Unequal Society and

Unequal Schooling
Unequal Society
What is an Unequal society?
• Social unequality is the existence of unequal opportunities and rewards for
different social positions or statuses within a group or society.
• It also refers to relational processes in society that have the effect of
limiting or harming a group's social status, social class, and social circle.
• Although the United States differs from most European nations that have a
titled nobility, the U.S. is still highly stratified.
• Social inequality has several important dimensions:
 Income (earning from work or investments)
Wealth (Total value of money and other assets minus debts)
• Other important dimensions include:
Power
Occupational Prestige
Schooling
Ancestry
Race
Ethnicity
• Areas of social inequality include
Access to voting rights
 Freedom of speech and assembly
the extent of property rights
Access to education, health care
Quality housing and other social goods and services.
• Apart from that it can also be seen in the quality of family and
neighbourhood life, occupation, job satisfaction, and access to credit.
• Social inequalities exist between ethnic or religious groups, classes
and countries making the concept of social inequality a global
phenomenon.
• It is also linked with gender inequality.
• The way people behave socially, through racist or sexist practices and
other forms of discrimination, tends to trickle down and affect the
opportunities and wealth individuals can generate for themselves.
• Shapiro presents a hypothetical example of this in his book, The
Hidden Cost of Being African American, in which he tries to
demonstrate the level of inequality on the "playing field for blacks
and whites.“
• One example he presents reports how a black family was denied a
bank loan to use for housing, while a white family was approved.
Effects:
• Unequal society nearly effects every dimension of our lives.
• For example, children from poor families are three times more likely to die
from disease, accident, neglect or violence during the first years of life than
those children born to wealthy families. In addition, on average, wealthy
people live longer than those less fortunate.
• Inequality affects economies as well, with growing evidence that excessive
inequality may be bad for growth. There are also concerns that inequality
may dampen educational opportunities and social mobility.
• As Education can play a powerful role in providing opportunities for people
from all sorts of backgrounds, but it can also reinforce existing economic
divisions in society.