The Sociological Approach Toward Social Problems

The sociological approach toward social problems differs from other approaches by providing us “with a form of self-consciousness, an awareness that our personal experiences are often caused by structural or social forces.” (4) Through social imagination we are able to see private troubles and how they affect public issues and vice versa.(5) So from a “sociological perspective, problems and their solutions don’t just involve individuals; they also have a great deal to do with the social structures in our society. C. Wright Mills ([1959] 2000) first promoted this perspective in his 1959 essay, “The Promise.” (4) And one area I would like to delve into is how education. An area that forever will be a social problem. There is never a perfect

And, although, these statistics may look encouraging, it is not so for those who are students in the inner-city schools. Due to income segregation and residential segregation we have caused a caste system based on property tax.(209) Black and Hispanic students are more likely to drop out, with black drop outs at 6.8 percent, hispanic drop outs at 5.4, and white drop outs at 1.6 percent as of 2012.(Stark, Noel & McFarland, 2016) Those from low income families are more likely to drop out, with 5.9 percent of low income individuals dropping out compared to 1.3 percent of high income individuals. (Stark, Noel & McFarland, 2016) That 's “2.6 million 16- through 24-year-olds were not enrolled in high school and had not earned a high school diploma or alternative credential.” (Stark, Noel & McFarland, 2016) Males are more likely to drop out, 7.3 vs females at 5.9. (Stark, Noel & McFarland, 2016) It seems as if there is more Social Capital placed in higher income individuals rather than inner-city schools. Creating a cycle of poverty that seems hard to break. “Young adults who had attended urban and urban high poverty schools had much higher poverty and unemployment rates later in life than those who had attended other schools.” (Lippman & Burns, 1996) It is thought that 30 percent of children in New York City are living in poverty, “with one in five relying on local food banks or pantries.”

(208) And that the system is trying to balance its overload of tasks while trying to educate which is causing an imbalance. Originally, schooling in America was put in place so children would learn latin so that they could read the bible. In 1647 “The General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony decrees that every town of fifty families should have an elementary school.” But now schools not only teach latin, of course, but are also expected to take care of the emotional welfare of children. (208) Then the interactionist perspective includes what is called “tracking.” Tracking would be used to identify advanced learner from others and then are put on a track for either college bound or work bound. (212) This is the most common practice with “60 percent of elementary schools and 80 percent of all secondary schools” still “tracking.” (212) The feminist perspective points out that the “inequalities are based not just on social class but also on gender.” (210) Later in the text it is mentioned that “After observing teachers and their interactions with girls and boys in more than 100 elementary classrooms, the Sadkers found that teachers were more responsive to boys and were more likely to teach them actively. Overall, girls received less attention, whereas boys got a double dose, both negative and positive. Boys received