Erving Goffman

Why dont poorer children attain as well as richer children?

Bernstein: Linguistic CodesBourdieu: Habitus, Social & Cultural Capital Erving Goffman / Howard Becker: Dramaturgy & Labelling Week 24 EDUCATION AND SOCIETY

Bernstein: Linguistic Codes

Bourdieu:Cultural Capital

Goffman/Becker:Labelling

Basil Bernstein (1924-2000)Linguistic Codes

Education, knowledge, language and the curriculum:The Elaborated and the Restricted Speech codeBasil Bernstein: Class, Codes and Control, Volume 1: Theoretical Studies towards a Sociology of Language (2003 [first published in 1971])

Definition of the codes (adapted from page 58)Two general types of code can be distinguished: elaborated and restricted In the case of an elaborated code, the speaker will select from an extensive range of linguistic and grammatical options and possibilities (to form elongated and eloquent sentences) ... In the case of a restricted code, linguistic options and alternatives are often severely limited (and so speech and sentences tend to be reduced and quite predictable).

But what does this actually mean?

Guess the code!?!?!?!Im goin tshop for a brewI intend navigating to the nearest local convenience with a view to purchasing a hot-water infused ground-coffee bean beverage

Im skint I cant survive on benefits the systems f****d; Im gonna do somethin about itI have been disadvantaged by a biased and exclusive political and economic system; my dismay at being subjected to such treatment has compelled me to petition my local MP and commence a social media campaign Guess the code!?!?!?!Think about:Do you (and those around you) tend to use more aspects of restricted or elaborated speech codes?

Implications for Education

8Restricted Code = Working ClassElaborated Code = Middle ClassAll aspects of Schooling & Education are based on and communicated by elaborated speech codes

How a society selects, classifies, distributes, transmits and evaluates the educational knowledge reflects both the distribution of power and the principles of social control. (Bernstein, 2003, p. 156)the underlying principles which shape curriculum, pedagogy and evaluation depends upon social principles which regulate the classification and framing of knowledge made public in educational institutions. (Bernstein, 2003, pp. 156-157)

Are Bernsteins ideas still relevant today?

To what extent does Bernstein's argument explain the educational attainment of poorer and richer children?

Can you think of any other factors?

Pierre Bourdieu (1930-2002)The wider cultural environment of social classCultural CapitalHabitus

Pierre Bourdieu: Cultural Capital & HabitusBourdieus theory of Cultural Capital presents us with the following concepts:Economic Capital: (money, housing / space, resources, e.g. books), Social Capital: (networks & social influence: friends, social practices, entertainment), and Cultural Capital: (persons name, clothing / fashion, language, knowledge)Habitus: Identity and personality is formed by and reflects all of the above; it becomes where we belong, (who we are)Bourdieu, P. (1984) Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste, London: RoutledgeWatch the following brief 5-minute clip from the film Educating Rita

11

12

Individual and cultural identity is also a reflection of social class (social and economic) status in societyAs Habitus suggests, Class defines not only language and cultural practices, but the very core of identityWhich of the following concepts do you think were portrayed in the film clip, (briefly explain why)?

Cultural capitalSocial capitalSymbolic capitalHabitus

Social class, and success in education depends on much more than the use of language (and linguistic codes).

Poorer Students: The Obstacles Language, School& Curriculum,Material goods,Environment,Culture &Identity,But Thats not all

14

Erving Goffman (1922-1982)The Presentation of Self In Everyday Life (1956)

Dramaturgy

What is Dramaturgy

Social interaction is like a stage a performance Each individual performs to scriptsBehaviour codes and expectations that have been learned through previous experiences & encounters

For Goffman, performance is divided into two regions, Front-Region (or Front Stage) and Back-Region (or Back Stage)

The way the we express ourselves in wider social & cultural life, (and, in educational settings), is a result of the learning of our scripts

The way that we act (behave, speak, communicate) in schooling contexts, means that learners from poorer backgrounds, tend also to be labelled

Examples of labelling theoryRosenthal and Jacobsen (Pygmalion in the Classroom [1968]) labelling & self fulfilling prophecy.Rosenthal & Jacobson selected 20 percent of students at random - without any regard to IQ test results Told respective teachers that their students would either "bloom" or "spurt" in their academic studies that year. At the end of the year, they came back and re-tested all the students. Those labelled as "bloomers" gained an average of 12 IQ points compared to a gain of 8 points for the other group.

18

Labelling of Poorer Learners:Labelling theory can explain poorer learner educational attainment: Negative labels constructed by middle class teachers for working class children Pupils internalise the labels and live-out a self fulfilling prophecy of failure.Positive labels communicated to middle class children seen as ideal pupils who work hardMiddle Class pupils also live-out a self fulfilling prophecy but one of success.19

Is it any wonder

Why poorer children do not attain as well as richer children?

Could it be any different, do you think?

Could schooling/education be done differently (so as to overcome these obstacles)?

What do YOU think?

Works Cited (and wider reading):

Ball, S. J. (1981) Beachside Comprehensive: A Case-Study of Secondary Schooling, Cambridge: Cambridge University PressBecker, H. (1963) Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance, New York: The Free PressBernstein, B. (2003) Class, Codes and Control, Volume 1: Theoretical Studies towards a Sociology of Language (first published in 1971), London: RoutledgeBourdieu, P. (1984) Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste, Cambridge: Harvard University PressGoffman, E. (1956) The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Social Sciences Research CentreHargreaves, D., Hester, S., Mellor, F. (1975) Deviance in Classrooms, London: Routledge & Kegan PaulRosenthal, R. & Jacobson, L. (1968) Pygmalion in the Classroom: Teacher Expectation and Pupils Intellectual Development, New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston