ABSTRACT
The lack of attention to the issue of social class in education is referred to by Diane Reay as the 'troublesome un-dead of the English education system', a problem which she contends will only get worse the longer it is ignored. She argues further that lack of engagement with social class issues in initial teacher education programmes in the United Kingdom perpetuates this social justice concern. One of the first issues to be addressed with children is the terminology associated with social class. Using children's voices and experiences to teach other children about poverty is a key critical approach. The Children's Parliament in Scotland recently led a project in schools in Glasgow's East End, in which children created a mural showing what life is like in their community. Using a critical media approach, students can explore how television programmes and films portray social class and poverty, to uncover stereotypes as well as issues of inequalities of power.
