This paper intends to begin a conversation about and suggest some principles for building more inclusive campus communities. The author explains what class culture is, how classism is embedded in everyday practices and why it is important to consider the way class shapes students, faculty, and staff, and in particular the working class. The paper…

A 1985 AFL-CIO report suggested that the steep decline in union affiliation among members of the working class might be related to the ways in which public schools shape student opinions on organized labor. During the Progressive era, labor educators and activists were also concerned that the civic education being provided working-class children…

Examined gender and racial differences in the grandparenting strengths and needs of working-class grandparents (N=192). Grandmothers perceived themselves as more involved in teaching their grandchildren and more successful in the grandparent role than did grandfathers. African-American grandparents considered themselves more involved in teaching…

Two tenets of U.S. ideology are equality of opportunity and social mobility. However, class-based analysis shows that higher education uses meritocratic rather democratic norms, limiting educational opportunities for the poor, the working class, and racial minorities. (SK)

"Connect" is an approach to family literacy in Scotland that recognizes that people have different literacies used in different life domains. It values home and community literacies and challenges the deficit perspective and dominant cultural and ideological patterns. (SK)

Draws on a longitudinal study of middle class and working class girls growing up to examine those few working class girls who managed to get to the university and face the prospect of a professional career. Explores the complexities of the losses and gains involved in the educational success and upward mobility for working-class young women and…

The work values of 3,637 factory workers are examined. Results indicate that (1) the value placed on types of rewards is affected by general values and perceptions of needs; (2) workers tend to value what is most available from work; and (3) factory workers are not necessarily instrumentally oriented to work. (Author/CH)

The creation in London of single-sex institutes for the education of women offered increased educational opportunities but did not widen their horizons. For working class women, educational policy regarding these institutes tended to support their domestic roles. (SK)

The health problems caused by damp housing in Glasgow, Scotland, led to a grass-roots community action campaign that improved living conditions. A second step was preventive health measures and research into other causes of ill health in disadvantaged areas. (SK)

Investigates how social class affects the educational narratives of working-class students--both their initial access to four-year institutions and their ability to persevere until they obtain bachelor's degrees. Argues that a genuine concern with diversity should lead compositionists to question the selective functions of the academy and the role…

Discusses ideologies of language and the division of labor in nineteenth century Wales, where the slate quarries drew their labor exclusively from monoglot Welsh populations. The division between labor and capital in these quarries correlated to a virtually categorical linguistic opposition between Welsh quarriers and English owners, with the…

An examination of turn-of-the-century maximum hours laws shows that in certain circumstances they increased women's share of employment but did not affect occupational sex segregation. These results support two theories: that such laws protect employers' class interests and that they protect both their gendered and their class interests. (SK)

Analyzes ordinary women's role in shaping school reform in their community, highlighting interplay of class conflict, regionalism, and gender roles in reform efforts. The women protesting the Odyssey Project framed the debate as a juncture between a national, elitist reform movement and a local grassroots countermovement protecting children,…

Notes how early junior college compositionists sought to socialize a largely working-class student body into a middle-class sensibility. Argues that educators must make time to create historical narratives of two-year colleges as a valuable precursor to fighting for institutional reforms within institutions. Analyzes the manner that curriculum…

Considers how the introductory business writing course is appropriate for the development of critical literacy, especially for students at second-tier, working-class colleges. Notes that the opposition between labor and management offers rich opportunities for the critical examination of corporate rhetoric, opportunities that are as relevant in…