Abstract
South Africa is a country that has been dealing with high rate of unemployment and unequal access to basic resources, even in the era of democracy. In the first quarter of 2020, the country faced a pandemic, Corona virus (COVID- 19). This resulted in a lot of people losing their daily income and a lot of companies losing money because of the lockdown that was introduced. Since parent’s socio-economic status affects children, it is important to determine whether young school-going children are aware of their socio-economic status. This study aimed at determining whether foundation phase learners were aware of their socioeconomic status. Secondly, to describe their subjective experiences of belonging to a specific socioeconomic status class. Based on the findings, to make recommendations based on the messages that the children internalised. The researcher used a qualitative multiple case study design and purposive sampling method was used in choosing the participants of the study. Twelve learners from three different quintile schools were chosen; four learners from quintile 1 school, four other learners from quintile 3 school and the last four learners from quintile 5 school. Data was collected through sorting-out activity, individual interviews and collages. The findings from the study were analysed through Creswell’s (2009) qualitative content analysis. Since the study was aimed at describing and exploring the experiences of participants, a social constructivist paradigm was used. The findings revealed that grade 1 and 3 learners were aware of their socioeconomic status, however, their awareness differed in terms of their grade and the quintile ranking of schools. Based on the findings, it was recommended that early childhood development education should be implemented in the learner’s curriculum that focuses on teaching learners about the importance of self-worth. It was also recommended that different education stakeholders and the learners’ family and community should work together in empowering learners from different socioeconomic status families.
M.Ed. (Educational Psychology)