cultural deprivation

Question 1

Pierre Bordieu (1979) main points

Answer 1

• main role of education is to provide cultural capital for those who need it
• children from wealthier family backgrounds are socialised in terms of higher class habitus, which gives them a headstart in cultural capital and is labelled as intelligence
• there are 4 types of capital

Question 2

what is cultural capital?

Answer 2

a person’s education (knowledge and intellectual skills) that provides advantages

Question 3

economic capital

Answer 3

the possession of wealth in various forms

Question 4

cultural capital (Bordieu)- what does it include

Answer 4

• educational qualifications, knowledge and understanding of creative and artistic aspects of culture
• consumption associated with different lifestyles (habitus) and the tastes of different classes

Question 5

social capital

Answer 5

social connections which allow one to mix in the right circles for success

Question 6

symbolic capital

Answer 6

a reputation for respectability and competence

Question 7

how are the forms of capital linked?

Answer 7

one form of capital can be used to increase another, for example:
- cultural capital allows one to have the taste to mix in the right circles for increasing other forms of capital such as social
- having money allows you to increase cultural capital as it can be spent on education
- forms of capital can help increase economic capital as you can impress at jobs or interviews

Question 8

Bordieu on social reproduction

Answer 8

• the wealthiest get the best qualifications and the most well paid jobs as a result
• education legitimises social reproduction because children’s cultural capital from wealthy families is interpreted as intelligence by teachers, making it seem as though they are hardworking ans therefore deserving of this process
• he argues that this is an invisible process

Question 9

evaluating Bordieu- why is his work deterministic?

Answer 9

• the idea of habitus implies a high dregree of genreational reproduction of class cultures
• the welfare state’s influence on class culture, especially among professionals is ignored
• social institutions have importance in shaping class structures
• assumes his study of france can be generalised to fit other countries
• many teachers enter the profession to challenge class culture and inequality, which subverts his point

Question 10

cultural deprivation

Answer 10

lacking the appropriate attitudes, values, language and knowledge for success

Question 11

what are some cultural deprivation factors that affect education (WISE)

Answer 11

W orking class subcultures
I nterest in education (parental)
S peech patterns
E ducation and attitude (parental)

Question 12

attainment

Answer 12

progress made

Question 13

achievement

Answer 13

grade achieved

Question 14

W of WISE: Hyman and Sugarman- summary

Answer 14

Hyman (1967):
- different values between the classes, less chance for advancement + less motivation

Sugarman (1970):
- fatalism
- immediate gratification
- collectivism

Used: interviews, opinion polls, and survey data

Question 15

Hyman (1967)

Answer 15

• different values between the classes
• w/c place less value on education+achieving a good job
• believe there is less chance they will have an opportunity to advance, so they have less motivation to do this

Question 16

Sugarman (1970)- fatalism

Answer 16

• fatalism: accepting a situation rather than trying to improve it (discourages hard work)
• immediate gratification- they want instant rewards
• collectivism: group loyalty is valued rather than individual achievement (less likely to focus on personal success)

attitudes not liked/supported by education system, therefore can cause underachievement

Question 17

I of WISE: parental Interest- Douglas and Feinstein summary

Answer 17

Douglas (1964)

• variations in attainment- students of similar ability+ different social classes
• parental interest most important factor-m/c parents more interest
• early school years usually reflect performance throughout secondary school
• m/c kids more attention as children, basis for good attainment in later life

Feinstein (2003):

• saw that class differences in parental support accounted for class differences in educational attainment
• supports w more recent data such as 1970 british cohort study

Question 18

Douglas (1964)

Answer 18

• testing students = large variation in attainment (students of similar ability+ different social class)
• found parental interest was most important factor-m/c parents most interested (indicated by visits to school frequently)
• performance in early school years usually reflected performance throughout secondary school
• suggested that in primary socialisation, m/c children get greater attention + stimulus from parents, which encouraged them + formed a basis for higher achievement

Question 19

Feinstein (2003)

Answer 19

Feinstein (2003):

• feinstein saw that class differences in parental support accounted for class differences in educational attainment
• data used was National Child Development Study (development/ all childrn born in 1 week of March 1958)
• also used recent data → British cohort study(1970 born children)

Question 20

S of WISE: speech patterns- Bernstein (1972)

Answer 20

• 18 months fieldwork in a w/c council estate in Bermondsey, Southeast London
• elaborated code = wide range of lexical choices in speech
• restricted code = use of colooquialisms/abbreviations
• w/c tend to use restricted code, has particularistic meanings which means they cannot communicate properly with those who don’t understand
• m/c tend to use elaborated codes, more able to communicate bc their speech is universalistic

Question 21

E of WISE: parental Education: Evans (2007)

Answer 21

• used fieldwork
• m/c children experience formal learning type skills in an informal+ play-based way such as counting and speaking, which can help with formal education (from mothers!)
• social relationships in w/c fams are substandard in comparison to those within m/c fams
• rejects idea of cultural deprivation theories

Question 22

how do marketisation policies help the middle class according to Ball?

Answer 22

• the m/c has largely benefitted from policies of choice and competition because they can use their superior social capital to use their networks for support