Sociology HW

Learning Objective:

· To understand how social class affects child rearing and ultimately one’s chances in life

Introductory paragraph(s)

· Explain the purpose/theme of your paper

· Interview someone you know who you perceive to be of a different social class than your own (either higher or lower)

· Note: Use sensitivity when interviewing someone of a lower social class

· Using Lareau’s Unequal Childhoods as a guide, describe the ways in which the two upbringings are similar and different

· (Interview outline)

· Q: what would label your social class (working class, middle class, high class)

· A: Middle class

· Q: what is your grandparents’ social class?

· A: they are working class

· Q: Do you think that education is easy to get?

· A: yes, in specific areas of the world

· Q: do you think that the opportunity of getting a job is high?

· A: it depends on the degree of the person and what kind of job your applying for.

· Q: do you think it is possible for you to survive with $1500 monthly income?

· A: it is not possible to start life with this level of income.

Analysis/Findings

· How would you classify your social class? How would you classify your interviewee’s social class?

· Describe social class in terms of socioeconomic status: income, education, and occupation Comment by Samuel L Frye: These should be easy to answer about your own family, but may be difficult to ask about someone else's, particularly income. The types of questions you ask will help you approximate these categories, however. For example, using the social class ladder handout as a guide, ask not just the type of degree received, but about the university: Was it a prestigious, private liberal arts college, a community college, etc? In terms of occupation, does your interviewee's parents work in a factory, as a manager for a Fortune 500 company, etc? You could also ask about where they live, which may give you an approximation of social class: is it a small apartment in the inner city, a gated development, etc.?

· Compare and contrast the two upbringings

· Be sure to use the terms concerted cultivation and the accomplishment of natural growth where appropriate Comment by Samuel L Frye: For these terms you can ask about the types of activities they participated in while growing up, whether their parents were authoritative, or encouraged them to speak their mind, etc. The chart on p. 158 in Lareau's article should help.

· Explain how the two upbringings structure advantages/disadvantages in life (transmission of differential advantages) and ultimately social mobility Comment by Samuel L Frye: For social mobility you'll need to ask your interviewee about his or her grandparents' line of work in order to find out if there was vertical or horizontal mobility from one generation to the next.

Conclusion

· Brief summary of your findings

· What did you learn?

References

(Be sure to pay attention to details like italics, punctuation, etc.)

(Book)

Last Name, X. X. (YEAR). Title. Publication City, State: Publisher

(Indent second line).

(Chapter in an edited book)

Last Name, X. X. (YEAR). Chapter Title. In X. Last Name. (Eds.), Book Title (pp. xxx-xxx). City, State: Publisher.

(Indent second line)

(Journal article)

Last Name, X. X. (YEAR). Title. Journal name, Volume, Page range

(Indent second line).

Appendix

Attach your interview notes.

1