Book chapter
181Let's Talk About Class: Exploring Social Class Identity Through Intergroup Dialogue
Social Class Supports, pp 181-194
2021
Abstract
In today's postindustrial America, social class as an identity has been deprioritized in favor of new social movements and shifting identity politics focused on race, gender, and sexual orientation. But research shows that a student's higher education experience is influenced by their social class, beginning with their ability to choose and access postsecondary education and continuing into their academic experiences and everything in-between and beyond (Ostrove & Cole, 2003; Paulsen & St. John, 2002; Pearce et al., 2008). Societal social class norms and stereotypes are pervasive and can be harmful if not recognized, yet the topic of social class is rarely acknowledged outright on today's campuses (Buckley & Park, 2019). To achieve an awareness of the often-invisible population of poor and working-class students, class divisions need to be acknowledged. This chapter provides a means to raise awareness and understanding of the cultural differences associated with social class to enhance the college experience for poor and working-class students who often experience class-culture discontinuities. It offers guidance on how to facilitate a 12-week intergroup dialogue curriculum focused on social class. The curriculum is a modification of an existing graduate course at the University of Redlands and is informed by the findings of a phenomenological research study on working-class college students (Rogers, 2019).
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Details
- Title
- 181Let's Talk About Class
- Creators
- Michelle L. RogersAdriana Ruiz Alvarado
- Contributors
- Georgianna L. Martin (Editor)Sonja Ardoin (Editor)
- Publication Details
- Social Class Supports, pp 181-194
- Publisher
- Routledge
- Edition
- 1
- Resource Type
- Book chapter
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Information Science
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85166042033
- Other Identifier
- 991021786446104721