Education

Question 1

Who are the two main functionalist sociologists and what 4 functions of education did they identify?

Answer 1

Durkheim and Parsons.

1. Passing on society’s culture and building social solidarity through the hidden and overt curriculum.
2. Providing a bridge between particularistic values in family and universalistic values in contemporary society. (Durkheim)
3. Developing human capital - a trained and qualified labour force. (Schultz)
4. Role allocation for meritocratic society and legitimising social inequality. (Davis and Moore)

Question 2

Name 3 criticisms of the functionalist perspective of education and who makes them (if applicable).

Answer 2

1. Marxists - they ignore the inequalities in power in society, there is no value consensus and the dominant ideology is passed on in schools.
2. Feminists - they ignore the fact that school passes on patriarchal values and disadvantages women.
3. Society is not based on universalistic values - in the upper class people inherit wealth and elite jobs where high social class are vital.

Question 3

Who are the main New Right sociologists and what do they propose for education?

Answer 3

Chubb and Moe.

1. Education should be a free market with schools run like businesses (marketisation)
2. Competition will drive up standards of schools and increase consumer choice.
3. School should function to train the workforce for the working world.

Question 4

Summarise the ideas of 4 Marxist sociologists on Education.

Answer 4

1. Althusser - education is an ideological state apparatus. It reproduces skills needed for work and reproduces dominant ideology to create a false class conscious.
2. Bordieu - education legitimises class inequality. Dominant class have cultural capital and impose their habitus on the proletariat
3. Illich and Freire - Schools are repressive and promote conformity in students. Education contributed to hegemony.
4. Bowles and Gintis - Education creates a submissive workforce through hidden curriculum. Work casts a long shadow over education. Education legitimises the class inequality in society.

Question 5

Name 3 criticisms of the Marxist perspective of Education.

Answer 5

1. There is lack of detailed research into schools, Bowles and Gintis assume the hidden curriculum influences pupils but actually they are just passive recipients.
2. Illich and Freire ignore the influence of the formal curriculum. Sociology teaches students to be critical and challenge things.
3. Too deterministic, assume people have no ability to make their own choices and doesn’t explain why many working class children succeed.

Question 6

Summarise the work of Willis.

Answer 6

Draws on the Interactionist perspective. Schools do not produce an obedience workforce. Wolverhampton boys rejected school and formed anti-school subcultures and did not value qualifications, they willingly went into working class jobs.

Question 7

What is vocational education, and name 2 measures implemented to achieve this?

Answer 7

Developing human capital by preparing young people for work by teaching them actual skills.

1. Work experience programmes for school and college students to ease the transition between school and work.
2. Expansion of post-16 education and training

Question 8

Summarise 2 criticisms of vocational education.

Answer 8

1. Often seen by students are boring and repetitive, and used by employers for cheap labour.
2. Lower status than traditional academic courses and less likely to lead to university entry.

Question 9

What perspective is school processes and organisation based on?

Answer 9

Interactionists - micro approach studies of what actually happens in classrooms.

Question 10

Summarise ethos and hidden curriculum as factors affecting education achievement.

Answer 10

Ethos - the atmosphere of a school and how they treat their students. e.g. emphasis on equal opportunity, anti-discrimination, praise and encouragement.

Hidden curriculum - similar to the ethos. The routine of daily school life. e.g. punctuality, respect of authority and uniform.

Question 11

What is labelling?

Answer 11

Defining a person a certain way based on assumptions/first impressions which can lead to moulding a students identity.

Question 12

What is the halo effect?

Answer 12

When students become stereotyped on the basis of assumptions/impressions. For example, a kind student may be seen as smart and hard working even if they’re not.

Question 13

What is a self fulfilling prophecy?

Answer 13

Where students act in response to predictions/assumptions made about them and become what they were labelled as.

Question 14

Who proposed the idea of the ‘ideal pupil’ and what did he say?

Answer 14

Becker.

Teachers evaluate students based on their stereotypes of the ‘ideal pupil’.

Question 15

Summarise Hempel-Jorgensen’s research on labelling.

Answer 15

12 primary schools in Hampshire. Teachers have a concept of a ‘ideal learner’ - this also had an influence on students and their motivation.

Question 16

Summarise Harvey and Slatin’s research on stereotypes.

Answer 16

Showed photo’s of varying children from 96 primary schools. White, middle class students were labelled to be more succesful.

Question 17

Summarise Ball’s research on streaming.

Answer 17

Beachside Comprehensive school. Top stream students were encouraged to achieve highly and follow academic routes. Lower streams students were encouraged to do more practical courses.

Question 18

What is educational triage and who proposed it?

Answer 18

Gillborn and Youdell.
Schools divide pupils into three groups.
1. Those likely to succeed in exams no matter what.
2. Those who have a chance of succeeding but need more help.
3. Those who have no chance of succeeding.

Question 19

What is differentiation and polarisation and who proposed it?

Answer 19

Lacey.
Differentiation is dividing students by streaming or setting them based on hard work and behaviour. Polarisation occurs as a result which is where students become divided into two opposing groups - those who achieve high and those who don’t.

Question 20

What is a pro-school subculture?

Answer 20

A group of pupils who conform to the academic aims of a school, mostly upper streams and sets.

Question 21

What is an anti-school subculture and what is it also referred to as?

Answer 21

A group of pupils who rebel against the school and develop an alternative anti-school identity with delinquent values. A subculture of resistance.

Question 22

Which two sociologists found what anti-school subcultures in their research?

Answer 22

Mac an Ghaill and Sewell.
Groups of working class black caribbean boys identified as 'macho lads' or 'rebels'.

Question 23

Summarise 4 evaluations of school organisation affecting achievement.

Answer 23

• Recognise importance of what happens inside schools with an interactionist approach. Avoids putting blame on deficiencies in a pupil and their family.
• Too deterministic. Says that negative labels always leads to negative effects. Some labels may actually encourage students to change their attitude. Fuller found that black girls rejected their labels and and proved teachers wrong.
• Do not pay attention to distribution of power. e.g. class, culture and knowledge.
• Do not pay attention to factors outside of school. e.g. structural, material and cultural factors.

Question 24

What did Michael Gove say about social class on educational achievement?

Answer 24

‘Rich, thick kids do better than poor, clever children.’

Question 25

What two categories are external factors divided into?

Answer 25

Material explanations - social and economic outside school.

Cultural - values and attitudes outside school.

Question 26

What are internal factors?

Answer 26

Factors inside school and what happens that can affect pupil performance.

Question 27

Summarise 2 material explanations for working class underachievement. Include relevant sociologists.

Answer 27

Poverty and home circumstances -
Waldfogel and Washbrook - low income families live in crowded and damp accommodation so study will be difficult and they may have poor health.
Low income = no books, internet, school trips and computers.

Catchment area -
Poorer areas will have under performing schools, and parents cant escape as they cant afford to move to better areas.

Question 28

Summarise 5 cultural explanations for working class underachievement. Include relevant sociologists.

Answer 28

Parents attitudes -
Douglas - parental encouragement, expectation and interest in their child’s education.

Parents level of education - 
Middle class parents understand the school system better than the working class. Working class feel less confident with parents evenings and subject options. 

Subcultural explanations - 
Sugarman - Middle class education = promise of good career so children are encouraged to be ambitious.
Working class education = not needed for work = not encouraged to be ambitious for education. 

Language use -
Bernstein elaborated and restricted code

Cultural capital -
Bordieu - middle class have more cultural capital + social capital.
Robson - parents can take children to museums, concerts or read books for pleasure.

Question 29

What is compensatory education, give an example?

Answer 29

It is extra assistance for those from disadvantaged groups to help them overcome the inequalities they face in education. e.g. Education Action Zones in poor areas.

Question 30

Give 4 facts on educational differences between genders?

Answer 30

1. Girls do better than boys at every stage of the national curriculum tests and english and science.
2. Girls are more successful than boys in most GCSE subjects.
3. A higher proportion of females stay on in sixth form and further education.
4. Female students are more likely to get 1st and 2nd class degrees.

Question 31

What problems still remain for girls?

Answer 31

Women still less likely to be succesful than men in jobs, with men holding most positions of power in society.

Question 32

Give 5 reasons why girls achieve better than boys?

Answer 32

1. Womens movement and feminism - raises expectations and self esteem of women so they look beyond main role of housewife.
2. Equal opportunities - GIST and WISE programmes to get girls into male-dominated subjects.
3. Growing ambition & role models - growing number of jobs for women. Girls are more ambitious and grow up with mothers in full time work. Sharpe (1976).
4. Girls worker harder & have peer support - girls put in more effort and spend more time doing work. Better concentration over a period of time in class. Girls are more supportive of eachother.
5. Girls mature earlier biologically so view exams more responsibly.

Question 33

Give 5 reasons why boys underachieve?

Answer 33

1. Lower expectations from teaching staff - more likely to extend deadlines for work and be more tolerant of disruption.
2. Boys are more disruptive than girls in classrooms and achieve peer group status by being disruptive.
3. Masculinity & anti-learning subculture - Forde et al. peer group pressure encourages boys to maintain a dominant masculine identity. Boys aim to gain street cred - working hard is seen as gay and hard working boys are bullied.
4. Declining traditional male employment - Mac an Ghaill (1994) - boys lack motivation as they have no job goals.
5. Boys don’t like reading as its feminised in education, so they are disadvantaged in the education system as they lack skills in exams.

Question 34

Who are the highest achieving ethnic groups in Education?

Answer 34

Chinese and Indian Asian pupils.

Question 35

Who are the lowest achieving groups in Education?

Answer 35

Black caribbean, pakistani, bangladeshi and gypsy/roma travellers.

Question 36

What are 7 reasons for ethnic group differences in Education?

Answer 36

1. Social class and material factors - minority ethnic groups are more likely than white people to live in low-income households and live in the poorest 1/5 of the population.
2. Language - 18% pupils in primary school did not have English as their first language. e.g. the Swan Report.
3. Family life and parental support - many ethnic minorities have negative attitudes towards learning.
4. Racism - among pupils and stereotypes by teachers.
5. Teacher expectations - black students are allocated to lower streams and then get self fulfilling prophecies.
6. Pupil response and subculture of resistance - culture of resistance amongst black caribbean youth.
7. Ethnocentric school curriculum - most subjects are christian/white culture based e.g. UK history.

Question 37

What are 3 key aims of educational policy?

Answer 37

1. Economic efficiency - developing talents of young people to improve labour force.
2. Raising educational standards
3. Creating equality of educational opportunity in meritocratic society.

Question 38

What are the 4 dimensions of equality of educational opportunity and who identified them?

Answer 38

Gillborn and Youdel (2000).

1. Equality of access - same rights to obtain access to education.
2. Equality of circumstances - children should start school with the same socio-economic status.
3. Equality of participation - everyone has the same chances to participate on an equal footing in school processes.
4. Equality of outcome - everyone has the same chances in sharing the benefits of schooling.

Question 39

What is the tripartite system and what act changed it?

Answer 39

1944 Education Act - grammar, technical and secondary modern schools. Involved 11+ exam which granted access to grammar schools.

Question 40

What are 3 selection policies in education?

Answer 40

1. Selection by ability - e.g. 11+ exam
2. Selection by aptitude - potential to be good in certain subjects
3. Selection by faith - based on religious beliefs.

Question 41

What are 3 admissions policies?

Answer 41

1. Open enrolment and parental choice - a parent can apply for a place for their child at any state funded school in any area. They must accept them if they are not full.
2. Admissions policy in oversubscribed schools - catchment area or family at the school can get people into a school.
3. Cover selection - social selection/cherry picking of pupils who they think will be more succesful.

Question 42

What is endogenous privatisation?

Answer 42

Within the education system - schools operate more like private businesses. Competition between schools through league tables.

Question 43

What is exogenous privatisation?

Answer 43

Privatisation from outside the education system. Opening of state education to private profit-making businesses.

Question 44

What is the neoliberalist approach to education policy?

Answer 44

They believe in privatisation and marketisation. The state should play a minimal role in providing and managing public services and they should operate like businesses.

Question 45

Explain two ways in which Globalisation has affected educational policy?

Answer 45

1. Privatisation and marketisation of education - promoted by neoliberal organisations such as the OECD and World Bank. Education is a multi billion pound market. Hancock found education exports from the UK were worth 18 billion a year.
2. International comparisons - international data available on all aspects of education such as achievement surveys. PISA (programme for international student assessment). These tables influence educational policy as it allows us to see general performance and as a result we use policies from better performing countries (moral panic).

Question 46

What are 2 examples of policies introduced as a result of international comparisons?

Answer 46

1. National literacy and numeracy strategies introduced by Labour government.
2. Slimming down national curriculum, conservative-liberal democrat coalition.

Question 47

Give 2 strengths and two limitations of international comparisons.

Answer 47

+

1. Useful to see wether educational spending matches performance and see efficiency.
2. Provide evidence to policy makers for what policies work best.

• 1. Based on literacy, numeracy and science and ignore other aspects such as skill development.
  2. Doesn’t always reflect education - may reflect the wider circumstances of students in those countries.

Question 48

Give two strengths and two limitations of privatisation of education?

Answer 48

+

1. More business like and efficient schools - greater value for taxpayers and less money used.
2. Private companies will be encouraged to improve failing schools.

• 1. Money drained from education system - may not reinvest profits so money is invested elsewhere.
  2. Cherry picking of best schools and neglect of worst schools by companies.

Question 49

What is marketisation of education?

Answer 49

Services like education previously controlled by the state have government control reduces and operate more like independently managed private businesses.

Question 50

What 3 points can the main features of marketisation be summarised as?

Answer 50

1. Independence - allowing schools to control their own affairs and run like businesses.
2. Competition - making schools compete with one another for customers.
3. Choice - giving customers a choice of schools.

Question 51

Who proposed parentocracy and what is it?

Answer 51

Brown (1990) said that the emphasis on parent power is parentocracy where a child’s education is dependent upon wealth and wishes of parents.

Question 52

Name 5 types of state funded school.

Answer 52

1. Specialist school
2. Grammar schools
3. Free schools
4. Academies
5. Faith schools

Question 53

Name 5 policies linked to marketisation of education and what their aim is.

Answer 53

1. Target setting - e.g. at least 35% of students get 5 GCSE’s. Aim to drive up standards by encouraging competition.
2. Formula funding (money allocated per student) and pupil premium (extra money for poorer students) - to encourage schools to get more students, especially poorer.
3. Ofsted inspections - gives parents the choice of the best schools.
4. Open enrolment, schools must accept students if they have vacancies - allows popular schools to fill every place they have.
5. Independence for schools - to give them independence to control their own affairs and do what the parents want for the school.

Question 54

Between what years was the labour government in power?

Answer 54

1997-2010

Question 55

Between what years was the conservative-liberal democrat government in power?

Answer 55

2010-2015

Question 56

Between what years was the first conservative government in power?

Answer 56

1979-1997

Question 57

Name 5 conservative policies between 1979-1997.

Answer 57

1. Target setting - e.g. at least 35% of students get 5 GCSE’s. Aim to drive up standards by encouraging competition.
2. Formula funding (money allocated per student) and pupil premium (extra money for poorer students) - to encourage schools to get more students, especially poorer.
3. Ofsted inspections - gives parents the choice of the best schools.
4. Open enrolment, schools must accept students if they have vacancies - allows popular schools to fill every place they have.
5. Independence for schools - to give them independence to control their own affairs and do what the parents want for the school.

Question 58

Name 3 labour policies between 1997-2010.

Answer 58

1. More money for schools, more nursery education and smaller primary classes - sure start children’s centres.
2. Helping the most disadvantaged - raise standards in poorer areas through Education Action Zones and Excellence in Cities. Under-performing schools were made into academies.
3. Specialist schools - massively extended the programme. Extra money from government and specialist subjects.

Question 59

Name 5 conservative-liberal democrat policies between 2010-2015.

Answer 59

1. New style academies - free from local control and curriculum.
2. Free schools - all-ability state funded independent schools set up in response to what local people want.
3. Pupil premium - extra money allocated per head for pupils from poorer homes.
4. English Baccalaureate - became a feature in league tables making core subjects more important.
5. Reform of examination system - coursework removed from GCSE’s and A levels and became linear.

Question 60

What are 5 criticisms of marketisation of education?

Answer 60

1. Myth of parentocracy - Ball found that parental choice of schools is based on social class differences. Middle-class parents will make informed choices about performance of schools whilst poorer parents will just choose the closest schools.
2. Educational triage - introduction of EBACC will lead to teachers prioritising those students who are more likely to achieve those grades meaning the underachievers continue to underachieve.
3. Poorer schools suffer more - increased competition means that students from underperforming schools will go elsewhere and the school will get less money.
4. National curriculum problems - does not give teachers enough power to satisfy the needs of their pupils as they are told what to do so too much pressure may be put on children.
5. Ofsted unreliable - due to manipulation by governments e.g. Birmingham schools part of an extremist ‘plot’.

Question 61

What is the case for Independent schools?

Answer 61

Smaller class sizes and better facilities mean students have greater chance of getting into university and top uni’s like Oxbridge.

Question 62

What is the case against Independent schools?

Answer 62

Wrong that children with more money should be advantaged over poorer children. The teaching is the same, but class sizes are smaller.