Download Social class and achievement

Starter:
Complete task
You have 10 minutes
1. Decide which person will be your working-class
character, your middle-class character and your
upper class character.
2. Attach one speech bubble to the character that
you think it most likely belongs to.
10 Mins
The Nature vs. Nurture debate
• The nature theory (biological explanation) argues
that educational success or failure depend on the
intelligence of each individual child. The
intelligence is inherited from parents through
genes. Therefore, how we perform in school is
determined by the ability levels we are born with.
• The nurture theory (Sociological explanation)
argues that educational success or failure is
determined by the social environment. Therefore,
factors such as social class, gender, ethnicity, peer
pressure, family and teachers affect educational
performance.
• Class vote - which view do you agree with? Hands
up for nature... and now for nurture view.
5 Mins
Task 1
• Work in pairs to fill in the gaps in the text – it
is a summary of what you need to know about
social class factors that affect educational
achievement.
20 Mins
Peer assess:
Material deprivation – working class
• Material deprivation means living in poverty.
• Working class parents may not be able to afford to buy school
uniform, PE kit or specialist equipment required. Many schools
have a policy whereby if a child comes to school in incorrect
uniform or without equipment, they are sent home.
• Moreover, being poor means that some working class families
find themselves living in overcrowded housing with a lack of
privacy or quiet space where a child can do their homework or
revision.
• Unhealthy living conditions such as damp and cold and a
nutritionally poor diet can also affect the educational
achievement of working class children as they suffer more
illnesses so their school attendance is poor.
• Therefore, they miss out on learning and lack the necessary
knowledge to pass the exam.
10 Mins
Material deprivation – middle class
• On the other hand, middle class children
tend to live in better quality housing with
their own room to study in.
• Middle class parents can afford to buy
extra books and computers for their
children to learn from as well as to pay
for private tutors.
• These factors help middle class children
do better in exams.
Cultural deprivation – working
class
• Cultural deprivation means a lack of
experiences, knowledge and skills needed to
succeed in education.
• Working class children are said to be culturally
deprived as their parents can’t give them the
experiences such as trips to museums or
foreign holidays.
• Their parents may not be able to buy them
extra books or PC or educational toys to help
them learn.
Cultural deprivation – middle
class
• Children from middle class backgrounds are not culturally
deprived as they have life experiences which help them with
their school work.
• These experiences include trips to museums and galleries
with their parents, foreign holidays, etc.
• Through these experiences they gain a better understanding
of the world which helps them understand what is being
taught at school.
• Middle class children tend to have books, computers and
educational toys to help them learn at home.
• Middle class have cultural capital. This means that middle
class parents are well educated so can help their children
with homework and coursework.
• Middle class parents also have the knowledge of how the
education system works so they can get their children into
the best schools or get them extra help from the school if the
child needs it.
Parental attitudes – working
class
• Working class values are different to middle class values as
they tend to seek immediate gratification. This means living
for the moment with little thought for the future.
• Working class parents are less likely to be involved in their
children’s education, for example, their poor attendance of
parents’ evenings. However, this may be down to the fact
that working class occupations require shift work so it could
be that the type of employment working class parents do
prevents them from being involved in their children’s
education.
• Working class parents also tend to hold fatalistic attitudes to
their situation. This means that they feel there is nothing
they can do to improve their situation. As they pass this
attitude to their children; they do not realise that through
education they can improve their lives.
Parental attitudes – middle
class
• Middle class parents place high value on
personal, individual success and emphasise
planning for the future. They pass these values to
their children thus helping them become
ambitious and motivated to do well in education.
• Middle class parents also teach their children to
value deferred gratification. This means being
prepared to make sacrifices now for future
rewards.
• Moreover, middle class parents are said to show
more interest and involvement in their children’s
education. They are said to be more likely to
regularly check their children’s homework and
keep in touch with teachers.
Speech codes – middle class
• Language is a major reason for the difference
between working and middle class children’s
achievement.
• The elaborated code is used by the middle
class. It has a wide vocabulary and consists of
longer, grammatically correct sentences.
• Elaborated code is used by teachers, textbooks
and exams.
• Middle class children are socialised into using
the elaborated code at home and so feel
comfortable using it at school.
Speech codes – working class
• The restricted code is used by the working
class. It is limited in vocabulary, uses short,
unfinished and grammatically simple
sentences.
• As working class children are not familiar with
the elaborated code, it puts them at a
disadvantage at school.
Past exam questions
• Explain what sociologists studying education
mean by material deprivation. (4 marks)
• What is the difference between the restricted
and the elaborated speech code (4 marks)
• What is meant by the term ‘cultural
deprivation’ and how can it affect educational
achievement of working class children
(4 marks)
15 Mins
Material
deprivation
A lack of
resources
related to
financial
situation.
Speech
patterns
Cultural capital
Attainment
levels in
schools may be
related to
differences in
speech
patterns.
Students from
working class
background
lack the correct
values and
attitudes from
socialisation
Supporting
study
Supporting
study
Supporting
study
Challenge:
How can this
affect
educational
achievement?
Challenge
How can this
affect
educational
achievement?
Challenge
How can this
affect
educational
achievement?
Parental
attitudes
Labelling
Attaching a
characteristic
or definition to
an individual or
a group
Supporting
study
Challenge
How can this
affect
educational
achievement?
Supporting
study
Challenge
How can this
affect
educational
achievement?
Becker (1977) found
that teachers make
judgements and label
their students in the
first 5 minutes of
meeting them. The
ideal student is seen as
middle-class.
Douglas’s (1964)
longitudinal study
clearly showed that
home background
(especially parents’
interest in education),
rather than IQ,
determined students’
qualifications.
Bernstein (1961)
argued there are two
types of language:
elaborated code and
restricted code.
Working-class students
are at a disadvantage
as schools require the
elaborated code.
Keddie (1973) found
that working-class
students are often
placed in lower
streams.
Boudon (1974) argues
that middle-class
students have more
pressure to succeed
than working-class
students because if
they don’t go to
university they will
loose their friends.
Bourdieu (1973)
argued that education
benefits the ruling
class, who possess
cultural capital. The
education system is
based on ruling-class
culture, which gives
the ruling class an
advantage.
Statistics show that
increasing numbers of
working-class students
are going to university.
Gewirtz et al. (1995)
found middle-class
parents were more
likely to have
knowledge about
where the best schools
are, and can afford to
buy houses near good
schools.
Smith and Noble
(1995) argue that
poverty means some
parents are unable to
afford school uniform,
trips, computers.
Plenary
5 Mins
Which is most to blame for social class
differences in achievement?
Note down points for each social agent.
Home
School
Challenge: If you were a Head Teacher, what would you do to
raise the achievement of working-class students?
Homework
•
For each of the factors listed, explain how they could lead to educational
underachievement of working class children:
•
•
Lack of correct school uniform or PE kit –
•
•
Lack of quiet space at home to study –
•
•
Poor diet, e.g. no breakfast before going to school –
•
•
Lack of books and a PC at home –
•
•
Lack of visits to museums or holidays abroad –
•
•
Using the restricted code –
•
•
Lack of parental visits to school, e.g. parents not attending TSD –
LEARNING JOURNEY
The purpose of education
- Sociological theories on
education – Functionalism
and Marxism
Formal and informal
education – National
Curriculum and hidden
curriculum
The factors affecting
educational achievement
- social class
The factors affecting
educational achievement
– ethnicity
Education in
contemporary Britain –
structure, vocational
education, marketisation,
Reforms of the British
education system over the
last 40 years and the
criticisms of these
educational reforms
The factors affecting
educational achievement
– school
The factors affecting
educational achievement
– gender
Contemporary issues
relating to the education
system such as faith
schools, testing, special
needs
The alternative forms of
education in Britain –
home schooling, private
education
Revision
End of unit assessment –
mock exam