SOCIAL CLASS AND INEQUALITY IN THE UNITED STATES - Lessons

SOCIAL CLASS AND INEQUALITY IN THE UNITED STATES

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Week 1: Introduction to Social Mobility Assignments

3/27/2020

Week 1 Assignments- All due on MONDAY, April 6th by 8:30 am
Please make sure to TITLE each assignment clearly in your Digital Comp Book, to make it easy for me to figure out what is what!

Google Form: Fill out this short google form to let me know which sub-topic in social mobility you are interested in diving into!

Is America Dreaming? Understanding Social Mobility

As you watch, write down three interesting things that you learned from this video. Just list them.
When the video is over, what surprised or stood out to you?
What kinds of policies, programs, or solutions could make our society more socially mobile? Brainstorm 3-5.

Intro to Social Mobility Texts
Read the following resources:

Harder for Americans to Rise From Lower Rungs- A short article from NYT detailing the problems with US social mobility
Understanding Mobility in America- A list of key findings

Intro to Social Mobility Notes
In your Digital Comp Book, please title these notes as I did above!

What is the thesis of each piece, summarized in one sentence?
What explanations did these give for America’s limited social mobility? List them. You should have at least five (I found 9).
What are two questions you have after reading this?

JD Vance TED Talk

What barriers to upward social mobility does Vance talk about? List them.
What are the factors he talks about that helped him become upwardly mobile? List them.
One Paragraph: What implications does what he said have for improving social mobility? If his experience is not unique, what strategies do we need to help people become more upwardly mobile?

Inequality for All Discussion and Social Mobility Intro

3/6/2020

Inequality for All- Documentary
Let's watch this documentary, that makes some clear links between inequality and democracy. As you watch, I want you to take notes on two things. I've linked some key visuals and data from the film above to help you:

Why is inequality getting worse?
Why is the middle class so important?
What are things that can be or have been done in the past about this issue?
What impacts does this inequality have on democracy and our system of government?
List 3 new things you learned, or things that you have strong reactions to, or questions that are raised for you in this film, or connections you made.

When the movie is over, get into groups of 4-5, and discuss the questions from your notes.

Starter- Inequality Summit 4 Corners
Answer both questions below in writing first, then do 4 corners.

Economic inequality is one of the biggest problems facing America today.
It is our responsibility as citizens to make our country more equal.

Inequality for All- Movie and Notes

3/5/2020

Inequality for All- Documentary
Let's watch this documentary, that makes some clear links between inequality and democracy. As you watch, I want you to take notes on two things. I've linked some key visuals and data from the film above to help you:

Why is inequality getting worse?
Why is the middle class so important?
What are things that can be or have been done in the past about this issue?
What impacts does this inequality have on democracy and our system of government?
List 3 new things you learned, or things that you have strong reactions to, or questions that are raised for you in this film, or connections you made.

Panel on Poverty in Durango

3/3/2020

Panel on Poverty
Ask questions of our panel! Take some notes! (You're going to have to write about this later...)

Prep for Poverty Panel, Documentary on Inequality

3/2/2020

Starter: Poverty Panel Questions
Tomorrow we have a group of people coming in tomorrow to discuss their experiences with poverty in Durango, and with their perceptions on inequality in our community. These people include:

Sean Woytek
Jess Adams
Casey (Jess' husband)- EMT/firefighter
Emma Salazar- TRIO program
Taylor- Student supported by TRIO program
Wendy Allsbrook-Javier- TRIO Talent Search

For your starter, I want you to come up with 3 questions that you could ask the entire panel, and 3 questions that are developed for specific people on the panel. These questions should help to get a clearer picture of how poverty impacts people in Durango, and how these particular professions engage with issues of poverty and social mobility.

Debrief Inequality Research
Meet in a group, discuss what you discovered. Come up with a 1-2 description of the current state of inequality in the United States. Write it on the board!

Inequality for All- Documentary
Let's watch this documentary, that makes some clear links between inequality and democracy. As you watch, I want you to take notes on two things:

Why is inequality getting worse?
Why is the middle class so important?
What are things that can be or have been done in the past about this issue?
What impacts does this inequality have on democracy and our system of government?
List 3 new things you learned, or things that you have strong reactions to, or questions that are raised for you in this film, or connections you made.

Inequality in the United States

2/27/2020

HOMEWORK- Finish research notes for 3 sources. DUE: End of class FRIDAY.

Research Notes
You must use at least THREE sources (though I suggest you look at more!). For each source, you must have notes that include:

Source: What source is this (title and source)?
Summary: What new data did this give you about inequality in the United States? Summarize the main points.
Evaluation: How reliable is this data? Why do you think so? Think about the source, their study methods, etc.
Connection: How does this connect to your other sources? Does it confirm other sources? Build on or add to them? Conflict with them?

Resources for You
This is a short list of good places to start. That said, there is a TON of information out there, so don’t feel like you are limited to this list!

Income Inequality in the United States- A goldmine of graphs and charts in an easily digestible format from Inequality.org.
Wealth Inequality in the United States- Another goldmine, this time focusing on wealth inequality from Inequality.org.
Poverty Basics- A compilation of facts about US poverty, including stats about education, health, hunger, and race.
Our Congressional District- Limited facts about poverty in our Congressional district.
Economic Inequality: It’s Far Worse Than You Think- A Scientific American article that provides summaries of recent research, and helpful in-text links to actual studies.
A Guide to Statistics on Historical Trends in Income Inequality- A huge compilation of statistics and historical trends, along with a very helpful discussion of the limitations of different sources of data.
The Costs of Inequality- When a Fair Shake Isn’t Fair Enough- An in-depth article by US News and World Report that discusses Harvard research on the state of inequality in the US as well as potential causes and effects of that inequality.
20 Facts About Inequality That Everyone Should Know- A compilation of statistics put out by the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality.
Income Inequality- An article and an animated chart that shows the changes in US income inequality over time.
US Inequality Keeps Getting Uglier- An article from CNN Money that includes a number of charts, and discusses slow income growth for the bottom 50%.
The American Middle Class is No Longer the World’s Richest- A New York Times Article discussion recent research comparing the US middle class to other nations.
The Rising Costs of US Income Inequality- An article by Laura Tyson, former chair of the US President’s Council of Economic Advisors (and Lori’s college econ professor!), detailing income inequality, some potential explanations, and the larger economic implications of this trend toward greater inequality.
Technology and Inequality- A Planet Money podcast discussing how increasing technology may actually be creating more inequality in the United States.
The Fall and Rise of US Income Inequality in Two Graphs- An NPR story with interactive graphs showing two major trends in US income inequality.
The Cases of Income Inequality Aren’t What You Think- A Gallup news podcast discussing income inequality and linking it to democracy.

Inequality in the United States: Start your research!

2/24/2020

Describing with Data:
You are going to be using data to answer the following three questions:

How unequal is the United States? Look at income and wealth, and any other data you think is relevant to answering this question.
How sure are you of your answer? What factors make you more sure? What factors make you less sure?
What are the most important trends you see here? Explain why you think these indicators are more important than others.

Your job, by the end of this week, is to have answers to these three questions. Keep notes with a running list of sources. On Monday, we will have you write your final answers to these questions in class, and discuss them with your classmates.

You must use at least THREE sources (though I suggest you look at more!). For each source, you must have notes that include:

Source: What source is this (title and source)?
Summary: What new data did this give you about inequality in the United States? Summarize the main points.
Evaluation: How reliable is this data? Why do you think so? Think about the source, their study methods, etc.
Connection: How does this connect to your other sources? Does it confirm other sources? Build on or add to them? Conflict with them?

Resources for You
This is a short list of good places to start. That said, there is a TON of information out there, so don’t feel like you are limited to this list!

Income Inequality in the United States- A goldmine of graphs and charts in an easily digestible format from Inequality.org.
Wealth Inequality in the United States- Another goldmine, this time focusing on wealth inequality from Inequality.org.
Poverty Basics- A compilation of facts about US poverty, including stats about education, health, hunger, and race.
Our Congressional District- Limited facts about poverty in our Congressional district.
Economic Inequality: It’s Far Worse Than You Think- A Scientific American article that provides summaries of recent research, and helpful in-text links to actual studies.
A Guide to Statistics on Historical Trends in Income Inequality- A huge compilation of statistics and historical trends, along with a very helpful discussion of the limitations of different sources of data.
The Costs of Inequality- When a Fair Shake Isn’t Fair Enough- An in-depth article by US News and World Report that discusses Harvard research on the state of inequality in the US as well as potential causes and effects of that inequality.
20 Facts About Inequality That Everyone Should Know- A compilation of statistics put out by the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality.
Income Inequality- An article and an animated chart that shows the changes in US income inequality over time.
US Inequality Keeps Getting Uglier- An article from CNN Money that includes a number of charts, and discusses slow income growth for the bottom 50%.
The American Middle Class is No Longer the World’s Richest- A New York Times Article discussion recent research comparing the US middle class to other nations.
The Rising Costs of US Income Inequality- An article by Laura Tyson, former chair of the US President’s Council of Economic Advisors (and Lori’s college econ professor!), detailing income inequality, some potential explanations, and the larger economic implications of this trend toward greater inequality.
Technology and Inequality- A Planet Money podcast discussing how increasing technology may actually be creating more inequality in the United States.
The Fall and Rise of US Income Inequality in Two Graphs- An NPR story with interactive graphs showing two major trends in US income inequality.
The Cases of Income Inequality Aren’t What You Think- A Gallup news podcast discussing income inequality and linking it to democracy.

How Unequal is the United States?

2/24/2020

TURN IN Final Draft Class Narratives! Share them with Lori!

Framing:
Our goal this week is simple: to be able to describe the current situation of inequality in the United States. Our goal is NOT to come up with solutions (yet!), or even to understand why this is happening (though you might get a taste of this). We just want to get a firm grasp on the statistics and data that show the growth of inequality in recent decades.

Starter 9- What do you know?

What do you know about inequality in the US? If you don’t know anything for sure, what are your impressions?
What questions do you have about inequality in the US?

The Basics: Wealth Inequality
Predict with your partner

Imagine the US is divided into quintiles (groups of 20%)
How do you think the wealth of the US is divided between these? What % of wealth should each quintile have?
How do you think the wealth of the US SHOULD ideally be divided between these? Why?

Wealth Inequality in America
Watch the infographic!

How did your prediction stack up?
How did your ideal stack up?
What do you think explains the difference between the ideal/predictions/reality?

Broad Sweeps: Notes

WWII to 1970s = economic growth and shared prosperity
1. Incomes grew rapidly and at roughly the same rate up and down the income ladder, roughly doubling in inflation-adjusted terms between the late 1940s and early 1970s.
2. The income gap between those high up the income ladder and those on the middle and lower rungs — while substantial — did not change much during this period.
Beginning in the 1970s, economic growth slowed and the income gap widened.
1. Income growth for households in the middle and lower parts of the distribution slowed sharply, while incomes at the top continued to grow strongly.
2. The concentration of income at the very top of the distribution rose to levels last seen a century ago (during the “Roaring Twenties”).
3. Wealth more highly concentrated than income. The best survey data show that the top 3 percent of the distribution hold over half of all wealth.

Describing with Data:
You are going to be using data to answer the following three questions:

How unequal is the United States? Look at income and wealth, and any other data you think is relevant to answering this question.
How sure are you of your answer? What factors make you more sure? What factors make you less sure?
What are the most important trends you see here, and what do they show over time? Explain why you think these indicators are more important than others, and how they've changed historically.

Your job, by the end of this week, is to have answers to these three questions. Keep notes with a running list of sources. On Monday, we will have you write your final answers to these questions in class, and discuss them with your classmates.

Research Notes
You must use at least THREE sources (though I suggest you look at more!). For each source, you must have notes that include:

Source: What source is this (title and source)?
Summary: What new data did this give you about inequality in the United States? Summarize the main points.
Evaluation: How reliable is this data? Why do you think so? Think about the source, their study methods, etc. Which question does this help you answer? What questions do you have now that you have read this source?
Connection: How does this connect to your other sources? Does it confirm other sources? Build on or add to them? Conflict with them?

Resources for You
This is a short list of good places to start. That said, there is a TON of information out there, so don’t feel like you are limited to this list!

Income Inequality in the United States- A goldmine of graphs and charts in an easily digestible format from Inequality.org.
Wealth Inequality in the United States- Another goldmine, this time focusing on wealth inequality from Inequality.org.
Poverty Basics- A compilation of facts about US poverty, including stats about education, health, hunger, and race.
Our Congressional District- Limited facts about poverty in our Congressional district.
Economic Inequality: It’s Far Worse Than You Think- A Scientific American article that provides summaries of recent research, and helpful in-text links to actual studies.
A Guide to Statistics on Historical Trends in Income Inequality- A huge compilation of statistics and historical trends, along with a very helpful discussion of the limitations of different sources of data.
The Costs of Inequality- When a Fair Shake Isn’t Fair Enough- An in-depth article by US News and World Report that discusses Harvard research on the state of inequality in the US as well as potential causes and effects of that inequality.
20 Facts About Inequality That Everyone Should Know- A compilation of statistics put out by the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality.
Income Inequality- An article and an animated chart that shows the changes in US income inequality over time.
US Inequality Keeps Getting Uglier- An article from CNN Money that includes a number of charts, and discusses slow income growth for the bottom 50%.
The American Middle Class is No Longer the World’s Richest- A New York Times Article discussion recent research comparing the US middle class to other nations.
The Rising Costs of US Income Inequality- An article by Laura Tyson, former chair of the US President’s Council of Economic Advisors (and Lori’s college econ professor!), detailing income inequality, some potential explanations, and the larger economic implications of this trend toward greater inequality.
Technology and Inequality- A Planet Money podcast discussing how increasing technology may actually be creating more inequality in the United States.
The Fall and Rise of US Income Inequality in Two Graphs- An NPR story with interactive graphs showing two major trends in US income inequality.
The Cases of Income Inequality Aren’t What You Think- A Gallup news podcast discussing income inequality and linking it to democracy.

Last Day to Work On Class Narratives

2/21/2020

HOMEWORK- Final Draft Class Narrative is due on MONDAY, 2/24 at the start of class. Make sure the final draft copy is shared with Lori!

Revise and Finalize!
Keep revising! Conference with Lori as needed. Make sure you're developing those creative writing skills, and bringing your theme together!

Finish Critiques and Revise!

2/20/2020

HOMEWORK- Final draft class narrative due Monday, 2/24 at the start of class. Please share with Lori!

Critiques- Finish critiques!

Revisions

Revise your class narratives
Conference with Lori as needed!