Education - class differences in achievement (1) external factors

Question 1

middle class profession examples

Answer 1

doctors
teachers
managers
business owners
white collar office workers

Question 2

working class professions examples

Answer 2

manual occupation
semi skilled workers
plumbers
lorry drivers
cleaners

Question 3

explaining class difference (3 key features)

Answer 3

Children from middle class families on average perform better than wc children
Children from middle class do better in their gcse
Children from middle class stay longer in full time education eg university

Question 4

One popular explanation for class differences in achievement

Answer 4

Better-off parents can afford to send their children to provide schools which may provide a higher level of education

Question 5

internal factors =

Answer 5

interactions between pupils and teachers and inequalities between schools

Question 6

external factors =

Answer 6

influence of home and family background and wider society

Question 7

the three main aspects of cultural deprivation

Answer 7

language
parents education
working class subculture

Question 8

3 main features of cultural deprivation

Answer 8

Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are up to one year behind those from more privileged homes.

Basic values, attitudes and skills are needed for educational success through primary socialization in the family.

Working class families fail to socialise their children which means they grow up culturally deprived that leads to underachievement.

Question 9

language key features

Answer 9

Educated parents use language that challenges their children to evaluate their own understanding or abilities.

Educated parents use praise which encourages children to develop a sense of their own competence.

Less educated parents use language in way that require children to make simple descriptive statements resulting in lower performance.

Less educated parents communicate through gestures, single words and disjointed phrases which means they grow up incapable of complex abstract thinking.

Question 10

restricted code =

Answer 10

used by working class
limited vocabulary
short, unfinished sentences
grammatically simple words
context bound
descriptive not analytic
speech is predictable

Question 11

elaborated code=

Answer 11

used by middle class
wider vocabulary
complex sentences
communicates abstract ideas
elaborate code is context free

Question 12

effects of speech codes according to Bernstein

Answer 12

Elaborate code is the language used by teachers, textbooks and exams.

Elaborate code is an effective tool for analyzing, reasoning and expressing thoughts clearly and effectively.

Middle class feel “at home” when at school using elaborate code so they are more likely succeed.

Working class children lack in elaborate code so they feel less excluded and tend to be less successful

Question 13

criticisms of speech codes

Answer 13

working class pupils fail not because they are culturally deprived but because schools fail to teach them how to use elaborate code

Question 14

what does Douglas say about parents education which leads children to have lowered levels of motivation and achievement

Answer 14

Wc parents place less value on education which leads them to be less ambitious, give less encouragement, take less interest in education, visit school less often and are less likely to discuss children’s progress with teachers

Question 15

educated parenting style =

Answer 15

consistent discipline
high expectations of children
active learning
exploration

Question 16

less educated parenting style =

Answer 16

harsh and inconsistent discipline
“doing as your told”
lack of learning independence
lack of self control
poor motivation at school
problems interacting with teachers

Question 17

parents educational behavior (middle class)

Answer 17

reading to their children
painting and drawings
teaching them letters, numbers songs & poems etc
helping with homework
getting expert advice on child-rearing
establishing good relationship with teachers
visits to museums and libraries

Question 18

use of income (Bernstein and Young)

Answer 18

middle class parents are more likely to buy educational toys, books and activities that encourage reasoning sills and stimulate intellectual development

educated parents have better understanding on nutrition and its importance to child development so they buy more nutritious food

Question 19

class, income and parental education criticism (Feinstein)

Answer 19

not all children of working class parents do equally bad an not all middle class families are equally successful

Question 20

4 features of working class subculture that act as an educational barrier (Barry Sugerman)

Answer 20

fatalism- belief in fate, “whatever will be will be” and there is nothing you can do that will change your status

collectivism- value being part of a group more than succeeding as an individual

immediate gratification- seeking pleasure now rather than making sacrifices in order to get reward in the future

present time orientation- not having long term goals or plans

Question 21

why do differencerence in sibculture values exists?

Answer 21

middle class jobs are secure careers that that offer prospects for continuous individual advancement, which encourages ambition, long term planning and qualifications in comparison to working class jobs

Question 22

what is compensatory education?

Answer 22

programmes that aim to tackle the problem of cultural deprivation
provides extra resources to schools and communities in deprived areas
improving parental skills
setting up nursery classes
setting up home visits by educational psychologists
examples include “operation head start”

Question 23

myth of cultural deprivation (criticisms)

Answer 23

cultural deprivation = victim blaming

children are not culturally deprived but culturally different

children fail because schools are dominated by middle class values

schools don’t challenge teachers anti-working class prejudice

teachers have speech hierarchy which puts wc children at a disadvantage

wc parents attend fewer parents evenings because of working long hours and the schools middle class atmosphere

Question 24

material deprivation =

Answer 24

poverty and a lack of material necessities such as adequate housing and income.

Question 25

How is poverty linked to educational underachievement? (4 examples)

Answer 25

free school meals is a widely used measure of child poverty

money problem in the family are a factor in younger children’s non-attendance at school

exclusion and truancy are more likely from children from poorer families

nearly 90% of falling schools are located in deprived areas

Question 26

how does housing affect pupils achievement

Answer 26

overcrowding = harder to study, less room for activites, disturbed sleep, no where to do homework, greater risk of accidents

temporary accommodation = constant changes of school and disturbed education, psychological distress

cold or damp housing= ill health which means more absences in school

Question 27

how does diet and health affect pupils achievement

Answer 27

young people from poorer homes have lower intakes of energy, vitamins and minerals= weakening the immune system

the lower the social class= emotional and behavior problems such as hyperactivity, anxiety and conduct disorder

children from low income homes= engaged in externalizing behavior such as fighting and temper tantrums

Question 28

how does support and the cost of education affect pupils achievement

Answer 28

lack of financial support = children from poor families have to do without equipment and miss out on experiences. inability to afford private schooling and tuition

burden on poor families= transport, uniforms, books, computers, calculators, sport and art equipment

poor families having to result to hand me downs = being isolated,stigmatized and bullied by peers

children in poverty take on jobs such as babysitting, cleaning and paper rounds which has a negative impact on schoolwork

Question 29

what % of children entitled to free school meals do not take up their entitlement in school

Answer 29

20% according to Flaherty

Question 30

how does fear of debt affect pupils achievement

Answer 30

wc students are more debt averse (saw debt negatively) = something that needs to be avoided and has a lot of costs

wc students were over five times less likely to apply to university than most middle class pupils

wc students who do go to uni are likely to receive less financial support from their families

wc pupils are more likely to apply to local universities so they can live at home and save money

poor students are more likely to dropout of university

Question 31

what is cultural capital

Answer 31

knowledge, values, attitudes, language, tastes and abilities of the middle class

Question 32

how does culturual capital place middle class students at an advantage

Answer 32

through socialisation middle class students acquire abstract ideas and they develop an understanding of what the educational system requires for success

Question 33

how does cultural capital place wc students at a disadvantage

Answer 33

school deviates wc culture as rough and inferior

lack of cultural capital = exam failure

wc pupils get the message that school is “not for them” so they respond by truanting and leaving early

Question 34

how can educational, economic and cultural capital be converted into one another (Bourdieu)

Answer 34

mc children with cultural capital are better equipped to meet demands of school curriculum and gain qualifications

wealthier parents can convert their economic capital into educational capital by sending their children to private schools and paying for extra tuition