Relationships and Processes

Question 1

What are relationships?

Answer 1

• The connection between people within school such as teachers, students and peers

Question 2

What are processes?

Answer 2

• The different types of social interactions such as the curriculum, assessment and institutions

Question 3

What are teacher and pupil relationships? (Labelling Theory)

Answer 3

• The Labelling Theory was developed by Howard Becker
• Labelling is the process of defining a person in a simplified way fitting them into a broad category
• Labelling is a judgement made about a person often when you first meet them
• Teachers actively judgements their pupils making observations about their learning and attitudes which then result in a label
• The labels are based on preconceived ideas labelling them to stereotypes
• Therefore the labelling theory leads to the self-fulfilling prophecy, this is where the individual accepts their label and internalizes
• This label can influence their identity and define how they see themselves
• The teacher may also have a halo effect of the ideal student

Question 4

What is an example of the labelling theory?

Answer 4

Evidence = Rosenthal and Jacobson: Pygmalion in the Classroom (1968)

• Supports the self-fulfilling prophecy theory
• They selected a random sample and informed teachers that students could be expected to achieve rapid intellectual development
• They had two groups labelled as two separate groups with more intelligence than another
• They speculated that teachers have passed on higher expectations to students which had produced a self-fulfilling prophecy

Question 5

What are pupil subcultures?

Answer 5

• A subculture is a group who share ideas and behaviours which are different from mainstream values

There are two different subcultures =

1. Anti-school Subculture:
   - This is a counter school subculture which consists of students who rebel against the school for various reasons, they hold alternative set of delinquent values and attitudes which oppose academic aims
   - Things such truancy, avoiding school work and breaking the rules is a way of getting back at the system and gaining status among peers
   - An evidence of the counter-school culture is Paul Willis’ study of Learning to Labour where he observed working class boys
2. Pro-School Subculture
   - They are students which accept the values and ethos who are willingly to conform to its rules
   - They tend to be students in higher sets who aspire to high academic achievement who are prepared to work hard
   - They work alongside the teachers and encourage peer success
   - An evidence of Mac An Ghaill is study of working class male subcultures

Question 6

What are pupil identities?

Answer 6

• An identity is the way in which individuals and groups define themselves
• A student constructs their identity through complex influences such as family, ethnicity and gender
• These identities correlate to identities in school that they follow (Self-fulfilling Prophecy )
• These can be things such as not being academic or being slow

Question 7

What is the hidden curriculum?

Answer 7

• The hidden curriculum is things such as social norms and values passed through things in school
• This can be things such as punctuality, hierarchy, authority and uniform
• This prepares students for working by being taught the same rules needed in the workforce
• The formal curriculum is things in school such as subjects

Question 8

What is organizations in school?

Answer 8

1. Setting
2. Streaming
3. Banding
4. Educational Triage

Question 9

What is setting?

Answer 9

• Setting students in classed is based on a subject by subject basis
• This is setting them in to higher and lower classes
• This allows each student to get personalized help catered to their achievement
• However this can lead to low self esteem and negative labelling

Question 10

What is streaming?

Answer 10

• Streaming is sorted into classes by ability across their subjects so if they are in a higher level for one, they are also in it for another subject
• Keddie argues they transmit more knowledge to higher level students as they believe they will do well

Question 11

What is banding?

Answer 11

• Banding is students with similar academic knowledge are taught together
• However Rist argues that students are labelled based on their appearance and how the teacher perceives them

Question 12

What is the educational triage?

Answer 12

• Gillborn and Youdell
• This is categorizing students depending on how smart they are, however they can have negative experiences of this and therefore a low income
  1. The top stream with high achievers
  2. The borderline passes who require attention
  3. Hopeless cases are placed in the bottom stream
• Gillborn and Youdell link this to their position on the league table

Question 13

What is an evaluation of relationships and processes?

Answer 13

• It is too deterministic as it is based of labels
• It cannot be generalised
• Out of school processes are more important