The Provision of High-Quality Education - Case Study Example

Impact of Social on College Success Success exists as an equal shot to all in a perfect world. This can be achieved through the provision of high quality education by excellent schools that employ highly qualified educators. Conversely, research has proven that a student’s social class can greatly influence success in the field he or she is studying. As a result, a clear correlation exists between a student with low socioeconomic background and academic progress. Low or no academic progress could result into problems in the student’s life, for instance, unemployment, accepting employment on a low wage job or dropping out of college (Eimers and Pike 84). This paper will examine the traditions in which students’ upper or lower social class environment is the backbone of a sense belonging among students currently in college in the United States. A sense of belonging is important for psychological and physiological well-being of students in college. Therefore, the need of the students to feel that they belong in a particular place exists as a fundamental human motivation. Research has documented the factors and ways in which young people in college choose friends. They do this by deciding on whom to include and whom not to include in their social circles. Those excluded are affected majorly in their psychology inducing negative emotional states among the college students. Other students in college have limited sense of belonging because of childhood experiences. This is fostered majorly the sport played while in high school (if at all the student participated in any) or care portrayed by parents. Thus, the financial difficulties faced by the family hindered a sense of belonging. When a student is able to identify with a given group helps to ground a sense of belonging (Ballantine and Spade 99). With the use of a slightly differing paradigm, Walton and Cohen (1448) suggest that prejudice might exist intentionally against members of groups to which they have limited or no opportunity to ground their roots. Therefore, race, national origin and gender are the main bases of prejudice. Social class exists as a slightly complicated variable because social mobility avails to most of the students an opportunity to belong to a class group of their choice. Markers that portray class like speech, clothing and interest, more often than not, are used to highlight people of similar social class. Clearly, recent educational institutions utilize these class markers to define, perfectly or unambiguously, to the class that each belongs. College students, especially those with a low social class, who are women and or who are of color experience discrimination in relation to their social class than any other group. Numerous literatures on sociology documenting attendance in higher institution portray a strong relationship between college attendance and class background. Moreover, they also highlight the relationship between social class and places people attend college. It is worth noting that a person’s social class shapes the kind of institution he or she belongs to. Titus (384) bases his research on color and discovered that people of color experience strong doubts in relation to belonging at institutions that are known to be predominantly white populated. African American students with sensitive status-based refutation felt an inferior sense of belonging at the university than students that are less sensitive (Kao 134). Research conducted in England confirmed the numerous ways in which education was shaped by social class background. It was noted that gender, class and race are a major influence in the choices of degrees that students decide to pursue while in university. Most students of color turn down offers to attend Cambridge in England because they felt that they would be the only brown face in campus. Moreover, they revealed that they would automatically be placed in the lower socioeconomic bracket without being given the opportunity to prove themselves. Moreover, students working to support their tuition and upkeep mostly decide to attend local technical colleges instead of prestigious universities that they are qualified to attend. This is because of the fear that they will be discriminated and laughed at because they are from a poor background (Barnett, Sonnert, and Sadler 898). In the United States, working-class students (both men and women of diverse races) show that they are at a drawback in relation to their knowledge regarding postsecondary education. This is because most of them focus on their work hence having less time to invest in their class work. Therefore, majority, if not all, fail to persist to graduation because they drop out of college in the course of their studies while their middle class counterparts continue to enjoy the benefits of being well-off. Therefore, a student’s socioeconomic status lays a heavy measure on the ability of the student to complete college. Students of color, particularly those from disadvantaged economic backgrounds, face greater hurdles when meeting academic responsibilities in their college (Harackiewicz, Barron, Tauer and Elliot 569). Moreover, they find is tiresome to fit in the social and intellectual life that college demands due to insufficient financial resources. First-generation students who attended college, especially those whose parents had attained a college education, were enrolled in less selective universities, worked a lot while in school, participated less in extracurricular activities and had lower cumulative GPAs. It is noted that these divergences failed to translate into liabilities because the extracurricular activities strongly influenced first generation’s level of critical thinking hence translated into academic success. Moreover, students from low socioeconomic status (SES) participated less on co-curricular activities because they spent more time in their places of work so that they can earn a living. As a result, they gained low GPAs when compared to their counterparts from high-SES backgrounds. Years down the line after college, these students were earning low incomes and had translated into reduced numbers of those that attended graduate school (Eimers and Pike 87). A high social class goes hand-in-hand with the unlimited access to prestigious resources. These are the ability to afford private tutors, private schools; private lessons that focus on the individual and higher quality public schools. As a result, the children attain unmatched education at their fingertips. Conversely, students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds live on limited resources. These are poor quality of education from public institutions, stressful environments back at home and in school (Midgley, Maehr, Hruda, E. Anderman, and L. Anderman 27). Therefore, they rely on the limited resources leading to degradation on their morale hence perform poorly in class decreasing their ability to succeed later in life. Studies conducted place students from low social classes’ students on the receiving end. This means that the children are more likely to engage in substance abuse as a means of escaping reality. This is because they are constantly embarrassed, neglected and abused. Therefore, they indulge in the substances to help them forget all their troubles. It is known that with substance abuse, the students focus less on their schoolwork hence fail. Additionally, due to lack of proper background, they are likely to more from one place to another more often. With movement, the students change their learning environment and institutions hence lag behind in their classes. As a result, they fail. It is common knowledge currently that attaining a 4-year degree is an assured path to success hence a higher socioeconomic status. This is in relation to students who earn 2-year college degrees. Moreover, students who have parents that have attended college have a higher chance of successfully completing college as compared to students’ whose parents do not hold four-year degrees. This is because the students with parents that have degrees have a benchmark onto which they have to beat (Hurst 56). Moreover, they receive less discrimination in relation to their social background as compared to the other students. Therefore, success in college relies heavily on whether or not the student’s parents succeeded in college. It is vital to state that a child usually sees his or her parents as the first role models. Therefore, the child picks up cues from the parents on potential goals, opportunities available and keys that could lead to success. Child psychologists state that children who see themselves to be in high social classes usually have parents that are successful in such milestones. On the contrary, children from lower social classes are less probable to have parents that have achieved a lot in life. To narrow this social class achievement gap, programs are uprooting in majority of colleges and universities all around the U.S. these programs aim specifically to aid first-generation students experience a smooth transition into higher learning institutions. It is noted that these programs frequently assume that the recommended students are in need of supplementary financial resources in the form of money for books or academic resources. The financial obligation is taken care in form of student loans that are awarded to the students in monetary terms and are supposed to repay the loan after completion of their education (Titus 397). Bridging courses that offer supplementary academic resources are offered in majority of universities hence give the students extra skills on how to study and plan their time s as to succeed in universities. Financial resources pegged with academic skills are an essential requirement for success in college. However, these are not sufficient to enable a smooth learning environment. The less fortunate students need psychological backing so that they can believe that they have a right to be in college and thrive like those who are more fortunate. The first-generation students complain of being left out hence have trouble fitting. This class of students also experiences struggles in relation to cultural conflicts between values, assumptions and norms of their backgrounds (Ricarda, Dinger, and Birgit 346). It is key to highlight the fact that undermine their academic performance hence their likelihood to succeed later in life. As a result, these first-generation students fail to achieve an explanation to their struggles and the ways they can do or change to perform better. Through understanding the root cause of their struggles, the students can conquer identity-based obstacles. For instance, universities can introduce semester-long interventions that deal with intergroup dialogues and interactions. Through this, students from diverse social groups will interact. As a result, consideration and appreciation of peoples’ background exists developed hence shape life experiences and perspectives. This intervention, where tested, stands noted to increase inter-social engagement, understanding, empathy hence acceptance (Walton and Cohen 1445). Through teaching college students on how different backgrounds have been known to shape students’ experiences, first-generation students will be armed with the psychological resources they require to fit into college life hence succeed. This theory can be tested through the development of educational intervention seminars in which senior students open up on their personal experiences to the new incoming lot of students. In particular, they could highlight how their diverse backgrounds (giving more emphasis on social class backgrounds) awarded specific foundations, vulnerabilities, and strategies for success while they were in college. With such interventions, the first-generation students will understand that it is normal to have cultural differences. Additionally, they become aware of the challenges that often accompany ‘people like them’ hence figure out remedies that can triumph over the challenges. A common obstacle faced by first-generation students is the lack of knowledge on how they can take advantage of the resources that are abundantly available in the college (Walton and Cohen 1449). It is hoped that through these intervention seminars, first-generation students will feel empowered hence recognize and take full advantage of the resources that are available. This will translate into better academic performance reducing the social attainment gap. Diversity approach in the education sector benefits students in higher institutions of learning disregarding their backgrounds. It is noted that majority of students in college struggle with identity-based problems hence lack the necessary psychological assets to overcome such hurdles. Using a diversity educational intervention, psychological outcomes will be improved for all first-year students hence ease the transition from high school into college to a smooth one (Midgley, Maehr, Hruda, E. Anderman, and L. Anderman 45). It is important to note that a person’s social background does not define their character or define their lives. Research worldwide has proven that children from poor socioeconomic backgrounds often succeed as compared to their counterparts from wealthy backgrounds. This is seen in an article in ‘Youth and Society’ where a survey was conducted in 2012. It highlighted that majority of students in higher institutions who are on full educational scholarships are from poor backgrounds. As a result, fair treatment ought to be accorded to all students in higher learning institutions regardless of their social background. This, among other benefits, enables the youth to develop important networks. They can also develop new skills in aspects such as public speaking and organization, as well as helping them nurture their talents and improve the quality of their lives. Through the recommendations stated above, higher learning institutions can become a haven for all students from all areas of life to interact and form longtime friendships. It is vital to treat an illness while it is still on its initial stages of development. Therefore, it is also important for the recommendations to be taken to all lower institutions of learning to treat the disease of social class divisions while the children are still young. In addition, parents ought to be taught on good parenting skills. This affects both lower and upper socioeconomic class parents. Therefore, the children will have role models that portray the importance of acceptance of all persons regardless of their sex, color or social class hence develop into better persons in future. Works Cited Ballantine, Jeanne H, and Joan Z. Spade. Schools and Society: A Sociological Approach to Education. Los Angeles: Sage/Pine Forge Press, 2012. Print. Barnett, Melissa D, Gerhard Sonnert, and Philip M. Sadler. "More Like Us: the Effect of Immigrant Generation on College Success in Mathematics." International Migration Review. 46.4 (2013): 891-918. Print. Eimers, M T, and G R. Pike. "Minority and Nonminority Adjustment to College: Differences or Similarities?" Research in Higher Education New York. 38.1 (1997): 77-98. Print Harackiewicz, J M, K E. Barron, J M. Tauer, and A J. Elliot. "Predicting Success in College: a Longitudinal Study of Achievement Goals and Ability Measures As Predictors of Interest and Performance from Freshman Year Through Graduation." Journal of Educational Psychology. 94 (2002): 562-575. Print. Hurst, Allison L. College and the Working Class: What It Takes to Make It. Rotterdam: SensePublishers, 2012. Internet resource Kao, G. "Asian Americans As Model Minorities?: A Look at Their Academic Performance." American Educational Research Journal. 103.2 (1995): 121-159. Print. Midgley, C, M. L. Maehr, L. Z. Hruda, E. Anderman, and L. Anderman. Manual for the patterns of adaptive learning scales. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 2000. Print. Moderator, V I. D. "Education in an Age of Social Turbulence." Russian Education & Society. 54.12 (2012): 3-96. Print. Steinmayr, Ricarda, Felix C. Dinger, and Birgit Spinath. "Motivation As a Mediator of Social Disparities in Academic Achievement." European Journal of Personality. 26.3 (2012): 335-349. Print. Titus, M A. "Understanding College Degree Completion of Students with Low Socioeconomic Status: the Influence of the Institutional Financial Context." Research in Higher Education New York. 47.4 (2006): 371-398. Print. Walton, G.M, and G.L Cohen. "A Brief Social-Belonging Intervention Improves Academic and Health Outcomes of Minority Students." Science. 331.6023 (2011): 1447-1451. Print. Read More