Constructing Ghetto Consciousness: Recognizing Class as Diversity and Acknowledging a Cultural Dissemblance in the Self

Despite the attention to socioeconomic class in scholarship, implementation of class-conscious pedagogy in writing studies is typically overlooked because race and gender take precedent over class. As a result, students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, such as myself, are forced to straddle their home and school communities in attempts to maintain their relationships outside of the classroom while attempting to find acceptance into academic communities. Providing students with the opportunity to express themselves in an outlet that supports both communities they are straddling allows for students to develop a “ghetto consciousness,” a phrase I coined for this project. A “ghetto consciousness” recognizes the cultural dissemblance, rather than disparity, between an academic and a home community. I suggest that while experience may differ, coming from a lower socioeconomic class is not necessarily a disadvantage or negative outcome, but rather an oppositional cultural background that offers an alternate perspective to the more normative view of socioeconomic class. To be successful in both communities, the lower socioeconomic student must have class-consciousness and realize the benefits that low socioeconomic communities can provide to advance their academic achievement. Relying on Gloria Anzaldua’s concepts and theories such as la facultad, nepantla, mestiza consciousness, and conocimiento, in this thesis, I apply these concepts to my personal experiences of navigating both academic and home cultures and explain my construction of ghetto consciousness. Through my understanding of class consciousness, I explain the rhetorical maneuvers and gamification that I utilize as straddling devices to ensure success in both communities. In recognizing the obstacles faced by students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, this thesis critiques current pedagogical approaches utilized by writing instructors as well as urges instructors to reevaluate current frameworks to ensure that students from diverse populations are successful.