class differences in achievement Flashcards
In terms of education
What do Cultural Dep. theories suggest?
Culture of some w/c groups make it difficult for them to do well in schools
What are the three main aspects of cultural deprivation?
- Language
- parent education and values
- w/c subcultures
‘what do you think?’ & educated parents
What did Hubbs - Taiet et al 2002 find?
- Parents use language that challenges their children to evaluate their own understanding like ‘ what do you think?’ shows their cognitive performance improves.
- educated parents = more praise = encourgages children to develop their own skill.
Cultural dep. theorists see those differences in how parents speak is linked to social class
High and low performance
Feinstein 2008 findings (links to Hubbs)
If educated parents use more motivating language and speak in complex ways, the kids will do well. leads to higher performance
Less educated parents use language that will require children to make descriptive, simple ways like ‘what is that animal called? ‘ leading to lower performance
Communicating, gestures, simple sentences
What did Bereiter and Engelmann 1966 claim and what does this lead to?
Language used in lower class families like communicating by gestures, single words or disjointed phrases leads to children failing to develop necessary language skills. They won’t be able to explain, compare or describe and will be unable to take advantage of the opportunities schools offer.
school codes
What did Bernstein identify?
What was the 2 types of code?
Differences between w/c and m/c language that influence achievement
1. restricted code
2. elaborate code
key word!!
What does restricted code consist of?
- mainly used by the w/c
- limited vocab, short unfinished sentences
- speech is descriptive not analytical
- context bound the speaker assumes that the listener shares the same set of experiences
what does elaborate code consist of?
- mainly used by the m/c
- wider vocab, complex sentences, longer and gramatically correct
- communcates abstract ideas
- Context-free the speaker does not assume the listener has shared the same set of experiences, so they will break it down for the listener
speech codes, class, who is it used by?
What does this mean in achievement in schools?
- M/C at an advantage and w/c at disadvantage
- Because the elaborate code is used by teachers, exams textbooks. It’s seen as the ‘correct’ way of speaking and writing
How is the elaborate code more effective according to Bernstein?
- This way of speech is more effective and a tool for analysing, reading and expressing thoughts clearly and effectively –> key skill in education
- early socialisation into the elaborate code = m/c student use this code naturally when they start school = feels at home in school and more likely to succeed
- w/c lack this code= feel exclusion and be less successful
How is Bernstein different to the typical Cultural deprivation theorists?
W/C pupils fail not becausw they are culturally deprived but because schools fail to teach them how to use the elaborate code
Parental support and values
What do cultural deprivation theorists think about parent’s attitude to education?
Key factor that effect’s kids achievement
W/C parents values
What did Douglas 1964 find? and what did this result in?
- W/C Parents value education less
- they are less ambitious for their children
- less encouragment and interest
- visit schools less often and less likely to discuss their childrens progress with teachers
Resulting in:children having lower levels of motivation and achievement
M/C example
What did Feinstein 2008 come into similar conclusion with Douglas?
A parents individual education is the most important faactor affecting their childs achievement
Some M/C parents tend to better educated and they give their children an advantage with how to socialise them
What are the 4 things M/C do to better socialise their children according to Feinstein?
- Parenting style
- parents educational behaviours
- use of income
- class
Parenting style
(Educated parents’ parenting style)
- Consistent disapline and high expectations of their children and do this by supporting active learning and exploration
Parenting style
(Less educated parents)
Harsh / inconsistent disapline and emphaisises on ‘ doing as youre told’ and ‘behave yourself’ and it stops a child from learning independently, self-control leading to poorer motivation at school and how they interact with people at school like teachers
Parent’s educational behaviour
- What are educated parents more aware of?
What is needed to help their children’s educational progress
Parents’ educational behaviour
What behaviour will they engage in because they’re more educated?
- reading to their children, teaching them letters, numbers, songs, helping with homework
- being actively involved in schools
- educated parents = expert advice on childrearing, more successful with good relationships with the teachers and better guiding their childrens education with school
- m/c parents uderstand the importance of activities like museums
Use of income
Bernstein and Young 1967 findings
M/C mums buy educational resources like books and activities to encourage reasoning skills and stimulate intellecutal development
w/c homes lack resources and they start school without the intellectual skills needed to progress
Bernstein and Young
Educated parents have a better undertstanding of what?
Nutrition and its importance in the childs development
class, income and parental education
what did feinstein find?
what does his findings help explain?
Parental education alone influence on childrens achievement regardless of their income.
meaning not all children of w/c children do equally as badly and why not all children from m/c families are equally as successful
W/c subcultures, 4 w/c subcultures
What does sugarman argue?
W/C subcultures consist of 4 key features that act as a barrier to educational achievement
1. Fatalism
2. collectivism
3. Immediate gratification
4. present time orientation
w/c and m/c values
What does _ mean?
1. Fatalism
2. collectivism
3. immediate gratification
4. present time orientation
- belief in fate - ‘whatever will be will be’ and there isn’t anything you can do to change your status. Different to m/c values which emphasises that you can change your position through your own efforts
- Valuing being part of a group more than succeeding as an invidiual. m/c views that an individual should not be held back by group loyalties
- seeking pleasure now rather than making sacrifice in order to get rewards in the feature. m/c has deffered gratification, making sacrafices now for greater rewards later
- Seeing the present as more important than in the feature and so not having to worry about long term plans or goals, m/c value future-time orientation that sees planning for the future as important
W/C subcultures, internalises
How do w/c kids pick these values?
They internalise the beliefs and values of their subculture through socialisation process and this results in them underachieving
Three points
Summarise cultural deprivation theories
- Parents pass on values of their class to their children through primary socialisation
- m/c values equip children for success
- w/c values fail to do so
What is the aim of compensatory education?
Tackle the problem of C.D by providing extra resources to schools and communities in deprived areas
U.S.O.H.S
What does compensatory education get involved in? give an example
Socialisation process to compensate children for the deprivation they experience at home, e.g. the US operation head start
- what is U.S.O.H.S?
- What did O.H.S involve?
- A multi-billion dollar scheme of preschool education in poorer education in poorer areas introduced in the 1960’s
- Included improving parenting skills, setting up nursery classes and home visits by educated psychologists
What are UK examples of Compensatory education?
- The TV show Sesame street = part of Head start, proving a means of values, attitudes and skills needed for educational success like importance of punctuality, numeracy and literacy skills
- Several C.E programmes like educational priority areas, education action zone, sure start nationwide programmes aimed at pre-school children and their parents
Myth of cultural deprivation
What did Keddie argue?
- C.D is a victim blaming myth
- W/C kids are culturally different not deprived
- The ed. system puts them at a disadvantage by adopting m/c values schools should challenge teachers’ anti-w’c prejudices
Myth of C.D
What did Troyna and williams argue?
Who does their claims go against?
- The problem isnt childens langanguage but the schools attitudes towards it
- Teacher’s have speech hierarchy - they lavel speech as highest, followed by wc speech and lastly black speech
- Argues against Bernstein
Myth of C.D
What do Blackstone and Mortimore argue?
W/c parents are interested but they work longer and less regular hours and have little time to attend parents evening. They also put off by schools m/c culture
What does material deprivation mean?
Lacking material necessities such as adequate housing and income
M.D
What are the 4 different factors that can affect w/c children?
- Housing
- Diet and health
- Financia support and costs of education
- Fear of debt
Housing material dep.
What are the three ways and impacts causing underachievement for housing? A03 & What does it all lead to?
- Overcrowding –> Dont have enough space to study, unable to focus. A03: afterschool clubs, libraries, government can find alt. housing. Pupil Premium
- Damp and cold –> Illness, more absenses from school A03: free healthcare, kids elegible for FSM
- Temporary accomodation –> multiple disruption, moving from schools to schools, unstable A03: Interventions to catch up, gov. give families benefits like univeral credit, pupil premium
Leads to lack of achievement and failure in schools
Diet and health, mat. dep.
- What does Howard say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- Young people from poorer homes have low intakes of energy, vitamins and minerals
- Poor nutrition affects health e.g. weakening immune system and lowinf energy levels = more absenses due to illnesses and difficult concentrating in class = lower grades
- FSM, Gov. inititives like breaktime snacks provided by the gov like fruit, raisins
Diet and health
- What does Wilkinson say ?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- Found in 10Y/O, the lower the social class, the higher rate of hperactivity anxiety and conduct disorder
- which will likely negatively affect a child’s education
- NHS System, counsilors and mentors in schools, therapists
diet and health, A03 sociologist
- What does Bladen and Machin say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- Kids in low income families were more likely to engage in ‘externalising’ behaviour (fighting, temper tantrums)
- disrupt their schooling, lack of focus = falling behind and gaps of knowledge
- Some children from poor families do very well – so this is only part of the reason. & Feinstein: educated parents contribute well to a child’s education, regardless of class.
Financial support and the costs of education
- What does Bull say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- Kids from poor backgrounds have to do w/o equipment and miss out on experiences that have to do with their educational success ‘ the cost of free schooling’
- lack of resources = missing out on important things e.g. not being able to afford the textbook needed for that subject = dont do as well in exams
- Gov funding like bursaries, pupil premium, staggered payment
Financial support and the costs of education
- What does Tanner say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- cost of material items place a heavy burden on poor families (transport, uniforms, books, computers, sports and music equipment etc.)
- mean they have to use second hand or cheaper unfashionable equipment which may lead to being isolated, stigmatised or bullied. For many children suitable clothes are essential for self-esteem and fitting in.
- PP for certain students
Financial support and the costs of education
- What does Flaherty say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- Having second hand things or having unfashionable equipment can lead to bullying and stigmatisation
- Leads to unfocused concentration as they are worried about what others think
- No one would know if they had FSM unless it’s explicitly said
Fear of debt, M.D
- What does Callender and Jackson say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- w/c students are more unwilling to get into debt – this stops them from going to university
- This worsened due to the £9000 per yeat tuition fees since 2012- continues to rise/ w/c students recieve less support from family, only 30% of uni kids are w/c and w/c are 50% of the population
- bursaries/ scholarships by gov and uni’s
- What does Reay say?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- w/c students more likely to apply to local universities to cut costs, more likely to have to work part-time to fund studies making it more difficult to higher class degrees.
- Less time to focus on their fegree when juggling a job= reduce focus and chance of getting a top-class degree
- maintenance loan and bursaries
- Why does poorer students have a higher dropout rate?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- London Metropolitan university has 16.6% drop put rate but only 1.5% at Oxford where nearly half the students come from private schools.
- leavinf school earlier w/o a degree means they dont have a higher level of education like the m/c
- apprenticeships and courses = more accessible
- How does w/c class students revieve less support form the family?
- How does this lead to underachievement?
- A03
- Only 30% of university students are w/c (50% of population is WC)
- cant afford uni and dont have help themselves through uni –> might get a part time job or not go at all
- bursaries or scholarships
Bourdieu : culture capital
What are 3 examples of culture capital and how participating in it might help educational success.
- Watching documentaries, it is educational as it is not compulsory to watch, expands knowledge, e.g planet earth helps with science
- educational visits, adapt the students knowledge and understanding ideas covered in schools. museums = history
- Holidays, understand culture and tradition can help with subjects like geography and sociology
Factors contributing to educational achievement
What does Bourdieu argue? and what are the three types of capital he identifies?
Argues that both cultural and material factors contribute to educational achievement
* Economic capital
* education capital
* cultural capital
(m/c generally have more of all three types of capital)
What does C.C mean according to Bourdieu?
Why does he see M/C culture as a type of capital?
- speaking about the knowledge, attitudes, values, language, tastes and abilities of the middle class.
- MC culture as a type of capital because like wealth if you have it, you are at an advantage
Culture capital - Bourdieu –> habitus
Why are m/c children more likely to be successful in education?
- Like Bernstein, he argues that through their socialisation, middle-class children learn the ability to analyse and express abstract ideas.
- They are more likely to develop intellectual interests and an understanding of what the education system requires for success.
- m/c habitus (cultural framework – knowledge, values, attitudes) is the same as the school’s habitus so they settle into education easily.
culture capital - bourdieu
How does this give m/c an advanage? 5 points
- Culture Capital gives MC children an advantage in school, because these abilities and interests are highly valued and rewarded with qualifications.
- This is because according to Bourdieu the education system is not neutral but favours and passes on the dominant MC culture.
- On the other hand, WC children find that school devalues their culture as ‘rough’ and ‘inferior’.
- Their lack of culture capital leads to exam failure.
- Many WC students also get the message education is not for them and respond by not trying, truanting or leaving early.
Educational anf economic capital. What does he argue about this?
can be turned into one another.
Educational and economic capital - boudieu
what are examples of this being converted into one another?
- For example, Middle class children with culture capital are better prepared to meet the demands of the school curriculum and gain qualifications.
- Similarly, wealthier parents can turn their economic capital into educational capital by sending their children to private schools and paying for extra tuition.
Educational and economic capital - bourdieu
What is ‘selection by mortgage?’
- As Leech and Campos (2003) study of Coventry shows MC parents are more likely to be able to afford houses in a catchment area of a school that is highly placed in the exam league tables.
- This is known as ‘selection by mortgage’ because it drives up the cost of houses near successful schools and this excludes WC families.
A test of Bourdieu’s ideas - Alice Sullivan ( crit of Bordieu)
What did she do?
what did she find?
- Questionnaires to conduct a survey of 465 pupils in four schools. To assess their cultural capital she asked them about a range of activities like TV habits, visiting art galleries, museum and theatres etc. and tested their vocabulary and knowledge of cultural figures.
- pupils with greatest cultural capital were children of graduates. They were more likely to be successful at GCSE.
A test of Bourdieu’s ideas - sullivan
Accoriding to her, what plays more of a role in class differences in education than cultural capital?
However, cultural capital only accounted for part of the class difference in achievement. M/c pupils did better than w/c with the same cultural capital – so greater resources and aspirations also have a part to play.
What are the four stages of the self-fulfilling prophecy?
- The teacher labels the pupil
- The teacher treats the pupil as if their predictions they made are already true
- The pupil internalises the teacher’s expectation which becomes part of thier image, so the pupil becomes the kind that the teacher belived them to be in the first place
- If the predictions positive, they will be challenged and suceed, negatively, the pupil lacks confidence and will fail in their exams
SFP
Becker (interactionist)
what did they study and find?
Study in a chicago high school, interviewed 60 teachers –> found that they judged students on how well they fit the ‘ideal’ pupil sterotype. m/c seen as ideal pupil. w/c seen the furthest from the idea
SFP- english state secondary school study
Dunne and Gazeley’s study
what did they study and find?
Interviews in 9 english s.s.s, the way teachers explain and deal with underachivement creates class diff. in levels of achivement, teachers assume w/c do worse because of the labels teachers give them. they see this as normal and do little about it, teachers treat them differently and are entered into easier exams because they are percieved as underachivers. opposite for m/c
SFP - tigers, cardinals, clowns
Rist’s study of American Kindergarten
what did they study and find?
obersvational study, in prim. schools, childrens background , appearance were used to place them in diff. seatings and groups, m/c = tidy and neat = sit on tables closer to the teacher = fast learners and labelled as tigers
w/c = less able, labelled as cardinals and clowns = low ability, given low level books e.g. reading as a group and not individually
SFP
How might we criticise the labelling theory?
- self negating/ rejecting prophecy = students reject the label and dont follow or conform with it
- dont always have to be negative because if they’re doing well, the teacher thinks theyre doing well = boostinf achievement
- studens given attention when wanted
- not all teachers are the same
Streaming and class differences in achievement
Douglas’ findings?
- kids placed in lower streams at 8Y/O suffered a decline in their IQ by the age 11
- by contrast, m/c pupils tend to benefit from streaming
- they’re more likey to be placed in higher streams, reflecting their teacher’s view of them as ideal pupils
- as a result, theyve developed a more positive self concept, gain confidence , work harder and impove their grades
- he found that kids placed at a higher stream aged 8 had impoved their IQ score by 11 years old
streaming and the A-C Economy
Gillborn and Youdell study and sample size? what did they find? leading to what?
Studied 2 London secondary schools, teachers used sterotypical notions of ‘ability’ to stream pupils - found that teachers were less likely ti see w/c as having the ability to succeed. Found that this impacted them to be in lower streams and entered for lower tiers in GCSES - this then denies the knowledge and opportunities needed to gain good grades and widene gaps in achievement
what did Gillborn and Youdell link to streaming?
what do they do?
why do schools need it?
what does this result in ?
- To the policy of publishing exam league tabels
- rank each schools according to its exam performance
- attract pupils and funding
- A-C economy in schools
What is the A to C economy?
System where schools focus their time , effort and resouces on those pupils they see as having to get a 5 grade c’s and so boost the schools league table position
Gillborn and Youdell - education triage
How do teachers decide who will get the c’s and use their time efforts and resources on?
- decide through the process called the education triage
How do schools catagorise pupils into three types?
- those who will pass anyway and can be left to get on with it
- those with potential to pass who will be helped to get a grade c or better
- hopeless casses that are doomed to fail
What do teachers base their education triage on?
sterotypes - the view of w/c and b;ack pupils lacking ability
what happens to students labelled as ‘hopless cases’ in the education triage?
‘warehoused’ at the bottom set - produces a SFP and failure
what drives the education triage?
need to gain a good league table position drives educational triage
how do teacher’s beliefs about w/c students affect achievement?
used to segregate them into lower streams where they recieve less support and resources - resulting in lower levels of w/c achievement
what also effects education triage?
marketisation policies
pupil subcultures
what is a pupil subculture?
why do they happen?
When a group of people share similar valuea and behaviour patterns
happens because they often emerge as a response to the way pupils have been labelled particularyly a reaction to streaming
Pupil subculture, differentiation and polarisation , less/ more able
What did lacey say and how pupils’ subcultures develop?
- differentiation = process od teachers catagorising students according to what they percieve their ability , attitude and behaviour, ‘less able’ and lower sets –> form of streaming becuase theyr catagorise pupils into seperate classes
- polarisation = ‘more able’ and given high status by being placed into higher streams –> process of how pupils respond to the streams by mobing towards 1/2 opposite poles
lacey - study of hightown boys’ grammar school
What did he find in his study?
streaming polarised boys into a pro school subculture ad anti school subculture
lacey
3 points on the pro school subculture
- pupils placed in higher streams tend to remain committed to school values
- they gain status in the approved manner through academic success
- their values are those of the school- they tend to form pro subculture
lacey
the anti school subculture
- those placed in lower streams suffer loss of self esteem - the school has undrminded the self- worth by placing them into an inferior postion and status
- this label of failure pushes them to search for alt. ways of gaining status, usually involes going against school values , hard work, obiedience and puctuality
- these pupils join anti school subculture as a means of gaining status amongst peers e.g. by not listening to teachers
- this is linked closely to the SFP of educational failure - lacey
pupil subculture - worthless louts
what did david hargreaves find?
from the p.o.v of the ed. system. the boys in lower streams were triple failures.
Found a similar response to labelling and streaming in a secondary modern school
1. failed 11+ exams
2. they had been placed in low streams
3. they had been labelled as ‘worthless louts’
pupil sub. hargreaves
what was the pupil’s solution to deal with the status problem?
what did joining an anti school sub mean
- Were to create a group within which high status went to those who flouted the school’s rules
- helped guarantee their educational failure SFP
Pupil subcultures. - abolishing streaming
what did ball study?
beachside comprehensive schools that was in the process of abolishing banding, in favour of mixed ability groups, banding has caused polarisation as decribed by lacey
Pupil subcultures. - abolishing streaming
what did ball find ?
- when the school abolished the banding, the reason to join anti school sub. was removed so the influence of that declined
- even though pupil polarisation basically disappeared, after this differentiation continued
- teacher’s continued to catagorise studens differently and were more likely to label m/c as coperative and able - this posive label reflected better exam results -SFP happend
Pupil subcultures. - abolishing streaming
what did ball’s study show?
class inequalities can continue as a result of teachers labelling even w/o the effect of subcultures and streaming
Pupil subcultures. - abolishing streaming
what does the continuation of streaming mean?
after the education reform act in 1988, creating opportunities for schools and teachers to differentiate based on class. ethnicity, gender and treat them inequally as seen in Gilborn and Youdells study
variety of pupil responses - 4 types
pro & anti school subcultures are possible responses to labelling and streaming. what does woods argue??
- ingratiation - being the teachers pet
- ritualism - going though the motions and staying out of trouble
- retreatism - daydreaming and mucking about
- rebellion - outright rejection of everything the school stands for
pro & anti school subcultures are possible responses to labelling and streaming.
what does furlong argue?
pupils arent committed permanently to anyone response, but may move between different types of responses acting differently in lessons with different teachers
class inequalities, deterministic, marx. perspective.
critism of labelling theory
- useful to show that schools arent neutral institutions, interactions within schools can create class inequalities
- labelling theory is deterministic- assumes students have no choice but mary fullers study shows contary
- marxists crit. labelling thoery for ignoring wider structures of power within which labelling take place - doesnt see why teachers label, labelling isnt simply teachers individual prejudice but stems from the fact that they work in a system that responds to class divisions
class diff. and attainment linking to bourdieu - capital habitus
What does Archer et al argue? what does she use to explain this.
W/C pupil identities interacting with school produces under achievement . she used Bourdieu’s concepts of capital habitus to explain this.
‘taken for granted’ & lifestyles
what does habitus mean?
what does it include?
learned / ‘taken for granted’ ways of thinking and acting that is shared by a particular social class.
Includes- their tastes about lifestyles, their outlook on life and their expectations about what is normal/ realistic for ‘people like us’
how is groups habitus created?
as a response to it’s position in the social structure.
class diff. and attainment
are any social classes naturally better? who has the power to define who’s social class?
a social classes habitus isn’t naturally better than another. HOWEVER, the m/c has the power to define its habitus as superior and to impose it on the education system
value on m/c taste = ??? and w/c culture = ??
how do schools react to m/c imposing its superiority onto them?
The school puts a higher value on m/c tastes, this gives m/c pupils an advantage , white w/c culture is regarded as inferior.
symbolic capital and symbolic violence
what happens to pupils who’ve been socialised with m/c tastes in school?
because schools have a m/c habitus, pupils who have been socialised at home into m/c tastes and preferences gain symbolic capitalism
what does symbolic capitalism mean?
status
value/ worth –> tasteless/worthless
how do schools look at pupils who have been socialised into m/c tatses? and WITHOUT it?
- they gain status and recognition from the school and are deemed to have worth/value
- schools devalue the w/c habitus so that the w/c pupils tastes e.g. clothing, appearance and accent are deemed to be tastless and worthless
inferior and ‘in their place’
what does symbolic violence mean?
what does it lead to?
by the school not giving this the symbolic capital to the w/c links to symbolic v. by bourdieu
leads to w/c and their tastes and lifestyles as inferior. S.V reproduces the class structure and keeps the lower classes ‘in their place’
how does symbolic violence reproduce class inequalities ?
keeps w/c in their place. as w/c students feel alienated and unable to access m/c spaces like univeristy and professional careers
change
archers e.g.
What did archer find?
w/c pupils felt that to be educationally sucessful, they would have to change how they presented/talked themselves
unable to acess posh places e.g. uni
What does educational sucess incorporate for the w/c according to archer?
often experienced as a process of ‘losing yourself’
they felt unable to access ‘posh’ , m/c spaces such as uni and professional careers = seen as ‘not for the likes of us’
nike identities - w/c int. w/ m/c
when do students use symbolic violence?
what does this lead to?
w/c pupils experience s.v. when their class identity interacts with the m/c habitus in schools
contructs meaningful class identities as a way of creating self worth , status and value
styles. brands. nike, status amongst peers
how do w/c pupils create meaning identify for themselves?
heavily investing in ‘styles’ especially through branded clothes like ‘nike’ as an alt. to educational sucess as a way of earning status amongst their peers. pupils identities were strongly gendered females opted a hyper hetrosexual feminine style
safety from bullying, being accepted by mc peers
How do the w/c pupuls gain symbolic capital?
through these style performances that are heavily policed by peer groups, and although deemed as tasteless among their m/c peers, with the right appearance, w/c pupils are able to earn s.c and approval from their m/c peers = brought safety from bullying
what happens if w/c studemts dont follow this class identity?
‘social suicide’
conflict, stigmatise w/c - street wear= bad taste
what does nike identites / style performance lead to?
what is archer’s e.g. of this?
conflict with the school habitus, the schools m/c habitus stigmatises w/c pupils’ identities as schools oppose ‘street styles’ as showing ‘bad taste’ or even a threat , so teachers more likely to negatively label students who wear branded clothes
unrealistic and undesirable
what do nike identities also play a part in?
w/c pupils rejection of higher education which they saw as both unrealistic and undesirable
unrealistic - because it wasnt for ‘people like us’ but for riches and posher people, and they wouldnt fir in . seen as unafforadable and risky investment.
undesirable - not suit their preference or lifetyle/habitus e.g. they didnt want to live on a student loan - they wouldnt be able to afford the street style that gave them their identity
link to ingram
what does archer’s study mainly focus on?
the relationship with wc identities and educational failure link to ingram
What is ingrams sample ?
- 2 groups of w/c catholic boys from the same gifhly deprived neighbourhood in belfast
- 1 group has passed the 11+ exam and gone yo a grammar school while the others had failed and gone to their local secondary school
how was the schools differernt in ingrams study?
The grammar school had a strong m/c habitus of high expectations and academic achievement , while the secondary school had a habitus of low expectations of its underachieving pupils
what was ingrams findings?
- having w/c identity was inseparable from belonging to wc locality
- neighbourhoods’ dense network of familys and friends were a key part of the boys’ habitus. it have them an intense feeling of belonging
- street culture and branded sportwear were a key part of the boys’ habitus and sense of identity –> as in archers study
- w/c communities place greater emphasis on conformity. the boys had experienced a great pressure to ‘fit in’ this was particulary a problem for the grammar school boys
- these boys experienced a tension between their habirus of their w/c habitus and that of their m/c school
despite class ineq. in education what is still happening?
w/c young peopple are going to uni
what is higher in uni? what plays a factor in this?
here the clash between w/c identity and the habitus of the higher education act as a barrier to sucess. this is partly due to self exclusion
what did evans find?
- 21 w/c girls from south london comprehensive school studying their a-levek were reluctant ti apply to elite unis like oxbridge as they feared not fitting in
- like archer and igrams study, evans also found that the girls had a strong attachmetn to their activity
what did reay point out?
self exlusion from elite unis narrows the options of many w/c pupils and limits their sucess
pupils identities and school - self exclusion
what did bourdieu say
w/c people thubk places like oxbridge isnt for them , thinking like this becomes part of their identities and leads w/c students excluding themselves from elite unis
pupil class identities and school
what does archer , ingrams , evans and reay and bourdieus study all show? what does this lead to?
patterns of m/c ed. system that devalues the experience and choices of w/c people as worthless and inappropriate
leads to w/c pupils often forced to chose between maintaining their w/c identity / abdonding them and conforming to the m/c habitus of ed. in order to succeed.
prediction
What is the first stage of labelling and self-fulfilling prophecy?
The teacher labels a pupil (e.g. as being very intelligent or as dumb and based on this makes predictions about him/her (e.g. he will make outstanding academic progress).
Teacher acts the way as they predicted the child
What is the second stage of labelling and SFP?
The teacher treats the pupils accordingly, acting as if the prediction is already true (e.g. by giving him/her more attention and expecting a higher standard of work from him/her or by not expecting good answer and challenging the student..
Internalise
What is third stage of Labelling and SFP?
The pupil internalises the teacher’s expectation, which becomes part of his self-concept or image, so that he now actually becomes the kind of pupil the teacher believed him to be in the first place.
What is the fourth stage of labelling and SFP?
The pupil labelled positively gains confidence,tries harder and is successful, and the pupil labelled negatively lacks confidence and fails to do well in their exams.The prediction is fulfilling: theself- fulfilling prophecy
chicago high school study on labelling
What was Becker’s method, sample and findings?
- Becker did a study in a Chicago high school he interviewed 60 school teachers and found that they judged students on how well they fit the ‘ideal pupil’ stereotype
- Pupils’ were judged according to their behaviour, work and appearance. Working class children were the furthest from this ideal pupil and seen as badly behaved whereas M/C were seen as closer to the ideal pupil
deterministic and …
how might me criticise the labelling theory?
- It isdeterministic because it assumes that pupils do not have free will to reject the label given by their teachers. For example, a working-class student might want to work harder to prove their teacher wrong.
- Different teachers may have different notions of the ideal pupil. Meaning this might not be just based on social class as Becker claims.
What did Becker’s study show?
What happens once a child is put into a stream?
How does this create a SFP ?
- teachers do not usually see working class students as ideal pupils.
They tend to see them as lacking ability and have low expectations of them. As a result, WC are more likely to be placed into lower streams - Once streamed it is difficult to move to a higher stream.
Children ‘get the message’ that their teachers have written them off as no-hopers. - students live up to their teachers’ low expectations by underachieving.
Douglas findings
- Douglas found that children placed in a lower stream at age 8 had suffered a decline in their IQ score by age 11.
- By contrast, MC pupils tend to benefit from streaming.
- They are more likely to be placed in higher streams, reflecting teachers’ view of them as ideal pupils.
- As a result, they develop a more positive self-concept, gain confidence, work harder and improve their grades.
- He found that children placed at a higher stream aged 8 had improved their IQ score by 11.
Streaming and the A to C economy - Gillborn and Youdell
- studied two London secondary schools
- They found teachers use stereotypical notions of ‘ability’ to stream pupils.
- And found that teachers are less likely to see working class (and black) pupils as having the ability.
- As a result, these pupils were more likely to be put into lower streams and entered for lower tier GCSE.
- This denies them the knowledge and opportunity needed to gain good grades and widen the class gap in achievement.
G&Y link streaminf to exam league tables
League tables
- rank each school according to its exam performance – for example in terms of the percentage of pupils gaining 5 or more A* to C.
- Schools need to achieve a good league table position if they are to attract pupils and funding.
- Publishing league tables creates what G&Y call an ‘A to C economy’ in schools.
- This is a system where schools focus their time, effort and resources on those pupils they see as having the potential to get 5 grade Cs and so boost the schools league table position
Education Triage
* How do teachers decide who will get the Cs and to use their time and efforts and resources on?
* what does triage mean?
* how do pupils catagorise pupils into three types?
- teachers decide through the process they call ‘the education triage’.
- ‘sorting’
1. those who will pass anyway and can be left to get on with it
2 those with potential to pass who will be helped to get a grade C or better
3 Hopeless cases that are doomed to fail
G&Y
What do teachers base their ed. triage on?
What happens to students labelled as ‘hopeless cases’ in the education triage?
What drives education triage?
How do teachers’ beliefs about w/c students effect achievement?
What also effects ed. triage?
- using a stereotypical view of WC (and black) pupils as lacking ability.
- So, they are likely to be labelled as ‘hopeless cases’ and simply ‘warehoused’ at the bottom set. This produces a SFP and failure .
- The need to gain a good league table position drives educational triage.
1. Teachers’ beliefs about the lack of ability of the WC is used to segregate them into lower streams where they receive less support and resources. This results in low levels of achievement in the WC. - Marketisation policies (such as league tables) affect the educational triage that produces class differences in achievement
Whats a pupil subculture?
Why do pupils subcultures happen?
- A pupil subculture is when a group of pupils share similar values and behaviour patterns.
- These pupil subcultures often emerge as a response to the way pupils have been labelled particularly a reaction to streaming.
Lacey’s concepts = explain how p.s develop
what does differentiation mean?
How is streaming a form of differentiation?
What does Polarisation mean?
- Differentiation is the process of teachers categorising students according to what they perceive their ability, attitude and behaviour.
- Streaming is a form of differentiation because it categorises pupils into separate classes.
Those who are deemed as ‘more able’ and given high status by being placed in the higher stream and those who are deemed as ‘less able’ and put into a lower stream and given an inferior status. - how the pupil responds to the streams by moving towards one or two opposite poles
What did Lacey find in his study?
Hightown boys’ grammar school, he found that streaming polarised boys into a pro-school subculture and anti-school subculture.
3 features of the pro-subculture
- Pupils placed in higher streams (mainly middle class) tend to remain committed to school values.
- They gain status in the approved manner, through academic success.
- Their values are those of the school: They tend to form pro-school subcultures
3 features of the anti-school subculture. What does this accord to by lacey?
- Those placed in low streams (mainly WC) suffer a loss of self-esteem: The school has undermined their self-worth by placing them into an inferior position and status.
- This label of failure pushes them to search for alternative ways of gaining status. Usually this involves going against school values, hard work, obedience and punctuality.
- These pupils join anti-school subculture as a means of gaining status among their peers, for example by not listening to a teacher, truanting, not doing homework and smoking.
* According to Lacey- joining an anti-school subculture is likely to lead to the SFP of educational failure.
- What did Hargreaves find?
- From the p.o.v of the ed. system, the boys in lower streams were triple failures:
- What was the pupil’s solution to deal with the status problem?
- What did joining an anti- school subculture mean?
- Found a similar response to labelling and streaming in a secondary modern school.
1 They failed their 11+ exam
2 They had been placed in low streams
3 They had been labelled as ‘worthless louts’ - A solution to this status problem for these pupils were to create a group within which high status went to those who flouted the schools’ rules.
Joining this anti-school subculture had helped guarantee their educational failure (SFP).
What did Ball study?
What did he find?
What does Ball’s study show?
What does the continuation of streaming mean?
- studied Beachside comprehensive school that was in the process of abolishing banding (type of streaming) in favour of mixed ability groups.
Banding had caused polarisation as described by Lacey - Ball found when the school abolished the banding the reason to join anti-school subcultures was removed so the influence of anti-school subcultures declined.
Even though pupil polarisation basically disappeared after this differentiation continued
Teachers continued to categorise students differently and were more likely to label MC as as cooperative and able.
This positive label was reflected in better exam results – SFP happened. - class inequalities can continue as a result of teachers labelling even without the effect of subcultures or streaming.
- after the education reform act in 1988 creating opportunities for schools and teachers to differentiate based on class/ethnicity/ gender and treat them unequally as seen in Gillborn and Youdell 2001 study.
variety of pupils resp. Ingratiation, ritualism, retreatism, rebellion
Pro –school and anti –school subcultures are two possible responses to labelling and streaming.
* What does woods argue? ( 4 functions)
- Argues other resoinses are possible
1. Ingratiation: Being teacher’s pet
2. Ritualism: Going through the motions and staying out of trouble
3. Retreatism: Daydreaming and mucking about
4. Rebellion: Outright rejection of everything the school stands for
Variety of pupils responses
What does Furlong argue?
pupils are not committed permanently to any one response, but may move between different types of responses, acting differently in lessons with different teachers
create class ineq , deterministic , marxists
3 critsisms of the labelling theory
- Useful to show that schools are not neutral institutions – interactions within schools can create class inequalities
- Labelling theory is deterministic – assumes students have no choice. But Mary Fuller’s study shows contrary (we will look into this next topic).
- Marxists criticise labelling theory for ignoring wider structures of power within which labelling takes place. Doesn’t explain why teachers label – labelling is not simply teacher’s individual prejudice but stems from the fact that they work in a system that reproduces class divisions.
