social class

Why are 11 Million adults playing sports in Australia?

acmill26 / Globally Elite / age, Australia, Elite, elite schools, social class, sports /

April 5, 2025

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in 2015, roughly 11 million adults in Australia regularly participated in recreational sports (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2015). With a national population of 23 million at the time, this means that approximately 47% of Australia’s adult population played sports. This raises the question: why do so many people play sports, and what is it about sports that drives participation?

To begin, being physically active often reflects an interest in maintaining physical fitness. While fitness alone can generate social capital, sports—especially team sports—offer a sense of belonging. Teams provide opportunities for friendship, leadership, and personal growth. As sports become more competitive, athletes also learn to navigate adversity, thereby developing resilience. Reflecting on the true impact of sports, I’m struck by how transferable these skills are to the workforce. Resilience, leadership, perseverance, and social competence are all qualities that employers highly value.

The social capital cultivated through sports can open doors to upward mobility. However, this raises concerns about access. Those with the financial means to participate in sports, who can afford equipment, transportation, and membership fees, gain an advantage in developing these desirable qualities. On the contrary, individuals without the necessary resources are often excluded from these opportunities, which may affect their ability to present themselves as competitive candidates in the job market.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics also notes that participation in sports tends to decrease with age (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2015). One possible reason is that the workforce begins to fulfill some of the roles that sports once played: offering a sense of purpose, opportunities for growth, and the development of resilience in the face of challenges. As I compare trends in sports and workforce participation across age groups, the parallels become more apparent. However, still, it’s still important to acknowledge that many adults must work to support themselves and their families in Australia’s society, often leaving little time or energy to participate in recreational sports. Physical limitations may also prevent adults from participating in sports at the same level they once did.

While sports can offer mobility and opportunity to younger individuals, I’ve considered how those same benefits tend to decrease with age, and I wonder if that decrease is tied to the workforce being a filler of the void that sports once were to athletes? The mobility that sports offer to younger people is greater than the mobility that sports offer people when they are older people. For example, students can leverage sports in order to get into top universities and position themselves to get a higher-paying job in the future as a result.

In conclusion, sports in Australia are an indication of class, and being able to participate in sports positions younger generations to go into the workforce.

The Social Class Bubble

arrose23 / Globally Elite / Jordan, social class /

May 10, 2021

At Olive Grove academy, social class plays an interesting role in the students’ lives. In the variety of interviews from students and alumni, many of the students noted that they were not able to recognize other students’ social class. Although the school is considered elite and has a demographic of many elite students, that is not the sole demographic of the student body. There are students from lower income families and students from some of the wealthiest families, so what is it about Olive Grove that makes students unable to recognize other students’ social class?

In an article, Elite international schools in the Global South: transnational space, class relationalities and the ‘middling’ international schoolteacher, by Tarc and Tarc, they wrote about how many students used to form friend groups based on social class, as this was a large identifying factor. Although not the case at Olive Grove, how were they able to break down this barrier of social class? In many other educational settings, especially those of public institutions that may not be considered elite, social class is a large identifying factor between students, and therefore something that is influential in the formation of friends. Similarly, in an article done about a study in Germany, the authors found that social class does have an effect on interpersonal relationships, in which they also spoke about Bourdieu said “the environment in which people grow up inscribes itself deeply into their identity” (Goethe University Frankfurt am Main). As Bourdieu explains and as this study has found, social groups are extremely influenced by class status, which is then interesting how at Olive Grove, students in this environment do not seem to be influenced by class, and are in a type of bubble where social class is not noticed.

As Olive Grove can be seen as a social class bubble, how does Colby compare? After talking to a few of my peers about Colby and social class, they had a few different opinions. One of them believed Colby is a bubble – she feels as though social class is not noticeable in her opinion because so many of the people she surrounds herself with are of the same level social class, which therefore exhibits what was written in Tarc’s article in how social class is influential in friendships. All of her friends were of the same level social class as her, which is why she felt she didn’t ‘notice it’ because they all shared similar backgrounds and experiences. On the other hand, another student felt as though at Colby she was hyper aware of social class and in a different type of bubble – a bubble where the drastic difference in socioeconomic status was very present and exacerbated by the Colby environment. In a New York Times article from 2017 entitled “Some Colleges Have More Students From the Top 1 Percent Than the Bottom 60. Find Yours”, Colby ranked number 4 for having more students from the top 1 percent than the bottom 60 percent, which equated to 20.4% of students coming from the top 1 percent ($630K+ annual household income) and 11.1% of students coming from the bottom 60 percent (<$65K annual household income). This stark difference of wealth on campus alludes to what this Colby student was saying – that because there is such a large presence of socioeconomic differences on campus, she feels extra aware of social class at Colby, and thinks we as students are in a different type of bubble unlike the real world. Despite how Colby students see social class, there still may be some kind of ‘bubble’ element to it, whether similar to Olive Grove or not. So, as both are elite private schools, does every elite private school have some kind of social class bubble? With variations of how they can exist, does the environment of a school like these greatly affect how social class is perceived by the student body, and how is it comparable to a public, non-elite school?

After hearing from both of these Colby students, I am conflicted on how I see the Colby bubble myself. At times I feel like I see both of these bubbles- both the stark difference in status and then a bubble where all my peers come from similar backgrounds. And maybe that is a factor that is very present in elite schools, and what perpetuates elite institutions to maintain their status in society.

How should social class be taught in school?

alcorb21 / Globally Elite / competition, social class /

April 11, 2021

Generally speaking, in many countries especially the United States, social class is an important topic of discussion. An individual’s personal social class or status can be seen as an external characteristic used to judge, define and shape a person’s life. There is a major focus on being successful, making money and maintaining a high social and economic status among your peers. Within our heavily competitive society, we tend to see individuals among the top one percent and upper-class thriving in high positions, individuals among the middle class doing well in “working class” jobs and the lower income individuals struggling. No matter how someone walks in life and presents themselves, many are judged based on their socioeconomic status.

Reading through the students’ interviews, they all shared a common understanding that Olive Grove Academy tries to ensure that students feel equal and are treated the same. The school has a big emphasis on trying to dismantle the idea of social class. Their efforts include the use of uniforms and community/dormitory housing. Uniforms enable a type of mask. It allows students from various backgrounds to blend in and be “one and the same” through physical appearance. This effort is to make sure students are treated fairly and equally with no one feeling left out. While the housing style allows students to be able to surround themselves with students of varying backgrounds, which helps to encourage a judgement free environment and connect with their peers on a personal level. Olive Grove has their own stance, and they have made their efforts clear. Due to that, the students interviewed said they actually found it hard to distinguish and tell the difference between students of different social classes. However in one of the alumni interviews, a former student said that “Olive Grove did well at exposing students to socioeconomic diversity.” I find myself struggling to believe that, knowing Olive Grove’s “mission” to un-shape the concept of social class.

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Personally, at my high school having a high status and being aware of other people’s status was a big deal. A lot of students were defined based on how much money their parents had. You were “cool” if you had money and if you didn’t you existed. Once college comes around, the same ideology of class and social status continues to cycle. The concept of competition has been ingrained in us since the beginning, and as we grow and move up our competitive nature enhances. As a result our society has become accustomed to the hierarchical class structure that has been created over time.

Olive Grove Academy seems to approach the idea of social class very differently to what I am used to. With that being said, I am unsure if that is good or bad. While one student said they felt decently exposed to socioeconomic diversity, another student felt that once they got to college in the U.S, they had a wake up call to the defining aspects of social class on campus. I believe that students who are in an environment where social class is “hidden”, will end up having a more naive understanding of the true nature and impacts of social class. In comparison, students who are in an environment where social class just is and presents itself naturally will find themselves more aware of what social class means and the impact it has later in life. Should there be a happy medium in how schools should address the concept of social class?

Social Class Differences within Elite Schooling

Kyle Butler / Globally Elite / elite schools, social class /

March 21, 2021

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had the opportunity to do research on an elite school in Ghana and gain insight about what the experience is like for students there. The Sankofa International College is a unique school that has a student body made up of half middle- and upper-class Ghanaian students and another half of orphaned children. Through listening to the interviews and reading the transcripts of students at the Ghana school, it revealed many interesting findings about their experiences that reminded me of some of the experiences I went through at my high school. My high school was a private school in the suburbs of Massachusetts composed of a majority of students from well off families and about a third of the students who were from low and middle-class families. The main parallels between the Ghana school and my high school that I will focus on are student pressure and friend groups.

So first, student pressure. By this I mean the pressure that students put on themselves or pressure they may face from their parents. In an interview I listened to from one of the Ghana students, I found that the disadvantaged students push themselves a lot harder academically than the weathlier students do. This seems to be because they feel that as an orphan, they are at a disadvantage socially and economically. Therefore, by doing extremely well academically, it could get them the “ticket” to further their education and get a well-paying job. There was a similar pressure on students at my high school who were on financial aid compared to the students whose parents could afford full tuition. I felt this academic pressure personally. I remember trying to get in as much additional help from my teachers after class to go over concepts that I was struggling with. However, some of my other classmates would just rush out the door after class as if they were not worried if they understood the material or not. The difference was that those kids had private tutors that would come to their homes and help them with their homework whereas I did not. At both my high school and the Ghana school, it is clear that differences in class status and access to or lack of financial resources, have a great impact on the level of pressure that students place on themselves to perform academically.

The next similar component of my high school and the Ghana school is friend groups and how they are formed. In the student interviews, it was clear that the school put emphasis on limiting the appearance of social difference amongst students. However, it is inevitable for these differences to still show through. Although the orphaned students were not mistreated by the wealthier students, they still seemed to be more comfortable around students like them. It is possible that they felt a bit intimidated by the wealthier students who had many advantages and privileges that they did not have. This was true at my high school as well. Students on financial aid, and especially students of colors, usually had their own friend groups separate from the wealthier, white students. My personal experience with these social groupings was a bit more fluid however. I was friends with minority students that I could identify with, but I also had many friends who did not look like me. I think in large part this was due to my being an athlete and as a result, I was more welcomed into certain social circles that I do not think I would have been welcomed into if I were not on a sports team.

Nonetheless, these social groupings play a major role in students’ experiences and how they view themselves as a member of the community. And furthermore, pressure that students place on themselves is not something to take lightly as it impacts students’ mental health which has an enormous effect on how they perform academically. It is so interesting to discover these similarities between my high school experience and the experiences of students in an entirely different country. I look forward to seeing what other similarities I may discover as this project continues.

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Wow, What a Ride: An Overall Reflection of the Research Process

Thomas Barry / Globally Elite / Chile, curriculum, Elite, elite schools, eliteness, homogeneity, homogenous, privilege, research, research process, social class, values /

December 4, 2016

While I have completed a number of research projects during my time at Colby, my research partners for this project have arguably been the best ones ever. Each of us has our individual strengths, and I am very grateful to be a part of a balanced group. Collectively, we have rejoiced in moments when the research process has clicked…

… And persevered together when it hasn’t.

Early on in the research process, our group struggled to narrow our focus. In our initial research proposal, our group decided to focus on studying the impact of parental figures on the lives of Croft School students. When we realized there was not enough data on the Internet to analyze the Croft School through this lens, we decided to shift our focus to extracurricular activities. With this focus in mind, one of my group members effectively conducted three interviews with our assigned Croft School student. Shortly after finishing these interviews, my other group partner chugged along and transcribed all three interviews. Interviewing and transcribing are two of the most time consuming parts of this research project, and my partners did an amazing job.

While getting these interviews done was awesome, I was slightly disappointed to learn our student interviewee was not heavily involved in extracurricular activities. Doing a lot of research on two research topics and not having either pan out was definitely discouraging.

However, not being paired with a student who was deeply invested in extracurricular activities was actually a blessing in disguise. It forced my group to learn one of the most important rules of research– letting the data tell you what is important and what to focus on. We soon realized that one of the strongest connections between our class readings, Internet research on elite schools, and our interviews was the theme of homogeneity. Thus, we made homogeneity our research focus, and ran with it.

The Croft School is homogenous in a number of ways. First, the school provides a standardized, homogenous education to all its students; the curriculum is rigid and does not give students very many opportunities to take electives. Second, the social class standing of students at the Croft School is homogenous since most come from upper class backgrounds. Third, the Croft School fosters a particular environment, and upholds specific values, in order to develop a certain type of student — one that is well-rounded, responsible, prepared to attend university anywhere in the world, and equipped to become a trustworthy leader in the future.

mfl0305l — Definition of Homogenous – of the same kind or nature; essentially alike.

After completing our paper outline, my group felt confident in its thought progression. However, when Adam took a look at it, he saw a gap between our literature review discussion about the growth of inequalities around the world, and our claims regarding the impact of homogeneity at elite schools such as the Croft School. While making this connection was difficult, required a lot of brainpower, and required us to use a theory we had not been directly exposed to in class, my partners and I now feel confident that we can finish our paper with this new thought progression.

To be honest, I had not considered what it has meant to be part of a larger research project until Adam asked us to reflect on this question. However, after giving this question some thought, I now have some answers. Since each group in our class is analyzing the Croft School, albeit through a different lens, it has been very helpful to learn about where my classmates have gathered information on the school. Being part of this larger research project has also given me the opportunity to learn more about the elite schools Adam, his previous students, and his research team have explored and analyzed. It has been interesting not only to learn about these schools, but also to look at the similarities and differences between the Croft School and other elite institutions around the world. It feels awesome to be part of a larger research project, and I cannot wait to read more about the Croft School when Adam and his research team publishes research on it sometime in the future.

Besides learning to let the data tell me what to focus on, I have learned a number of valuable lessons during this project. The most important lessons I learned, however, were about my own Eliteness and privilege. I am now more aware of my privilege; how my social class background led me to Colby; as well as the ways I have perpetuated social inequalities — in terms of how I used to see the world, and where I go to school. This awareness has encouraged me to think more deeply about the ways I can impede the perpetuation of inequalities. While I do not have all of the answers to this question yet, I look forward to generating, learning about, and acting on some of them in the future.