Labelling: Class Differences In Achievement Flashcards
What is a self fulfilling prophecy?
A prediction that comes true simply by virtue of it having been made
Step 1 of self fulfilling prophecy
Teacher labels a pupil eg (being very intelligent) makes predictions about them
Step 2 of self fulfilling prophecy
The teacher treats the pupil accordingly acting as if the preduction is already true
Step 3 or self fulfilling prophecy
The pupil internalises the teachers expectation, which becomes part his self-concept or self image, so he now actually becomes the kind of pupil the bencher believed him to in the first place.
What is streaming?
Separating children into different ability groups or classes called streams - each ability group is taught separately from the other groups for all subjects - self fulfilling prophecy more likely to occur
Affects of streaming for working class
- It’s usually difficult to move up to a higher stream ; children are locked into their teachers low expectations of them.
- Children in lower streams get the message that their teachers have written them off as no-hopers
- This creates the self fulfilling prophecy
- Douglas found that children placed in lower stream an enge 8 had suffered a decline in the iq score by age eleven.
Affects of streaming on middle-class
- middle class benefit from streaming
- they are likely to be placed in higher streams reflecting teachers’ view of them as ideal pupils
As a result, they develop a more positive self-concept, gown confidence and work harder to improve their grades - douglas found that children placed in a higher stream at age 8 had improved their iq score by age eleven
What does pupil subculture mean?
A pupil subculture is a group of pupils who share similar values and behaviour patterns
Pupil subcultures often emerge as a response to the way pupils have been labelled
Colin laceys concept of differentiation
The process of teachers categorising pupils acording to how they perceive their ability, attitude and for behaviour
Colin laceys concept of polarisation
The process in which pupils respond to streaming by moving towards one of two opposite poles or extremes
What is the pro-school subculture
Pupils placed in high streams (largely middle class) tend to remain commuted to the values of school , they gain status through academic success
Whet is the anti-school subculture
Those placed in low streams (tend to be working class) suffer from a loss of self esteem
The school has undermined their self- worth by placing them in a position of inferior status
This label of failure pushes them to search for alternative ways of gaining status-often by inverting the schools value
Eg. Cheeking a teacher, smoking, truanting , not doing homework
Criticisms of labelling theory
Marxists say that labelling theory lends to blame teachers but does not explain why they do so
Define the term educational triage
The process whereby schools sort pupils into ‘hopeless cases’
Define Habitus
The dispositions or learned, taken for granted ways of thinking being and acting that are shaved by a particular social class It includes their tastes and preferences about lifestyle consumption
