Schools and delinquent behaviour

Troubles of Youth21 January 2008

Lecture Outline

• Sociological Theories of Education• Theoretical Links between Education and

Delinquency• Problems in Schools• Policy Responses• Exclusions and Criminal Careers

How we perceive Education

• Education is traditionally cited in positive, functional terms

• The location of positive change in – life chances– economic and social inequalities– personal improvement– independence

Sociological Approaches (1)

• Functionalist Sociology– education provides moral education: the basis

of social order– Formal education is strongly related to wider

socialisation processes– Skills and knowledge important aspects, but

the “hidden curriculum” of regulation vital– Education acts to discriminate and rank

individuals, to the benefit of the rest of society

Sociology Approaches (2)• Conflict based sociology• Education acts to maintain and reproduce social

inequalities• Working class children, and female pupils have

roles and expectations matched to realistically low achievements

• For middle class children, education operates to reproduce culturally dominant modes of behaviour and achievement

• Education perpetuates the myth of meritocracy

Schools reflect wider society?

• Little independent effect of schooling– Conflict Theories

• Schools act to prepare young people for the alienation of capitalist / patriarchal / racist society

– Social Disorganisation• Schools are examples and reflections of

widespread community disintegration, which diminishes effective socialisation

Schools as arenas of Personal Failure?

• Absence of self-control; impulsiveness; weak perception of consequences of action etc.

• David Farrington– the same factors that predict offending careers trigger

educational failure– Low IQ -> Educational Failure -> Lack of goal

achievement -> offending • Social Development

– Schools can act to reinforce or inhibit effective social bonds between individuals, and to wider groups

– Anti-school subculture

Schools as Situationally important

• Schools provide the critical mix for crime opportunity– “at-risk of victimisation” members of society– high value, sellable property– motivated offenders– (possibly) low-levels of effective supervision

Independent Effects of Schools• Labelling Theories

– establishment and re-enforcement of categories of young people

Disaffection and “Trouble” in Schools

• Tension between individual needs and that of the group is apparent throughout the education system

• Sources of ‘trouble’ for children in school– failure to do their work– behaviour towards others– attendance

Steer Report (2005)“It is often the case that for pupils, school is a calm place in a

disorderly world. We realise that this is not the case in every school, but in our experience, where unsatisfactory behaviour does occur, in the vast majority of cases it involves low-level disruption in lessons. Incidents of serious misbehaviour, and especially acts of extreme violence, remain exceptionally rare and are carried out by a very small proportion of pupils”

• some new forms problematic behaviour around new technology

• “in loco parentis”?: “a trend for parents to challenge schools at law…. has continued and intensified”

Policy ResponsesLevel 1: Whole school strategiesPolicies and strategies:

behaviour; bullying; Equal Opps; SEN provision, teaching and learning strategiesAgreements

home-school agreementsIndividual pupils

educational targets; behavioural expectations: possibly Individual Behaviour Planes, Pastoral Support Plans: Personal Education Plans

The curriculumPSHE; citizenship education; teaching and learning strategies

Levels 2: In-school and more intensive support (patchy provision)Withdrawal rooms or Leaning Support Units; group and individual work; learning mentorsLevel 3: Combination and reintegration programmes and plans (patchy provision)Part-time at school: part-time at an FE college, sometimes with a view to reintegration“Include” programmesLevel 4: Out of School provisionPupil Referral Units, home tuition, residential placements

Source: Hayden, C. (2005) Children in Trouble, Palgrave

Source: Hayden, C et al (2007) Schools, pupil behaviour and young offenders; BRIT. J. CRIMINOL. Vol 47 pp 293–310

Crime Reduction in Secondary Schools

• Key Factors in Enhancing Life Chances and preventing offending– Good quality staff / pupil relationships– Importance of recognising parental / carer’s

roles– Commitment to implementation across the

whole school– Integration of measures into wider practices

Exclusions and Offending CareersComparison of indexed juvenile custodial population and permanent exclusions for 1990 - 2005

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Year

Inde

x (1

00=m

ean)

Juvenile Custodial PopulationPermanent exclusionsNo. of Young People found guilty

The independent effects of permanent exclusion from school on the offending careers of young

peopleDavid Berridge et al (2001)

• Aim: to establish whether permanent exclusion from school had an independent effect on offending career

• Research Problems:– official data; informal practices; theoretical

problem

Findings

Findings (2)

• Substantial majority of excluded pupils were involved in crime• Substantial majority of young people involved in crime had been excluded

from school• Other non-school risk (personality and socio-demographic) risk-factors also

present• Exclusion triggers a series of events loosening commitment to a conventional

way of life- loss of structured time- changing self-perception, identity and relationship with family- loosening contact with pro-social peers and adults- closer contact with similar situated peers- enhanced police surveillance

• Transition to secondary school problematic for many• Black African-Caribbean students: greater teacher apprehension• Permanent exclusions usually the end of a lengthy process of warnings and

fixed-term exclusions: little planning for post-exclusion care, though