Paper One - Education, Research Methods, Sociological Theory Flashcards
What is instinct?
An innate, fixed, or preprogrammed pattern of behaviour shared by all members of a given species.
Give 3 examples of behaviour that varies between individuals and societies
- We all have a sex drive, but the way we satisfy can vary = from promiscuity, to monogamy, polygamy, or posing to remain celibate
- We may have a drive for self preservation yet some people choose to risk lives in war
- Women are said to have a maternal instinct; yet some abandon or abuse their children
This shows that humans do not purely act on instinct
What are 3 examples of learned behaviour
-language
-knowledge of right and wrong
-practical skills (eg. Dressing up, table manners)
Define norms
Norms refers to behaviour and attitudes which are considered normal, while values are those things that people consider important to them. They can also be Specific rules that govern behaviour in particular situations
Define sanctions
Sanctions are used to maintain social control by giving rewards or punishments, this ensures society’s members behave as others expect them to
What is socialisation
The process of ‘internalising’ the culture whereby society ‘gets into’ and becomes part of us
Aka. Learning all the things that are necessary for us to be accepted just to society
What is the difference between primary and secondary socialisation
Primary: takes place in early years of life and occurs largely within the family where we learn language, basic skills, and forms
Secondary: takes place later, at school and in a wider society
What is the difference between ascribed status and achieved status
Ascribed status: based on fixed characteristics that we are are born with and cannot normally change, such as sex or ethnicity
Achieved status: through own efforts such as getting into uni or being promoted at work
What is a sociological perspective
A way at looking at society from different angles
What is structuralism
-concerned with the overall structure of society and the way that social institutions like the media, work and act as a constraint on or limit and control individual behaviour.
-according to structuralism the individual is like a puppet whose strings are pulled by society
Define functionalism
theory based on the premise that all aspects of a society—institutions, roles, norms, etc. —serve a purpose and that all are essential for the long-term survival of the society
What are Marxists
Beliefs that capitalist society is based on inequalities between the running capitalist class and working class
What is social action
The idea that society is created by the actions of each individual - complete opposite to structuralism
People’s behaviours are viewed as being driven by the meaning they give to situations
The sociology of trying to uncover these meanings is typically called interpretivism (based on the assumption that reality is subjective, multiple and socially constructed)
Social action believes that society and its institutions are seen as the creation of individuals - not as an external reality
What is structuration (Anthony gibben’s theory)
While people operate within the constraints of the social structure, they can also act, make choices, and sometimes change that social structure
What is post-modernism?
- Emphasises the diversity of human experience and multiplicity of perspectives
- It stresses that society is changing so rapidly and constantly that is marked by chaos, uncertainty, and risk.
- For post-modernist, there is no single ‘true’ theory
- In postmodern societies, the emphasis is on individuals as consumers, making their own choices. Postmodernists believe that in contemporary global society people’s identities are chosen rather than ascribed (given). They assert that we can construct our own lives and identities through the same processes that are used when we go shopping. We can ‘pick and mix’ parts of our identities according to what we like and want.
What do postmodernists believe about the society and social structures (eg.family)?
Postmodernists argue it is no use to talk of an institution called family because people now live in such a wide range of ever-changing personal relationships.
Couples that are homosexual, heterosexual, etc., all mean that any notion of the ‘typical family’ or ‘family as an institution’ is absurd.
Post-modernists suggest society and social structures have ceased to exist and have been replaced by a mass of individuals, making individual choices about a lifestyles,etc. This means that societies can no longer be understood through the application of ‘big’ theories, or grand stories (called metanarratives) like Marxism or functionalism.
Define metanarratives
A postmodern theory, which refers to the big stories in which religions offer individuals about the world
Name the three types of society and explain them
Traditional: a rural agricultural society where there is little social change, a strong sense of community, and religion, typically dominates peoples view of the world
Eg. Carriage
Modern: an urban industrial society with social and technological change, along with a belief in science and progress
Eg. Car
Postmodern: a post industrial society, in which change is increasingly rapid, but uneven, marked out by individual choice about their lifestyles and identities, so metanarratives like science or religion, become fruitless
Eg. Uber
What is social stratification?
Societies categorisation of its people into groups and the relative social position of these groups within wider society
Eg. Class, age, gender, ethnicity (CAGE) are social groups that all have examples of inequality
What is meritocracy?
In a meritocracy, everyone has an equal opportunity to develop their talents and abilities, and achieve their ambitions
Meritocracy describes a society whereby jobs and pay are allocated based on an individual’s talent and achievements rather than social status. Functionalists Davis and Moore state that we live in a meritocratic society as the education system acts as a mechanism to ensure individuals do the right jobs (role allocation). Therefore, individuals that work hard will be rewarded in society, whilst those who do not will not be rewarded.
What is differential educational attainment/achievement? Include a research study.
This refers to the tendency for some groups to do better or worse than others educationally
A large scale statistical research was done by Webber and Butler (2007) involving more than 1 million peoples, found that the best predictor of achievement was the type of neighbourhood that pupils lived in
(Example question)
Outline two factors explaining class differences in educational achievement - 4marks
Structure:
-The bullet point question
-6 minutes to answer
-Two Paragraphs each holding one factor.
One factor is the external factor of parental/household income. For example, wealthy families are more likely to afford private education.
A second factor is the internal factor of teacher labelling. For example, teachers may not provide the right help for students due to their labelling.
Name a few comparisons of social class differences in educational achievement
Working class compared to middle class has been found that:
-they are more likely to start school, unable to read
-They are less likely to get places in the best state schools
-They are more likely to be placed in lower sets
-they are less likely to go into higher education
What is cultural deprivation?
The idea that young people fail in education, because of supposed cultural deficiencies in the home and family background, such as in adequate socialisation, failings in preschool learning, or inappropriate attitude, or values.
What are the three main aspects to cultural deprivation?
-language
-Parents attitudes to education
-Working class subcultures
Analyse and explain the aspect of language (in cultural deprivation)
-essential part of education affects children’s cognitive development
-Less educated parents tend to use language in ways that only require kids to make simple descriptive statements = lower performance
-Bernstein (1975) argue that that two main codes that people use when communicating. While everyone uses the restricted code in casual speech, the middle-class are able to switch into the elaborate code, with complex sentence structures, and vocabulary. This is the code used in education, by teachers and in textbooks and exam papers. As such, this gives middle-class pupils an advantage. Giving the idea that if you can’t elaborate code, you won’t succeed in the educational system.
Explain what Bernstein believes about the language codes in education
Bernstein recognises that the school -not just the home- influences children’s achievement. He argues that working class pupils fail, not because they are culturally deprived, but because schools failed to teach them how to use the elaborated code.
Name criticisms to the elaborate and restricted codes
- Rosen accuses Bernstein of creating a myth of the superiority of middle-class speech by describing working-class speech as in adequate
- Labov is critical of the notion that working class speech is inferior to that of the middle-class, and that, in many ways, the former are more effective at making their points where as middle-class speakers get bogged down in irrelevant detail.
Analyse and explain the aspect of parents’ educational attitudes and experiences (in cultural deprivation)
- Douglas (1964) nearly 60 years ago, found that the single most important factor, explaining educational success and failure was the degree of parental interest and encouragement.
- Better educated parents = higher
income = more money to spend to
promote their child’s educational success. Eg. Benstein found that middle-class mothers are more likely to buy toys, books, etc. - Educated parents also have a better understanding of nutrition
What do cultural deprivation theorists argue?
subculture = a group of attitudes and values differ from those of the mainstream culture
Cultural deprivation theorists argue that the lack of parental interest in their child’s education reflects the subcultural values of the working class
-Barry Sugarman (1970) that working-class subculture has four key features that act as a barrier to educational achievement. ( fatalism, collectivism, immediate gratification, present time orientation)
Barry Sugarman argues that working class subculture has four key features that act as a barrier to educational achievement -name an explain these four features
1. Fatalism.
A belief in fate, and that there’s nothing you can do to change your status .
This contrasts middle-class values
2. Collectivism.
Valuing being part of a group more than succeeding as an individual.
This contrast, the middle-class view than individual should not be held back by group loyalties
3. Immediate gratification.
Seeking pleasure now rather than making sacrifices in order to get rewards in the future. In contrast, middle-class values, emphasise making sacrifices now for bigger rewards later.
4. Present time orientation.
Seeing the present as more important than the future and so not having long-term goals or plans.
In contrast, middle-class culture has a future time orientation that sees planning the future as important
Explain the middle-class subculture and the effects it has on education
Subculture:
The promise of career progress through individual effort and educational achievement leads to a future orientation and deferred gratification. Individual effort and intelligence are the key to success.
Effects on education:
Children are socialised into values that encourage ambition and the recognition of the need for individual hard work – for example, doing homework, studying, staying in higher education.
Explain the working class subculture and the effects it has on education
Subculture:
Educational qualifications are often not very important to work. The lack of promotion opportunities lead to a present time orientation, immediate gratification and fatalism. Working together provides more gains than individual effort.
Effects on education:
Children are socialised into values which don’t prioritise ambition and educational effort. Fatalism and immediate gratification discourage effort for future rewards – meaning university and others are seen as less important than leaving school and getting a job. .
Why do subcultural values lead to under achievement?
Because children internalise the beliefs and values of their subculture, socialised into them by their parents, and reproduce them at school
What are three criticisms of cultural deprivation
- Criticised by Keddie as victim, blaming she points out that child cannot be deprived of its own culture and argues that working class Children are simply culturally different, not deprived.
- It may be wrong to view working class parents as uninterested in their children’s education. According to Blackstone and Mortimore they attend fewer parents evenings, not due to lack of interest but because they work longer. They may lack the knowledge of how to help.
- Thirdly, language.Troyna and williams argue that the problem is not the child language, but the schools attitude towards it. Teachers have a speech hierarchy.
What is material deprivation?
A lack of resources and a lack of ability to purchase goods and services, compared with other members of society
Direct effect on education: materials for school, private tuition, et cetera
Indirect effect on education: housing, diet, et cetera
Name the four material factors that may have an impact on educational achievement
- Housing
- Diet and health
- Cost of education.
- Fear of debt.
Define capital and the different types
Capital can be defined as any assets that can improve your life changes
Cultural capital = having the skills, knowledge, norms and values, which can be used to get ahead in education and life more generally
Social capital = possession of social contacts that can open doors
What was Pierre Bourdieu’s argument about cultural capital
Pierre Bourdieu ( a sociologist influenced by Marxist ideas) argued that it is not only money that gives wealthy, people power, but cultural assets to. He argued that the children of the middle-class or wealthy parents are likely to have knowledge, behaviour, attitudes, and cultural experiences that ensures that they succeeded in education and society.
he argues that the middle-class possess all three types of capital (economic, educational, cultural)
Who tested Bourdieu’s ideas? What did they do?
Alice Sullivan (2001)
-used questionnaires to conduct a survey of 465 peoples in 4 schools
-Asked about a range of activities to assess cultural capital
-Found that those who read, watched documentaries = wide vocab, and cultural knowledge = greater cultural capital
-Found that where pupils had some level of cultural capital, middle-class were still better
What is streaming?
Streaming involves separating children into different ability groups/classes
Eg. Streaming = set 1 all subjects
Setting = set 1 maths, set 3 PE etc.
What is likely to occur when children are streamed
The self fulfilling prophecy
This is because, it’s difficult to move up, and children are locked into their teachers, high/low expectations of them – creating a self fulfilling prophecy where pupils live up to the expectations
Middle-class, pupils tend to benefit from streaming and have high expectations
Explain the Stephen Ball “beachside comprehensive” - streaming leads to downwards mobility study (1981)
- About how top stream students were warmed up to achieve in academics, where lower stream were called out into lower status courses
- Study is done to see why working class pupils underperformed at school
- ball focused on two groups of students; one who were streamed by ability, another mixability. Teachers were concerned that in mixability weaker students were left behind and smarter would be held back. Overall middle-class, pupils were focused on – having a negative impact on working class.
- he found that pupils who started school with similar attitudes to study, began to diverge when streamed
- working class gravitated to lower streams and disinterested in school and less qualifications
Explain the educational triage
Educational triage = the rationing of educational opportunity
Gilborn and Youdell call an ‘A-to-c economy’ in school. Where schools focused their time on pupils seen as having potential. They call this process. Educational triage. Triage = sorting. This term is usually used by medical staff to sort casualties with potential.
The authors argue that the A-to-C economy, produces educational triage. This produces a self fulfilling prophecy and failure – due to teachers stereotypical view.
Define differentiation (in relation to education)
The process of teachers categorising pupils, according to how they perceive their ability/behaviour
Define polarisation (in relation to education)
The process in which pupils respond to streaming by moving towards one of two opposite poles : pro school subculture or anti-school subculture
What is the difference between pro school subculture and anti-school subculture?
Pro school subculture:
Pupils placed in high streams tend to remain committed to values of the school. Their values are those of the school – forming a pro school subculture.
Anti-school subculture:
Those placed in low streams suffer loss of self-esteem: school has undermined their self-worth. Pupils form anti-school subculture, as means of gaining status for example, jokes, and smoking.
What are the theorists linked with material deprivation
howard - poor homes = less energy/vitamins
Wilkinson - lower class = mental health problems
Callender and Jackson - working class is more debt averse
What are the theorists linked with language in cultural deprivation
Bernstein - speech codes = elaborated/restricted
Feinstein - educated parents use praise more
Bereiter and Engelman - language in lower class homes is deficient
What are the theorists/studies linked with parental attitudes in cultural deprivation
Douglas - more educated parents = more time and money on children
What are the theorists/studies linked with working class subcultures in cultural deprivation
Sugarman - 4 features of subculture; fatalism, collectivism, immediate gratification, present time orientation
Middle class jobs are more secure
What are the theorists/studies linked with compensatory education
Headstart USA, Sesame Street tv programme, sure start UK
What are the theorists/studies linked with cultural capital
Bourdieu - middle class possess’ all 3 capital
What are the theorists/studies linked with labelling and the ideal pupil
Becker - middle class is more ideal pupil
Stephen Ball - teachers ‘predict’ children’s capability
Jorgenson - ideal pupil differs with schools
What are the theorists/studies linked with the self fulfilling prophecy
Rosenthal and Jacobson - California primary school, randomly chosen ‘spurters’ made significant progress
What are the theorists/studies linked with streaming
Douglas - children in lower stream at age 8 suffer decline in IQ by 11
Stephen Ball - working class are in lower streams more
What are the theorists/studies linked with Educational triage
Gilborn and Youdell - schools focus their time more on pupils seen to have more potential
what is a habitus
Peoples traits and behaviours
the ‘dispositions’ or learned, taken for granted ways of thinking, being and acting that are shared by a particular class. includes their tastes, outlook on life. a group habitus is formed as a response to its position in the class structure.
name 3 aspects of cultural deprivation (inadequate socialisation)
- intellectual and linguistic skills
- attitudes and values
- family structure and parental support
intellectual and linguistic skills are an aspect of cultural deprivation for underachievement in ethnicity. analyse this aspect
- major cause of underachievement
- many children from low income black families lack intellectual stimulation and enriching experiences - leaves them poorly equipped for school.
- bereiter and engelmann consider the language spoken by low income black families to be inadequate for educational success
AO3
- BUT gilborn and mirza note that indian pupils do very well despite often not having english as their home language
- lawrence argues that black pupils underachieve due to racism not low self esteem.
external factors and ethnic differences in achievement
attitudes and values are an aspect of cultural deprivation being an external factor to ETHNIC differences in achievement. analyse this aspect
- lack of motivation seen as most major cause of failure of black children
- black children are socialised into a subculture that instils a fatalistic ‘live for today’ attitude that does not value education - leaves them unequipped for success.
AO3
- lawrence argues that black pupils underachieve due to racism not low self esteem.
family structure and parental support are an aspect of cultural deprivation. analyse this aspect
- failure to socialise children is a result of a dysfunctional family structure (cultural deprivation theorists argue)
- pryce sees family structure as contributing to underachievement of black caribbean pupils in britain. he argues asians - are higher achievers, due to being more resistant to racism.
AO3
- driver shows that black caribbean families are far from being dysfunctional, as it provides girls with a positive role model of strong women. arguing this is why black girls tend to be more successful than black boys.
what did Gillborn and Youdell find in relation to the statement that labelling theory and teacher stereotypes can lead to differences in outcomes by ethnicity
- found that teachers were quicker to discipline Black pupils than others for some behaviour
- teachers have ‘racialised expectations’ based on racial stereotypes
what did Bourne and Osler find in relation to the statement that labelling theory and teacher stereotypes can lead to differences in outcomes by ethnicity
- found that schools see Black boys as a threat
- Black boys are more likely to suffer from official (suspension) and unofficial exclusions (being ill)
what did Peter Foster find in relation to the statement that labelling theory and teacher stereotypes can lead to differences in outcomes by ethnicity
- Black pupils behaving badly/bad stereotypes = put in lower sets
- teachers racial stereotypes affect streaming
what did the educational triage find in relation to the statement that labelling theory and teacher stereotypes can lead to differences in outcomes by ethnicity
‘A-to-C economy’ forms negative opinions about Black pupils identity
what did mary fuller find in relation to the statement that labelling theory and teacher stereotypes can lead to differences in outcomes by ethnicity
study on rejecting neg. labels
study of Black girls rejecting labels and still succeeding whilst refusing to conform. they relied on their own efforts rather than accepting the teachers neg. stereotype of them.
what are the 3 main types of teacher racism according to Mirza
COLOUR-BLIND
believe all are equal but allow racism go unchallenged
LIBERAL CHAUVINISTS
believe Black pupils = culturally deprived + low expectations
OVERT RACISTS
believe Black pupils are inferior and actively discriminate against them.
What are the 4 responses to schooling according to Sewell?
REBELS
most visible and influential, small minority black, anti-school, dismissive of conformist black boys
CONFORMISTS
largest group, succeeded, pro-school
RETREATISTS
isolated individuals, despised by rebels, disconnected from both school and black subcultures
INNOVATORS
2nd largest group, pro education but anti-school, successful, didnt seek teachers approval, distanced from conformists, maintained credibility with rebels
what is institutional racism
a form of discrimination within organisations that unfairly disadvantages ethnic minorities through its structures, systems, and/or policies.
what is ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism is measuring or judging one’s own culture against another culture and can lead to judging someone else’s culture negatively
a worldview in which other cultures are seen through the eyes of ones own culture, with a devaluing of the others.
what is individual racism
results from prejudiced views of individual teachers and others and is a persons own racial beliefs and actions
what is Troyna and Williams opinion on institutional racism
for Troyna and Williams we need to look at institutional racism not just individual racism. this is because despite attempts at multicultural education, many aspects of school life are ethnocentric
what is marketisation
it is used to refer to a trend in education policy from 1980’s where schools were encouraged to compete against each other and act more like private businesses rather than institutions under the control of the government
what is the critical race theory
this sees racism as an fixed feature of society. it involves not just the international actions of individuals but, more importantly, institutional racism.
What is locked-in equality. refer to Daria Roithmayr
critical race theorists such as Roithmayr see institutional racism as a ‘locked-in equality’. the scale of historical discrimination is so large that there no longer needs to be any conscious intent to discriminate - the inequality feeds on itself
what is the ethnocentric curriculum
this term describes an attitude or policy that gives priority to the culture and viewpoint of one particular ethnic group, while disregarding the others.
schools represent this as - for example, British schools may learn about the history of white British people. this could impact children of other ethnicity’s or race as they begin to feel excluded from the system. however, it will not always lead to underachievement because of this, as some students may reject the idea.
explain girls impact in education; include the history
girls have educationally outperformed boys in the early years of schooling since mass education was introduced. however, girls have not always had the same opportunities in higher education - before 1877 no British uni accepted female students.
Overall girls have achieved more than boys yearly and the gap between the two proceeded to increase as time went on.
feminism and women’s liberation is an external factor - how does it affect girls?
- it has challenged the traditional stereotype of women’s role in society
- improves women’s rights and opportunities through changes in law
- raised womens expectations and self esteem
overall affects girls self image and ambitions with regard to family and careers. in turn, this may explain improvements in their educational achievement
demographic changes in the family is an external factor - how does it affect girls?
affects girls attitude to education in a number of ways:
-more women need to take on a breadwinner role because of an increased number of female headed lone parent families
-^creates a new adult role model for girls – the financially independent woman
-encourages girls to look to themselves and their own qualifications to make a living due to increase in divorce rate suggesting it’s unwise to rely on a husband
changes in womens employment is an external factor - how does it affect girls?
Encourage girls to see their future in terms of paid work rather than as housewives. Greater career opportunities and better pay for woman, and the role models that successful career women offer, provide an incentive for girls to gain qualifications.
girls changing ambitions is an external factor - how does it affect girls?
Girls were more likely as creators of their own future and had an individualised notion of self. They believed in meritocracy (equal opportunity) and aimed for a professional career that would enable them to support themselves.
Equal opportunities policy is an internal factor - how does it affect girls?
- policies such as GIST and WISE encourage girls to pursue careers in these non-traditional areas.
- Bowler says that many of the barriers have been removed and schooling has become more meritocratic (equal) so girls, who generally work harder than boys, achieve more
Positive role models in schools is an internal factor - how does it affect girls?
Women in senior positions may act as role models for girls, showing them women can achieve positions of importance and giving them non-traditional goals to aim for.
Women teachers make the most significant impact
GCSE and coursework is an internal factor - how does it affect girls?
Some argue that changes in the way pupils are assessed have favoured girls and disadvantaged boys. Gorad found the gender gap was constant until it increased sharply - when GCSE’s was introduced. This is because girls are more conscientious and better organised (Mitsos and Browne) and have better language skills helps girls achieve greater success due to their socialisation and how they have been taught to act.
Teacher attention is an internal factor - how does it affect girls?
Boys are seen to have more attention because they attract more reprimands (French) also found they got disciplined more harshly than girls (Francis). Teachers respond more positively to girls - as they’re more cooperative. Leads to successful interactions with teachers - self fulfilling prophecy, promoting girls self esteem and raising achievement levels
Challenging stereotypes in the curriculum is an internal factor of the gender gap in achievement - how does it affect girls?
Sexist Images/stereotypes have been removed from learning materials. This helps raise girls achievement by presenting them with more positive images of what women can do.
Selection and league tables is an internal factor of the gender gap- how does it affect girls?
Schools see girls as desirable recruits because they achieve better exam results. So more girls get into good schools. Tending to create a self-fulfilling prophecy of this.
What do liberalist believe to be a problem in society? What is their solution to this?
PROBLEM:
Legal and social discrimination
SOLUTION:
Changes to laws, norms and socialisation
What do radicalists believe to be a problem in society? What is their solution to this?
PROBLEM:
- Patriarchy in all parts of society.
- men.
SOLUTION:
- revolution - remove patriarchy
What do socialists (Marxists) believe to be a problem in society? What is their solution to this?
PROBLEM:
Capitalist exploitation of women and men
SOLUTION:
Revolution - overthrow capitalism
What do post modernists/ post structuralists believe to be a problem in society? What is their solution to this?
PROBLEM:
- Capitalist exploitation of women and men
- not treating women as the same
SOLUTION:
Respect intersectionality (differences)
What is symbolic capital
Refers to the status, recognition and sense of worth that we are able to obtain from others.
Archer uses this concept to understand the conflict between WC girls feminine identities and the values and ethos of school.
What did Louise Archer say was one reason for social class differences in girls achievement
One reason is the conflict between WC girls feminine identities and the values and ethos of the school.
Archer found by performing their WC feminine identities, the girls gained symbolic capital from their peers. But this brought them in conflict with the school, preventing them from getting educational and economic capital.
What is the working class dilemma in education
They can either:
- gain symbolic capital from peers by conforming to a hyper-heterosexual feminine identity
- gain educational capital by rejecting their WC identity and confirming to the schools MC notions of an ideal pupil
What is the hyper heterosexual feminine identity
This identity brought status from their female peer group and avoid them being ridiculed.
It is adapting to a straight feminine identity to fit in. Many girls invested time and money to look like this.
What was found in;
Sarah Evans (2009) 21 w/ c girls in sixth form in a London comprehensive school
-She found that girls wanted to go to uni to increase their learning, but it wasn’t for themselves, it was to help their families
-This motivation reflected their w/c feminine identities
Reason why wc girls stay at home for uni
-Economic Necessity and fear of debt for many w/c students meant they would stay at home
-Even though it made uni more comfortable, it limited their choice of uni and the value market of their degree
-But living at home was a positive choice and an aspect of their w/c identity
Boys and achievement
How does literacy and language skills cause boy’s performance to lag?
Include a description of how the factor is formed
Description:
The gender gap is mainly the result of this. One reason for this may be that parents spend less time reading with their sons. Another may be mothers do most reading - and therefore it’s seen as feminine.
How it causes boys performance to lag:
- perform negatively in subjects
- aren’t as interested in reading so won’t pursue education with an as strong ambition of girls
- focus more on leisure
Boys and achievement
How does the decline of traditional men’s jobs cause boy’s performance to lag?
Include a description of how the factor is formed
Description:
Decline in heavy industries such as mining, due to globalisation of the economy - meaning more industries in China.
How it causes boys performance to lag:
Mitosis and Browne claim that the decline in male employment opportunities has led to and ‘identity crisis for men’
Many boys now believe they have less access or prospect of getting a proper job. Undermining their motivation and self esteem so they give up trying to get a qualification
Boys and achievement
How does feminisation of education cause boy’s performance to lag?
Include a description of how the factor is formed
Description:
Boys fall behind as education has become more feminised (Tony Sewell)
Schools don’t nurture masculine traits but celebrate ‘girl qualities’ such as attentiveness.
Sewell sees coursework as a major cause of differences as it’s made to fit girls.
How it causes boys performance to lag:
Boys are more likely to become anti-school and do not have the same expectations so are out at a disadvantage
Boys and achievement
How does a lack of male role models cause boy’s performance to lag?
Include a description of how the factor is formed
Description:
Boys surveyed said the presence of a male teacher made them behave better - 42% said work harder too. A lack of male role models mean they cannot control boys behaviour.
How it causes boys performance to lag:
Lack of males cause anti-school behaviour and low expectations.
Also cause no aspiration to do well and achieve.
Boys and achievement
How does peer labelling and subculture cause boy’s performance to lag?
Include a description of how the factor is formed
Description:
Growth of ‘ladish’ subculture contributes to boy’s underachievement. This has qualities such as being tough and doing manual work leading them to reject school. Negative peer labelling is more common in boys leading them to be more likely to not do as well.
How it causes boys performance to lag:
Boys fight against being feminine when females take on masculine jobs, so they become anti-school and fulfil the stereotypes.
They are pressured by peers to not be bullied so they reject school to fit in and be “normal ”
What is structuralism
- Sees society as based on a structure.
- It has a macro view (top-down or birdseye)
- religion, government, education, media, all manipulate the behaviour of individuals
- links to; functionalism, Marxism, some feminists, new right
What is interactionism
- micro view (bottom-up)
- individuals behaviour and interactions shape society
- links to the labelling theory
What did Durkheim see the two main functions of education as?
- Creating social solidarity
- Teaching specialist skills
Durkheim’s two main functions of education
What is social solidarity
- society needs a sense of solidarity - its individual members must feel themselves to be part of a single ‘body’ or community.
- he argues without it social life would be impossible because each individual pursues their own desires
- the education system helps create it by transmitting society’s culture - its shared beliefs and values from generations
Durkheim’s two main functions of education
What is specialist skills
The production of every item usually involves the cooperation of many specialists. This promotes solidarity.
Education teaches individuals the specialist skills that they need to play their part in the social division of labour
roles of education in society
What is role allocation
For David and Moore, role allocation is education sifting and sorting people into the roles that they will go on to perform in life.
Functionalist argue that schools also perform the function of selecting an allocating pupils to their future work roles. By assessing individuals, attitudes and abilities, schools helped to match them to the job they are best suited to.
Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore see education as a device for selection and role allocation.
What is neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is an economic theory which believes that the free market in capitalist economies is the best basis for organising society. Free market economies are based upon the choices individuals make when spending their money (what price companies choose their price at due to competition)
Neoliberals argue that the value of education lies in how well it enables the country to compete in the global marketplace. They claim that this can only be achieved of schools become more like businesses to empower parents and pupils as consumers and using competition to drive up standards.
Neoliberalism
Why do neoliberals believe in free markets?
1. Individual freedom
- Based on the principle of allowing individuals to be free to pursue their own self interest. This freedom is seen as the best way to pursue the Max good in society.
2. They promote efficiency
- Businesses. Try to be efficient for Max profit. But state owned companies have no profit incentive to be efficient.
3. Innovation
- competition and the profit motive encourage people to produce new products to stimulate demand
Neoliberalism
What are the neoliberal ideas towards social policy?
Neoliberals believe that government should play a reduced role in peoples lives. For neoliberals, the freemarket knows best.
Their ideas towards social policy:
- Privatisation - selling to private companies
- Cutting taxes (so the state pays less of a role in providing welfare etc.)
- Protect private property
- Deregulation - removing restrictions on businesses and employees
-fewer protections for workers and the environment, for example, scrapping minimum wages to allow companies freedom
The New Right
What is the new right?
The New Right refers to a group of thinkers and a set of policies based on right-wing political beliefs and values.
The new right adopted and put into practice many of the ideas of neoliberalism, but there are some differences
The New Right
What are the five key ideas associated with new right thinking
- (The introduction of) Free market principles into many areas of life eg. marketisation of education.
- Reduced spending by the state.
- An emphasis of individual freedom and responsibility.
- A strong state in terms of upholding law and order.
5. A stress on the importance of traditional institutions and values.
(Bold is the one unlike neoliberalism)
The New Right and Neoliberalism
What is the reason for the introduction of an ‘education market? ‘
The reason for the introduction of market into education; it empowers parents, and pupils as consumers, and using competition between schools to drive up standard
What are the similarities between functionalism and new right?
- both believe that some people are naturally more talented than others
- Both favour an education system run on meritocratic principles of open competition, and one that serves the needs of the economy by preparing young people for work
- Both believe that education should socialise pupils into shared values, such as competition, and instill a sense of national identity
True or false: sugarman found that the working-class subculture is present time orientated
True
What was the law that passed in 1970 that improved gender equality in the workplace
Equal pay act
What is the correspondence principle?
The correspondence principle was proposed by Bowles and Gintis and is the suggestion that education mirrors the workplace in its hierarchy, rewards systems and a range of other factors.
Shows how similar education is to a capitalist society. For example:
There is a hierarchy of authority in school with teachers and students, which corresponds to a hierarchy of authority in the workplace with managers and workers.
Another example is repetitive lessons are rewarded by high grades in school, and repetitive work is rewarded by high wages in the workplace
functions of education explained
The ideological state apparatus is a function of education, explain what it is, and the theorist linked with it.
ALTHUSSER - ideological state apparatus
Marxists state the means by which the capitalist ruling class maintain dominant position. According to Althusser The state consists of two elements, which both served to keep the bourgeoisie in power:
1. The repressive state - maintain rules through police et cetera
2. The ideological state - control, peoples ideas, values and beliefs.
Education links to this as it reproduces class inequality by giving it to generations. education also legitimates class inequality by disguising its true case through ideologies.
functions of education explained
The correspondence principle is a function of education, explain what it is, and the theorist linked with it.
BOWLES AND GINTIS - correspondence principle
Bowles and Gintis argue that capitalism requires a workforce of the kind with attitudes suited to their role as exploited workers, willing to accept low pay.
The education system is setting up a capitalist society by making them obedient and follow rules. Both capitalist work, society and schooling have hierarchies too. This is referred to as the correspondence principal. Which argues that the correspondence principle operates through the hidden curriculum - pupils become accustomed to accepting hierarchy and competition. Schooling prepares, working class, pupils for the role as exploited workers.
functions of education explained
The myth of meritocracy is a function of education, explain what it is, and the theorist linked with it.
BOWLES AND GINTIS - the myth of meritocracy
Bowles and Gintis describe the education system as ‘ a giant mythmaking machine’. a key myth education promotes is the myth of meritocracy. Meritocracy means that everyone has an equal opportunity to achieve, that those with the highest rewards are deserving as they are most able.
It is argued by them that meritocracy doesn’t exist. Evidence shows the main factor determining whether someone has high income is family in class, not educational achievement. The myth of meritocracy serves to justify the privileges of higher classes – looking like they deserved it. Persuading working class to accept inequality and less likely to overthrow capitalism. This also justifies poverty – like ‘the poor are dumb’ theory. Making them exploited workers.
functions of education explained
The lads’ working class counterculture is a function of education, explain what it is, and the theorist linked with it.
WILLIS - lads’ working class counterculture
Willis shows that working class can resist attempts to brainwash them. Students are aware of exploitation.
This was a study of 12 working-class boys , as they go to school ➡️ Work. The lads form a distinct counterculture opposed to the school. They have their own brand of intimidatory humour - ‘ taking the piss.’ They find school, boring et cetera
The lads counterculture ensures that they are destined for unskilled work that capitalism needs someone to perform
functions of education evaluation
Give an evaluation for Althussers ideological state apparatus
- Functionalist agree with Marxists but suggest that they are beneficial for society
- Limited empirical evidence for Althusser’s ideas
- Post-modernists suggest education is one way of expressing ability in a contemporary society
functions of education evaluation
Give an evaluation for Bowles and Gintis - correspondence principle
- functionalists agree with skills for employment, but suggest this is for the benefit of society
- Not all students become passive and unthinking puppets
functions of education evaluation
Give an evaluation for Willis’ Lads’ working class, counterculture
- Close bonds with boys could have caused Hawthorne effect
- ‘ choose to fail’ by design or free will?
- working class boys end up in working class jobs. Does this prove education, reproduces inequality?
What is the Hawthorne effect?
The Hawthorne Effect is a situation where an individual or group of people know they are being observed and so change their behaviour accordingly.
What interactionist theory is associated with Howard Becker?
Labelling theory
Who is Althusser
A structural Marxist who argues that the education system functions as part of the ideological state apparatus
research methods
What is primary data
Information collected by sociologists themselves for their own purposes
research methods
What is secondary data
Information that has been collected by someone else
research methods
What is quantitative data
quaNtitative data =
info in Numerical form
research methods
What is qualitative data
quaLitative data =
Language, gives a ‘feel’ for what something is like. Shows feelings and experiences.
research methods
What are the two contrasting perspectives in the methodological perspective
Positivists:
Prefer quantitative data, see sociology as a science, seek to discover patterns of behaviour, prove hypothesis, seek reliability, representativeness
Interpretivists:
Prefer qualitative data, want to uncover the meaning that people give to their interactions, reject above, validity through verstehen
research methods
What is covert research
(Cover)
When researches identity and purpose is hidden from the people being studied
research methods
What is the acronym for factors influencing choice of methods
PERVERT
Practical
Ethical
Representative
Validity (a true genuine picture)
Examples
Reliability (consistent results)
Theoretical
(+ methodological perspectives, generalisability, objectivity)
research methods
What is verstehen
Emotional/empathetic/deep understanding
research methods - factors influencing choice
What are the factors that influence the choice of topic that sociologists decide to study
- sociologists perspective (eg. Marxist views)
- society’s values
- practical factors
- funding bodies
research methods - factors influencing choice
Sociologists perspective is one factor that influences the choice of topic that sociologists decide to study. How?
The sociologist’s theoretical perspective is a major influence on their choice of research topic. For example, a New Right researcher may study the effects of welfare benefits on the growth of lone-parent families, since the idea of welfare dependency is central to their standpoint. By contrast, a feminist researcher is more likely to choose to study domestic violence, as opposition to gender oppression lies at the heart of the feminist perspective.
research methods - factors influencing choice
Society’s values is one factor that influences the choice of topic that sociologists decide to study. How?
Sociologists themselves are part of the society they study and thus are influenced by its values.
As these values change, so does the focus of research. The rise of feminism in the 1960s led to a focus on gender inequality and today’s environmentalist concerns have generated interest in ‘green crimes’ such as toxic waste dumping.
research methods - factors influencing choice
Funding bodies is one factor that influences the choice of topic that sociologists decide to study. How?
Most research requires funding from an external body. These bodies include government agencies, the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), charities and businesses. As the funding body is paying for the research, it will determine the topic to be investigated.
research methods
Outline the research process/ how you go about studying an issue in education
- Formulare hypothesis or aim
- Operationalise concepts
To transform an abstract concept eg. Material dep. into something concrete and measurable
Eg. Material dep. ➡️ free school meals - Pilot study ⭐️
Think of ‘pilot episodes’ - trial episodes, to evaluate whether it is good. - Create sample of research population ⭐️
- Conduct research
- Triangulate ⭐️
In practice, sociologists often use a combination of methods.
For example, they may begin with a limited number of in-depth, unstructured interviews to gain insights; these can then be used to develop questions for a questionnaire given to a larger sample.
This process is called ‘triangulation’. It involves using two or more sources or methods to obtain a more rounded picture by studying the same thing from more than one viewpoint.
⭐️ - not always done
gender and subject choice
Name 4 explanations for the differences in gender in subject choice
- Gender role socialisation
- Gendered subject images
- Gender identity peer pressure
- Gender career opportunities
gender and subject choice
Explain how gender role socialisation is one reason for differences in gender in subject choice
Gender role socialisation is the process of learning the behaviour expected of males and females in society. As a result of differences in socialisation, boys and girls develop different tastes in reading. This helps to explain why boys prefer science subjects and girls prefer English subjects.
gender and subject choice
Explain how gendered subject images is one reason for differences in gender in subject choice
The gender image of a subject affects who will want to choose it. For example, science is seen as a boys subject, Kelly argues that this is because there are more male science teachers and examples using textbooks, and lessons draw more on boys than girls.
Subject such as health and social stereotype as female subjects because the content has lessons on motherhood and babies. However, subjects such as maths is more masculine, therefore providing there are gendered subjects
gender and subject choice
Explain how gender identity peer pressure is one reason for differences in gender in subject choice
Subject choice can be influenced by peer pressure because other boys or girls disapproval of his or her choice. for example, boys tend to opt out of music because music and dance fall outside their gender domain and so are likely to attract a negative response from peers. This is the same reason for girls who are sporty. This means that girls are more likely not to do sport than boys. Schools are more likely to choose traditional boys subjects as there is less pressure on the girls to conform.
However, this does not apply so much much more because there’s more acceptance in society, such as LGBT, but pressure still exists and is relevant in today’s society
gender and subject choice
Explain how gender career opportunities is one reason for differences in gender in subject choice
An important reason for difference in subject choice, is the fact that employment is highly gendered: jobs tend to be sex-typed as men’s and women’s. Women’s jobs often involve work similar to that performed as housewives, such as childcare and nursing.
Women are starting to take on jobs that typically men would be accepted to do, such as politics, business and police work. This is because of feminists.
What is Taylorism
Taylorism, named after the American engineer Frederick Winslow Taylor, is a method of industrial management designed to increase efficiency and productivity.
What is Fordism
Fordism (1908) – provided the mass production of cheap Ford cars by applying Taylorism to mass production
- this meant breaking each production task into small repetitive tasks, . For example your ‘repetitive task’ could be repeatedly installing the windscreen on car after car
- Fordist production processes are seen as deskilling and alienating its workforce
What are the features of fordism
The features of Fordism are:
- production lines are used to produce products, such as cars, on a mass scale – hence the phrase mass production
- production line work is broken down into small, simple & repetitive tasks
- workers are closely managed
- the speed of the production line is controlled by management
- workers are removed from the decision making process
What is the difference between fordist and postfordist
Fordist
- Low skilled workers willing to put up with alienating work on mass production assembly lines
- Education, system prepares to accept this work
Post fordist
- Skilled, adaptable workforce, able to use advanced technology
- Flexible specialisation
- Diverse and fragmented society
- Needs a self motivated education system
educational policy and education
What are educational policies?
Educational policies are initiatives brought in by governments that have a significant impact on schools or other aspects of the education system
What type of sociologist was Howard Becker?
Interactionist
What is the coercive alternative to the ideological state apparatus? Whose concept is it?
Repressive state apparatus
It is Althusser’s concept
Which British Prime Minister was associated with introducing new right to the UK
Margaret Thatcher
What year were comprehensive schools introduced (in many areas)
1965
Which system was brought in by the 1944, education act
Tripartite
The tripartite system was established by the 1944 Education Act which created three types of state-funded secondary school. The results of 11+ test would determine which school the pupil attended.
What is the name for the aptitude test used by grammar school to select based on ability
11+ tests
What is marketisation?
Marketisation involves trying to get state-run services to work, more like private companies, which goods or services are brought and sold in a market.
How is education affected by marketisation?
The institution will be forced to act like a business when families choose the school to attend, and the government rules that money follows the learners.
They will have to compete to attract customers (students) and for school funding. In theory, the schools will have to constantly seek to improve to keep ahead of or catch up with opposition therefore driving up standards
What is parentocracy
Miriam David describes education as parentocracy (ruled by parents).
Supporters of marketisation argue that power shifts from producers (teachers) to consumers (parents) in an education market. They claim this encourages diversity, gives more choice and raises standards.
What does marketisation lead to?
- Cream-skimming; ‘ good’ schools can be selective, choose their own pupils and recruit middle-class pupils = overall pupils gain an advantage
- silt-shifting; ‘good’ schools can avoid taking less able pupils that are likely to damage schools league table position
This is all because parents are attracted to good league table rankings
What is the funding formula?
How does this affect schools?
Schools are allocated funds by a formula based on how many pupils they attract. Therefore popular schools = more funds = better teachers/facilities =more selective for middle-class applicants
But unpopular schools lose income and find hard to match the above = lower class pupils. This produces more segregation between children of different social backgrounds (inequality)
What was Sharon Gewirtz’s study and what did it show?
- Study of 14 London, secondary schools
- Found differences in parents, economic and cultural capital = difference in how far they can exercise choice of secondary schools
Sharon Gewirtz’s study showed that in practice, the education market has given middle classes, more choice than working class parents.
She identified three types of parents (this is on another flash card)
1. Privileged skilled choosers.
2. Disconnected local choosers.
3. Semi skilled choosers.
Identify and explain the three types of parents Sharon Gewirtz found
- Privileged-skilled choosers.
Middle-class, parents use their economic and cultural capital to gain educational capital for their children - Disconnected-local choosers.
Working-class parents choices were restricted by their looks of economic and cultural capital. Distance and cost of travel cause major restrictions on their choice of school - Semi-skilled choosers.
Mainly working-class, but instead ambitious for their children. But they lacked cultural capital and found it difficult to understand the school market.
What does ball argue about parentocracy and why?
Ball believes that marketisation gives the appearance of a ‘parentocracy’. Ball argues that parentocracy is a myth.
It makes it appear all parents have the same freedom to choose which school to send their children to.
What are some policies created by new labour to reduce inequality?
- Providing deprived areas with resources for education (education action zones)
- aim higher program to raise aspirations
- education, maintenance allowances - payments to low income students
government policies and education
What was done/introduced in 2010 to encourage ‘excellence competition and innovation’ from the ‘dead hand of the state’?
Encouraging ‘excellence competition and innovation’ was done by freeing schools from the ‘dead hand of the state’ through policies such as academies and free schools
Academies
- from 2010 all schools were encouraged to leave local authority control and become academies.
- this removed the focus on reduces the quality by allowing any school to become an academy.
Free schools
- set up and run by parents and teachers, funded by state.
- improved educational standards - parents have control
What does ball argue promoting academies and free schools lead to?
Fragmented centralisation
Fragmentation: comprehensive system replaces with private owners, patch work, greater inequality.
Centralisation: removal of state intervention within schools. Coalition policies on equality
What policies were produced for education to reduce inequality
Free school meals
Pupil premium - money for poor students
What is privatisation
The transfer of public assets such as schools to private companies
What is the cola-isation of schools?
The private sector is also penetrating education indirectly, this is called cola-isation
How does Stuart hall (and other Marxists) see coalition policies?
See these policies as part of the ‘long march of the neoliberal revolution’
Hall sees academies as an example of handing over public services to private capitalists. In the Marxist view, the neoliberal claim that privatisation and competition drive up standards is a myth used to legitimate the turning of education into a source of profit.
research methods
What sampling techniques do sociologists use to obtain a representative sample? (4)
- random sampling
- quasi-random or systematic sampling
- stratified random sampling
- Quota sampling
research methods
What is random sampling
This is the simplest technique.
This is where the sample is selected, purely by chance, for example, names, maybe drawn out of a hat. Everyone has an equal chance of being selected.
research methods
What is quasi-random or systematic sampling
This is where every ninth person in the sampling frame is selected. Young and Wilmot used every 36th name on the electoral register for their sample.
research methods
What is stratified random sampling?
The researcher first stratifies (breaks down) the population in the sampling frame by age, class, gender, et cetera. The sample is then created in the same proportions, e.g. if 20% of the population are under 18, then 20% of the sample also have to be under 18
research methods
What is quota sampling
The population is stratified like stratified random sampling, and then each interviewer is given a quota of say, 20 females and 20 males, which they have to fill with respondents who fit these characteristics. The interviewer keeps at this task until their quota is filled.
research methods
What sampling methods do sociologist use when it is not possible to obtain a representative sample
Snowball sampling - involves collecting a sample by contacting a number of key individuals, who are asked, suggest others who might be interviewed, and so on, adding to the sample, snowball fashion, until enough data has been collected.
Opportunity sampling - sometimes called convenience sampling, involves choosing from those individuals who are easiest to access. Examples includes selecting from passers-by in the street or from a captive audience, such as a class of pupils.
research methods - experiment case study
What was Bandura’s ‘Bobo Dolls experiment’ (1961-63)?
Include its aim, hypothesis as well
In the experiment every child saw an adult but a doll and when left alone with the doll they performed the same actions.
Aim: to investigate if social behaviours (eg aggression) can be acquired by observation and limitation - this is called ‘social learning”
Hypothesis:
- boys would behave more aggressively
- children who observed an adult be aggressive would be aggressive too
- children would be more likely to imitate models of the same sex
- children who observed the non aggressive model would be less aggressive.
research methods - experiment case study
What was the method used in Bandura’s ‘Bobo Dolls experiment’ (1961-63)?
The participants for the experiment were 36 boys and 36 girls enrolled at the Stanford university nursery schools the children ranged in age between 3 and almost 6 years.
The experiment involved exposing 1 group of 24 children to an adult Modeling aggressive behaviour, and another group of 24 children to an adult Modeling non aggressive behaviour. The final group of 24 children acted as the control group that was not exposed to adult models.
research methods
In an experiment you can divide it into 2 groups…..
- experimental group
- control group
research methods
What is a lab experiment and why is it reliable and liked by positivists?
A lab experiment is an experiment done in a controlled setting.
It is highly reliable as it produces the same results each time. Positivist like it as they favour a scientific approach.
research methods
What are the practical problems of lab experiments
- society is a complex phenomenon, it’s impossible to identify and control all possible variables that may have an influence
- the lab experiment cannot be used to study the past. As it’s impossible to control the variables.
- lab experiments can only study small samples as it’s hard to study a large scale social phenomena eg. Religions.
It also reduces their representativeness.
research methods
What are the ethical problems of lab experiments
- lack of informed consent
- deception ( to mislead others)
- likelihood of harm to participants
research methods
Why do interpretivists not like lab experiments?
Because we are human, so we have free will. This means our behaviour cannot be explained in terms of cause and effect.
research methods
What are field experiments
FE are conducted in a natural setting (eg public transport) as opposed to an artificial environment created in lab experiments.
research methods
What was the ‘pseudopatient’ experiment, who was it by?
Rosenhan - 1973
8 paeudopatients (rosenhan himself and 7 volunteers) presented themselves at institutions across the country with the same symptoms. They reported hearing voices that said “thud, empty, hollow”. All 8 were admitted and diagnosed with serious mental disorders.
The question became, once you’ve been labelled with a psychiatric condition, how do you prove yourself “sane”?
The pseudopatients spent between 7-52 days in psychiatric institutions; not 1 hospital staff member identified the participants as fake patients.
research methods
What are the strengths of field experiments
- FE generally yield results with higher ecological validity than lab experiments, as natural setting will relate to real life.
- demand characteristics are less if an issue with FE and than LE (eg. Participants are less likely to adjust their natural behaviour according to their interpretation of the study’s purpose as they might not know they are in a study)
research methods
What are the weaknesses of field experiments
- extraneous variables could confound results due to the reduced control experiments have over them in non artificial environments, making it difficult to find truly casual effects between independent and dependent variables
- ethical principles have to be considered, such as the lack of informed consent and the participants privacy must be respected.
- precise replication of the natural environment of FE is understandably difficult, so they have poor reliability unlike LE where the exact conditions can be recreated
- FE are more susceptible to sample bias, as participants are often not randomly allocated to experimental conditions.
research methods
What is the comparative method
The comparative method involves comparing two or more similar societies or groups which are similar in some respects but varied in others, and looking for correlations. This can be across time and place. There are no research participants as such; it is a ‘thought experiment’.
research methods
What are the PRACTICAL strengths and weaknesses to questionnaires
Strengths
- quick and cheap
- no need to recruit or train interviewers
- data is usually easy to quantify
Weaknesses
- researcher cannot be sure whether questionnaire has been received or actually completed by the person addressed to
research methods
What are the ETHICAL strengths and weaknesses to questionnaires
Strengths
- no obligation to answer questions
- give consent first
Weaknesses
- questionnaires may ask intrusive or sensitive questions
research methods
What are the THEORETICAL (positivist) strengths to questionnaires
- favour questionnaires as they achieve main positivist goals of reliability, generalisability, and representativeness
- large scale so more representative
research methods
What are the THEORETICAL (interpretivist) weaknesses to questionnaires
- reject questionnaires as they impose researchers framework of ideas on respondents. This tells us little about the meanings held by social factors. Questionnaires fail to achieve the main interpretivist goal of validity
research methods
What are the RELIABILITY strengths and weaknesses to questionnaires
Strengths
- means that is we find differences we can assume these are real differences between the respondents and not the result of different questions
Weaknesses
- people may be lying, and forgetting and doing the ‘right answerism’
research methods
What are the REPRESENTATIVE strengths and weaknesses to questionnaires
Strengths
- allows us to make accurate generalisations about the wider population
- better change of being representative by collecting information from a large number of people
Weaknesses
- low response rate if people are busy and don’t have much free time
research methods
What are the VALID weaknesses to questionnaires
- only gives snapshots of social reality at one moment - this being when questions are answered
➡️ not a valid picture as they don’t capture the ways people’s attitudes and behaviours change. - Lack of contact = less valid
research methods (in context)
What is the operationalisation of concepts
This involves turning abstract ideas into a measurable from.
Making it harder to make questions for pupils as their grasp of abstract concepts is generally less than adults. This may produce answers that are based on respondents misunderstanding of what the questions mean.
research methods (in context)
What are the advantages and disadvantages of using questionnaires in schools
Pros
- useful for getting large quantities of factual info cheaply
- using schools is an effective way to overcome difficulty of locating parents
Cons
- young kids are more open to peer pressure
- schools may be reluctant due to possible disruption
- young children cannot read or write and have shorter attention span
- teachers may be busy
- students may link questionnaire with authority and feel pressured or refuse to cooperate
research methods
What are the 4 types of interviews
- Structured or informal interviews
- Unstructured or discovery interviews
- Semi structured interviews
- Group interviews
research methods
What are structured or formal interviews
Very similar to questionnaires = interviewer is given strict instructions on how to ask questions. Interview is conducted the same standardised way at each time, same questions same tone of voice and more
research methods
What are unstructured interviews
Like a guided conversation. Interviewer has complete freedom to vary questions, ask follow up questions and more.
research methods
What are semi structured interviews
This lies between the two extremes. Each interview has the same set of questions but they can probe for more info.
research methods
What are the pros and cons to group interviews
Pros
- participants may feel more comfortable with others and make open up more
- in discussion participants can throw ideas around providing more reflective data
Cons
- some may dominate the discussion
- peer group pressure to conform to the group norms
- group must stay on topic which is hard to do
research methods
What are the pros and cons to structured interviews
pros
- straightforward
- covers a large number of people
- gathers factual info
- high response rate and more representative
cons
- close ended questions restricts interviewees and what they wish to say and little freedom for interviewers to explain the question
- does not reflect the interviewees concerns and priorities
research methods
What are the pros and cons to unstructured interviews
pros
- interviewer has complete freedom to vary the interview for a deeper understanding
- develop trust and encourages the person to open up
- highly flexible
cons
- long time to conduct limiting sample size
- cannot be replicated as each is unique
- interviewer needs good interpersonal skills
research methods
What are the pros and cons of doing interviews with students to research education
pros
- if the researcher gains official support the head teacher can be used in favour to instruct teachers to release kids from class
- young people may have better verbal skills than in questionnaires
cons
- young people’s linguistic skills are less developed than adults causing misunderstanding
- schools have very active informal communication channels
- need consent from teachers and parents
- kids may see them as authority figures and lie
research methods
What are the pros and cons of doing interviews with teachers to research education
pros
- literacy skill to participate
- less of a power and status inequality
cons
- teacher may need schools consent
- teacher may be scared to open up afraid off higher figures eg. Heads
research methods
What are the pros and cons of doing interviews with parents to research education
pros
- literacy skills to participate
- no consent needed
cons
- parents have busy schedules
- power and status inequalities with WC parents - think it’s intrusive
research methods - observation
What is the difference between non participant observation and participant observation
Non participant observation:
The researcher simply observers the group or event without taking part
Participant observation:
The researcher takes part in an event or the everyday life of the group while observing it
research methods - observation
What is the difference between overt and covert observation
Overt:
Researcher makes their true identity and purpose known to those being studied
Covert:
The study is carried out ‘under cover’ and the researchers real identity and purpose are kept concealed with the researcher taking in a false identity and role
research methods - observation
Summarise Humphrey’s case study
Laud Humphreys wanted to study the gay subculture; and observed the sexual activity of gay men in ninety public toilets (the ‘tearooms’) in US cities in the 1960s. He initially adopted a covert role as a ‘voyeur’.
Humphreys became an accepted part of the gay scene in Chicago. He noted the car numbers of attendees and, using police contacts, was able to get their addresses and background information for interview research a year later. Humphreys had to disguise his appearance during this survey so he wouldn’t be recognised by men he had previously met.
research methods - observation
Summarise James Patrick’s case study
Patrick used a covert role to study a violent and delinquent teenage Glasgow gang over a period of four months in 1966 and 1967.
He found a gang member called ‘Tim’ In a YOl, and Tim got him into the gang. Given his privileged position and knowledge, Tim also protected the researcher. Tim in Glasgow was especially important because one gang member became suspicious and stated this to others when ‘James Patrick’ did not want to carry a weapon when the gang engaged in fights with rivals. He also held back from the actual fights. Tim would then come in on his side.
Nevertheless, the researcher did not write his field notes until after the research.
James Patrick’ left Glasgow quickly when the violence became too unacceptable for him, and he felt threatened.
research methods - observation
Summarise Griffin’s case study
Griffin was a white man who in 1959 used medication and sun lamp treatments to ‘change’ his skin colour. He then travelled around the Deep South of the USA to experience first-hand the impact of racial segregation.
‘Black Like Me’ was Griffin’s effort to persuade America to open its eyes.
research methods - observation
Summarise Venkatesh’s case study
Venkatesh spent 18 months, spread over seven years, participating in the life of the Black Kings - a Chicago crack-dealing gang - adopting an over role. He lived with gang members and slept on the couches and floors of people’s apartments and of crack dens to gain insights into life in a poverty-stricken community.
Obviously, he observed much illegal and violent behaviour during his periods of participation.
research methods - observation
What are the problems with ‘getting in’ within observation? Give an example if you can.
Concerns:
- making initial contact may depend on personal skills, connections, chance
- researcher must win trust and acceptance
- demographic factors may affect getting in
- the research must not disrupt the groups normal patterns
Examples:
- James Patrick joined a Glasgow gang because he looked young and knew a member through having taught him in school
- John griffin was a white man that made himself black to study and be accepted
research methods - observation
What are the problems with ‘staying in’ within observation? Give an example if you can.
Concerns:
- have to be both involved in a group to understand it fully, but also be detached to remain objective and unbiased
- must not become over involved
- more time you spend with the group the less strange it becomes so you will not notice as much
Example:
Maurice Punch found in the study of Amsterdam police, in striving to be accepted by the group he started to act like a policeman himself
research methods - observation
What are the problems with ‘getting out’ within observation? Give an example if you can.
Concerns:
- leaving a group after being close may be difficult
- re entering normal world is also hard
- loyalty may prevent the researcher to fully disclose everything, fearing it may harm the members
Examples:
- Patrick studied a Glasgow gang - sickened by violence he abruptly left.
- Whyte returned to Harvard after his research and found that he couldn’t communicate.
research methods - observation
What are the advantages of overt observation
- ethical, not deceiving anyone
- more straightforward
- allows the opportunity to ask questions only an outsider would ask
- notes can be taken openly
research methods - observation
What are the disadvantages of overt observation
- Hawthorne effect - participants will be aware of what they are in and act abnormally
- harder to obtain informed consent
research methods - observation
What are the advantages of covert observation
- deeper understanding
- no risk of Hawthorne effect
research methods - observation
What are the disadvantages of covert observation
- no informed consent
- leaving the group - would have to lie about your reason
- may participate in illegal activities
- cannot ask naive questions
research methods - observation
What are the advantages of participant observation?
- by actually observing people you can obtain rich qualitative data that provides a picture of how they really live
- allows the researcher to gain verstehen/empathy/understanding through personal experience. This allows them to underwent their world as they themselves understand it
- allows the sociologist to enter the situation with a relatively open mind about they will find. This open mindedness allows the researcher to discover things those other methods may miss
- PO works better in groups such as gangs as they would of found questions too intrusive.
research methods - observation
What is participant observation
Participant observation (PO) is a research methodology where the researcher is immersed in the day-to-day activities of the participants. The objective is usually to record conduct under the widest range of possible settings.
research methods - observation
What are the practical disadvantages of participant observation
- very time consuming
- researcher must be trained and have certain skills
- can be stressful
- many groups won’t want to be studied this way
research methods - observation
What are the ethical disadvantages of participant observation
Deceives people in order to obtain information about them and participating in illegal or immoral activities in the course of the research
research methods - observation
What are the representative disadvantages of participant observation
The group studied is usually very small. This does not provide a sound basis for making generalisations.
research methods - observation
What are the bias and objectivity disadvantages of participant observation
- risk of becoming too involved and ‘going native.’
- loyalty to the group or fear of reprisals leads the sociologist to conceal sensitive information
- often attracts sociologists whose sympathies lie with the underdog
research methods - observation
Name two reasons why it would be difficult for the observer to gain the groups trust
- Group may suspect researchers motives
- Differences in age/class/gender
research methods - observation
Why is Participant observation more flexible than questionnaires
Because there is no fixed hypothesis
research methods - observation
Why does participant observation lack objectivity
Because there is a risk of the researcher becoming too involved
research methods - secondary sources
What are the 2 main secondary sources used
- official statistics
- documents
research methods - official statistics
What are positivist and interpretivists view on OS
Positivists favour official statistics as objective social facts that achieve the main positivist goals of reliability, generalisability and representativeness.
- They provide reliable data because their standardised categories and collection techniques can be easily replaced
- Because they are collected at regular intervals they show trends behaviour overtime
- They provide quantitive data allowing us to identify and measure behaviour patterns and establish cause and affect relationships
- They are usually large scale and representative
Interpretivists reject official statistics, partially ‘soft’ once, such as crime statistics, as social constructs and not social facts. Official statistics failed to achieve the main interpretivist goal of validity.
research methods - official statistics
What are the practical strengths and limitations of official statistics?
Strengths
- Free source of huge amounts of data saving time and money
- Collected at regular intervals so they show trends and patterns overtime
Limitations
- government collect statistics for own purpose, not for the benefit of the sociologist, so it may be that there are unavailable on the topic they are interested in
- If definitions change of time, it may make comparisons difficult
research methods - official statistics
What is the difference between hard and soft statistics?
Hard statistics include birth, death and marriage rates. These are registered when they occur by law, so these statistics are entirely objective. Another type of official statistic is called soft statistics, e.g. crime statistics & unemployment figures. These might not seem as objective as they first seem.
research methods - official statistics
What do Marxists think of official statistics?
Official statistics serve the interests of capitalism, the state isn’t neutral. The statistics they produce are part of ruling.
Class ideology – helps maintain capitalist class in power.
research methods - official statistics
What are the representative strengths and limitations of official statistics?
Strengths
- Cover very large numbers and care is taken with procedures
Limitations
- Statistics produced from official surveys may be less representative as it’s only based on a sample of the relevant population
research methods - documents
Suggest two examples of personal documents
Any two of the following: letters, diaries, photo albums, autobiographies.
research methods - documents
Name Scotts four criteria for evaluating documents
Authenticity; credibility; representativeness; meaning.
research methods - documents
What do positivists and interpretivists think of documents?
Interpretivists tend to favour documents because they achieve the main interpretivist goal of validity:
- They are not usually written with research in mind and can thus be an authentic statement of their authors views
- They provide qualitative data that gives us insight into the office world view and meanings
Positivists tend to reject documents because they failed to achieve the main positivist goals of reliability, generalisability and representativeness:
- They are often unstandardised and unreliable; for example, every persons diary is unique. This also makes it difficult to draw generalisations from them.
- they often unrepresentative; for example, only literate groups can write diaries and letters
- Interpreting documents, researches may impose their own meanings on them.
However, positivists do sometimes carry out content analysis and documents to produce quantitive data from them
What was the response rate (%) to Shere Hite’s 1991 questionnaire on ‘love, passion and emotional violence’ out of 100 000 sent out
4.5%
What is it called when a method is about to be repeated by another researcher to find similar results gained by the first researcher
Reliability
What methodological perspective favours questionnaires?
Positivists
What does the E in PET stand for
Ethical consideration
P = practical
T= theoretical
What is an theorist/study example of the new right perspective on education. What do they state?
Chubb and Moe: consumer choice
They argue that state-run education in the USA has failed because:
- it has not created equal opportunity and has failed the needs of disadvantaged groups
- it is inefficient because it fails to produce pupils with the skills needed by the economy
- private schools deliver higher quality education because unlike state schools they are answerable to paying consumers - the parents
Fill in the blank
Pupil premium is an example of an attempt at ____ ______ to address cultural deprivation affecting education
Compensatory education
What type of research methods did Rosen and Jacobson use for their landmark 1968 study?
Field experiment
What type of secondary school was established in some LEA’s from 1965?
Comprehensive
Why, for AK Cohen, do working class boys form alternative status hierarchies
Because of status frustration
