EXTERNAL FACTORS: class differences in achievement Flashcards
define EXTERNAL FACTORS
factors OUTSIDE of school: influence of the home + family background + wider society
EXTERNAL FACTORS THAT AFFECT ACHIEVEMENT
- Cultural Deprivation
- Material Deprivation
- Cultural Capital
CULTURAL DEPRIVATION affects ACHIEVEMENT EARLY in LIFE
Centre for Longitudinal studies (2007) found by the age of 3, children from DISADVANTAGED BACKGROUNDS are already up to a year behind their privileged counterparts, such gap widens with age .
most of us acquire the basic values, attitudes and skills for educational success through PRIMARY SOCIALISTAION in the family. HOWEVER…
many w/c families fail to adequately socialise their children and so their child grows up ‘culturally deprived’. That is, they lack the skills needed for educational success and thus underachieve.
Cultural Deprivation theorists see that the majority of the w/c have different goals, attitudes from wider society and this contributes to their children’s educational failure
SUGARMAN (1970) agrees with this.
sees that the w/c have 4 key features that act as a barrier to educational success:
- FATALISM
a belief that ‘whatever will be, will be’ and there was NOTHING you can do to change your status. CONTRATS WITH M/C VALUES that emphasise that you CAN CHNAGE your position THROUGH YOUR OWN EFFORTS - COLLECTIVISM
values being a part of a GROUP more than succeeding as an INDIVIDUAL. CONTRASTS with the M/C VIEW that an individual SHOULDN’T BE HELD BACK BY GROUP LOYALTIES - IMMEDIATE GRATIFICATION
seeking pleasure NOW rather than making SACRIFICES to gain rewards in the future. By CONTRAST, M/C values emphasise DEFERRED GRATIFICATION, making sacrifices now for GREATER rewards later - PRESENT-TIME ORIENTATION
w/c see the PRESENT as more important than the future and therefore DO NOT have any long term goals. By CONTRAST, M/C culture has a FUTURE-TIME ORIENTATION that sees planning for the future as IMPORTANT
SUGARMAN argues that w/c parents pass on these beliefs + values to their children through primary socialisation. Their children internalise them and this results in their underachievement at school. For eg, valuing immediate gratification may encourage w/c pupils to leave school early to earn money
WHY DO THESE SOCIAL CLASS DIFFERENCE IN VALUES EXIST?
SUGARMAN sees that it comes from the fact that M/C jobs are SECURE CAREERS that offers an outlook for CONTINUOUS INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT. Further encouraging AMBITION, LONG-TERM PLANNING + WILLINGNESS TO INVEST TIME AND EFFORT TO GAINING QUALIFICATIONS. However, W/C jobs are LESS secure + have NO CAREER STRUCTURE that individuals can advance from with very little promotion opportunities.
Language is an important contribution to children’s cognitive development + ability to benefit from schooling.
HUBBS-TAIT ET AL (2002) found that parents who used language that challenged their children to EVALUATE their understanding had improved cognitive performance. FEINSTEIN (2008) found that more HIGHLY-QUALIFIED parents who were likely from a M/C background were more likely to use language this way. He further found they would also more likely use PRAISE, which encouraged their children to develop a sense of their own COMPETENCE.
In contrast, parents with FEWER QUALIFICATIONS tend to be of a W/C background and use language that required their child to only make DESCRIPTIVE STATEMENTS which resulted in LOWER performance. CULTURAL DEPRIVATION THEORISTS claim that the language used in W/C families is DEFICIENT and thus their children fail to develop the necessary skills for EDUCATIONAL SUCCESS meaning they are unable to take advantage of the opportunities that school offers.
TROYNA and WILLIAMS (1986) sees that the problem is not the child’s language BUT THE SCHOOL’S ATTITUDE TOWARDS IT. Teachers have a ‘SPEECH HIERARCHY’ : labelling the M/C speech the HIGHEST, followed by W/C speech and finally BLACK SPEECH.
Parent’s education:
CULTURAL DEPRIVATION THEORISTS sees that parent’s attitudes to education affects their child’s achievement.
DOUGLAS (1964) concluded w/c parents placed LESS VALUE on EDUCATION. They were LESS AMBITIOUS for their children, gave them LESS ENCOURAGEMENT and LESS INTEREST on their EDUCATION. Parents like this VISITED SCHOOLS LESS OFTEN + WERE LESS LIKELY TO DISCUSS THEIR CHILD’S DEVELOPMENT WITH TEACHERS, resulting in their children having LOWER LEVELS OF MOTIVATION
FEINSTEIN (2008) argues that parent’s own educational level is the single most important factor affecting children’s achievement ; as M/C parents have HIGHER QUALIFICATIONS they are able to give their children an ADVANTAGE through how they socialise them.
the PARENTING STYLE of M/C parents emphasise CONSITENT DISCIPLINE + HIGH EXPECTATIONS of their children by ENCOURAGING ACTIVE LEARNING
HIGHLER QUALIFIED PARENT’S have an awareness of what is necessary for their child to progress and thus have an active presence in their child’s EDUCATIONAL BEHAVIOURS by reading to their child, helping them with their homework etc.
HIGHLY QUALIFIED parents are more successful in establishing good relationships with teachers and also show an understanding of the educational value from visits to MUSEUMS + LIBRARIES
CULTURAL DEPRIVATION: SPEECH CODES
BERNSTEIN (1975) identified differences between W/C and M/C language that influence achievement, he identifies 2 SPEECH CODES:
RESTRICTED CODE- used by W/C , it has LIMITED vocab and used SHORT, UNFINISHED, GRAMMATICALLY SIMPLE sentences. This speech is PREDICTABLE and sometimes involve single words. it’s DESCRIPTIVE not ANALYTIC. The RESTRICTED CODE is CONTEXT-BOUND, the speaker assumes the listener shares the same experiences.
ELABORATED CODE- used by M/C, has a WIDER vocab and used LONGER, GRAMMATICALLY COMPLEX sentences. Their speech is MORE VARIED + COMMUNICATES ABSTRACT IDEAS. The ELABORATED CODE is CONTEXT- FREE, the speaker doesn’t assume that listeners share the same experience.
Differences in speech codes have place M/C pupils at an advantage at schools and put W/C pupils a disadvantaged, this is due to the ELABORATE CODE being the language used by TEACHERS, TEXTBOOKS and EXAMS. Early socialisation into the ELABORATED CODE meant that M/C children were fluent users and so felt ‘at home’ in school and thus more likely to SUCCEED. IN COMPARISON, W/C children who lack the code their school uses , are likely to be less successful.
COMPENSATORY EDUCATION
- aim to tackle cultural deprivation by providing resources to schools + communities in deprived areas
- they get involved early in the socialisation process to compensate children for the deprivation they experience at home
- includes programmes that set up nursery classes and raising student’s aspirations to go to Uni
MOST KNOWN EXAMPLE IS: OPERATION HEAD START IN THE US FROM THE 1960s
IN BRITAIN EXAMPLES WERE PROGRAMMES INCLUDING: EDUCATION ACTION ZONES, AIMING HIGHER and SURE START
CRITICISMs of CULTURAL DEPRIVATION THEORY
takes on a ‘deficit’ view that blames the victims for their own failure. It sees W/C students as LACKING the cultural qualities needed for educational success. Ignoring the inequalities built into the EDUCATION SYSTEM and WIDER SOCIETY which are to blame for underachievement
KEDDIE (1973) dismisses that failure at school can be blamed on a culturally deprived home background. Pointing out that a child cannot be deprived of their own culture, she sees that W/C children are simply culturally different, NOT culturally deprived. They fail because they are put at a DISADVANTAGE by an EDUCATION SYSTEM that is DOMINATED by M/C VALUES. KEDDIES concludes that the schools should recognise W/C culture’s strengths and should challenge their own ANTI- W/C prejudices
define MATERIAL DEPRIVATION
poverty and lack of material necessities such as adequate HOUSING and INCOME
define CULTURAL CAPITAL
knowledge, attitude and language of the M/C
CULTURAL CAPITAL: BOURDIEU
BOURDIEU sees M/C VALUES as a type of WEALTH that gives ADVANTAGES to people who posses it. Through SOCIALISATION, M/C children have the ABILITY to UNDERSTAND ABSTRACT IDEAS and are MORE LIKELY to DEVELOP UNDERSTANDING of what the EDUCATION SYSTEM requires to SUCCEED. THUS, M/C pupils are at an ADVANTAGE at SCHOOL as SUCH ABILITIES are HIGHLY VALUED+REWARDED with QUALIFICATIONS. This is due to the EDUCATION SYSTEM FAVOURING + TRANSMITTING HEGEMONIC M/C VALUES. COMPARATIVELY, W/C pupils see that SCHOOL REDUCES THEIR CULTURE AS INFERIOR. Their LACK of CULTURAL CAPITAL leads to EXAM FAILURE. Many see that EDUCATION IS NOT FOR THEM and thus DONT TRY.
