External class differences in achievement

Basics of class differences in education

→ Children from m/c families perform better on average

* Gap in achievement grows wider with age

→ Popular explanation of that better-off parents can afford private school; better standard of education, smaller class sizes

→ Private schools **educate 7% of children but nearly half of Oxbridge students**

→ But what about the gap in state education?

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Sutton Trust -- private schools & achievement

Eton sends 211 pupils to Oxbridge every 3y, but 1300 state schools send none

Centre for Longitudinal Studies -- cultural deprivaiton

W/c children are a year behind m/c by age 3

→ Gap widens with age

Cultural deprivation

We start gaining skills for education success via primary socialisation; w/c families fail to socialise kids property, they grow up CD. 3 main parts:

→ language

→ parents’ education

→ w/c subculture

Hubbs-Tait et al -- CD/lang

When parents use challenging language, children have better cognitive performance

Feldstein -- CD/lang

Educated parents more likely to use language which challenges kids

→ More likely to praise kids too

→ Less educated parents use simple language = lower performance

Bereiter & Engelmann -- CD/lang

Language in w/c homes is **deficient**

→ Use single words/gestures, so ==**w/c kids fail to develop lang. skills**==

Bernstein -- CD/lang

Restricted and elaborated speech codes

→ ==**Restricted**==; limited vocab, simple grammar, context-bound

→ ==**Elaborated**==; wide vocab, grammatically complex, abstract ideas, context-free

→ Teachers use elaborated code, so m/c have an advantage

* Socialised into code, so fluent in it and feel ‘at home’ at school’

Evaluation of speech codes

→ **Bernstein** is arguably a CD theorist as he says w/c speech is inadequate, but also DOES recognise influence school has on childrens’ achievement

→ Says w/c pupils fail because schools fail to teach them to use elaborated code

Feldstein -- CD/parents education

W/c parents put less value on education, take less interest etc.

→ m/c parents usually better educated so socialise kids in ways which gives them an advantage via…

* parenting style
* parents education behaviours
* use of income
* class, income + parental education

Parenting style -- CD/parents education

→ Educated parents emphasise high expectations, encourage ==**active learning + exploration**==

→ Less educated parents emphasise ‘==**doing as youre told**==’ kids are prevented from learning independence

* Leads to poorer motivation in school

Parents’ education behaviours -- CD/parents education

→ Educated parents engage in behaviours eg reading, helping w/ homework

→ Also **more successful in gaining relationships with teachers**

→ Better at guiding child’s interactions with school

Use of income -- CD/parents education

→ Educated parents have more money to spend on educational success

→ M/c mothers buy more educational toys/books which stimulate educational development

Feinstein -- CD/parents education

Parental education has an influence on achievement OUTSIDE of class/income

→ Helps explain why not all w/c children do bad, and not all m/c children are equally successful

Working-class subculture -- CD

**→** Lack of interest in children’s education reflects subcultural values of the w/c

→ W/c children internalise subcultural beliefs during socialisation

→ Results from w/c jobs not having career security/advancement like m/c jobs do

→ Parents pass on class values to children, and ==**only m/c values equip children for success**==

Sugarman -- CD/wc subculture

W/c subculture has 4 key features that are a **barrier to education**

→ ==**Fatalism**==; believe in ‘what will be will be’ vs m/c ambition

→ ==**Collectivism**==; value being in a group, vs m/c individual success

→ ==**Immediate gratification**==; want rewards now, whereas m/c value deferred gratification

→ ==**Present-time orientation**==; present more important than the future, no long-term goals

Compensatory education -- CD

Programs which try to tackle CD by giving extra resources t deprived schools

* ==**Operation Head Start (USA)** ==pre-school education, home visits + nursery classes
* ==**Sesame Street** ==part of Head Start; provided ways to transmit skills e.g. literacy, numeracy

__**british programs**__

* education action zones
* sure start

Kiddie -- myth of CD

Cultural deprivation is a MYTH; victim-blames the w/c

→ W/c are ==**culturally different**==, fail because system is dominated by m/c values

Blackstone & Mortimer -- myth of CD

W/c cant attend parents evenings due to work hours, not because theyre uninterested

Material deprivation

→ Poverty is a lack of material necessities

→ 1/3 of students on FSM achieve 5+ GCSEs, compared to 2/3 of others

→ W/c more likely to be truant, so more likely to leave school with no quals

→ W/c families more likely to have low income/inadequate housing which can affect education

Examples of material deprivation

→ Housing

→ Diet/health

→ Financial support + costs of education

→ Fear of debt

Direct effects of housing -- MD

→ ==**Overcrowding**==; less space to study, disturbed sleep when sharing rooms

→ ==**Lack of space for play**== affects development

→ If in temp accom, may ==**move frequently**== + disrupt education

Indirect effects of housing -- MD

→ Crowded home = risk of accidents

→ Cold/damp housing = ill health

→ Health p\[roblems = more absences = disadvantage

Howard -- MD/diet and health

Young w/c have lower intake of vitamins

→ Poor nutrition = low energy, weaker immune system

→ Could result in more absences if ill

Wilkinson -- MD/diet and health

Lower social class = higher rate of hyperactivity/anxiety

→ W/c children more likely to have behavioural/emotional problems

Blanden & Machin -- MD/diet and health

W/c children more liekly to engage in ==‘**externalising behaviour**==’ (fighting/temper tantrums)

→ Disrupts education e.g. via isolation/exclusion

Bull -- MD/costs

‘==**costs of free schooling**==’ children from poor family have to do without equipment/experiences that enhance school

→ may need to have hand-me-downs/cheaper equipment

→ could be ==**stigmatised/bullied**==

Flaherty -- MD/costs

Fear of stigmatisation could explain why many eligible for FSM dont take it

Smith & Noble -- MD/costs

Poverty is a barrier to learning in many ways

→ Inability to afford private school

→ Kids may need to work

Ridge -- MD/costs

Poor kids often have jobs

→ Can have negative impact on schoolwork

→ Especially since ==**EMA was abolished**== in 2011

Callender & Jackson -- MD/fear of debt

W/c students are ==**debt-averse** ==+ this means they may not apply to uni

→ Especially due to rise in tuition

→ W/c students in uni get less financial support from family, + higher maintenance loan = more debt

→ Helps explain why ==**30% of uni students are w/c, while 50% of total population is**==

Reay -- MD/fear of debt

W/c students more likely to apply to uni locally to save money; limits ops to go to good unis

→ Also work to fund studies, meaning grades suffer

→ Higher dropout rates for schools with large no. of poor students

Are cultural or material factors more important?

→ Some poor children DO succeed; maybe material deprivation is only part of the explanation

→ Cultural/religious/political values may impact childrens motivation

Feinstein -- cultural or material?

Educated parents have positive impact on achievement, regardless of income

Robinson -- cultural or material?

Tackling child poverty would be the best way to boost achievement

Bourdieu -- cultural capital

Both cultural and material factors contribute to achievement; theyre interrelated

→ **Capital** explains why m/c are so successful; they have more of every type

* ==**Economic, cultural and educational**==

Cultural capital

→ M/c culture gives ==advantage to those who possess it==

→ Via socialisation, m/c kids gain ability to express abstract ideas; more understanding of whats needed to succeed in education

→ Advantage in school, as ==**m/c interests are valued/rewarded**==

* System transmits m/c culture

→ W/c children may feel school ==**devalues their culture**== as ‘inferior’

* Lack of cult. capital = exam failure
* May feel ==**education isnt ‘for them’**==; respond by not trying

Educational + economic capital

→ Can convert types of capital into each other

* M/c kids with CC are better equipped to meet demands of curriculum + get qualifications (EDC)
* Wealthy parents convert ECC into EDC by sending kids to private school

Leech & Campos -- capital

M/c parents can afford houses in high-ranked school catchments, so can get better exam results for kids

→ ==**Selection by mortgage**==; drives up cost of houses need good schools, excluded w/c families

Sullivan -- testing Bourdieu’s ideas

Those who read complex fiction developed wider vocab/cultural knowledge

→ Greater CC, linked to success at GCSE

→ Those with most CC usually m/c

→ BUT CC only accounts for part of difference -- M/c pupils still do better where they have same CC as w/c pupils

→ Greater resources/aspirations of m/c families explains remainder of the gap