Tag Archives: meritocracy

Class Ceilings

Posted on April 17, 2023 by Working-Class Perspectives

Most of us have stopped believing in the myth of the meritocracy. The myth promises that the ablest or most intelligent or hardest working get ahead of the rest.  Most everyone realizes this is not true, yet we continue to … Continue reading →

Posted in Allison L. Hurst, Class and Education, Contributors, Issues, The Working Class and the Economy, Understanding Class | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Beyond Economic Populism

Posted on January 4, 2021 by Working-Class Perspectives

Predictably, politicos and commentators spent much of 2020 debating why working-class voters supported Trump and how the Democrats could win them back. Although we’ve occasionally contributed to these conversations, we’re also getting tired of them. They tend to envision “the … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Issues, John Russo, Labor and Community Activism, Sherry Linkon, The Working Class and the Economy, Working-Class Politics | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Counting on Class: The Continuing Appeal of Meritocracy

Posted on November 4, 2019 by deindustrial

Neither faith in nor critiques of the idea of meritocracy is new. Michael Young’s famous 1958 book The Rise of Meritocracy argued that class privilege and advantage were likely to be amplified as financial and cultural capital passed across generations … Continue reading →

Posted in Contributors, Issues, Tim Strangleman, Understanding Class | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Critical Literacy in Working-Class Schools

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Working-Class Perspectives

In her recent post Kathy Newman discusses the lengths to which schools go to improve students’ high-stakes test scores and reminds us that parents’ income is the best predictor of students’ performance on standardized tests.  Nevertheless, when working-class public school … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments