education - the research context

Question 1

1. Researching pupils

Answer 1

In education, many of the people that sociologists study are children and young people - pupils and students. Hill suggests that there are 3 major differences between studying young people and studying adults - power and status - ability and understanding - vulnerability

Question 2

Power and status

Answer 2

Children and young people generally have less power and status than adults. This makes it more difficult for them and state their attitudes and views openly, especially if they challenge those of adults - schools are hierarchal institutions that give teachers higher status and power over pupils - structured interviews or questionnaires tend to reinforce power differences

Question 3

Ability and understanding

Answer 3

Pupils’ vocabulary, powers of self expression, thinking skills and confidence are likely to be more limited than those of adults - particularly when trying to express abstract ideas - limitations in pupils also make it more difficult to gain their informed consent - pupils are not all the same, class, age, gender and ethnicity all create differences between pupils that a researcher will have to take into account

Question 4

Vulnerability and ethical issues

Answer 4

As a result of their more limited power and ability, young people are often more vulnerable to physical and psychological harm than adults which raises ethical issues for the researcher. The sociologist should consider whether the participation of young people in the research is necessary and if they will benefit from it - given the vulnerability of the pupils, child protection issues are very important

Question 5

Laws and guidelines

Answer 5

Child protection laws such as the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, operate a vetting and barring scheme on adults working in schools, which requires researchers to have Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks. This may delay or prevent researchers from carrying out their research

Question 6

2. Researching teachers

Answer 6

Teachers often feel overworked and may be less than fully cooperative, even when they want to be helpful. This may mean that interviews and questionnaires need to be kept short and will restrict the amount of data that can be gathered. On the other hand, as professionals, teachers are likely to be sympathetic to educational research

Question 7

Power and status

Answer 7

Power relationships in the school are not equal. Teachers have more power and status because of their age, experience and responsibility within the school. They also have legal responsibilities and a duty of care towards the pupils - researchers will need to develop a ‘cover’ if they intend to carry out covert investigations (eg presenting themselves as a supply teacher)

Question 8

Impression management

Answer 8

Teachers are used to being observed and scrutinised (eg OFSTED) so they may be more willing to be observed by a researcher since it is something they are used to - some researchers study teachers in their backstage setting (staff room)

Question 9

3. Researching classrooms

Answer 9

The classroom is unusual in being a closed social setting with clear physical and social boundaries. Although not as closed as a prising or psych ward - classroom is also a controlled setting, young people rarely experience this level of surveillance in other areas of their lives so as a result the classroom behaviour the researcher observes may not accurately reflect what those involved really think and feel

Question 10

Gate keepers

Answer 10

Access to classrooms i controlled by a wide range of gatekeepers, including head teachers, teachers and child protection laws. The more gatekeepers there are to a particular research setting, the more difficult it is for researcher to obtain and maintain access

Question 11

Peer groups

Answer 11

Young people may be insecure about their identity and status so when in school based groups such as friendship groups, they may be more sensitive to peer pressure and the need to conform which may affect the way they respond to being researched

Question 12

4. Researching schools

Answer 12

There are lots of schools in the UK. If the sociologist uses observational methods, they are unlikely to have the time to investigate more than a few and their research risks being unrepresentative - using large scale surveys or official statistics instead may overcome this problem

Question 13

The law

Answer 13

Requires young people to attend school in order to be educated. The only other major institution whose inmates are legally compelled to be there is the prison system - schools operate within a particular legal framework

Question 14

Gatekeepers

Answer 14

Head teachers and governors are gatekeepers who have the power to refuse the researcher access to the school - according to Meighan and Harber heads’ sometimes view research negatively - some situations and school settings may be ‘off limits’ to a researcher

Question 15

MEIGHAN

Answer 15

Heads’ reactions to a research prophet Meighan wanted to carry out on consulting pupils about teaching included the following views - it is dangerous to involve pupils in commenting on their teachers - discipline would be adversely affected - it would be bad for classroom relationships - children are not competent to judge teachers

Question 16

School organisation

Answer 16

Schools are formal organisations with rules and hierarchies. Researchers may come to be seen as part of the hierarchy - many schools are single sex which may pose problems where the researcher is of a different gender from that of the pupils - schools are large scale, complex and highly organised social institutions. They have daily and yearly timetables, management structures, meeting schedules and more; these may all affect when and how a study can be carried out - the size and complexity of schools can cause difficulties for researchers

Question 17

5. Researching parents

Answer 17

Parents can influence what goes on in education - by how they bring up their children - by their involvement in school through parent teacher contacts, parent governors, attendance at parents evenings and so on - marketisation policies encourage parents to see themselves as consumers Parents are not an easy group to study though

Question 18

Access to parents

Answer 18

Many sociologists see parents as playing a vital role in education but most parent child interaction takes place at home. As a private setting often closed to researchers, this presents difficulties. Eg while classroom interactions with teachers and pupils can often be observed easily, there are a few opportunities to observe whether parents help children with their homework

Question 19

The researchers own experience of education

Answer 19

Researchers can draw on their own experience, eg when formulating their hypotheses or interpreting data - their experience and familiarity with classrooms and schools can dull their awareness of how different educational environments are from other social settings

Question 20

Topic summary

Answer 20

Education - a research context with many distinctive characteristics Classrooms - highly controlled settings and this may make it difficult to uncover real attitudes Teachers - accustomed to being observed and may ‘put on a show’ when being studied Schools - closed, hierarchical organisations and this may make access difficult Parents - may be hard to contact without school’s cooperationResearchers - need to be aware their own personal characteristics and experience of education can influence their research