external factors Flashcards
Cultural deprivation
This theory suggests that working class people may lack attitudes, language and values necessary for success in education
:( - cultural deprivation
places the blame on factors outside of school such as young people’s socialisation in the family and community
Douglas
found that the single most important factor was the degree of PARENTAL ENCOURAGEMENT, expectation interest and involvement in their
children’s education
Feinstein
- suggested that very high parental interest led to much better exam results than for children whose parents showed no interest.
- Supportive parents have a greater effect than financial aspects
Middle-class parents on the whole:
- Take more interest in their children’s
progress - Become more interested and encouraging
as their children grow older (exam options,
career choices)
EVALUATION of Douglas’s claims
- used measures of ‘parental interest’ based on teacher’s comments about parents attitudes, and the number of times parents visited schools.
- However, many w/c people work longer hours and have less flexibility.
- Not visiting a school may reflect material constraints of their jobs.
SUBCULTURAL EXPLANATIONS
SUGARMAN
sugarman - subcultural explanations
explanations argue that different social classes have some different values, attitudes or lifestyles and these affect the performance of children
sugarman - subcultural explanations ( W/C)
- Immediate gratification
- Present-time orientation
- Fatalism
- Collectivism
sugarman - subcultural explanations ( M/C)
- deferred gratification
- future-time orientation
- meritocracy
- individualism
sugarman’s subcultural explanations - evaluation
- ‘blame the victim’ approach.
- They ignore the role that schools play themselves in forming the attitudes
and ambitions of children. Blaming family as irresponsible can attach a
stigma to such families/social classes and may lead to low expectations by
teachers.
elaborated code (Bernstein)
- it is middle-class people’s familiarity with elaborated code that gives
them a better chance of success in education - necessary for exam success in many subjects.
- As many teachers are middle class, they are more likely to use elaborated codes.
Elaborated code
Language where explanation and detail are required. It has a much wider vocabulary than restricted code. Examples of language use include in an interview for a job, writing a business letter, writing an essay
Restricted code
Language used between friends or family members, informal, simple, everyday language. Limited explanation and vocabulary.
Bernstein evaluation
oversimplifies the difference between middle class and working class speech patterns.
He has been accused of creating a myth of the
superiority of middle class speech
