Chapter 9 - Diversity and Culture in Education

Vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts from Chapter 9 on diversity, culture, and social stratification within the sociology of education.

Diversity

Refers to unlikeness or to being of a different kind; it encompasses a range of differences, including group opportunities, social factors influencing institutions, and individual identity development.

Socialisation

A process through which people learn the expectations of society and the values, norms, and roles that culture bestows upon them, ultimately shaping their identities.

Identity

The way in which a person defines him- or herself, which is generally given by others because individuals come to see themselves as others see them.

Feral children

Children who are raised in the absence of human contact, such as the case of Genie, who was kept in total isolation for thirteen years.

Culture (Ferrante, 2008)

The way of life of a people; specifically, the human-created strategies for adjusting to the environment and to those creatures, including humans, that are part of that environment.

Culture as cultivation

The enhancement of skills and abilities through effort and discipline, such as traditional Zulu dances (ukusina, ukugiya) or Xhosa dances (ukuxhensa).

Culture as tradition

The perspective that culture is what a society strives to pass on to new generations, distinguishing different ethnic groups through language, dress, and daily rituals.

Culture as information bits

A concept by Erickson (1989) referring to 'chunks of knowledge' stored in individual members of a group that are often not written down and may be only partially acquired by individuals.

Culture as symbol system

Occurs when groups function using a set of symbols defined by the group, such as languages (isiZulu, TshiVenda), dress, songs, and dances for specific occasions.

Culture as motive and emotion

Based on the view that the repetition of an activity improves ability and creates an emotional or patriotic attachment to one's group or nation.

Social stratification

A process of categorising people according to their ranks within the family and society, which directly affects their life chances.

Life chances

The opportunities an individual has to improve their quality of life, including the chance to stay healthy, avoid delinquency, and complete higher education.

Ascribed characteristics

Attributes that people have at birth or develop over time without effort, such as skin colour, sex, hair colour, national origin, and religious affiliation.

Achieved characteristics

Attributes that are learnt or earned through hard work, choice, and perseverance, including occupation, marital status, income level, and level of education.

Caste system

A 'closed' system of stratification where ranking is based on ascribed characteristics over which people have no control, characterized by extreme rigidity.

Class system

An 'open' system of stratification where ranking is based on merit, talent, ability, or past performance, and boundaries between groups are often blurred.

Functionalism

A sociological perspective emphasizing order, cohesion, and social stability; it views socialisation as the mechanism through which people internalise social roles.

Conflict theory

A perspective emphasizing inequalities and power imbalances in society, arguing that identity and social status emerge from contexts of differing opportunities.

Symbolic interactionism

A perspective emphasizing the meaning humans give to daily social interaction, viewing identity as something constantly reconstructed and socially sustained.

Gender

The distinctive qualities of men and women that are culturally created; the socially learned expectations and behaviours associated with members of each sex.

Sex

The biological and anatomical differences between females and males.

Social construction of race

A process by which society defines a group as a race based on physical characteristics as well as historical, cultural, and economic factors rather than science or logic.

Assimilation

A process by which members of subordinate racial and ethnic groups become absorbed into the dominant culture, often giving up their own cultures to 'fit' in.

Contact theory

The symbolic interactionist argument that racial prejudice decreases if interaction occurs between individuals of equal status, is sustained, and is supported by social norms favoring equality.

Bourgeoisie (Capitalist class)

According to Karl Marx, the class of people who own and control the means of production and achieve wealth through capital.

Proletariat (Working class)

According to Karl Marx, the class of people who work for wages and are vulnerable to displacement by machines or cheap labour.

Hidden curriculum

A concept from Bowles and Gintis (1976) suggesting that education in capitalist societies reproduces labour power by producing a subservient, passive workforce.