Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum

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Social Class and The Hidden Curriculum There are many types of schools available for students and are separated into different levels depending ones social class. In the article “Social Class and The Hidden Curriculum of Work” Jean Anyon describes to us the different classes of schools and how they operate and prepare students for the future. Anyon argues there is more to what the school teaches students than what they learn in class. She states that there is a “hidden curriculum” taught by schools which are values embedded within lessons that the school provide. When the article was written in 1980, there were four main types of schools: Working Class, Middle Class, Affluent Professional, and Executive Elite. Now 30 years later there are still the four types of classes Anyon presented, in addition there are also many new types of schools, like a combination of two or more classes. These different schools are broken down by their socioeconomic class and ways of teaching. As stated by Anyon, schools have a “hidden curriculum” such as Milpitas High School which is a combination of Middle Class and Affluent Professional. In Middle class schools students are expected to learn and follow the guidelines the teachers provide. Anyon analyzed that students in middle class schools must “follow the directions in order to get the right answers, but directions often call for some figuring, some choice, and some decision making.”(p128) Students should often figure out what the directions ask and solve the problem themselves. The teachers are there to give students the first step in order for them to succeed. Milpitas high is also an Affluent Professional school. In an Affluent Professional school students are encouraged to work and think independently, they are as Anyon said, “Constantly asked to express and apply ideas and concepts.”(p130) Suggesting that the
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