Description
Book SynopsisAn in-depth look at how aspirations are developed in public schools in Silicon Valley through emphasis of the region's success-driven culture and economic insecurities
Trade Review"Wonderfully imaginative and skillfully done, Davidson offers a searing assessment of the aspirations and asymmetries in attainment for working-class and middle-class youth as they navigate the real and imaginary geography of Silicon Valleys techno-entrepreneurial landscape, confronting vast economic uncertainties in search of success." -- Amy L. Best,author of Fast Cars, Cool Rides: The Accelerating World of Youth and Their Cars
"Davidson evokes the particulars of unequal schooling framed by the politics and economy of Silicon Valley. Davidson compares students management of aspirations as they try to grow into responsible, always flexible, citizens as the schools communicate to them that they are either at risk or exceptional. The students emerge in this rich account as both fully human and deeply conflicted members of a harshly polarized world." -- Brett Williams,American University
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Part I. Introduction 1 Phantoms of Success: The Politics of Aspiration in Post-Boom Silicon Valley Part II. Aspirations of Youth in Silicon Valley 2 Managing "At-Risk" Selves and "Giving Back": Aspiration Management among Working-Class Youth 3 Marketing the Self: Aspiration Management among Middle-Class Youth in Silicon ValleyPart III. The Politics of Social Reproduction in Silicon Valley 4 "Every Youth a Start-up": Education and Training in Silicon Valley 5 A Fear of Slipping: A Cultural Politics of Class Part IV. Conclusion 6 A Flexible Politics of Citizenship: Old Patterns, New Burdens, and the Space of Contradiction Notes References Index About the Author
