Cultural Deprivation
some see working class culture as failing to provide necessary attributes for educational success
alleged cultural differences suggest working class place too much emphasis on enjoying themselves + living in the moment
Working class subculture - Sugarman
immediate gratification
seek pleasure now rather than making sacrifices to get rewards in the future
fatalist
fate, 'whatever will be, will be', there's nothing you can do to improve your prospects
collectivist
value being part of a group rather than succeeding as an individual
present time orientated
live life in the moment rather than worrying about future so don't have long term goals
working class may lack knowledge to succeed as they haven't benefitted from same informal education from parents
may lack ability to speak, read, write + think on ways which will because of upbringing
Feinstein
cultural deprivation major factor affecting achievement
crucial factor was extent to which parents encouraged + supported children
Goodman & Gregg
cultural factors that helped explain low educational achievement among poor children
quality of parent-child interactions
how often parents read books to children
attitudes to education
value parents placed on education
extent of negative behaviour by children
parental involvement in schooling
found cultural factors to be most important to low achievement
Bernstein
Restricted codes
Elaborated codes
shorthand speech
meanings not made explicit
short, simple, unfinished sentences
typical of working class who are more likely to communicate verbally in their jobs
filled in + made explicit
longer, more complex sentences
typically used in middle class jobs where there's more need to write reports + produce documents
encourages more developed + sophisticated reasoning
necessary for exam success
used by teachers
being socialised in households that moistly use restricted codes holds back working class children in education system
working class children may feel less confident than middle class children in school environment
EVALUATION
:( critics question whether such big cultural difference between classes exist in the contemporary world
:( Blackstone + Mortimore argue research hasn't adequately measured parental interest in education
:( Gillian Evans found most working class parents placed very high value on education + did encourage their children to do well
:( Gaine + George criticise Bernstein, saying he oversimplifies the difference between working class + middle class speech patterns as they found differences aren't as prominent now + others factors also affect educational attainment
Patterns of Achievement
Centre for Longitudinal Studies found by the age of 3, children from disadvantaged backgrounds are already up to a year behind those from privileged backgrounds + gap widens with age
Webber & Butler found best predictor of achievement was type of neighbourhood pupils lived in as the more middle class + affluent the area, the more successful the school tended to be
John Jerrim found that even the most talented were being left behind in education if they came from a lower class background + suggested that without class advantages, talent often isn't enough to succeed
since middle class parents tend to be better educated, they're able to their children an advantage by how they socialise them
less educated parents parenting style often consists of harsh, inconsistent discipline centred around 'doing as you're told' which prevents child from learning independence + self control
educated parents are better able to get expert advice on childrearing, more successful at building good relationships with teachers + better at guiding their children with school related activities + problems
working class families can't make use of a higher income where there's spare money to spend in ways that promote children's educational success
stems from fact working class jobs are less secure + have no career structure through which individuals can advance + get promotions
:( Keddie says cultural deprivation is a myth + a victim blaming explanation rather than acknowledging that working class are simply culturally different, not culturally deprived
:( Troyna + Williams argue teachers have a speech hierarchy, labelling middle class speech the highest, followed by working class speech then black speech
:( working class are put at a disadvantage by an education system that's dominated by middle class values