Underachievement of working class

What is a social class?

divisions in society based on economical and social status

What is working class?

manual work,low levels of educational achievement with jobs such as drivers,cleaners ect.

What is middle class?

non-manual work,higher levels of educational achievement

What is upper class?

those with the highest social class and wealth

What is the difference between working class and middle class in achievement at GCSEs?

39% difference in achieving 5 or more GCSEs between those whose parents are of profession compared to those who have a routine jobs

What are internal factors?

factors within school and the education system

Examples of internal factors?

interactions between teachers and students,inequalities between schools

What are external factors?

factors outside the educational system

Examples of external factors?

influence of home,family background

What are the factors that lead to cultural deprivation in children?

language,parents education,working class subculture

What is cultural deprivation theory?

idea that working class families fail to socialise their children properly leading to inferior norms and values

What is primary socialisation?

socialisation during the early years of childhood carried out by the family

What does primary socialisation help children develop?

‘cultural equipment’ including language,self-discipline and reasoning skills

What did Fernstein(2008) find on educated parents?

educated parents are more likely to use more challenging language ,educated parents are more likely to use praise

What did Bernstein establish?

the difference between working class and middle class speech

What style of speech do middle class parents use?

elaborated code

What is elaborated code?

wider vocab,longer grammatically complex sentences,uses abstract ideas

What style of speech do working class parents use?

restricted code

What is restricted code?

limited vocab,short and unfinished sentences with simple grammar

Why is knowing elaborated code useful?

it is used in schools by teachers and in exams

What are the criticisms of cultural deprivation theory?

victim blaming attitude,some parents may not have the time,money or understanding to raise their children as well as they could

What did Douglas(1964) discover?

working class parents place less value on their children's education,were less ambitious,gave them less encouragement ect.

What did Fernstein(2003) find?

parents education is an important factor in a child’s achievements at school

What parenting style to less educated parents use?

harsh and inconsistent

What is the affect of the working class parenting style?

less self control,lower motivation,difficulty interacting with teachers

What is the middle class parenting style?

disciplined,high expectations,encouraging active learning and exploration

What are educated parents more likely to do?

buy things that promote their child’s educational success

What can educational toys help to do?

encourage reasoning skill and educational development

What are educated parents more likely to provide?

nutritional food

Why are educated parents more likely to provide nutritional food?

they have a better understanding of nutrition

What is a subculture?

a group whose attitudes and values differ from those in the mainstream

According to Sugarman(1970) what are the 4 different values of the working class which act as barriers to educational success?

Fatalism,collectivism,immediate gratification,present time orentation

What is fatalism?

belief in fate and that is nothing you can do to change certain things

How does fatalism prevent educational success in school?

it will prevent them trying to improve their performance in schools as they believe that is just how it is

What is collectivism?

value the group rather than the individual

How can collectivism prevent educational success?

students may follow their friends poor behaviour instead of behaving as they should

What are compensatory education programmes?

a programme to provide extra resources to schools and communities in deprived areas

What was operation head start?

A pre-school education programme in poorer areas in america to help deprived children.

What did head start aim to achieve?

improve parenting skills,promote importance of punctuality, teach numeracy and literacy to children

What was the aim of sure start centres?

to give children best start at life possible

What did sure start centres provide?

health services,parenting support,early learning and childcare

What are the disadvantages of sure start centres?

many closed down due to austerity,only available to teen parents or the most disadvantaged

What did Bourdieu(1984) theorise?

the culture of school giving the middle class an advantage

What is economic capital?

ownership of wealth e.g. big expensive house

What is the advantage of economic capital?

can pay for private tuition or education

What is cultural capital?

possession of education,knowledge of literature and arts ect.

What is the advantage of cultural capital?

knowledge and experience which will help children with school work,educational stimulating environment

What is social capital?

possession of valuable social contacts e.g.headmasters,deans

What is the advantage of social capital?

can gain you entrance to the best educational institutions or finding expert help

What did Leech and Campos(2003) find on what middle class parents could do to get into the best schools?

middle class parents could buy houses in areas with the best schools aka ‘selection by mortgage

How was the Sullivan(2011) study carried out?

a questionnaire to survey students on their cultural capital

What questions were asked in the study of cultural capital?

their TV and reading habits,whether they had visited any museums,galleries and theatres and their vocab. and knowledge of cultural figures

Who did better at GCSE according to the study?

those who had more cultural capital?

According to the study,if 2 students had the same cultural capital who would do better?

the middle class student

What did Sullivan theorise as the cause of M.C. students with the same cultural capital as W.C. students doing better

greater resources and aspirations

What is pupil premium?

funding which will pay for your school meals,uniforms,trips and materials ect.

What is material deprivation?

refers to poverty and lack of material necessaries such as housing and income

What is labelling?

to attach a meaning or definition to someone

What do teachers often label by?

stereotypes

Who carries out studies on labelling?

Interactionists

What do interactionists focus on?

small studies based on face to face intercations

What is labelling theory?

The idea that people assume their place in society based on their interactions with others and the labels that are assigned to them

Who can be labelled?

people of different ethnic groups,social class and gender

What did Becker(1971) find in his study on what teachers judged students on?

teachers judged students based on their closeness to the ideal student

What was the ideal student?

a white middle class female, who was well presented had good language was obedient tried hard and was polite

Who was furthest from the ideal student?

working class pupils

What did Hempel and Jorgensen(2009) find on the ideal student?

the ideal student varied between schools

Who was the ideal student in a school with mainly working class pupils?

quiet,passive and obedient

What was the ideal student defined by in mainly middle class school?

personality and academic achievement

What did Dunne and Gazeley(2008) find on teachers attitudes to working class performance?

teachers normalised working class underachievement

What caused working class underachievement according to Dunne and Gazeley?

W.C. parents labelled as uninterested,W.C. children entered into easier exams, those who did well were labelled as overachievers

Why did middle class students do better according to Dunne and Gazeley?

teachers believed they could overcome M.C. underachievement,M.C. parents were labelled as supportive,extra work was set for M.C. students

What did Rist (1970) find on what teachers used to separate their students?

teachers used children’s background to separate them

Who was labelled as a fast leaner?

M.C. students with neat appearances

What did those labelled as fast learners receive?

the most praise and encouragement

Who was labelled as the class clown?

W.C. students

Why did working class students do less well in primary school?

they were put at that back of the class and given less attention,with less chance to show abilities and given easier tasks

What is the self fulfilling prophecy?

a prediction that comes true just because it has been made

What are the steps of the self fulfilling prophecy?

behaviour is observed,label is attached,behaviour is reinforced,label is reinforced,pupil internalises label,pupil either rejects or accepts the label

What did Rosenthal and Jacobson(1968) do to demonstrate the SFP?

indentified some students as ‘spurters’ with no logical backing to that label and told their teachers about it ,they then monitered the children’s progress in school

What did Rosenthal and Jacobsen find on the students who had been identified as spurters?

47% of those identified as ‘spurters’ had made significant progress

What is a structural approach to sociology?

focusing on how society is organised as the most important influence on people

What is the structural POV called?

Macro approach

What is the social action approach?

individuals and perception are the most important influence on people

What is the social action POV called?

Microapproach

What is streaming?

placing students in a set of classes based on ability

What is setting?

Placing students in sets for individual subjects based on ability

Why are W.C. student often placed in the lower sets?

they are labelled and not seen as of high ability or the ideal student

What id the affect of being placed in lower sets?

teachers have lower expectations for students,they do easier work and are put into easier exams they then find it hard to move up streams

What is an educational prison?

students who struggle are stuck in the cycle of underachieving

Why do middle class students benefit from streaming?

they are often placed in the higher sets and so they can gain confidence,work harder and can improve their grades

What did Douglas find to do with streaming?

students who are placed in lower streams at 8 have a decline in IQ by 11 and those placed in higher streams increase their IQ by 11

What did Gilborn and Youdell(2001) find on how students were placed into streams?

students were placed in streams depending on stereotypes instead of actual ability

Which sets /streams are black and working class most likely to be placed in?

lower streams/sets

Why do Gillborn and Youdell think schools set?

exam league tables

What is educational triage?

separating students based on their likely hood to achieve 5 passes at GCSEs

What are the three catorgories for educational triage?

will pass with no intervention,will pass with extra help,hopeless

What is the effect of being labelled as hopeless?

students may give up,not attend lessons,not revise leading to them fulfilling that prophecy

What is a pupil subculture?

a group of students who share similar behaviour patterns

What is an anti-school subculture?

a group of students who have norms and values different to those of school