Class differences in educational achievements
- 1. Class deprivation Income Occupation External factors Bernstein –speech codes – restrictedandelaborated codes Impact educationandunderstanding. Restricted – small stuntedsentences,context dependent Elaborated – extensive vocabulary,complex ideas, contextfree Parental education W/C parentsare lesslikelytohave aneducationand therefore,will noteducate theirchildrenorengage at home.Bad experienceswiththe systemmayinstallan anti-school mind-setintotheirchildren. Sugarman– attitudes 4 attitudes:fatalism,immediate gratification,present time orientation,collectivism Compensatory education –strategiestohelpbring educational standardsandachievement,these may not reside withinschoolse.g. SesameStreet, Surestart,Headstart,EAZs Evaluation Cultural deprivationis victimblaming Assumesthatal W/C parentsdon’thave aspirationsfortheirchildren,whenmanydo. You can’tbe cultureless – justa differentculture. Projectssuchas Surestartand Headstartworked suggestingalinkbetweenW/Chabitusand achievement. Studieshave foundthatall earlyadvantages gainedfromHeadstartinthe US were reversed once theystartedschool suggestinganexternal factor suchas labellingisat play. Notall W/Chave little orno educationtoassist theirchildren,nordoall W/C have a restricted code – too deterministic. Material Deprivation Home security,overcrowding,noise Diet Lesseducational toys Fear of debtwithinthe W/Cso manyavoid university Bourdieu – Culturalcapital Culturalcapital – gainedfromexperiencesandvalues that schoolsvalue e.g.museumvisits,holidays Economiccapital – moneythatcan be usedfor educational gaine.g.movingtoacatchmentarea Educationalcapital– combiningcultural and economiccapital andknowledge of the education systemtobetteryourchildren. Internal factors Becker– Labelling Labellingbasedonclassstereotypesof class background – ideal studentismiddle classandwhite Studiesforlabelling –Wristprimaryschool studyof tigersandclownswhere the clownswere placed furtherawayfrom the teacher,receivedlessattention and lesschallengingmaterials.TheywereW/C children.Tigerswere teacher’sfavouriteswhowere challengedandgivensupport,these wereM/C Rosenthal andJacobsen – spurters studyinwhicha fake IQ testwasgivento studentsandthose randomly selectedasspurterswere givenextrasupportfrom the teacherand inturn succeededbetterineducation incomparisonto those whoweren’tspurters. Douglas– streaming study,M/C intops sets,if by8 the studentisplacedina low set,theirIQ declinesby 11. Wood – Responsesto labelling Ingratiation –teacher’spet Ritualism – goingthroughthe motions Retreatism– daydreamingandmessingabout Rejection – anti-school subculture Gillborne andYoudell –A-Ceconomy Those whoare borderline C/Dare givenmore support to try and improve theirgrades. Those whoare A are lefttotheirownmethods – this may inturn worsengrades. Gets labelled by a teacher Given no chance to change the label Internailises the label Becomes exactlywhat the teacher predicted SFP
- 2. Pupils Hopless cases BoarderlineC/D Those who will pass anyway Triage Those whoare belowaD are givenupon by education. Pupil subcultures Pupilswhoshare the same valuesandbehavioural patterns. Pro-school –positive labelling,committed, highersets. Anti-school –negative labelling,lowsets, statusdeprivation,badbehaviour. Symboliccapital/symbolicviolence Schoolsvalue M/Chabitusand devalue W/Chabitus, denyingthemstatus.Therefore,the M/Chave symboliccapital whilstthe W/Csufferviolence. Nike identities W/C alternative wayof seekingself-worthandstatus withbrandedclothesthatrejectthe school’suniform rulesandthat combats theirpoorstatus. W/C identityandsuccess –Ingram Two groupsof catholicboys,one group passedthe 11+ andwentto grammarschool.The grammar school had middle classhabitusof highexpectations. The boys struggledtofitin;theyexperienced tension between being W/C and trying to conformto M/C schooling.One boywasridiculedforwearingatrack suiton own-clothesday. Pupilsare forcedtoabandon theirworthinorder to succeedandbetraytheirW/C loyalties. –Symbolicviolence. Self-exclusion–Evans& Bourdieu Evans– 21 W/C alevel girlswere reluctanttoapplyfor highrankinguniversitiesdue tonotfittinginand loyaltiestothe home –withonly4/21 movingaway. Bourdieu – ‘not forthe likesof us’,habitustellsthem that theyhave no opportunities andwouldn’tfitin whichisfurtheringrainedintheirhabitus. Evaluation Labellingtheoryistoodeterministicclaiming that all that are labelledinternalisetheirlabel. Fuller’s girls didnot. Failsto explainwhyteacherslabel students. Assumesthatstudentsdon’thave the ability to change theirlabel. AssumesthatW/C are strivingtowardsthe same goalsas the M/C. Assumesthatpeople actuallycare about labelling. Ethical issuesassociatedwithsupurtersstudy, was itharmful to educational achievement and the children’sfuture. Showsthat labellingcanhave detrimental effectsoneducational achievement. Showsthat teacherlabellingoccursearlyonin life. Ball – abolishingstreamingwill improve W/C achievement.