class and achievement- external factors

Question 1

Material Deprivation

Answer 1

living in poverty and lacking the material necessities such as house and income

Question 2

Housing: overcrowded living conditions

Answer 2

lack of study space, no quiet space to do homework, tiredness due to lack of sleep from sharing beds.- prevents from learning and causes underachievement

Question 3

Housing: temporary accommodation

Answer 3

frequent home moving results in changes of school and feelings of insecurity leading to low self-esteem and depression- causing underachievement

Question 4

Housing: cold or damp living conditions

Answer 4

can cause illness leading to frequent absences from school. - leads to difficulties catching up with work - lack of understanding and underachievement

Question 5

Health: Howard

Answer 5

poorer families have lower intake of vitamins and minerals. - affect energy levels and performance at school- lead to frequent absences from school.

Question 6

Health: Wilkinson

Answer 6

emotional problems- among 10yrs old-the lower the class the higher rate of anxiety and behavioural disorders- leading to exclusions from class and causing underachievement

Question 7

Finances: lack of money/Tanner

Answer 7

• no books or PCs and lack of school equipment and uniform. Tanner says many poor families can’t afford this which affects achievement

Question 8

Finances: Smith and Noble

Answer 8

argues that poorer students miss out because their parents cannot afford private tuition.

Question 9

Finances: Ridge

Answer 9

many students take on part time jobs which means they have less time to studying.

Question 10

Finances: Reay

Answer 10

w/c students more likely to apply to local universities to reduce costs but these are less likely to be high status universities

Question 11

Cultural Deprivation

Answer 11

refers to lack of skills, attitudes and values need for educational achievement such as language and reasoning skills.

Question 12

(CD) Language: Feinstein

Answer 12

educated parents are more likely to use language that develops cognitive performance such as asking questions that require justification and explanation

Question 13

(CD) Language: Bereiter and Engelmann

Answer 13

w/c communicate through deficient language such as using gestures and single words so their children do not develop the language skills needed to do well in schools

Question 14

(CD) Language: Bernstein

Answer 14

argues that there are two different speech codes: elaborate and restricted

Question 15

Bernstein: Restricted code

Answer 15

used by w/c- limited vocabulary, uses short and grammatically simple sentences. is context bound- the speaker thinks that the listener is familiar with the topic

Question 16

Berstein: Elaborated code

Answer 16

used by m/c- wide vocabulary and long, complex and grammatically correct sentences.- context free- the speaker assumes that the listener isn’t aware of the topic. the school and teachers use elaborated code but because the w/c children are not familiar with elaborated code, its put them into a disadvantage whereas m/c are advantaged as they are already socialized into it

Question 17

(CD) Douglas- parent’s education

Answer 17

w/c parents lack interest in education, less ambitious for their children and their education.- illustrated by their infrequent visits to school or contact with teachers-resulting in lower aspirations and motivation

Question 18

(CD) Feinstein- parenting style

Answer 18

m/c parents parenting style emphasizes discipline and high expectations , while w/c parents are more harsh and apply discipline inconsistently which prevents their children from learning self-control leading to lower motivation at school and problems interacting with teachers

Question 19

(CD) Young- use of income

Answer 19

m/c parents have the income needed for educational toys and activities such as visits to museums. they are more likely to buy books to help develop their children’s intellect

Question 20

(CD) Subcultural attitudes and values

Answer 20

w/c parents are less interested in their children’s education because of the working class subculture which gives them different values to the mainstream values. These values are passed onto their children, so the children themselves lack interest in education leading to underachievement.

Question 21

(CD) Sugarman- w/c subcultural values

Answer 21

Fatalism- beliefs in faith, that individuals have no control over their lives.
Collectivism- being useful to your family and friends is more important than individual success.
Immediate gratification- seeking rewards now rather than working for long term rewards.
Present time orientation- living for today.

Question 22

Compensatory education

Answer 22

is a government policy designed to tackle the problem of cultural deprivation by providing extra resources to schools and communities in deprived areas. aims to compensate w/c children for their lack knowledge, skills and experiences necessary for educational achievement. e.g operation head start in USA-aiming to improve parenting skills and create nursery school places. also education action zones and sure start have been introduced for same purpose- to work with parents to promote physical , intellectual and social development of children.

Question 23

CRITICISM of cultural deprivation- Keddie

Answer 23

claims that cultural deprivation is a myth because w/c children are culturally different not deprived. schools should stop seeing w/c culture as deficient and instead build on its strengths and challenge teachers’ prejudice against the w/c.

Bernstein can criticised because he implies that restricted code is inferior to elaborated code.

Question 24

CRITICISM of cultural deprivation- Blackstone and Mortimore

Answer 24

criticise Douglas- w/c parents are interested in their children’s education but cannot attend parents’ meeting because of irregular working shifts and schools puts them off attending by promoting m/c values.

Question 25

Cultural Capital- Bourdieu

Answer 25

is term used to refer to language, knowledge, attitudes, values, abilities and experiences held by the middle class

Question 26

(CC) Bourdieu

Answer 26

CC passed from parents to children through socialisation.- called cultural reproduction.
gives m/c children an advantage in education because the abilities, knowledge and experience they have is highly valued in school.
w/c children lack cultural capital which leads to education failure.
hence education system is not neutral as it favors and transmits dominant, m/c culture.

Question 27

Economic capital- Leech and Campos

Answer 27

term used to refer to material wealth. L&C argue m/c parents are able to buy houses near good schools to increase the chances of their child getting a place.- called selection by mortgage because it increases the cost of houses near successful schools.

Question 28

Educational capital

Answer 28

term used to refer to educational qualifications.

Question 29

Bourdieu- types of capital

Answer 29

argued that cultural, educational and economic capital can be converted into one another.

Question 30

(CC) Sullivan

Answer 30

used questionnaires with 465 students in 4 schools to assess their cultural capital- asked them about activities like reading, watching TV and museums while testing their vocabulary and knowledge of cultural figures.
found that reading and watching documentaries helps develop a wide vocabulary and cultural knowledge. also some w/c students did had cultural capital but they did worse than m/c students-because of m/c parents’ high expectations and resources to help their children learn.

Question 31

(CC) Gewirtz

Answer 31

studied the extent to which parents use their cultural, educational and economic capital to select schools. the research included interviews with teachers and parents in 14 London schools. her study provides evidence for Bernstein’s cultural capital theory.

Question 32

Privileged-skilled choosers

Answer 32

• m/c parents
• use their eco, cul an edu capital to gain educational capital for their children.
• know how education system works
• can afford travel costs or moving houses to catchment areas of good schools

Question 33

Disconnected-local chooser

Answer 33

• w/c- lacking all three types of capital which limits their choice.
• unfamiliar with school procedures and pay more attention to facilities rather than league tables.
• can’t afford travel costs or moving houses
• children end up going to nearest comprehensive school

Question 34

semi-skilled chooser

Answer 34

• w/c parents with ambitions for their children
• however they lack the three types of capital so find it difficult to understand the education systems
• tend to rely on their people’s opinions about schools when making their choice.

Question 35

(MD) Finances: Callender and Jackson

Answer 35

fear of debt- found that w/c students saw debt negatively and something to be avoided.-w/c students are more less likely to apply to universities due to fear of debt and increase in tuition fees has increased the debt burden which puts them off from going to university