21 Up

Does social class affect the number of opportunities you have?

I have had many wonderful opportunities in my life. The most recent being able to come to the Missouri Academy of Science, Mathematics, and Computing. I feel that opportunities have been awarded to me based on my social class, but I have also been presented opportunities due to my abilities.
In 21 Up they discuss equal opportunity. The kids, well now adults, are asked about the ideas behind the program-- that certain people have more options than others and this is undesirable. The three boys from the exclusive kindergarten (John, Andrew, and Charles) made the points below:

• The difference between the numerical number of options isn't that great.
• Knowledge creates an option in itself.
• Expectations have given them more opportunity, not the school they attended or other things like that.

John voices his opinion that he doesn't believe the opportunity gap to be undesirable, but people with opportunities not taking advantage of them is. To put it in his own words, "If people behave responsibly, I think it's very good. There's a sort of stability and structure in society". 

The boys, particularly John, point out that even though they, for the most part, followed their trajected course, the opportunities were not handed to them. They had to work hard to get to where they are. I think this is a great example of how your expectations and knowledge create opportunities. I have had to work hard and endure many sleepless nights to get where I am. I have been taught to expect a lot out of life and hard work is how you get there. 

The boys also mention how they believe the three girls from the primary school, Jackie, Lynn, and Susan, have had just as many if not more opportunities than them. The girls were then asked "in comparing yourselves to Suzy, who stands at the other end of the social scale, do you think you've had the same opportunities as her?" by the director Micheal Apted. The girls seemed a bit offended, with Jackie's reply being "I've had the opportunities in life that I've wanted" and Lynn's being "I'd say I've had more opportunities than Suzy". 

Lynn continues on, saying that in a different aspect she has had more opportunities than what Suzy has had. She feels that she has been more or less able to do what she wants to do compared to Suzy who she believes has been conditioned into what she should and shouldn't do.

This documentary follows English people and the equal opportunity gap in England, but how does America compare. The New York Times produces a great article about the equal opportunity gap in America. Apparently we are far behind in closing this gap compared to other developed countries, but we do have resources that help close the gap, such as the GI Bill. I think free online classes are and will be a huge contributor to closing the gap. The Khan academy lessons online are a useful, free way to provide education to anyone with internet access. 

I think as time moves on the equal opportunity gap will lessen, but there will always be a gap and I feel we need a gap. I would agree with John that it creates, "a sort of stability and structure in society". What are some opportunities you have been awarded in your life and why do you think that is?

7 Plus Seven

The kids are now fourteen and have hit adolescence. Seven years have gone by and oh how things changed. The children you see to the left are no longer children. They are all teenagers trying to find their place in the world. The kids have all started to set course on the path to their future. The kids have gone on to their selected schools and are on their way to becoming adults.

Suzy

Suzy went to Southover Manor just as she said. 

Jackie, Lindsey, & Susan

Jackie and Susan continued on to Comprehensive School, while Lindsey choose to attend a Grammar School. 

Neal and Peter

Neal and Peter both attended the same Comprehensive School. They are both apart of the chess team at school too.  

Bruce

Bruce has formed a good relationship with his step father and receives visits from his father on occasion.

Nicholas

 Nicholas won a scholarship to attend a Yorkshire Boarding School. He doesn't wish to pursue farming like his father did, he is interested in physics and chemistry. 

Paul

Paul moved to Australia with his family when he was eight. He has changed his mind a few times as of what he would like to do. As of now he doesn't know what he wants to do. He has nixed becoming a bank teller, a panel beater(car mechanic), and a phys. ed. teacher.

Simon

He was thinking of becoming a film star, but now plans to be an electrical engineer because it is more practical. The Christmas before this video started filming he moved in with his mom. 

John, Andrew, & Charles 

• John passed his exams and attends the Westminster boarding school. John wants to go into politics.
• Andrew attends Charter House.
• Charles attends Charter House, Marlborough.

Tony

Tony has followed through with his dream of becoming a jockey. He still attends school, but practices in his free time and on breaks.

Growing Up

John had an interesting comment to make in matters concerning the difference of age. 

I believe that to be true. At some point in age you stop growing up mentally and you just age physically as time goes on. Yes, you gain knowledge through the years and are affected by outside influences, but your sense of self tends to remain constant. This rings true in the kids. When comparing the two videos, the children have the same personality. It is the age, opinions, and views that have changed within the seven years. 

So what does it mean to get older? I feel that many people believe it is defined as to change as a person. I believe that getting older is to not change as a person, but to mature and grow as an individual, so that we may form our own opinions and beliefs. We are the same person at age 70 as we were at age 13.

7 Up

Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you were born into a different family? How would a different background affect your future? These are the questions the 'Up' documentary series explores. What originally started out as a lone film flourished into a whole series that goes into the depths of a variety of individuals lives. If you want an overview of the series check out Rebecca Mead's great article on The New Yorker. 

The main difference in the lives of the children, outside of the home, is their schooling. The different types of schools are as follows:
Public School

A dormitory in a children’s orphanage supported by charity

 A private boarding school

 An Exclusive kindergarten

 A fashionable school for girls

The difference in schooling affects their day to day lives as you will see in a couple of examples I have provided below. I have only really had experiences with public schools in my life. Within this past year I have switched to a boarding school and I have to say the differences are pretty drastic. 

Here are the different types of exercise the children receive:

Classical Ballet

 Free Movement

 Recess

Dinning style

Formal

 Casual

 Semi formal

Future Plans

The kids were asked what they wanted to do when they grew up and here are a few of their responses. 

The structure and responsibility of the children's lives has a big impact on on their mindset and future. Their expectations from life seem to lie within their social class. For example the children whose families were from a higher social status all had plans to go to university. Whereas the children from families from a lower social status typically planned to go into the workforce. 

In my experience, the difference between schools and the lifestyle that accompanies those schools is enormous. Transitioning at the age of 16 from living at home to living in a dorm has been quite a change. Living away from your parents requires a whole new level of maturity and responsibility. The children in this documentary living away from home at the age of 7 must reach that level at a much younger age. This creates a huge difference between the children, thus I fully expect their futures to be guided by their socioeconomic background.