Jessica Calarco
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About Jessica
Calarco's research focuses on inequalities in education, family life, and health, and she is an expert in qualitative research methods. Overarching themes in Calarco's writings include the power of privilege in society and the unfair advantages that privileged children and parents are able to secure for themselves (e.g., in schools, healthcare settings, and social interactions). Calarco has written for The Atlantic and Inside Higher Ed, and her research has been featured in the New York Times, on NPR, on BBC radio, and on CNN.
Contributions
In the News
Publications
Reveals how the U.S. uses women's unpaid and underpaid labor to maintain the illusion of a "DIY Society." Highlights the costs of this model and the myths that delude Americans into thinking we don't need a safety net and divide us by race, class, gender, and politics to keep us from coming together to demand support for all.
Presents criteria to assess qualitative research methods such as in-depth interviewing and participant observation. Provides social scientists, researchers, students, evaluators, policy makers, and journalists with the tools needed to identify and evaluate quality in field research.
Demonstrates that success in academia often depends on command of skills and knowledge that aren't explicitly taught. Discusses the origins of these hidden inequalities and illuminates key knowledge and skills that are essential for navigating every critical stage of the postgraduate experience, from deciding whether to go to grad school in the first place to finishing one's degree and landing a job.
Demonstrates how students from more privileged groups learn to negotiate with teachers and, in doing so, secure unfair advantages in school. Reveals how inequalities result from complex (and often well-meaning) interactions between children, parents, teachers, and schools.