internal factors- Social class inequalities Flashcards
labelling
When a teacher attaches certain definitions towards the children and then acts as if that label is true.
Becker did a study and asked teachers to describe the ideal student. he found that…
teachers described MC students as ideal whereas WC were ‘far from’ ideal as they ‘behaved badly’
Self-fulfilling prophecy
This is a perception that comes true simply because it was made.
Why are WC children more likely to be put in lower streams?
Because teachers didn’t see the WC pupils as ‘ideal pupils’ and that they ‘lack ability’ and so have lower expectations.
Pupil subcultures
This is a group of pupils who share similar values and behavioural patterns, and often emerge as a result of the labelling in schools and in response to streaming.
DIFFERENTIATION:
Teachers categorising pupils according to their perceived ability, attitude and behaviour.
POLARISATION:
Moving towards one of two extremes in response to streaming.
Lacey studied a boys grammar school and found that streaming led to polarising boys into two subcultures, pro-school and anti-school.
The pro-school subculture:
Mainly full of MC who are committed to school values, they gain status in school in an ‘appropriate manner’, and academic success.
The anti-school subculture:
Those placed in lower streams tended to have low self esteem. This label of failure pushes them to peruse alternate ways of a achieving status. For example being a rebel and smoking or being late to lessons all the time.
