Education- class differences in achievement- internal factors

What does it mean to label someone?

To attach a meaning or defintion to them. For example, teachers label pupils as bright or thick, a trouble maker or hardworking. 

Why do teachers attach labels to pupils?

Teachers label pupils on the basis of stereotyped assumptions about their class background, labelling working class pupils negatively and middle class pupils positvely. 

What theorists are studies of labelling carried out by and what do they do to carry out the study?

Labelling studies have been carried out by interactionist sociologists, interactionists study small-scale face-to-face interactions between individuals, such as in the classroom or playground.They are interested in how people attach labels to one another and the effects it has on those who are labelled. 

What is Becker's study on teacher labelling?

Becker carried out an interactionist study of labelling. It was based on intervires with 60 Chicago high school teachers, he doung that they judged pupils according to how closely they fitted an image of the ideal pupil. Pupils work, conduct and appearance were key factors influencing teachers judgements. The teachers saw children from middle class backgrounds as closest to the ideal and children from working class backgrounds as furthest away from the ideal. 

How does Hempel-jorgesen's study of primary schools show teacher labelling?

She found teachers notions of the ideal pupil varied depenfing on the social class make up of the school.

• In a largely working class primary school where staff said discipline was a major problem, the ideal pupil was defined as quiet, passive and obedient- children were defined in terms of their behaviour not ability.
• In the mainly middle class primary schhool which has few disipline [roblems the ideal pupil was defined in terms of personality and academic ability. 

Why did Dunne and Gazelt argue that schools produced working-class underachievement?

Because of the labels and asssumptions of teachers. Interviews in 9 state secondary schools found that teachers normalised the underachievement of working class pupils, they seemed unconcerned about it and felt they could do little or nothing to help it, where as they believed they could overcome middle class underachievement. A reason for this difference was the teachers beleif in the role of pupils home backgrounds- they labelled wotking class parents as uninterested in their childs education but labelled middle class parents as supportive. This led to class differences in how teachers dealt with underachievement, they set extension work for middle class pupils but entered working class pupils for easier exams. Teachers also underestimated working class potentional and those doing well were seen as over-achieveing. 

What is a self-fulfilling prophecy and how can it affect pupils achievement?

It is a predication which comes true simply because it was made. 

Labeling can effect a pupils achievement by creating a self fulfilling prophecy-

• Step 1: The teacher labels the pupil and on the basis of the label makes predictions about them.
• Step 2: The teacher treats the pupil accordingly, acting as if the prediction is already true.
• Step 3: The pupil internalises the teachers expectations which become part of his self-concept. Therefore now the pupil becomes the kind of pupil the teacher believed them to be in the first place. 

How do Rosenthal and Jacobson show the self-fulfilling prophecy at work?

They told a school they had a new test which was designed to indentify pupils who would spurt ahead. This was unture because the test was simply an IQ tests, but teachers importantly believed what they were told. The researchers tested all pupils and then picked 20% of them at random and again falsely told the school these children had been indetified as spurters. On return to the school they found hald of those inteentified as spurters made significant progress. R and J suggest that teachers beliefs about pupils had been influenced by the test the teachers conveged these beliefs to the children in the way they interacted with them- for example through attention.

How does Rosenthal and Jacobson's research show the self-fulfilling prophecy?

By accpeting the preidciation that some children would spurt ahead, the teachers brought it about. The fact children were picked at randon strongly suggets that if teachers believe pupils to be of a certian type. they then make him or her into that type.

What does streaming involve?

Streaming involved seperating children into different ability classes or groups called streams. Each ability group is then taught seperately frrom one another. Studies show the self-fulfilling prophecy is likely to occur when children are streamed. 

How does streaming create a self-fulfilling prophecy?

One streamed it is diffcult for children to move to higher streams, children are more or less locked into teachers low expectations of them. Children in low sttreams get the message teachers have written them off, this creates a self-fulfilling prophecy in whih pupils live up to teachers low expectations of them by underachieveing. 

What do Gillborn and Youdell the A-to-C economy?

A-to-C economy is the system in which schools focus their time, effort and resources on those pupils they see as having the potentional to get 5 grade C's and so boost the schools league table postions.

What does the term educational triage mean?

Triage means sorting. The authors argue that the A-to-C economy producess educational triage. Schools categorise pupils into 3 types?

• Those who will pass anyway and can be left to get on with it. 
• Those wih the potential, who will be helped to get a grade C or above.
• Hopelesss cases, who are doomed to fail.

What drives educational triage?

The need to gain a good league table position.

How does the need to gain a good league table position effect streaming?

Which becomes the basis for streaming where teachers beliefs about the lack of ability of working class pupils are used to segregate them into lower streams or sets, where they recieve less attention, support and resources. This results in lower levels of achievement for working class pupils. 

What is a pupil subculture?

A group of puils who share similar values and behaviour patterns. Pupil subcultures often emerge as a response to the way in which pupils have been labelled, in particular a reacttion to streaming. 

How do the concepts of differentiation and polarisation explain how pupil subcultures develop?

• Differentiation- the process of teachers categorising pupils according to how they percieve their ability, attitude or behaviour. Streaming is a form of differnetiation as it catergorises pupils into different classes. 
• Polarisation- the way in which pupils respond to streaming by moving towards 1 of 2 opposite poles or extremes. Lacey found streaming polarised boys into a pro-school or anti-school subculture.

What is a pro-school subculture?

Pupils placed in high streams tend to remian commited to the values of school. They gain status in the approved manner through academic success. Their values are those of the school they tend to form a pro-school subculture.

What is an anti-school subculture?

Those placed in low streams suffer a loss of self-esteem: the school undermines their self-worth by placing them in the position of inferior status. The label of failure pushes them to search for alternative ways of gaining status. This involves ignoring the schools values of hard work, puncutality and obediance. As a means of gaining status people from anit school subcultures, smoke, truant, cheek teachers and do not do their homework. 

How does joining an anti school subculture cause problems for pupils?

Joining an anti-school subculture is likely to become a self-fulfilling prophecy of educational failure. 

What response did Hargreaves find to labelling and streaming?

From the point of view of the education system, boys in lower streams were triple failures: they had failed their 11+ exam, they had been placed in low streams and had been labelled as worthless louts. 

What did Ball find in his study of Beachside?

Beachside was a comprehensive in the process of aboloshing banding in favour of teaching mixed abillity groups. Ball found that when the school abolished banding, the basiis for pupils to polarise into subcultures was also removed, and the influence of the anti-school subculture declined. Although polarisation disappeared, differentiation continued, to catorgerise pupils differently and were more likely to label middle class pupils as able. This psotivee labelling was refleccted in their better exam results suggesting a self-fulfilling prophecy had occured. 

According to Woods what other responses are there to labelling and streaming?

• Ingratiation- being the teachers pet.
• Ritualism- going through the motions and satying out of trouble.
• Retreatism- daydreaming and mucking about.
• Rebllion- outright rejection of everything the school stands for.

How can the labelling thory be criticised?

• Has been accused of determinism- it assumes pupils who are labelled have no choice but to fulfil the prophecy and will  inevitably fail.However, fullers study shows this is not true
• Marxixts criticises labelling theory for ignoring wider structures of power within which labelling takes place.

What is habitus?

Habitus refers to the dipositions or learned, taken for granted ways of thinking, being and acting, that are shared in a particuar social class. It includes their taste, preferences about lifestyles and consumption, their outlook on life and their expectations about what is normal or realistic for people. A groups habitus is formed as a reponse to its position in the class structure. 

How does habitus benefit the middle class?

The middle class has the power to define its habitus as superior and to impose it on the education system. The school puts a higher value on middle-class tastes and preferences. As schools have a middle-class habitus, pupils who have been socialised into middle class tastes and preferences gain symbolic capital and recogniton from the school and are deemed to have worth or value.

How does working class haibitus and symbolic violence effect working class pupils?

The school devalues the working class habitus, so working class tastes are deemed worthless or tasteless. This is thw withholding of symbolic capital which Bordieu calls symbolic violence. Which reproduces the class structure and keeps the lower class in their place. 

How does the clash between working class pupils habitus and the schools middle class habitus effect working class pupils?

Working class students may experience the world of educaton as alien and unnatural. Archer found that working-class pupils felt that to be educatonally sucessful, they would have to change how they talked and presented themsleves. Therefore for working class students educational success is a process of losing yourself.

How did many working class pupils create self-worth, status and value?

They created meaningful identities by inversting heavily in styles such as branded clothing like Nike. Wearing brands was a way of being them, without them they would feel inauthentic. These style performances were heavily policed by peer group and not conforming was seen as social suicide. The right appearance earned symbolic capital and approval from peer groups and brough safety from bullying. 

How can styles negatively impact working class pupils?

It led to conflict with the schools dress code. Reflecting the schools middle class habitus teachers opposed street styles as showing bad taste or as a threat, pupils who adopted street styles risked being labelled as rebels.

How do Nike styles play a part in working class pupils rejection of higher education?

It was seen as unrelastic and undesirable.

• Unrealistic- because it was not for 'people like us' but for richer, posher, cleverer people, and they would not fit in. It was also seen as unaffordable and risky investment.
• Undesireable- because it wold not 'suit' their preffered lifestyle or habitus. E.g. they did not want to live on a student loan because they would be unable to afford the street styles which gave them their identitiy. 

What does ingram's study say about the relationship between educational success and working class identities?

Ingram stuudies of working class catholic boys from the same highly deprived neighbourhood in Belfast offers an offers an answer to the question. 1 group passed their 11+ and gone to grammar school and the other had failed and gone to secondary school. The grammar school has a middle class habitus and high expectations of their children and the scondary school had low expectations of its underachieveing pupils. Ingram found wotkinf class identity was inseprable from belonging to a working class locality. The neighbourhoods dense family and friends networks were a key part of the boys habitus- it give them a feeling of belonging. Working class communities place a great emphasis on confomity and pressure to fit in, which was a particular problem for the grammar school boys who experienced tension between the habitus of their working class neighbourhood and that of their middle-class school. For example, a boy was ridiculed for wearing a tracksuit to school on non-uniform ay. By opting to fit in with his neighbourhood habitus he was made to feel worthless by the schools middle class habitus. The choice is  between unworthiness at school for wearing certian clothes and worthlessness at home for not. The ridiculing is an example of symbolic violence.

What did evans study suggest?

Evans studied 21 working class girls from south london comprehensive school, studyinf for their A-levels. She founf that they were reluctant to apply for oxbridge and they few that did apply felt the sense of hidden barriers and not fitting in. Evans found these girls had a strong attachment to thier locality, only 4 of the 21  inteneded to move away from home to study. Reay et al points out self exclusion from the elite or distant uni's narrows options of many working class pupils and limits their success. 

How does Bourdieu support Evans research?

Many working class pupils see oxbriidge as being not for the likes of us. This feeling comes from their habitus, which includes beliefs about what opportunities really exist from them and whether they would fit in. Such thinking becomes part of their identity and leads working class students to exclude themselves from elite universities.