Middle class families are higher up in the social ladder than working class or families in poverty but they are lower class than upper class families. These differences affect marriages and family life financially and occasionally cause discord between the couple, as well as a higher value on getting a good job for the children. These parents and/or working-age children work harder and often longer than upper class families, but they have more leniency than lower class families or those in poverty. There is less trouble or involvement in gangs or domestic violence than those in poverty or working class depending on where it is. Children from middle-class go it stay in school longer than those from lower class, but the schools they go to aren't as nice as those from upper class.
(I don't have the passage to be able to refer to but I hope this helps?)