Childhood And Schooling In Postsocialist Societies

Download Childhood And Schooling In Postsocialist Societies full books in PDF, epub, and Kindle. Read online Childhood And Schooling In Postsocialist Societies ebook anywhere anytime directly on your device. Fast Download speed and no annoying ads. We cannot guarantee that every ebooks is available!

Childhood and Schooling in (Post)Socialist Societies

Author : Iveta Silova
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 3319627910
Total Pages : 297 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (196 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Childhood and Schooling in (Post)Socialist Societies by : Iveta Silova

Download or read book Childhood and Schooling in (Post)Socialist Societies written by Iveta Silova and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-12-07 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores childhood and schooling in late socialist societies by bringing into dialogue public narratives and personal memories that move beyond imaginaries of Cold War divisions between the East and West. Written by cultural insiders who were brought up and educated on the eastern side of the Iron Curtain - spanning from Central Europe to mainland Asia - the book offers insights into the diverse spaces of socialist childhoods interweaving with broader political, economic, and social life. These evocative memories explore the experiences of children in navigating state expectations to embody “model socialist citizens” and their mixed feelings of attachment, optimism, dullness, and alienation associated with participation in “building” socialist futures. Drawing on the research traditions of autobiography, autoethnography, and collective biography, the authors challenge what is often considered ‘normal’ and ‘natural’ in the historical accounts of socialist childhoods, and engage in (re)writing histories that open space for new knowledges and vast webs of interconnections to emerge. This book will be compelling reading for students and researchers working in education, sociology and history, particularly those within the interdisciplinary fields of childhood and area studies. ‘The authors of this beautiful book are professional academics and intellectuals who grew up in different socialist countries. Exploring “socialist childhoods” in myriad ways, they draw on memories, and collective history, emotional insider knowledge and the measured perspective of an analyst. What emerges is life that was caught between real optimism and dullness, ethical commitments and ideological absurdities, selfless devotion to children and their treatment as a political resource. Such attention to detail and examination of the paradoxical nature of this time makes this collective effort not only timely but remarkably genuine.’ —Alexei Yurchak, University of California, USA

Society and Social Changes through the Prism of Childhood

Author : Hanne Warming
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000958914
Total Pages : 160 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (9 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Society and Social Changes through the Prism of Childhood by : Hanne Warming

Download or read book Society and Social Changes through the Prism of Childhood written by Hanne Warming and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-09-19 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a new childhood studies research program; namely Childhood Prism Research and offers unique childhood research contributions to the wider scholarly field. Bringing together cutting-edge childhood studies scholars from various disciplines, including philosophy, psychology, feminism, anthropology, sociology and literature, the book demonstrates the rich potential of this program and offers an introduction to the childhood prism theoretical framework, as well as examples of childhood prism research. Childhood prism research is underpinned by a distinct childhood studies approach that involves re-thinking the generational order perspective, and combining this with a relational ontology and a flat, non-adultist epistemology. The key assumption is that the study of children’s lives can offer not only insights into adults’ lives, and vice versa, but in some cases may even offer a privileged lens onto broader societal issues. The program embraces a number of seemingly oppositional positions in an ongoing debate within childhood studies and children’s geographies about how to reinvigorate theoretical thinking within these fields. Featuring leading childhood studies scholars from various disciplines, including philosophy, psychology, feminism, anthropology, sociology and literature, this book demonstrates the rich potential of the program and shows how researching children’s and young people’s lives using this approach holds great promise for significant theoretical development beyond the field of children’s geographies and childhood studies, as well as for empirical exploration of broader societal issues. Society and Social Changes Through the Prism of Childhood will be a key resource for academics, researchers, and advanced students of Childhood Studies, Sociology, Human Geography, Social Sciences and Psychology. The chapters included in this book were originally published as a special issue of Children’s Geographies.

Education in/for Socialism

Author : Tom G. Griffiths
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317353021
Total Pages : 220 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (173 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Education in/for Socialism by : Tom G. Griffiths

Download or read book Education in/for Socialism written by Tom G. Griffiths and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-10-02 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book re-examines aspects of historical socialism, and includes case studies of education within twenty-first century socialist and post-socialist contexts shaped by the trajectories of historical socialism. Through these case studies, contributions offer insights into key questions: How are education systems and student subjectivities shaped by post-socialist trajectories and current regional politics, economics and resistance movements? How do sedimented socialist discourses and geographies alter and contest the ‘neoliberal child’ and ‘childhood’ in post-socialist education? How have disjunctures between the rhetoric of historical Marxism-Leninism and the practices of educators, students and student political organizations played out under socialism, and what could we learn from that for our present? How much emancipatory potential is there in the theories and practices of (popular) education for combatting injustice in the absence of mass, revolutionary political parties? Above all, this volume affirms the need to move beyond simplistic accounts of historical socialism and post-socialist transitions. By exploring how socialist trajectories remain influential and have potential in our current contexts, this book contributes to the work of politically engaged educators working to re-imagine and reconstruct education. This book was originally published as a special issue of Globalisation, Societies and Education.

Logics of Socialist Education

Author : Tom G. Griffiths
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 9400747284
Total Pages : 215 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (7 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Logics of Socialist Education by : Tom G. Griffiths

Download or read book Logics of Socialist Education written by Tom G. Griffiths and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-09-14 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For some, socialism is a potent way of achieving economic, political and social transformations in the twenty-first century, while others find the very term socialism outdated. This book engages readers in a discussion about the viability of socialist views on education and identifies the capacity of some socialist ideas to address a range of widely recognized social ills. It argues that these pervasive social problems, which plague so-called ‘developed’ societies as much as they contribute to the poverty, humiliation and lack of prospects in the rest of the world, fundamentally challenge us to act. In our contemporary world-system, distancing ourselves from the injustices of others is neither viable nor defensible. Rather than waiting for radically new solutions to emerge, this book sees the possibility of transformation in the reconfiguration of existing social logics that comprise our modern societies, including logics of socialism. The book presents case studies that offer a critical examination of education in contemporary socialist contexts, as well as reconsidering examples of education under historical socialism. In charting these alternatives, and retooling past solutions in a nuanced way, it sets out compelling evidence that it is possible to think and act in ways that depart from today’s dominant educational paradigm. It offers contemporary policy makers, researchers, and practitioners a cogent demonstration of the contemporary utility of educational ideas and solutions associated with socialism. A pioneering collection of essays which is central to understanding the historical and contemporary meanings of socialism in the context of neoliberal globalization. It is a most timely contribution to a growing intellectual project that challenges the hegemony of capitalism, while re-thinking and theorizing alternatives. Iveta Silova, Associate Professor of Comparative Education, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA, USA In this significant contribution to recent scholarship the authors use the lens of socialist education to offer an original critique of hegemonic capitalism, and present an intellectually rigorous search for alternatives by reconsidering historical socialism and advancing promising educational experiments that challenge the 'global architecture of education'. Anders Breidlid, Professor of International Education and Development, Oslo University College, Norway

Childhood and Education in the United States and Russia

Author : Katerina Bodovski
Publisher : Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN 13 : 178743933X
Total Pages : 108 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (874 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Childhood and Education in the United States and Russia by : Katerina Bodovski

Download or read book Childhood and Education in the United States and Russia written by Katerina Bodovski and published by Emerald Group Publishing. This book was released on 2019-07-29 with total page 108 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book considers the place of education in childhood, and provides a cross-country and cross-cultural perspective on the importance of education in childhood - comparing experiences in the US and Russia. It conceptualizes the discussion in sociological theory, particularly theories pertaining to the sociology of education.

The Bloomsbury Handbook of Theory in Comparative and International Education

Author : tavis d. jules
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1350078778
Total Pages : 521 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (5 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Bloomsbury Handbook of Theory in Comparative and International Education by : tavis d. jules

Download or read book The Bloomsbury Handbook of Theory in Comparative and International Education written by tavis d. jules and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2021-01-28 with total page 521 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a practical and approachable overview of central theories in comparative and international education (CIE). The chapters focus in depth on specific theoretical perspectives and seek to elucidate the histories, assumptions, and recent developments of these theories. The chapters also situate the theories within CIE, include specific case studies of theoretical application, and outline suggestions for further reading. Written by leading scholars from around the world, this is must-have reference work for anyone teaching, researching, studying, or working in CIE. The handbook includes chapters on a diverse collection of theories, including but not limited to: Structural-functionalism, Colonialism/Imperialism, Marxism, Human Capital Theory, Dependency/World Systems Theory, Post-Colonialism, Post-Socialism, Post-Foundationalism, Neo-liberalism, Neo-Institutionalism, Neo-Marxism, Policy Borrowing and Lending, Peace Theories, Human Rights, Constructivism, Racism, Gender, Queer Theory, Social Network Theory, Capabilities Theory, and Cultural Political Economy.

Modern Schooling and Trajectories of Exclusion

Author : Divya Kannan
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000965279
Total Pages : 187 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (9 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Modern Schooling and Trajectories of Exclusion by : Divya Kannan

Download or read book Modern Schooling and Trajectories of Exclusion written by Divya Kannan and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-10-10 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A timely enquiry into the disjuncture between schooling and society, this book aims to examine the specific spatialities and temporalities of modern schooling through which non-normative childhoods are constructed as the ‘provincial other’. A large body of critical scholarship has engaged with the ways in which modern schooling draws upon certain situated, normative ideals of child development and is uneasy in its attempts to accommodate childhoods that are situated outside of this normative framework. The COVID-19 pandemic, in fact, was a further reminder of how schooling, in its current form, is limited in its abilities to address childhoods that spatio-temporally disrupt the assumptions of the ‘normal’ and ‘stable’. Together, the authors of this edited volume examine the ways in which modern schooling, ‘excludes’, despite set policies for inclusion, and how ‘provincialized’ children respond to this. Cutting across a range of disciplines from history and anthropology to sociology and childhood studies, statistics and demography, and a range of research methodologies, from archival to ethnographic, the chapters draw upon these various disciplines in unpacking the structures of modern schooling. Modern Schooling and Trajectories of Exclusion will be a key resource for academics, researchers, and advanced students of education, sociology, research methods, childhood studies and social sciences. The chapters included in this book were originally published as a special issue of Children's Geographies.

Global Perspectives on Home Education in the 21st Century

Author : English, Rebecca
Publisher : IGI Global
ISBN 13 : 1799866831
Total Pages : 312 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (998 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Global Perspectives on Home Education in the 21st Century by : English, Rebecca

Download or read book Global Perspectives on Home Education in the 21st Century written by English, Rebecca and published by IGI Global. This book was released on 2020-11-13 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Home education is the fastest growing educational movement in the world, yet the research remains limited on why and how it has become so popular. As more and more families seek to homeschool, it is imperative that further studies are undertaken to understand how students’ lives are impacted, as well as the challenges and opportunities that arise from this method of schooling. Global Perspectives on Home Education in the 21st Century is an edited collection that focuses on the major factors behind the global rise of the home education movement and explores many of the current issues faced in relation to homeschooling. The book examines key themes that include parents’ and children’s experiences of home education, how and why families choose to home educate, and what happens to home educated children once they are finished. Including topics such as unschooling, self-directed learning, willed learning, and holistic education, this book is primarily intended for home educators, school administrators, policymakers, researchers, academicians, and students.

Education, Curriculum and Nation-Building

Author : Daniel Tröhler
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000863891
Total Pages : 282 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (8 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Education, Curriculum and Nation-Building by : Daniel Tröhler

Download or read book Education, Curriculum and Nation-Building written by Daniel Tröhler and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-04-07 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributing to interdisciplinary discussions on nationalism, the book explores how educational systems and practices contribute to the phenomena of nationalism and nation-building. Using nine comparative case studies from four continents, the book elaborates a theoretical understanding of nationalism from the perspectives of comparative education research. It integrates the theme of nation, nation-building and nationalism and its involvement with issues of education. It explores the theoretical scope of concepts such as national identities, national literacies, or "doing" nation. The book revives the idea that nation should be the starting point of comparative research and contributes to the theoretically reflective integration of nationalism research into education research. This timely book will be highly relevant for researchers, academics, and postgraduate students in the fields of comparative education, international education, education policy, and curriculum studies.

The Decommodification of Early Childhood Education and Care

Author : Michel Vandenbroeck
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1000828514
Total Pages : 285 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (8 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Decommodification of Early Childhood Education and Care by : Michel Vandenbroeck

Download or read book The Decommodification of Early Childhood Education and Care written by Michel Vandenbroeck and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2022-12-30 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Decommodification of Early Childhood Education and Care: Resisting Neoliberalism explores how processes of marketisation and privatisation of ECEC have impacted understandings of children, childcare, parents, and the workforce, providing concrete examples of resistance to commodification from diverse contexts. Through processes of marketisation and privatisation, neoliberal discourses have turned ECEC into a commodity whereby economic principles of competition and choice have replaced the purpose of education. The Decommodification of Early Childhood Education and Care: Resisting Neoliberalism offers new and alternative understandings of policy and practice. Written with co-authors from diverse countries, case studies vividly portray resistance to children as human capital, to the "consumentality" of parents, and to the alienation of the early childhood workforce. Ending with messages of hope, the authors discuss the demise of neoliberalism and offer new ways forward. As an international book with global messages contributing to theory, policy, and practice regarding alternatives to a neoliberal and commodified vision of ECEC, this book offers inspiration for policy makers and practitioners to develop local resistance solutions. It will also be of interest to post-graduate students, researchers, educators, and pre-service educators with an interest in critical pedagogy, ECEC policy, and ECEC practice.

Navigating Socialist Encounters

Author : Eric Burton
Publisher : Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN 13 : 3110623544
Total Pages : 406 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (16 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Navigating Socialist Encounters by : Eric Burton

Download or read book Navigating Socialist Encounters written by Eric Burton and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2021-06-08 with total page 406 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This edited volume examines entanglements and disentanglements between Africa and East Germany during and after the Cold War from a global history perspective. Extending the view beyond political elites, it asks for the negotiated and plural character of socialism in these encounters and sheds light on migration, media, development, and solidarity through personal and institutional agency. With its distinctive focus on moorings and unmoorings, the volume shows how the encounters, albeit often brief, significantly influenced both African and East German histories.

Schooling for "good Rebels"

Author : Kenneth Teitelbaum
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780877229803
Total Pages : 258 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (298 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Schooling for "good Rebels" by : Kenneth Teitelbaum

Download or read book Schooling for "good Rebels" written by Kenneth Teitelbaum and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During the first two decades of this century, American socialists organized weekend schools for children to foster social justice, working-class consciousness and solidarity, and activism. Kenneth Teitelbaum explores the historical development, organization, institutional characteristics, and curricula of these alternative educational settings, particularly those in New York City, Rochester, and Milwaukee. In his discussion of this historic effort to contest the dominant messages of capitalist culture, the author highlights the political nature of school curriculum and relates the Socialist Sunday School project to current efforts to promote a more socially responsible curriculum. Through interviews with former students and teachers of the Socialist Sunday schools, as well as research into radical newspapers, archival papers, and other written materials of the period, Teitelbaum is able to provide the first detailed study of American socialist efforts in the area of childhood education. He presents the actual curricula used with children in radical school settings and discusses the various teaching methods that ranged from recitations of socialist catechisms to class discussions, stories, songs, and plays. It is estimated that more than 10,000 children, ages five to fourteen, attended approximately one hundred Socialist Sunday schools in sixty-four cities and towns throughout the United States between 1900 and 1920. In their attempt to combat the overly individualistic, competitive, nationalistic, militaristic, and anti-working-class themes that seemed to prevail in contemporary social institutions, the teachers of Socialist Sunday schools directly challenged the version of "reality"taught to children in public schools and underscored the political nature of schooling. Teitelbaum clarifies how particular values, beliefs, and meanings that have in large part been selected out of the public school curriculum were concretely addressed by radical educators at the beginning of this century, and he shows how this contestation of dominant ideologies relates to hotly debated educational issues today.

Annual Review of Comparative and International Education 2021

Author : Alexander W. Wiseman
Publisher : Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1802625232
Total Pages : 364 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (26 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Annual Review of Comparative and International Education 2021 by : Alexander W. Wiseman

Download or read book Annual Review of Comparative and International Education 2021 written by Alexander W. Wiseman and published by Emerald Group Publishing. This book was released on 2022-07-19 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: TheAnnual Review of Comparative and International Education 2021, Part A begins with a collection of discussion essays about comparative and international education trends and directions, followed by studies that focus on new developments in comparative and international education by regional area.

Handbook of Education Policy Studies

Author : Guorui Fan
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 9811383472
Total Pages : 425 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (113 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Handbook of Education Policy Studies by : Guorui Fan

Download or read book Handbook of Education Policy Studies written by Guorui Fan and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-06-02 with total page 425 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This open access handbook brings together the latest research from a wide range of internationally influential scholars to analyze educational policy research from international, historical and interdisciplinary perspectives. By effectively breaking through the boundaries between countries and disciplines, it presents new theories, techniques and methods for contemporary education policy, and illustrates the educational policies and educational reform practices that various countries have introduced to meet the challenges of continuous change. Based on an analysis of the nature of education policy and education reform, this volume focuses on education reform and the concept of education quality. Adopting a historical and comparative perspective, it examines the dialectical relationship between education policy and education reform in various countries, assesses theoretical and practical issues in the process of moving from regulation to multiple governance in contemporary education administration, and explores the impact of globalization on national education reform and the interdependence between countries. In addition, it presents studies addressing educational policy research methodology from multiple perspectives. Highlighting the changes in national education macro policies, this volume comprehensively reveals the complex relationship between contemporary education reform and social change, and explores the links between contemporary social, political and economic systems and educational policy research and practice, offering a holistic portrait of macro trends in contemporary education reform.

The SAGE Handbook of Global Childhoods

Author : Nicola J. Yelland
Publisher : SAGE
ISBN 13 : 152976209X
Total Pages : 704 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (297 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The SAGE Handbook of Global Childhoods by : Nicola J. Yelland

Download or read book The SAGE Handbook of Global Childhoods written by Nicola J. Yelland and published by SAGE. This book was released on 2021-09-08 with total page 704 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Handbook explores the multidisciplinary field of childhood studies through a uniquely global lens. It focuses on enquiries and investigations into the everyday lives of young children in the age range of birth to 8 years of age, giving space to their voices and involving interrogations about the various aspect of their lives. This Handbook engages with the interdisciplinary field of childhood studies, education, cultural studies, ethnography, and philosophy, with contributions from scholars from across the globe who have focused their work on the complexities of childhoods in contemporary times. By considering a range of epistemologies, ontologies and perspectives to present the contemporary & systematic research on the topic from a wide range of academics and authors in the field, this Handbook provides a significant contribution to the international dialogue of Global Childhoods. Part 1: Global Childhoods Part 2: Researching Global Childhoods Part 3: Contemporary Childhoods Part 4: Pedagogies and Practice Part 5: Creating Communities for Global Children

Developments

Author : Erica Burman
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1000163121
Total Pages : 476 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (1 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Developments by : Erica Burman

Download or read book Developments written by Erica Burman and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-07-28 with total page 476 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How does developmental psychology connect with (what used to be called) the developing world? What do cultural representations indicate about the contemporary politics of childhood? How is concern about child sexual exploitation linked to wider securitization anxieties? In other words: what is the political economy of childhood, and how is this affectively organized? This new edition of Developments: Child, Image, Nation, fully updated, is a key conceptual intervention and resource, reflecting further on the contexts and frameworks that tie children to national and international agendas. A companion volume to Burman’s Deconstructing Developmental Psychology (third edition, 2017) this volume helps explain why questions around children and childhood, including their safety, welfare, their interests, abilities, sexualities and their violence, have so preoccupied the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries, showing how the frames for these concerns have extended beyond their Euro-US contexts of origination. In this completely revised edition, Burman explores changing debates and contexts, offering resources for interpreting continuities and shifts in the complex terrain connecting children and development. Through reflection on an increasingly globalised, marketised world, that prolongs previous colonial and gendered dynamics in new and even more insidious ways, Developments analyses the conceptual paradigms shaping how we think about and work with children, and recommends strategies for changing them. Drawing in particular on feminist and post-development literatures, as well as original and detailed engagement with social theory, it illustrates how and why reconceptualising notions of individual and human development, including those informing models of children’s rights and interests, is needed to foster more just and equitable forms of professional practice with children and their families. Burman offers an important contribution to a set of urgent debates engaging theory and method, policy and practice across all the disciplines that work with, or lay claim to, children’s interests. A persuasive set of arguments about childhood, culture and professional practice, Developments is an invaluable resource to teachers and students in psychology, childhood studies, and education as well as researchers in gender studies.

Class Cultures in Post-Socialist Eastern Europe

Author : Dražen Cepić
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 0429840101
Total Pages : 170 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (298 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Class Cultures in Post-Socialist Eastern Europe by : Dražen Cepić

Download or read book Class Cultures in Post-Socialist Eastern Europe written by Dražen Cepić and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-10-26 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book investigates the extent to which social class has changed in Eastern Europe since the fall of communism. Based on extensive original research, the book discusses how ideas about class are viewed by both working class and middle class people. The book examines how such people’s social identities are shaped by various factors including economic success, culture and friendship networks. The present class situation in Eastern Europe is contrasted to what prevailed in Communist times, when societies were officially classless, but nevertheless had Communist party elites.