\n<\/p>\n
When I taught about social class in my Intimacy, Marriages and Families course this past semester, I began with reflection and a sticky note, not with a lecture or statistics.<\/p>\n
This wasn\u2019t the first time I used sticky-note prompts in class. Earlier in the semester, I introduced a similar activity during our unit on race, ethnicity and immigration. That experience inspired me: It showed how a simple sentence starter could help students unpack the emotional weight of identity, belonging and difference. It also helped me refine how to frame and facilitate the conversation in a more impactful way.<\/p>\n
So when we arrived at the unit on families and social class, I returned to the sticky notes\u2014this time with more complexity of prompts. And what followed was one of the most meaningful moments of the semester.<\/p>\n
I gave students a set of sentence starters and asked them to complete them anonymously on a sticky note. After writing, they placed their notes on the walls, windows, doors and whiteboard\u2014spreading them out wide enough so everyone could read at the same time. Then students walked silently around the room, taking in what their classmates had shared. After the walk, I invited each student to share one or two statements that resonated with them.<\/p>\n
Here are some of the prompts:<\/p>\n
These prompts are simple but emotionally rich. They allow students to enter the topic from their own lived experience\u2014before theory, before data, before the academic discourse.<\/p>\n
The range of responses students shared was both personal and eye-opening. To the prompt \u201cI didn\u2019t realize how class shaped me until\u00a0\u2026,\u201d one student reflected on \u201cseeing how much my mother worked just to provide a roof over our heads.\u201d In response to \u201cAn opportunity I almost missed because of money was\u00a0\u2026,\u201d students listed things such as education, rent, bills, Air Jordan shoes, going to college and even a football trip\u2014while one noted simply, \u201cNothing,\u201d suggesting a contrasting perspective. When asked \u201cI\u00a0was taught to always\u00a0\u2026,\u201d many shared values shaped by scarcity and resilience: \u201cbe grateful and humble,\u201d \u201cearn money for life by myself after high school\u201d or \u201cbite my tongue to maintain peace.\u201d Responses to \u201cOne thing my family couldn\u2019t afford growing up was\u00a0\u2026\u201d included extracurricular activities, having their own rooms, brand-new items, frequent family time and vacations.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, students noticed class differences with reflections such as \u201cI\u00a0had to wait for things my friends got in a blink of an eye.\u201d Others shared the silence they learned to carry, responding to \u201cAt school, I learned to stay quiet about\u00a0\u2026\u201d with reflections on their home situations, financial aid or how much their parents made. Some added the inverse: \u201cI learned to stay quiet about other kids\u2019 struggles.\u201d<\/p>\n
A prompt asking students for one moment that made them aware of inequality yielded responses such as \u201chaving to work in high school while others went out,\u201d \u201cfacing racial discrimination at a young age\u201d and \u201crealizing some classmates couldn\u2019t afford meals.\u201d Finally, to the prompt \u201cI\u00a0realized not everyone had _______ like I\u00a0did,\u201d students shared privileges they had come to recognize: \u201cthe options to choose,\u201d \u201cthe ability to study abroad\u201d or \u201chaving parents, food, shelter and protection.\u201d Together, these reflections painted a vivid and humanizing picture of the many ways class difference shapes lived experience\u2014often invisibly.<\/p>\n
After the gallery walk, the room felt palpably different\u2014softer, more thoughtful. While the reflections I\u2019m about to share were originally expressed during a similar activity in our earlier unit on race, ethnicity and immigration, I chose to include them here because they speak to the same core theme. Several students had shared that the activity helped them \u201csee how diverse people in the class are\u2014the values, backgrounds\u201d and one added, \u201cIt helped humanize people.\u201d<\/p>\n
This activity then helped me transition smoothly to my key take-home message for students. After the sticky note reflections and class discussion, I prompted them to pause and consider this:<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everyone grows up with the same set of tools. Some of us had parents who could advocate for us, who knew how to navigate systems\u2014others had to figure it all out on their own. Some kids are encouraged to raise their voices; others are expected to stay in line. We\u2019re often told that success is about effort\u2014but what if the race isn\u2019t the same for everyone?\u201d<\/p>\n
I then connected some of the sticky-note reflections back to this statement\u2014helping students draw the line between their lived experiences and structural patterns.<\/p>\n
In a political climate in which diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are being rolled back, educators may hesitate to bring up inequality in their classrooms. But this is precisely when it matters most.<\/p>\n
Class disparities are getting wider. Students are balancing coursework while managing food insecurity, housing challenges or caregiving responsibilities. Others arrive with generational wealth, college prep resources and family support networks. If we don\u2019t name these disparities, we risk reinforcing them through silence.<\/p>\n
Teaching about social class isn\u2019t about shame or blame\u2014it\u2019s about giving students the tools to understand their place in the world and the systems that shape it.<\/p>\n
There are several strategies educators can use to teach social class in a way that is welcoming and engaging. First, start with stories, not stats\u2014students already live within systems of inequality, so grounding the conversation in their lived experiences builds emotional buy-in before introducing abstract concepts. One effective way to do this is to use low-stakes writing prompts, such as the sticky-note activity, which encourages honest reflection while creating a safe, low-pressure environment.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also important to create space for silent voices; not all students are comfortable speaking aloud, so alternatives like gallery walks or anonymous digital boards help everyone to feel comfortable participating. After reflection, connect students\u2019 lived experiences with research by introducing concepts such as cultural capital and texts like Unequal Childhoods<\/em> (University of California Press, second edition, 2011) by Annette Lareau, which explores how social class influences parenting styles and shapes children\u2019s life chances.<\/p>\n At the end of the unit, I asked students, what can we do?<\/p>\n I introduced them to the concept of social capital, after earlier discussions on cultural and human capital. I introduced the article \u201cWhat the Privileged Poor Can Teach Us\u201d by Anthony Abraham Jack, which shows how first-generation and low-income students can build academic support networks\u2014particularly by building relationships with professors.<\/p>\n Before that, I shared Rita Pierson\u2019s TED Talk \u201cEvery Kid Needs a Champion,\u201d a moving reminder that in education, relationships can change lives. Her story exemplifies how connection itself becomes a form of capital, especially for those who grow up without material advantage.<\/p>\n This pairing helped students see how they could move from understanding class inequality to navigating it\u2014and even challenging it\u2014with critical thinking, empathy and advocacy.<\/p>\n Teaching about inequality is not partisan\u2014it\u2019s fundamental to education. If we want to graduate students who are not only career-ready but human-ready\u2014who understand structural inequality and social responsibility\u2014then we must create space for conversations about class.<\/p>\n Sothy Eng is an associate professor of human development and family science at the University of Hawai\u2018i at M\u0101noa. He received the 2024 Board of Regents Medal for Excellence in Teaching and is currently contributing to <\/em>Psychology Today (previously to <\/em>HuffPost). His work focuses on social capital, family dynamics, parenting and relationship-based education. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When I taught about social class in my Intimacy, Marriages and Families course this past semester, I began with reflection and a sticky note, not with a lecture or statistics. This wasn\u2019t the first time I used sticky-note prompts in class. Earlier in the semester, I introduced a similar activity during our unit on race,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14749,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[2609,6338,440,8352,4745],"class_list":{"0":"post-14748","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-education","8":"tag-class","9":"tag-era","10":"tag-opinion","11":"tag-postdei","12":"tag-teaching"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14748"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14748\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Closing the Loop<\/h2>\n