Class differences in Education

Question 1

What is a child from a working class background more likely to do?

Answer 1

start school unable to read.
fall behind in reading, writing numeracy.
suffer from mental health problems, illness, poor attendance + poor performance.
be placed in lower sets.
study vocational subjects.
achieve lower scores in SATs + GCSEs.
attend a failing school.

Question 2

What is a child from a working class background less likely to do?

Answer 2

be in a nursery/ preschool play group.
leave school with 5 or more A*-C grades at GCSE.
progress to university.

Question 3

What are the theories of material deprivation?

Answer 3

linked to economic poverty.
lack of financial resources/ facilities which would enhance educational progress.
low income creates a barrier to learning.
overall, WC kids are disadvantaged.

Question 4

What are examples of material deprivation?

Answer 4

inability to afford:
books
stationary
uniform
transport
school meals

overcrowding in the home
no access to the internet
no heating, mould on the walls (effects health)

Question 5

Statistic to show poverty is closely linked to educational achievement:

Answer 5

90% of failing schools are located in economically deprived areas.
Research has shown that economic poverty is not a recipe for educational success.

Question 6

How is housing an example of material deprivation?

Answer 6

overcrowding - harder to study, do h/w + lead to disturbed sleep from sharing bedrooms.
poor housing effect on child’s health + wealth fare leading to more accidents.
cold/damp housing - ill health .
Temporary accommodation - child suffers from phycological distress, schooling disruption.

Question 7

How does diet and health link to material deprivation in education ?

Answer 7

HOWARD (2001) - young people from poorer homes have a lower intake of energy, vitamins + minerals. Poor nutrition affects health + weakens immune system - lowering energy levels. this leads to difficulty concentrating in class + more absences from school from school likely to have emotional/ behavioural problems.

WILKINSON (1996) - among 10 yr olds, the lower the social class, the higher the rate of hyper-activity, anxiety + conduct disorders . all of which are likely to have negative effects on education.

BLANDEN AND MACHIN (2007) - children from low income families more likely to engage in externalising behaviour (fighting + temper tantrums) which disrupts their schooling.

Question 8

How does finance link to material deprivation in education?

Answer 8

TANNER ET AL (2003) - found costs of items such as transport, uniforms, books, art equipment etc. place heavy burden on poor families.

SMITH AND NOBLE (1995) - poverty acts as a barrier to learning in other ways eg. inability to afford private education, tutoring + poorer quality schools.

RIDGE (2002) - children in poverty are more likely to take on jobs that have negative impacts on school work.

Going to Uni involves getting into great debt to cover tuition fees, books + living expenses. attitudes towards debt may deter WC students from going to uni.

CALLANDER + JACKSON (2005) - Their research found WC students more debt-averse + saw more costs than benefits from going to uni.

Question 9

What is the theory of cultural deprivation?

Answer 9

linked to home + cultural background/ parental values.
its the view that, as a result of socialisation patterns, WC parents don’t instil encouragement to be aspirational + ambitious. WC is understood as ‘inadequate’ - fails to nurture, stimulate + enrich educational interest. Therefore, WC children lack the ‘cultural equipment’ essential for educational success, therefore at an disadvantage.

Question 10

What are some examples of cultural deprivation?

Answer 10

Lack of emphasis on education + learning.
lack of cultural environment (travel to different places, visiting museums/ galleries).
A ‘book poor’ home - little access to reading material.
lack of intellectual stimulation.

Question 11

What is intellectual development ?

Answer 11

refers to development of thinking + reasoning skills. eg, the ability to solve problems + use ideas/ concepts.
WC lack books, educational toys + activities that would stimulate a child’s intellectual development.
They start school w/o having developed the intellectual skills required to progress.

Question 12

BERNSTEIN + YOUNG (1967) : intellectual development

Answer 12

MC mothers are more likely to choose toys that encourage thinking + reasoning skills + prepare children for school.

Question 13

What does DOUGLAS say about attitudes + values in educational achievement ?
How are BLACKSTONE + MARTIME (1994) critical of this?

Answer 13

he claims that the most important factor affecting educational progress was the degree of parental interest shown in the child’s education. MC parents take a greater interest in their children’s education and value it more - which motivates children to do well.
this is shown through parents: helping with h/w, attending parents evenings etc.
EVALUATION
they argue WC parents are less likely to access school events because of transport costs, work shift patterns, child care costs for younger siblings.

Question 14

SUGARMANN (1970) on how class differences in attitudes and values contribute to cultural deprivation:

Answer 14

he argues that the WC subculture has key features that act as a barrier to educational success:

present time orientation > Thinking + living in the present. contrasts future time orientation which planning/ thinking of the future. WC = present time (the absence of a career structure) and MC = future time (encouraging/aspirational)/

immediate gratification > wanting benefits rewards now. contrasts deferred gratification which is sacrificing short term rewards for longer term benefits + rewards in the future.

fatalism > belief that you cannot change how things are. They are pre - determined and predestined. contrasts activism.

collectivism > group collective effort is required to generate change. contrasts individualism - emphasises you being in charge. control. WC may join trade unions to help promote change.

SUGARMANN claims that differences in the workplace reflect differences in attitudes and values. These differences are internalised and pass down onto the next generation through the socialisation process. 
the subcultural values of the working class place them at a distinct disadvantage in the education system because they clash with MC values and the ethos of the school. School is an extension of MC values - therefore mc pupils equipped for success.

Question 15

Research by HYMANN (1967) on the values of the working class:

Answer 15

he found that values of the WC act as a self-imposed barrier to educational and career success.
they believe they have less oppurtunity for individual advancement and place less value on achieving high status jobs - so they see no point in education. Subcultural beliefs and values place a greater value on securing a good steady job straight from school.

Question 16

BEREITER + ENGLEMAN (1966) on the importance of differences in language and how they contribute to cultural deprivation:

Answer 16

they claim that language used in lower class homes is deficient - children fail to develop necessary language skills required in school. because of the importance of speech to communication + learning, it affects our capacity to be educated and to articulate our understanding. therefore cause great implications on our educational achievement.

Question 17

What is BERNSTEIN’S (1975) socio-linguistic theory?

Answer 17

He sought to explain how a person’s social class position shapes the SPEECH CODES that people use. He distinguished two types of speech codes:

THE ELABORATED CODE: accurate delivery of info, more complex, wide range of vocab, more complex, explicit. the code used in education. the ‘correct’ way to speak + write.

THE RESTRICTED CODE: short sentences, unfinished, grammatically single, implicit.

the elaborated code is vital for educational success. it is more effective for explicitly conveying meaning, analysing info, for logically + rationally developing an argument. middle class children (as frequent users of the elaborate code) will therefore feel at home in a school setting and for that reason are more likely to succeed. WC children are likely to feel excluded, are less successful as schools fail to teach them the elaborate code.

Question 18

What is cultural capital?

Answer 18

This refers to knowledge, attitudes + values, tastes + abilities of the MC.
Kids acquire an understanding of what the education system requires for success. ~
MC culture gives advantage to those who possess it.

Question 19

What are examples of cultural capital?

Answer 19

the opposite of culturally deprived.
includes:
appreciation for the arts, culture, lit, politics.
how they’re socialised
food, travel (being able to afford opportunities to experience other cultures), reading, keeping up with affairs, visiting museums.

Question 20

BOURDIEU’s (1977) distinctive cultural explanation for the differences in attainment between the social classes:

Answer 20

He doesn't blame the WC for cultural inequality that passes from one generation to the next. He blames the class system for giving MC pupils advantages that enables them to succeed in education. he uses the term CULTURAL CAPITAL to refer to knowledge, attitudes, values, abilities of the middle class - which they gain through their privalleged upbringing. the middle class pupils with cultural capital are likely to meeet the demands of scchool curriculum + reward with qualifications > educational capital.
schools are not neutral places - they are biased in favour of the middle class. schools reproduce culture of the dominant class. kids in the upper and middle classes have an inbuilt advantage > their culture has capital. WC pupils feel devalued and rejected. they respond by truanting (skivving).

Question 21

Sullivan (2001): cultural capital

Answer 21

she tests bordieau ideas by using questionaires ti cinduct a survey of 465 pupils in 4 schools. To asssess cultural capital, she asked them about a range of activities: reading, TV viewing habits and wether they visited galleries, museums and the theatre. she also tested their vocab/ knowledge of cultural figures. she found those who read complex fiction and watched serious documentries developed higher vocab and greater cultural knowledge, indicating greater cultural capital. the children with greatest cultural capital were children of graduates and these pupils were more likely to be successful at GCSE and middle class.

Question 22

Evaluation of the theories of cultural capital:

Answer 22

this theory makes huge generalisations or assumptions. just as all the working class are not the same, not all middle class are the same. too many stereotypes.
alot of the research was conducted in the 60s/70s
seen as outdated. society has changed more qualifications.
the heavy made industry has been desonated (Margret Thatcher) thereforem more wc pupils are inclined to stay in school.

Question 23

what are the criticisms of the cultural and deprivation theories?

Answer 23

KEDDIE (1973) - describes the cultural deprivation theory as a myth. she dismisses the idea that failure at school can be blamed on a culturally deprived home background, arguing that a child cannot be deprived of its own culture (everyone has there own culture so they cannot be deprived of it). she argues WC children are culturally different, not culturally deprived. the reason they’re failing is because they are put at a disadvantage by an education system that is dominated by MC values.

KEDDIE: claims its victum blaming - it deflects attention away from problems children face IN school and blames their home background, rather than focusing on discrimination in schools and teachers anti-working class prejudices.

Troyna and Williams (1986):
critique view that WC speech is restricted and inadequate. they claim that the problem is not the working class language but schools attitude towards it. claim teachers have 'speech hierarchy'. they label MC speech highest and Wc speech lowest.

BLACAKSTONE + MORTIMORE (1994): recognise WC parents may attend fewer parents’ evenings etc. however, argue this is not because they lack interest, but because they work longer or irregular hours and would lose income if they took time off work. plus may want to help their child progress but lack the education to do so . also some evidence schools with predominantly working class pupils have less effective systems of parent-school contacts, difficult for parents to stay in touch.

Question 24

The interactionist theory on education: summary

Answer 24

interactionists working within social action approach - interpretive sociology. they have shifted the focus of analysis onto the processes internal to the school. through detailed, in-depth, qualitaitive studies, they have illuminated the way schools and figures with them contribute to differences in achiement.
they attempt to understand the meanig of interaction and how individuals define situations, how they see themselves. to them, your SELF_CONCEPT is produced in your interactions with others (how you see yourself is partly formed by the view that you think others have of you).
also argue PUPILS SELF CONCEPT is influenced by teachers and other pupils. drawing on concept of labelling , believe teachers have specific expectations of pupils + more general expectations of streams + sets. when labels become fixed, the teacher starts to interpret a pupil’s behaviour in light of the label. this effects the SELF_CONCEPT of an individual - they may begin to act in terms of it. when a person conforms to the label applied to them, a SELF_FUFILLING PROPHECY occurs.

Question 25

How is labellling an internal explantion of class differences in education?

Answer 25

HARGREAVES ET AL (1972) - based on interviews and observations they examined the way teachers ‘got to know’ their new pupils. identified three stages:
SPECULATION: made guesses on types of pupil based on ability + enthusiasm for work, how likeable they were, appearance, personality, conformity to discipline ect. but they are tentative in their views and still willing to ammend them.
ELABORATION: teachers hypothesis is tested, confirmed, contradicted. become more confident in their judgement of pupils.
STABILISATION: they now feel they know the pupils and are therefore not suprised/ puzzled by their actions.

BECKER (1977):
observations in chicago highschool. found middle class non-manual backgrounds came closest to the standard 'ideal pupil' (well-behaved, likeable, enthusiastic, contributing to class, good results).

Question 26

HOW did ROSENTHAL and JACOBSON (1968) test the idea of a SELF FUFILLING PROPHECY in education?

Answer 26

ROSENTHAL and JACOBSON (1968)
tested SELF_FUFILLING PROPHECY. conducted research in elementry school in california - examined effects of teachers definitions/ expectations of pupils.
pupils sat a standard intelligence test and informed teacher of each class named pupils, who on the basis of the test results would be expected to make rapid progress - only the teacher was aware of these selected few. year later - pupils were re-tested - the selected group made excellent progress.
R+J concluded that their progress was due to higher teacher exoectations. they asssumed teachers must have communicated/ conveyed their higher expectations to the pupils and acted in terms of them. the result was a SELF-FUFILLING PROPHECY.

Question 27

What criticisms were made on ROSENTHAL AND JACOBSON’s study to test the concept SELF -FUFFILING PROPHECY?

Answer 27

interactionists accused of generalising the effects of labelling.
criticised for assuming that lebelling inevitably leads to a SELF_FUFILLING PROPHECY. posistions pupils as passive when they’re often active and have the power to resist labels and prove teachers wrong. Negative labels can actually motivate pupils and have positive effects - consequences of labelling are not predictable.
may be ANTI_SCHOOL but can still be PRO-EDUCATION.

Question 28

What is setting and streaming? 
How does it show class differejces in education?

Answer 28

setting + streaming - ways of grouping pupils according to ability. setting = whole classes are put into different groups/sets for particular subjects. streaming = involves grouping them for all subjects.
Research shows being placed in a low set/stream may undermine pupils’ confidence and discourage them from trying. teachers may have lower expectations and be less ambitious + give less knowledge to lower set/stream pupils.

Question 29

What research was conducted by BALL (1981) regarding setting and streaming?

Answer 29

research at Beachside Comprehensive - found that top stream students were ‘warmed up’ by encouragement to follow academic courses of study. lower stream students were ‘cooled-out’ + encouraged to follow vocational/practical courses - consequently achieve lower levels of academic success, frequently leaving school at the earliest opportunity. BALL found setting + streaming is linked to social class: the higher a pupils social class, the greater the chance of being allocated in the top stream.
he concluded that S + S contributes to the underachievement of the WC.
in response to this many often rebel against school (Willis’ work).

Question 30

How are pupil subcultures an internal explanation of class inequality in education?

Answer 30

HARGREAVES (1976) - bottom stream pupils rebel against school, often develop alternate set of values/attitudes/behaviour in opposition to academic aims of school. called ANTI-SCHOOL or COUUNTER-SCHOOL SUBCULTURE. this provides means for pupils to improve their own self esteem by achieving status and success in their peer group. Bottom stream means they’re more likely to be working class.

LACEY(1970) - studied boys grammar school. found that streaming polarised boys into a pro-school vs anti-school subculture. MC found in high streams were committed to values of school, gained status through approved academic route.

Question 31

How does Marketisation + selection contribute to class differences?

Answer 31

schools’ pressure to achieve good league table position to attract pupils/ funding.
policy of publishing league tables creates ‘A-C’ economy. system where schools ration time/ effort/ resources concentrating them on pupils who have potential to get 5 or more grade Cs so it boosts their league table position. call this process ‘educational triage’.
schools categorise pupils into; ‘ those who will pass’ ‘those who have potential’ and those who are ‘hopeless cases’.

Question 32

BARLETT (1993) on MARKETISATION

Answer 32

argues marketisation leads to popular schools:
a) cream-skimming: selecting higher ability pupils who gain the best results + cost less to teach.
b) slit-shifting: off-loading pupils w/ learning difficulties who are expensive to teach and get poor results.
appears that marketisation + selection processes have created a polarised education system: popular, successful, well-resourced schools with more able largely MC intake at 1 extreme. unpopular, ‘failing’, under-resourced schools w/ mainly low-achieving working class pupils.

Question 33

What is compensatory education (CE) ?

Answer 33

a policy designed to address the problem of cultural deprivation and material deprivation generally by providing additional resources to schools and communities in deprived areas.
CE programmes attempt to intervene early in socialisation process to compensate children for the early deprivation they experience.

Question 34

What several Compensatory Education programmes have been made in Britain?

Answer 34

labour gov introduced initiatives designed to overcome economic and social disadvantage including:
SURE START - aimed at pre school children + families in disadvantaged areas. provided home visits, play centres + financial help for childcare. the aim was to promote physical, intellectual + social development of babies and young children so they could flourish when start school - this would break the cycle of disadvantage.
EDUCATION ACTION ZONES - providing additional resources and funding to schools in disadvantaged areas. (replaced by excellence in cities programme)
THE AIM HIGHER PROGRAMME - to raise the aspirations of groups who are under-represented in higher education (university, apprenticeship).
EDUCATIONAL MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE - (replaced by bursary system) payments to students from low-income backgrounds to encourage them to stay on after 16.
Coalition government introduced the policy of PUPIL PREMIUM in 2011. This allocated additional funding for each poor pupil to be in a school = designed to assist education depending on specific needs.

Question 35

What are the issues with Compensatory education?

Answer 35

despite programmes, the gap between educational achievement of poor children + their more affluent peers remains.

There are concerns that cultural deprivation theories + compensatory education programmes individualise the problem of WC underachievement + ignore wider structural inequalities in both the education system + society.

Question 36

BORDIEU (1984) concept of habitus in pupils identities + the school

Answer 36

this refers to the learned, taken-for granted ways of thinking, being + acting that are shaped by a social class. includes lifestyle and consumption preferences, outlook on life + expectations on what is normal for ‘people like us’.
a groups habitus is formed as a response to its position in the class structure.
MC have the power to define their habitus as superior + impose it on the education system.
MC gain ‘SYMBOLIC CAPITAL’: status and recognition from school + deemed to have worth/ value.
he calls the withholding of symbolic capital ‘symbolic violence’.

Question 37

What did ARCHER find on class differences in pupil's identities:
\+ evaluation

Answer 37

WC felt that to be educationally successful, they had to change the way they talked and presented themselves. this is often the process of 'losing yourself'. felt unable to access 'posh', middle class areas - university, professional careers ('not for the likes of us'). many were aware that society looked down on them. symbolic violence led them to creating alternate ways of creating self-worth, status + value. identities were formed heavily in 'styles' (clothing such as Nike) which were heavily policed by peer groups.
he argues that schools MC habitus leads teachers interpreting 'street' style of working-class pupils' as evidence of bad taste, becomes stigmatised. working class pupils investment in 'Nike identities' may be an example of how they choose self-elimination/ exclusion from education.
evaluation: addresses WC identity + educational failure. however, many WC pupils succeed + got to uni.

Question 38

What research did BALL (1981) find on setting and streaming?

Answer 38

he conducted research at Beachside comprehensive + found that top stream students were ‘warmed up’ by encouragement to achieve highly + to follow academic courses of study. in contrast, lower stream students were ‘cooled out’ + encouraged to follow lower levels of academic success consequently achieved lower levels of academic success, frequently leaving school at the earliest oppurtunity.