As social stratification has deepened in society, educational capital and academic performance

have differentiated according to learners’ socio-economic status. Therefore, this paper will
discuss the effects of social class on the performance of learners in line with the social
stratification theory.

Social stratification refers to a society’s categorization of its people into rankings of social
economic tiers like wealth, income, race, education and power. Stratification is part and parcel of
social life. Every society defines a means of categorizing each person into a particular social
group. The placement of each individual in turn determines his value, as defined by the larger
society; hence, the greater role of society in defining every person’s value (Levine, 1996).

However, social class or socioeconomic status greatly impacts child development and student
achievement outcomes. It is well documented in educational and child development research that
there is a significant achievement gap between children of economically stable backgrounds and
economically disadvantaged environments.

Social stratification or socioeconomic status has created a societal phenomenon where those with
greater economic resources have access to more opportunities than those of lesser financial
means. Research has identified that those with more opportunities succeed at higher levels in
academia than learners on lower levels of the class based system.

According to Khodabandelou (1972) learners’ socio-economic status has a positive impact on

their academic performance. Learners from families with higher socio-economic status have
access to higher quality education resources, including high-quality schools and market-based
educational services. Parents in families with high socio-economic status participate in their
children’s education more readily. Parents’ participation has a positive impact on learners’ study
effort. School quality, parent participation, and study effort are positively correlated to learners’
academic performance. These all reflect the impact of socio-economic status on academic
performance. Specifically, these results reveal that family background affects academic
performance through two pathways: direct access and behavioural support. Families use their
socio-economic resources to compete and purchase high-quality educational resources while

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providing educational participation and behavioural support that cultivates children's learning
interests and habits. Each of these mechanisms influences children's academic achievement.

Social economic status affects overall human functioning, including our physical and mental
health. Low social economic status and its correlates, such as lower educational achievement,
poverty and poor health, ultimately affect our society. Research indicates that children from low-
social economic status households and communities develop academic skills slower than
children from higher social economic status groups (Morgan et al, 2009). For example, low
social economic status in childhood is related to poor cognitive development, language, memory,
socio-emotional processing, and consequently poor income and health in adulthood. The school
systems in low- social economic status communities are often under resourced, negatively
affecting students’ academic progress and outcomes (Aikens and Barbarin, 2008). Inadequate
education and increased dropout rates affect children’s academic achievement. Improving school
systems and early intervention programs may help to reduce some of these risk factors.

Literacy gaps in children from different socioeconomic backgrounds exist before formal
schooling begins. Children from low-social economic status families are less likely to have
experiences that encourage the development of fundamental skills of reading acquisition, such as
phonological awareness, vocabulary, and oral language (Buckingham et al, 2013). As such
children’s initial reading competency is correlated with the home literacy environment, number
of books owned, and parent distress. However, poor households have less access to learning
materials and experiences, including books, computers, stimulating toys, skill-building lessons,
or tutors to create a positive literacy environment (Bradley et al, 2003).

Education is a major component of social class, both directly and indirectly. Directly, individuals
from higher social classes are more likely to have the means to attend more prestigious schools,
and are therefore more likely to receive higher educations. Indirectly, individuals who benefit
from such higher education are more likely to land prestigious jobs, and in turn, higher salaries.
Just as education and social class are closely intertwined, stratification in education contributes
to stratification in social class.

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Educational attainment refers to the level of schooling a person completes for instance, high
school, some college, college, or a graduate degree. Upper class individuals are likely to attend
schools of higher quality and of greater prestige than those attended by their lower class
counterparts. Because members of high social classes tend to be better educated and have higher
incomes, they are able to offer greater educational advantages, such as private schooling, to their
children as well.

Increasing evidence supports the link between lower socio-economic status and learning
disabilities or other negative psychological outcomes that affect academic achievement. Low
socio-economic status and exposure to adversity are linked to decreased educational success
(McLaughlin & Sheridan, 2016). Such toxic stress in early childhood leads to lasting impacts on
learning, behavior, and health (Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health
et al., 2012).

Children from lower socio-economic status households are about twice as likely as those from
high- socio-economic status households to display learning-related behavior problems. A
mother’s socio-economic status is also related to her child’s inattention, disinterest, and lack of
cooperation in school (Morgan et al., 2009). Perception of family economic stress and personal
financial constraints affected emotional distress/depression in students and their academic
outcomes (Mistry, Benner, Tan, & Kim, 2009).

It is clear from the above that the relationship between educations and social stratification is
complex than what it appears to be. It is true that education has enough potentiality for change
the system of stratification. But this potentiality itself seems to be governed by the existing item
of stratification.

In conclusion, it can be said that from the point of view of an educational system those who are
already at the upper strata of the society are likely to gain more. They have higher achievement
motivation and their environment helps them. If we wish to provide equality of educational
opportunists we will have to keep this aspect in mind.

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 References

Bradley, R. H., Corwyn, R. F., McAdoo, H. P., & García Coll, C. (2001). The home
environments of children in the United States Part I: Variations by age, ethnicity, and poverty
status. Child Development, 72, 1844-1867. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.t 01-1-00382.

Ezewu, H. (1986). Sociology of Stratification and Social Equalities. 1st ed. Mashhad. Faculty
Press of Jahad Daneshgahi.

Khodabandelou, S. (1972). Sociology of Stratification and Social Equalities. 1st ed. Mashhad.
Faculty Press of Jahad Daneshgahi

Levine, D.U. (1996). Society and education (9th Ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Weber, M. (1964). The Theory of Social and Educational Status. 1st Education, New York: The
Press.