Factors Affecting Educational Achievement: Social Class (AQA A Level Sociology): Flashcards
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How is a person's social class typically determined?
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Cards in this collection (34)
How is a person's social class typically determined?
A person's social class is typically determined by their occupation or that of their parents.
True or False?
Middle-class pupils are more likely than working-class pupils to be in top sets.
True.
Middle-class students are more likely to be placed in higher sets or streams, and to get more GCSEs at higher grades.
Define cultural deprivation.
Cultural deprivation is the idea that working-class students underachieve because they are socialised into subcultures that lack the attitudes, skills and knowledge needed for academic success.
Why does the elaborated code give middle-class children an advantage?
The elaborated code gives middle-class children an advantage because schools, teachers and textbooks are based on this code.
Bernstein (1975) argued that working-class children are more likely to use the ...................... code, which is context-bound and grammatically simple.
Bernstein (1975) argued that working-class children are more likely to use the restricted code, which is context-bound and grammatically simple.
What did Douglas (1964) find about middle-class parents?
Douglas found that middle-class parents place a higher value on education, visit schools more often and show more interest in their child's progress.
Define deferred gratification.
Deferred gratification is a middle-class value of making sacrifices now to reap the rewards later.
What did Sugarman (1970) mean by fatalism?
Sugarman meant the working-class belief that success is down to fate, rather than something you can change with effort.
How did Keddie (1973) challenge cultural deprivation theory?
Keddie argued that working-class children are culturally different, not deprived, and that schools are biased towards middle-class norms.
True or False?
Robinson (1997) saw changing parenting as the best way to tackle underachievement.
False.
Robinson argued that the most effective way is to address child poverty directly, e.g. through better housing, nutrition and financial support.
Define material deprivation.
Material deprivation is poverty and a lack of physical and economic resources, e.g. insufficient income, poor housing or lack of access to learning materials.
How does overcrowding affect educational achievement?
Overcrowding affects educational achievement because it reduces space for homework, disturbs sleep and increases illness rates.
Callender and Jackson (2005) found that tuition fees and student ................ may discourage university applications.
Callender and Jackson (2005) found that tuition fees and student loans may discourage university applications.
What did Forsyth and Furlong (2000) find about bright working-class students?
Forsyth and Furlong found that material deprivation reduces the likelihood of applying to university, even with the same qualifications as middle-class peers.
Define cultural capital.
Cultural capital is the knowledge, behaviours and values that are aligned with the school system, e.g. familiarity with books, art and museums (Bourdieu, 1984).
How do middle-class parents use social capital?
Middle-class parents use their understanding of the education system and social networks to make strategic choices, e.g. choosing schools or organising private tuition.
True or False?
Sullivan (2001) found that cultural capital fully explains the class effect.
False.
Sullivan found that pupils with greater cultural capital did better at GCSE, but cultural capital only partly explains the class effect.
Which pupils did Becker (1971) say are most often seen as the ideal pupil?
Becker argued that middle-class pupils are most likely to be seen as the ideal pupil: motivated, polite and high-achieving.
Define self-fulfilling prophecy.
A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that becomes true simply because it has been made, e.g. a pupil labelled as high-achieving works harder and performs well.
What did Rosenthal and Jacobson (1968) find about the 'bloomers'?
Rosenthal and Jacobson found that the randomly selected 'bloomers' made significantly more progress a year later, suggesting teachers' expectations influenced outcomes.
True or False?
Rosenthal and Jacobson observed teacher-student interactions directly.
False.
They did not observe teacher-student interactions, so their claim that the 'bloomers' received more attention remains unverified.
Define streaming.
Streaming is the allocation of students to classes based on their ability, which interactionists see as a form of institutionalised labelling.
What did Keddie (1971) find about pupils in bottom streams?
Keddie found that pupils in bottom streams had limited access to high-level knowledge, as less was expected of them.
Gillborn and Youdell (2000) call schools' drive to maximise the number of pupils gaining five good GCSE passes the 'A-to-C ......................'.
Gillborn and Youdell (2000) call schools' drive to maximise the number of pupils gaining five good GCSE passes the 'A-to-C economy'.
Define educational triage.
Educational triage is when schools sort pupils by predicted grade, focusing help on borderline pupils and neglecting 'hopeless cases'.
True or False?
Working-class pupils are disproportionately placed in higher sets.
False.
Working-class pupils are disproportionately placed in lower sets, which creates low self-esteem and can lead to failure (Ball, 1981).
What characterises an anti-school subculture?
An anti-school subculture is made up mostly of working-class pupils in lower sets who reject school values and gain status from defying authority.
According to Lacey (1970), why do some pupils join deviant subcultures?
Lacey argued that pupils with a negative self-image join deviant subcultures in compensation, which confirms their failure in the eyes of the school.
How does Fuller (1984) challenge labelling theory?
Fuller showed that pupils can reject negative labels: Black girls in London worked harder to disprove stereotypes, so labelling is not deterministic.
True or False?
Marxists argue that teacher labels are simply personal prejudices.
False.
Marxists argue that labels reflect the pressures of an education system that serves capitalist interests, not just individual bias.
Define habitus.
Habitus is a way of thinking, being and acting shared by a particular social class, including its tastes and expectations about what is normal for people like them.
Why might working-class students reject elite universities?
Working-class students may reject elite universities because they feel such places are 'not for them', a form of self-exclusion that protects their identity.
Define symbolic violence.
Symbolic violence is when working-class pupils' values and tastes are seen as inferior by a school with a middle-class habitus.
Young (2012) found a working-class subculture in Glasgow known as '............', whose members saw school as pointless.
Young (2012) found a working-class subculture in Glasgow known as 'Neds', whose members saw school as pointless.
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