Class differences in achievement Flashcards
Class differences in achievement
-Working class are more likely to underachieve at all stages of education, underperform in SATS, less likely to get pass grade gcses, less likely to go into university and post compulsory education than middle and upper class students.
External explanations-
Look at factors external to the school such as material deprivation and cultural deprivation to explain why the working class underachieve as opposed to internal processes like labelling
External explanations-Maternal Deprivation
-Most of the working class have low income and live in poverty, the effects of poverty act as a barrier to high achievement and prevent working class children from achieving highly resulting in them underperforming compared to middle class children who do not have material barriers thus have an advantage.
Material deprivation-poor housing conditions.
Waldfogel and washbrook found that the working class were more likely to live in poor housing conditions with little space, overcrowded and damp-little free space and noise means they are unable to do homework or study effectively, damp/mold leads to sickness and time off school
C: overlooks role of external factors.
Who found the working class are more likely to live in poor housing conditions resulting in more time off school and an inability to study as effectively
Waldfogel and Washbrook
Material factors-low income
Low income can act as a barrier to engaging in education
-Many working class children are malnourished due to poverty resulting in ill health and inhibited concentration
-Inability to access resources like books, games and the internet to advance childrens development and education-cannot afford private tutors or private schools putting them at a disadvantage-cannot afford to futher their education
-C: Davis and Moore-education is meritocratic?
Material barriers-low income and post 16 education
-Research shows fear of debt deters the working class from going to university as they cannot afford it as they have a low income, low income means many people have to get jobs at 16 to help support their family and cannot do a levels etc explaining why working class underperform
Weakness of material barriers-overlooks the role of internal processes and contradicted by labelling theorists/interactionists
(Can also use for cultural barriers)
-Internal factors such as stereotyping and labelling internal to schools lead to working class underachievement according to Becker-stereotyped as underachieving or deviant due to teacher stereotypes-internalise and conform behaviour to the label resulting in a self fulfilling prophecy-working class pupils more likely to be negatively labelled by teachers-internal factors play some role-material factors cannot solely explain differences in underachievent
Cultural explanations
-Look at factors internal to the working class environment and how they influence educational achievement including how the working class are socialised and parental levels of education-Sodha and margo argue such cultural factors have a cumulative effect creating a disengagement from education.
Douglas-Parental interest in education
Suggests level of parental interest in education determines how well we will achieve-working class parents show less interest in their childrens education, go to less parents evenings and show less encouragement during exam seasons and are less likely to help them with homework etc-underachieve as they dont show interest
C: -WC parents may not lack interest but may have material barriers preventing them from showing interest or a lack of education to give advice and encouragement-demonises working class parents and blames them for all under achievement-overlooks material and internal factors.
-Hyman and Sugarman-subcultural attitudes
The working class underachieve as they are socialised into attitudes which result in low educational achievement and middle class pupils are socialised into values which promotes high achievement
-Working class are socialised by their parents to see educational qualifications as useless and to value the instant gratification of a low status, but instantly paying job-education and trying hard is unecessary resulting in them under-performing and not putting in effort and leaving school at 16 as they have been socialised to.
-Middle class students are socialised to value qualifications and educations as a means to sucess and to have a high status career aspiration, they are socialised to see hard work and effort as resulting in deffered gratification and are thus pushed to try harder in education as they see it as valuable
C: Over assumes about the values of working class parents-many working class parents may be encouraging-the fact WC do achieve suggests there isnt one singular WC value they are all socialised into
-Boys achievement is improving
-Not true to say boys are underachieving as their results are improving generally, additionally working class boys are more likely to underachieve than middle class boys, class may be a greater determining factor of achievement than gender.
Who found boys assert their masculinity through resistance to school resulting in underachievement
Forde et al
Jacksons criticism of focusing on boys achievement
Overlooks that girls are still marginalised in the educational system and still underachieving-working class girls who still underachieve get less attention and help due to focus on boys-
