All who have meditated on the art of governing have been convinced that the fate of nations depends

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• All who have meditated on the art of governing
  have been convinced that the fate of nations
  depends on the education of youth.
• Aristotle
• Department of Labor http//www.dol.gov

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Review

• Class (economic-) stratification
• wealth (very concentrated)
• income (earned money from jobs)
• family income doubles, then stagnates
• any increase bottled up in top quintile

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Today

• stratification concepts
• video Children in Americas Schools
• Hypo. Questionnaire due on or BEFORE Wed. Feb.
  16th

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Daily Thought

• Research shows that college mathematics faculty
  take three to four times as long to read a
  calculus problem before beginning to work on it
  as their students do. Why?
• The answer can be summarized in the old
  carpenters adage Measure twice cut once.

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Stratification

• Four fundamental aspects
• 1) based on social structure
• 2) existed even in ancient society
• 3) HIGHLY variable
• 4) consequential for all areas of life

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Children in Americas Schools

• How does local school funding perpetuate
  inequality across generations?
• Compelling moments about inequality?
• What can be done differently?

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• How perpetuate inequality?

• Compelling moments?

• How change system?

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• 1) Stratification reflects social structure
• inequality is like a rubber band -- stretchable
  but breaks
• societys ideologies defend its stratification
  system as just and inevitable
• each society teaches that its system is best
• e.g., doctors deserve 20 X times more than
  laborers
• stratification is not biological IQ matters
  little relative to parents social position.

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• 2) Stratification is ancient
• Some sort of stratification system exists back to
  early human bands (based on age).
• The BIG TREND
• little (primitive) --gt lots (empires) --gt some
  (modern)
• Q Which way will stratification go in the
  future?

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• 3) Highly variable diverse in degree and
  rigidity
• Many possible shapes
• Most social conflict is over inequality
• the poor demand more equality
• the rich demand more wealth
• Society is like a volcano which can explode

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• Is inequality functional?
• Functionalist answer Yes, it is necessary for
  motivating people.
• Conflict answer Degree of inequality determined
  by relative power of groups.

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• 4) Inequality consequential in all areas of life
• Life chances
• infant mortality / life expectancy
• education
• physical and mental health
• divorce and marital conflict
• political beliefs and voting

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• Life style
• size of home rent or own
• quality of neighborhood
• products and services consumed
• Lexus vs. public transportation
• Spring Break drinking expresso in Paris or
  working in Cleveland
• friend selection / mate selection

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• 3 DIMENSIONS OF STRATIFICATION
• class (focus so far)
• status
• power
• Class is based on economic position
• owners vs. workers (Marx)
• specific occupation gt finer divisions (Weber)

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• STATUS Social ranking of people.
• Many criteria used
• racial or ethnic groups
• religion
• education (key today)
• gender
• age
• family heritage
• hierarchies within organizations
• church
• military

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• Status groups influence everything
• interactions
• mate selection
• political beliefs

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• Two things needed to define status groups
• differences
• ranked on some criteria
• Status groups
• race/ethnic groups
• education groups
• Lexus owners vs. Geo Metro owners
• Not status groups
• blue eyes vs. brown eyes
• red shirts vs. yellow shirts

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• POWER The capacity to CONTROL events and
  INFLUENCE the behavior of others.
• Marx power based on class
• Weber power also based on status groups

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• Are these forms of power based on class or
  status?
• U.S. political parties
• mass movements
• 1960s civil rights
• anti-apartheid
• trade unions
• PACs
• governments
• Iran / Israel
• China
• U.S.

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• Summary People have different start points in
  pursuing the good life.
• 1. Flt---S
  The
• 2. S -------------gt F
  Good
• 3. S
  ---gt F Life
• 4. S-----gt F
• 5. Flt-----S

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Poverty Exercise

• Single parent w/ 3 children youngest sick
• Elderly aunt babysits but is at risk of pneumonia
• Your hourly job pays 5.50
• Landlord has threatened eviction
• Free clinic is close but a wait doctor wants cash

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• Leave all the children with the aunt. Work 5
  days this week. Medical care for the sick child
  will have to wait.
• Ask your 9-year old niece to baby-sit the
  children. She will have to miss school to baby
  sit. Medical care will have to wait.
• You stay home. Take the child to the clinic.
  Miss work and pay. Food or rent must wait.
• Go to the doctor and pay cash. Don't worry about
  rent and risk eviction.