Labelling Theory

Question 1

Teachers systematically discriminating against students

Answer 1

Gilborn & Youdell:
- teachers fail to recognise intelligence of working class students as they do not exhibit it in the “right way”

Question 2

Labelling as a good thing

Answer 2

Can spur some students on to prove a negative label wrong

Question 3

How can it be argued that students are in fact “labelled” by schools?

Answer 3

• sets and streams
• behaviour can then be worse in lower sets; could be argued children conform to negative assumptions by exhibiting poor behaviour