external factors + social class Flashcards
material deprivation
low wages, diet, insecure housing, health and poverty all affect how W/C achieve
Cooper and Stewart
w/c students have worse cognitive, social, behavioural and health outcomes
Waldfogel and Washbrook
children from low income families live in cold, dark, damp, unclean and unsafe housing.
more likely to have poorer diets leading to sickness
other points
- poorer parents are less likely to have access to facilities
- low income means that educational books aren’t bought and also they may have limited access to computers or internet
- lack money for school trips, calculators or sporting equipment. private tuition may be unaffordable to w/c
- schools from w/c areas may suffer from deprivation as many schools rely on donations from parents
- cost of education e.g university funds likely to cause anxiety and discourage w/c
selection by mortgage
catchment area - area in which schools draw students
more deprived areas will face unemployment, crime, youth delinquency and drug abuse
likely to be high levels of discipline issues, less learning and high turnover of staff
w/c pupils have higher likelihood of difficult and poor schools
cultural factors
values, attitude and language of w/c is deprived in a different way to middle class
Sodha and Margo
these cultural values conspire against the working class
Douglas
parental encouragement, expectation and interest is the most influential factor on achievement
other points
- middle class parents make more visits to school encouraging their children to stay on further and into higher education
- m/c tend to understand education system better
- w/c parents feel less confident to deal with teachers
- m/c parents likely to know about the examination system and give advice
- middle class have learned more due to socialisation
immediate gratification
wanting rewards straight away
deferred gratification
waiting for a larger reward
fatalism
belief that events are inevitable
collectivism
the working class valued being part of a group rather than succeeding as an individual
Bernstein- restricted code
informal and simple everyday language
- limited explanation and vocab
- understood between friends + family
- used by middle and working class but w/c limited to use
elaborate code
language used by strangers in formal context
- can be used by teachers, business letters and job interviews
- elaborated code used by middle class gives then advantage at school
Bourdieu- Habitus
believes that the middle class possesses their own set of values
- picked up over socialisation
- dominant class has control over imposition over habitus
- m/c culture valuable as money
Ball et al
middle class parents use cultural capital to ensure they get their children into best schools
-making good impression on open evenings
-knowing how to mount an appeal
West & Hind
- interviews in accepting pupils to new schools were full of negotiations made by m/c parents
- in fact, w/c families didn’t apply if an interview was required banned in 2005
Criticisms
- Reay- ‘blame the victim approach’ places blame on family background and cultural deficit of the w/c
tend to exaggerate differences and down play similarities between attitudes and beliefs of w/c - overlooking practical difficulties and lack self confidence
many w/c parents are concerned for child’s success
many parents can’t take interest because of the requirements to work (get less paid time off) - ignore the role that the schools themselves pay
schools don’t ‘process’ children whose attitudes and ambitions are preformed in the family (play active role in formulating these)
m/c students receive more paise bc they resonate more with m/c teachers
labelling w/c children as ‘born to fail’
