SOCIOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM

SOCIOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM AND WHAT KEN LOACH'S "I DANIEL BLAKE" CAN DO FOR US AS A SOCIETY. 


Illustration by Cynthia kittler

I know it is quite strange to bring up a film to reference as something that has helped me understand the human struggle. but i really feel strongly that something as universally accesible as a film can shift mindsets regarding intersectionality in the classroom. it can cement the idea that the oppressions that happen to students and people on a daily basis cannot be combated alone. intersectionality is not something to be looked at or helped alone. we as people must address the issues around social class together. 

“I am not a client, a customer, nor a service user. I am not a shirker, a scrounger, a beggar nor a thief. I am not a national insurance number, nor a blip on a screen. I paid my dues, never a penny short, and was proud to do so. I don’t tug the forelock but look my neighbour in the eye. I don’t accept or seek charity. My name is Daniel Blake, I am a man, not a dog. As such I demand my rights. I demand you treat me with respect. I, Daniel Blake, am a citizen, nothing more, nothing less. Thank you.”

- i daniel blake

The severe homogeneity of class groupings within school settings could be a severe disadvantage to students, when students are going through post primary schooling they are experiencing their most formative years, they should be building trusting and positive relationships with a spectrum of social backgrounds, ethnicities, genders and mixed abilities. That’s what makes this world an interesting place to thrive in, diverse opinions and viewpoints build strong character and curiosity within young learners. Learning that we are global citizens from  the start of education could be the positive answer we are all looking for.

Education is a social institution promoting the development of skills, knowledge and the broadening of one’s horizons in a variety of settings.

Schooling is a formal process for the delivery of education, it is a socially, politically and culturally shaped practice that has become mandatory on most countries

Every person has a script in their lives, we as teachers are here to let these young learners know that their setting, past traumas, views on education do not define what is in their script. We are here to let them know that wherever you come from, whatever you can achieve you just have to try. We must diminish preconceived notions that have been ingrained in us through society and teach every hopeful young learner in a nurturing and positive way.

The lack of political commitment to equality in education is evident from cuts to educational services for children with learning disabilities, Travellers, and language supports for immigrant children over the last ten years. The latter cutbacks exemplify in particular the ways in which race and disability interface with social class in undermining equal opportunities: lower income households (and low-income immigrant families are among them), rely most heavily on public services; the lack of investment in public services impacts most severely on them (TASC 2015, 2016a).

When we start to value money over morals thats when the education system fails, through point systems, grind culture, leader boards we are teaching these young minds that success equals money and a lot of it. That could be one of the most dangerous things you could ever learn. You should measure success in personal achievement, strong positive morals and a empathic compass that points towards doing good.