Educational Attainment And Social Class

Question 1

What are two reasons class difference in education?

Answer 1

Internal factors and external factors

Question 2

What are internal factors?

Answer 2

Factors within schools themselves and the education system e.g. interactions between the pupils and the teachers and inequalities between schools

Question 3

What are external factors?

Answer 3

Factors outside of the education system, e.g. influences from home, family backgrounds, and society

Question 4

Sociologists have offered a range of theories to explain working-class underachievement, with different conclusions drawn depending on their perspectives about how society works. What are three of these perspectives?

Answer 4

Functionalists:
- Claim that the working class fail because schools are meritocratic, and thus they must not be the best pupils

Marxists:
- Believe that the education system exists to legitimise ruling class power, so the education system is biased against the working class, existing only to oppress poor pupils

Interactionists:
- Tend to the view that schools are middle-class institutions and that teachers label working-class children as failures. The children live up to their labels by failing.

Question 5

What are some external factors that can link educational attainment and social class?

Answer 5

• Material deprivation
• Cultural deprivation
• Cultural capital

Question 6

What does the term material deprivation refer to?

Answer 6

Material deprivation refers to poverty and the lack of money to buy possessions

Question 7

How many children reviving free schools meals gain 5 A-C grades compared to those who don’t?

Answer 7

33% of children receiving free school meals gain 5 A-C’s compared to 61% of children not receiving free school meals

Question 8

What percentage of failing schools are located in deprived areas?

Answer 8

90%

Question 9

What are some ways in which poor housing can directly affect educational underachievement?

Answer 9

• Working class children are more likely to be unable to afford the ‘extras’ that would allow them the best chance at educational success (equipment, uniform, private tuition, school trips, moving to the catchment areas of ‘good’ schools)
• Overcrowding in houses can leave limited space for children to study in
• Families living in temporary accommodation may find themselves moving more frequently, resulting in children changing schools and disrupting their education

Question 10

What are some ways in which poor housing can indirectly affect educational underachievement?

Answer 10

Poor housing can also have indirect effects on children’s welfare, as they may be more likely to get ill or undergo psychological distress which leads to more absences from school

Question 11

What did Jan Flaherty argue about material deprivation and education and when?

Answer 11

Argued that money problems in the family were a significant factor in younger children’s non attendance at school.
- Kids that lacked financial support for their education could not afford equipment and uniforms for school, and were also teased for receiving FSM and felt stigmatised.

Question 12

What percentage of children don’t take up Free School Meals and why?

Answer 12

20%, for fear of stigmatisation

Question 13

What did Harker argue about material deprivation?

Answer 13

Poor overcrowded housing means:
- Less space to play, resulting in higher rates of depression
- Less space to study, making studying very difficult
- Increased bullying
- Frequent moving that can disrupt children’s learning
- Hazards to health
- Higher rates of stress and mental illness

Question 14

What did Marilyn Howard argue about material deprivation and educational underachievement and when?

Answer 14

Argues that young people from poorer homes have lower intakes of energy, vitamins and minerals. This affects their health by weakening the immune system and lowering their energy levels, causing both physical and emotional/behavioural problems. (2001)

Question 15

What did Richard Wilkinson argue about material deprivation and educational achievement and when?

Answer 15

Argues that among 10 year olds, the lower the social class, the higher the rate of hyperactivity, anxiety and conduct disorders, all of which had a negative effect on a child’s education (1996)

Question 16

Explain what David Bull meant by the term ‘Costs of free schooling’ in 1980

Answer 16

Lack of income means children from poorer families miss out on educational visits, access to internet, books, equipment, resources, and experiences that will enhance educational achievement.
- They may also to work jobs such as babysitting or part time jobs, impacting on their school work
- As a result of financial implications, many leave education at 16

Question 17

What items did Emily Tanner find placed a heavy burden on poorer students and when?

Answer 17

• School uniforms
• Sports equipment/kits
• Calculators
• Books
• Art equipment

Question 18

What did Smith and Noble say about material deprivation and educational underachievement and when?

Answer 18

• Added that poverty acts as a barrier to learning in other ways, such as inability to afford private schooling or tutoring as well as having to settle for poorer quality local schools (1995)

Question 19

In what way does fear of debt affect educational attainment in relation to material deprivation?

Answer 19

Fear of debt deters poor students from going to university, expecting increasingly more substantial debts with the introduction of higher fees

Question 20

What did Halsey find about external factors affecting social class and educational underachievement?

Answer 20

Material factors were more of a problem than cultural factors

Question 21

Explain cultural deprivation.

Answer 21

Cultural deprivation theory holds the view that some groups, such as the lower social classes, have inferior norms, values, skills and knowledge which prevent them from achieving in education
- It is seen that inferior language skills, and the fact that working class parents do not value education are largely to blame for working class underachievement rather than material deprivation

Question 22

Why do many modern sociologists take issue with cultural deprivation theory?

Answer 22

It is based on the assumption that the working classes are not only ‘different’ from, but also not as good as, the middle classes.

Question 23

What were identified as the three main aspects of cultural deprivation?

Answer 23

• Intellectual development
• Attitudes
• Language

Question 24

What did Douglas find about parental interest in their child’s education among working-class parents, and what was a problem with his study?

Answer 24

He found that w/c parents did place less value on their child’s education and were less ambitious for their child

• Douglas only studied parents inside of schools on visits etc. Many w/c parents may be working full-time, shift work, or have more than one job. This can affect elements of perceived parental interest (e.g. not being able to attend parents’ evenings), but they may not in fact lack interest in their children

Question 25

What did Douglas’ study find point out about the intellectual development of working class children?

Answer 25

W/c children tend to get less support in their intellectual development (homes lack toys, books and activities to stimulate intellectual development, parents less able to assist with homework), hence why they score lower on IQ tests and are less likely to stay on at school to take A levels

Question 26

What research method did Douglass carry out in his study of w/c children’s IQs and when?

Answer 26

Longitudinal study of 5362 children born in the first week of March 1946, until they were 16 in 1962.
- Participants were divided into groups in terms of their ability (measured by IQ tests), and then subdivided into four social class groups

Question 27

What were some weaknesses of Douglas’ study?

Answer 27

• IQ tests are unreliable
• Cultural capital misrepresents the ability of working class children
• High drop out rate common in longitudinal studies

Question 28

Who said there were four key features of working class subculture that acted as a barrier to educational achievement and when?

Answer 28

Barry Sugarman (1970)

Question 29

What did Sugarman say about the link between working class subculture and educational underachievement?

Answer 29

Argued w/c subcultures have 4 key features that act as a barrier to educational achievement:
- Fatalism
- Collectivism
- Immediate gratification
- Present-time orientation
And w/c children internalise beliefs and values of their culture

Question 30

Explain the term ‘fatalism’

Answer 30

Believing in fate and that there is nothing you can do to change your status.
- M/c values teach that you can change your position through your own efforts

Question 31

Explain the term ‘collectivism’

Answer 31

Valuing being part of a group more than succeeding as an individual
- The m/c argue that you should not be held back by group loyalties

Question 32

Explain the term ‘immediate gratification’

Answer 32

Seeking pleasure immediately rather than making sacrifices in order to get rewards in the future
- M/c values emphasise differed gratification, making sacrifices now for greater rewards later

Question 33

Explain the term ‘present-time orientation’

Answer 33

Present-time orientation is seeing the present as more important than the future
- M/c culture has a future-time orientation and they see planning for the future as important

Question 34

What research methods did Sugarman use to carry out his study?

Answer 34

Interviews and questionnaires

Question 35

What was a weakness of Sugarman’s study?

Answer 35

Social class differences in responses to interviews and questionnaires may not be valid or representative

Question 36

What did Hyman argue about the values of the working classes and educational achievement and when?

Answer 36

The w/c subculture has a ‘self imposed barrier’ to educational success, as they believe they have less chance of achieving individual success and so see no point of education

Question 37

Who found that the way mothers think about and choose toys has an influence on their child’s intellectual development, and how did this differentiate between w/c and m/c mothers?

Answer 37

Bernstien and Young
- M/c mothers are more likely to choose toys which encourage thinking and reasoning skills and prepare children for school

Question 38

Who claimed that language in w/c homes is deficient, meaning that w/c children fail to develop the necessary language skills needed to succeed in education?

Answer 38

Carl Engleman and Siegfried Bereiter (1966)

Question 39

What were the two types of speech code identified by Basil Bernstien? Explain both

Answer 39

Elaborated speech code
- M/c children have access to complex language through books. They use long sentences and sophisticated vocabulary

Restricted speech code
- Short, incomplete, grammatically incorrect sentences with unsophisticated vocabulary, typically used by the w/c

Question 40

How did Basil Bernstein argue the difference in speech codes was responsible for educational underachievement by the working class?

Answer 40

Many aspects of the education system are dominated by elaborated speech code of the m/c. It is used by teachers, textbooks and exams, putting m/c students at an advantage as they are already fluent users of elaborated speech code from early socialisation, and are more likely to be successful
- Argued restricted code handicapped children’s language development because education was delivered in elaborated code of m/c

Question 41

What did Feinstien find about Douglas’ claims on the lack of value w/c parents put on their children’s education?

Answer 41

Found that this lack of interest was the main reason for children’s underaichement and was even more significant than financial hardship or internal factors
- Argues m/c children are more successful because their parents provide them with the necessary materials

Question 42

When did Leon Feinstein make his claims about w/c parents’ lack of interest in their children’s education?

Answer 42

1998

Question 43

What did Leon Feinstein find in his 2008 research about speech codes?

Answer 43

• Low income was related to restricted speech code
• Children of w/c parents tended to be more passive, less engaged in the world around them, and have a more limited vocabulary
• Children from m/c households had a wider vocabulary, better understanding of how to talk to other people and were more skilled at manipulating objects

Question 44

Explain the research of Connor et al (2001)

Answer 44

Conducted focus group interviews with 230 students from 4 further education colleges from a range of class backgrounds, some of whom had chosen to go to uni, and others who had not. The main findings were that w/c pupils are discouraged from going to uni for three main reasons:
- Candidates want immediate gratification. They want to earn money and be independent at an earlier age, because they are aware of their parents having struggled for money and wish to avoid debt themselves
- Realise their parents cannot afford to support them during Higher Education and do not like possibility of them getting into debt
- Have less confidence in their ability to succeed in Higher Education

Question 45

What was Keddie’s criticism of cultural deprivation theory?

Answer 45

Argued that a child cannot be deprived of its own culture and that w/c children are simply culturally different, not culturally deprived.
- She argues that w/c children fail because they are put at a disadvantage as most of the education system is dominated by the m/c

Question 46

Who argued that the problem in w/c underachievement in education is not the language they use, but the attitudes of schools towards the language

Answer 46

Troyna and Williams

Question 47

What did Troyna and Williams argue was teacher’s attitude towards language used by pupils in schools?

Answer 47

Teacher’s have a ‘speech hierarchy’: middle class, working class, black

Question 48

What is Blackstone and Mortimore’s argument about w/c parental interest in their child’s education?

Answer 48

Suggest that w/c parents do care about their child’s education and do attend fewer parents evenings, but this is because they are more likely to be unable to attend due to work commitments, and they are also put off by the m/c atmosphere in schools
- There is evidence that schools with mainly w/c pupils have less effective systems of parent-school contacts, making communication harder

Question 49

What are two government polices that have been introduced to tackle cultural deprivation? Explain each

Answer 49

1. Compensatory education
   A policy designed to tackle the problem of cultural deprivation by providing extra resources to schools in deprived areas. The policy attempts to intervene early in the process of socialisation to compensate for deprived children
2. Sure Start Children’s Centres
   Centres that deprived children have access to, usually set up in deprived areas. These centres provide education, care, family support and health services. The aim is to work with parents to promote physical, social and intellectual development of deprived children

Question 50

What is cultural capital?

Answer 50

Cultural capital refers to the skills, knowledge and attitudes associated with the dominant culture (i.e the established middle class). It’s this capital that m/c parents have that they can draw on to give their child an advantage in social life and an advantage in the education system

Question 51

Explain Cultural Capital Theory

Answer 51

• Marxist theory put forward by Pierre Bourdieu in the 1970s
• Different from Cultural Deprivation Theory as it does not see w/c culture as inferior or lacking, just as different to m/c culture
• Claims that middle-class are more likely to succeed as the education system is run by the middle classes and works in their interests. The m/c are able to define their own culture as superior and thus w/c culture and w/c children are marginalised in the education system and end up underachieving
• M/c parents are able to use their cultural, social and educational capital to benefit their own children

Question 52

Explain cultural reproduction theory

Answer 52

• Marxist theory
• Bowles and Gintis (1976) suggested that schools are middle-class institutions and that they pass on the norms and values of capitalist society. Thus schools socialise children, but only to produce workers for society
• They call this theory the Correspondence principle
• Thus, the organisation of the school mirrors the organisation of the workplace and trains working-class children for subordinate, unpleasant boring work

Question 53

What are some internal factors that can link educational attainment and social class?

Answer 53

• School organisation
• Labelling theories and self-fulfilling prophecy
• Subcultures and peer groups