Final answer:
Poor and working-class children often feel alienated from history education because it usually reflects upper-middle-class values and experiences, contributing to a sense of disconnection. The pressures of supporting their families and a lack of resources compound this issue, making the traditional curriculum feel increasingly irrelevant to their lived experiences.
Step-by-step explanation:
History often turns off poor and working-class children because they can feel an alienation from the content and perspectives that are usually presented in historical education. This alienation occurs because the traditional curriculum often reflects the experiences and values of the upper-middle class, rather than the diverse backgrounds and struggles of working-class families. This imbalance can cause poor and working-class children to feel disconnected from the historical narratives that are prioritized in their education.
Children from working-class families often have to contend with supporting their families, both financially and domestically, leading to exhaustion and lack of time for schoolwork, creating a barrier to engaging fully with their education. Additionally, the lack of resources such as a computer and printer at home can further intensify this feeling of disconnection. The curriculum, driven by those in positions of privilege, may inadvertently teach children to look down on their own backgrounds and may not be relevant to their lived experiences.
The concept of alienation can also be observed in the industrial workplace, where workers feel disconnected from the final product of their labor. For students, the analogy lies in feeling disconnected from the content and purpose of their education, as working-class children may not see their realities and the realities of their families reflected in their studies, much like the worker on the assembly line who sees only a fraction of the final product.