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Topic 2 - Class Differences in Achievement (internal factors) - Coggle…
Topic 2 - Class Differences in Achievement (internal factors)
Labelling
Primary schools
Ray Rist (1970)
- in a kindergarten, the teacher used information based on the child's home background to place them in groups where they would fit in more e.g. table groups
Children seen to be fast learners were labelled 'tigers', which generally where MC pupils who had a clean and tidy appearance and are often sat nearest the teacher or the front so that they can be shown the best encouragement
'Cardinals' and 'clowns' were more likely labels given to working class students and were given lower level books to read and fewer chances to show their ability e.g. reading as a collective rather than individually
Howard Becker (1971)
- carried out an important interactionist study of labelling where 60 Chicago high school teachers were interviewed and it found that they judged pupils based on how close they fitted to the description of an ideal pupil
Students from middle-class were closest to the 'ideal pupil' description whereas working-class were furthest away
Secondary schools
Dunne and Gazeley (2008)
argue that schools continue to produce working-class underachievement due to the persistent use of labels and assumptions
From interviews in 9 English secondary schools, it was concluded that teachers normalised the underachievement of working-class pupils and there was no overcoming it, whereas middle-class pupils' underachievement could be easily overcome
This is because WC parents were seen to be uninterested in there child's education whereas MC parents were believed to be more supportive
A study by
Amelia Hempel-Jorgensen (2009)
of two English primary schools showed that:
In a mainly WC primary school, discipline was a major problem and the ideal pupil was defined as quiet passive and obedient
In a mainly MC primary school, discipline was not a problem and the ideal pupil was defined in terms of personality and academic ability
Self-fulfilling prophecy
Step 1
- Teacher labels the pupil and makes predictions for the pupil
Step 3
- The pupil internalises the teachers expectation, and the label becomes the self-image (e.g. a 'class clown' will continue to always trying to make people laugh)
Step 2
- The teacher treats the pupil accordingly to the label given to them (e.g. a pupil labelled as intelligent is usually set higher amounts of work)
Teachers' expectations
Robert Rosenthal and Leonora Jacobson (1968)
- a study on a primary school in California to show the self-fulfilling prophecy at work
They told the school that they had designed a new test designed to identify pupils who would 'spurt' ahead
This was untrue, as the test was just a standard IQ test
The researches randomly selected 20% of these pupils and identified them as 'spurters'
They found that half of the 'spurters' were making significant progress after the test
The effect was greater on younger children
Streaming
Educational triage
Pupils
Triage
Those who will pass anyway
Borderline C/D students - targeted for extra help
Hopeless cases
Self-fulling prophecy is more likely to occur where streaming is included
Streaming and the A-C economy
David Gillborn and Deborah Youdell (2001)
- a study on two London secondary schools shows that teachers were less likely to see WC (and black) pupils as having ability. As a result, these pupils were placed in lower streams and were therefore entered into foundation GCSEs
This denies access to learning certain knowledge and obtaining good GCSE grades and widens the class gap in achievement
These researchers link streaming to the policy of publishing exam league tables
Schools to get the best grades (from the students who are 'able' to get them) in order to attract more pupils to the school and therefore obtain more funding
Publishing league tables creates an 'A-C economy' in schools
This is a concept where the school focus more time and more money in the pupils who are seen to likely get a grade of C or higher so that the school can boost their position in the league tables
WC pupils are generally found in lower level streams whereas MC students are generally put into higher level streams
Pupil subcultures
Anti-school subculture
Pupils placed in lower streams are more likely to have a lower self-esteem as the schools has undermined their self-worth and placed them in a position of inferior status
This may lead to the pupil finding other ways to gain status within the school such as being naughty in lessons for comedic reasons, not doing homework etc.
This is seen as the anti-school subculture as these pupils go against the schools values
Joining an anti-school subculture is likely to be a self-fulfilling prophecy to educational failure
Abolishing streaming
Stephen Ball (1981)
- when a school abolishes banding, pupils were less likely to polarise to subcultures and anti-school subculture was largely removed
However, differentiation would still continue...
Teachers were more likely to label MC students as cooperative and able
This resulted in better exam results for these students
Ball
suggests that inequalities will always continue as long as teacher labelling is still happening
Pro-school subculture
Pupils placed in higher streams are more likely to show commitment to the values of the school
They gain their status by being approved with high academic ability
These pupils tend to perform a pro-school subculture as they are more likely to see the benefits of going to school
Criticisms of the
labelling
theory
Labelling theory has been accused of assuming pupils who have been labelled have not choice but to fulfill their prophecy
Marxists say the labelling theory ignores the wider structures of power where labelling takes place
Labels stem from the fact that teachers work in a system that produces class divisions
The variety of pupil responses
Peter Woods (1979)
- besides pro and anti-school subcultures, there are others:
Ritualism
- staying out of trouble
Retreatism
- daydreaming and mucking about
Ingratiation
- teachers pet
Rebellion
- Outright rejection of everything the school stands for
John Furlong (1984)
- many students may not stick to one type of response and may act differently with different teachers
A pupil subculture is a group of pupils who share similar values and behaviour patterns
Colin Lacey (1970)
Differentiation
- the process of teachers categorising pupils according to how they perceive their ability, attitude and behaviour. Streaming is a form of differentiation
Polarisation
- the process of pupils responding to streaming by moving to one of two 'poles'; 'pro-school subculture' and 'anti-school subculture'
Pupil's class identities and the school
Symbolic capital and symbolic violence
MC pupils who have learnt MC tastes and preferences from their homes automatically gain 'symbolic capital' and are deemed to have worth and value by the school
Schools devalue the WC habitus so that WC pupils tastes and preferences are deemed to be worthless
This is known as 'symbolic violence'
'Symbolic violence' keeps the WC 'in their place'
Archer
- to be an educational success as a WC pupil you will need to 'lose yourself' and change they way you speak and present yourself
'Nike' identitites
Pupils who felt looked down on by the school searched for other ways to gain status and value
They constructed meaningful class identities for them selves and this was heavily done through the consumption of branded clothing such as Nike
Style performances were heavily policed by peers and not conforming was 'social suicide'
The right appearance would earn symbolic capital from peer groups and bring safety from bulling
This lead to conflict with the school dress code and pupils who adopted the street wear in schools were at risk of being labelled as rebels
Nike styles also play a part in WC pupils' rejection of higher education, which they saw as unrealistic and undesirable:
Unrealistic
because it was not for 'people like us', but for richer, posher and cleverer people. It was also seen as unaffordable and a risky investment
Undesirable
because it would not suit their preferred lifestyle or habitus. E.g. they did not want a student loan as it would prevent them from affording their street styles that gave them their identity
Habitus
'Dispositions' or leaned, taken-for-granted ways of thinking, being and acting that are shared by a particular social class
MC has has the power to define its habitus as superior and to impose it on the education system
As a result, the school puts higher-value on MC tastes and preferences
The school has a MC habitus, giving the MC pupils an advantage and the WC culture seen as inferior
Working-class identity and educational succes
Nicola Ingram (2009)
- a study on two groups of WC catholic boys from the same highly deprived area. One group passed 11+ exams and went to grammar school while the other didn't and when to a local secondary school
The grammar school was mainly made up of MC children with MC values whereas the secondary school was made up of mainly WC pupils and had low expectations of achievement
The WC boys felt a sense of belonging from the network of family and friends around the local area. Street culture and branded sportswear was part of the boys habitus
The boys in the MC habitus school found it hard to fit in and found there was tension between the WC habitus of the neighborhood and the school. A boy came into school on non-uniform day in a tracksuit and was ridiculed by his classmates. This gave him a sense of worthlessness and this demonstrates
symbolic violence
Class identity and self-exclusion
Sarah Evans (2009)
- a study on 21 WC girls from south London studying A-Levels found that they were reluctant to apply to more elite universities as they felt there were hidden barriers and a risk of not fitting in
Only 4 of the 21 girls wanted to move away from home as the majority felt a sense of locality