What factors help to explain differences in educational achievement?

factors affecting educational inequality

- class
- gender
- ethnicity

gender

- in developing countries boys are more likely to go to school than girls
- in modern industrial societies girls and boys now follow the same curriculum
- earlier socialisation into gender roles

in developing countries boys are more likely to go to school than girls - gender

- parents think the education of their sons is more important
- boys have a successful career and support their parents in aging
- girls are expected to marry and care for their husbands
- education for girls seems like unnecessary expense

gender - case studies

- the UN's take on education for girls
- gender statistics

in modern industrial societies girls and boys now follow the same curriculum - gender

- in the past some subjects were set aside for girls with others for boys
- STEM

earlier socialisation into gender roles - gender

- girls are encouraged to have interests seen as appropriate for them by agents of primary socialisation
- differences in classes (STEM)
- boys put off subjects seen mainly for girls

why do girls now do better than boys at GCSE level? - evaluation

- attitude and motivation
- same opportunities
- girls aim higher
- better motivation
- consistent work
- mature earlier

why do boys underachieve compared to girls?

- treated differently
- overconfidence
- laddish behaviour
- lack of traditional male jobs
- difference in leisure time affects development
- boys are bad at reading and writing

why do some ethnic groups do well less than others?

- class and gender
- social factors
- factors within school
- cultural differences
- genetic difference

class and gender - ethnicity

- afro-carribeans from working class
- pakistanis and bengalis from rural backgrounds
- indian and east african asian were professional
- girls from some asian backgrounds are socialised into housework

social factors - ethnicity

- prejudice and discrimination against a minority ethnic groups causes them to achieve less than average
- students rebel against racist authority

factors within school - ethnicity

- discrimination in setting and streaming
- teachers labelling students
- ethnocentric content
- disregard of racism

cultural differences - ethnicity

home values may conflict with school values holding up progress and reinforcing stereotypes

genetic difference - ethnicity

a discredited view explaining different levels of ability in different ethnic groups

social class

- social stratification by the ruling class
- differentiation in schools
- compensatory education

social stratification by the ruling class

- schools in the past were for the rich and powerful
- two-tier system with basic education for the lower-class minorities

differentiation in schools

- development of schools based on social class
- private schools, public schools, comprehensive schools, grammar schools, etc.

social class - case study

eligibility for free school meals

compensatory education

- compensation for shortcomings in the child's backgrounds
- used to raise school-leaving achievements of working class pupils to attract companies with an educated workforce
- involves extra supports for those from disadvantages backgrounds

why do working-class pupils underachieve?

- labelling, streaming and setting
- inherited intelligence
- cultural or material deprivation
- low self esteem and low expectations
- language differences
- cultural capital
- class position
- lack of resources

class position - case study

raymon boudon

factors influencing educational achievement

- material
- cultural
- linguistic

material influences

- class
- gender
- ethnicity

class - material influences

- factors in the standard of living leading to underachievement
- mostly children living on the margin of poverty

disadvantages for those in the margin of poverty

- lack of space
- inadequate diet
- affording extras
- not attending preschool
- part-time jobs at minimum age
- few resources
- disadvantaged schools
- financially unable to go to university

ethnicity - material influences

- some minority ethnic groups have more members in the working class
- immigrants taking low positions affecting education system for their children

gender - material influences

families may not want to spend on girls' education as it may be seen as less important

cultural influences

- class
- gender
- ethnicity

cultural influences - class

- cultural deprivation from values and attitudes
- underworking subculture
- parents lack knowledge to push children into education and lack of extra support
- lack of cultural capital

cultural capital - case study

pierre bourdieu

aspects of the working-class culture

- fatalistic attitude
- immediate gratification
- thrills and trouble for boys
- parents not valuing education
- loyalty to the working class
- absence of successful role models

cultural influences - ethnicity

backgrounds place value on learning

ethnicity - case study

louise archer

cultural influences - gender

- primary socialisation into gender roles
- girls influenced to see future in terms of marriage
- boys in terms of work
- in modern industrial societies there's been a shift away from traditional gender roles

linguistic influences

- class
- gender
- ethnicity

social class - case study

basil bernstein

ethnicity

- minority ethnic groups may be taught in a language that isn't their home language
- the pupils speak different languages at home
- they then face problems understanding
- their own language is devalued and seen as inappropriate
- disadvantage to recently arrived immigrants with little english
- teachers may think native languages are ungrammatical and wrong indicating illiteracy

ethnicity - case study

william labov

factors of influence of school, teachers and peer groups on educational achievement

- class
- gender
- ethnicity

class

- teachers are involved in judging and classifying pupils in various ways
- labelling affects the performance of students
- stereotypes can product a halo effect
- self-fulfilling prophecy
- self-negating prophecy
- streaming is linked to class
- banding or setting is the opposite of streaming

halo effect

pupils become stereotyped on the basis of earlier impressions and influence future relations between student and teacher

self-negating prophecy

when a pupil is labelled as unable to do well so reacts against it by setting out to prove it wrong and succeeds

critics of streaming

- prejudged success and failure
- top streams will be confident and successful
- low streams will see themselves as failures and be disruptive
- undermine confidence in a low stream

class - case study

micheal rutter

class - case study

howard becker

class (self-fulfilling prophecy) - case study

rosenthal and jacobson

ethnicity

- teachers label pupils from different groups and create self-fulfilling prophecies
- minority ethnic groups put in low streams and sets
- labels cannot be rejected and become a master status (interpretivists)

master status

single most important thing pinpointed and internalised

ethnicity - case study

archer

ethnicity, gender - case study

sewell, mac an ghaill

gender

- girls' peer groups support each other with learning and are in tune with school
- girls develop better language skills

gender - case studies

valerie hey, carolyn jackson

measuring intelligence

- some people argue that how well people do in school depends on their intelligence
- intelligence is partly innate but develops on the basis of environment
- intelligence is measured by IQ tests

some people argue that how well people do in school depends on their intelligence

- middle class children are more intelligent than working class students
- schools don't make much difference
- view not accepted by sociologists

intelligence is partly innate but develops on the basis of environment

- stimuli, interaction, diet, family home
- intelligence develops
- it's impossible to separate innate intelligence from environmental influences

measuring intelligence - case studies

gardner

IQ tests

intelligence quotient tests

intelligence is measured by IQ tests

- used by schools as a way of selecting pupils
- these tests show a pattern of results between different groups
- linked to racial and ethnic differences

criticisms of IQ tests

- tests are based on a narrow range of reasoning skills and exclude other types of intelligence
- if intelligence depends partly on environment, high tests suggest positive environment rather than innate ability and vice versa
- taken at one moment in time but intelligence develops so why's it used for prediction?
- performance improves with IQ practice
- some people with low scores go on to do well in their career and vice versa

the roles of the official curriculum and the hidden curriculum

- official curriculum
- hidden curriculum

official curriculum

- subjects taught and their content
- national curriculum and national tests
- sets out standard targets
- knowledge is divided into chunks of specialisation and skills

knowledge is divided into chunks of specialisation and skills

- social construction
- not natural
- result of decisions
- prevents pupils from understanding different areas of knowledge and how they interconnect
- interesting areas of knowledge are neglected in school

three Rs in the official curriculum

reading, writing, arithmetic

hidden curriculum

- the experience of going to school
- norms, values, beliefs, attitudes
- physical structure and organisation of school
- teacher control
- schools are hierarchies

features of the hidden curriculum

- competitive sports and testing
- punctuality
- school rules

what does competitive sports and testing promote?

doing better than others is better than cooperating

what does punctuality promote?

your time is not your own

what do school rules promote?

you have to do what is told to you by those in authority even if you don't agree

three Rs in the hidden curriculum (jackson)

rules, routines, regulations

hidden curriculum - functionalist view

- gives skills and attitudes essential for the smooth running of society and an individual's future
- helps education fulfill its functions

hidden curriculum - marxist view

- social control
- the working class is controlled by the ruling class
- working class is expected to remain inferior and have their opinions ignored
- students become passive and conformist
- working class think they fail in school and are at fault when the system has been designed to fail them
- division of curriculum makes harder for pupils to gain understanding
- important knowledge is provided to those who pursue HE like middle class students who have a stake in the system
- upper class expect high status occupation

hidden curriculum - feminist view

- conveys messages aabout gender and gender roles
- expects boys and girls to conform to traditional gender roles

vocationalism

- gives people a varying route to work rather than study
- seen as inferior to academic education
- usually from working class backgrounds, reinforcing the division between classes
- needed for the economy

criticisms of vocational courses and training

- ways of keeping young people not suitable for academic courses occupied and avoid counting them as unemployed
- used by some as a source of cheap or free labour
- produces workers rather than increasing individual potential