receive their current amount of federal funding. But for children of middle to upper middle-class families their curriculum is designed to build critical thinking skills and stimulate creativity. In essence, middle to upper middle-class children will go on to receive the credentials required for high paying jobs while lower income children are slotted to fulfill the lower paying jobs. When class has become one of the most prevalent factors that determine success, how can we as a society expect poor and low-income families to achieve upward