External Processes

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External Processes

Educational achievement (how pupils do in school) can be affected by internal and external factors. External factors are things that lie outside the school environment which affect pupils’ attainment.

Gender socialisation

It takes place in the family.
The family is responsible for primary socialisation of the children and it might differ from family to family.
Gender socialisation entails learning how to behave, to communicate, to socialise with others and the norms and values of society.

Material deprivation

Refers to people who can’t afford the goods that are seen as necessary in society.
Examples of material deprivation can be lack of money, resources, cramped living conditions.
It can affect pupils’ attainment as these poor conditions can lead to reduced attendance which can impact on their performance.

Parental attitudes

Parents can differ in how much they value their children’s education.
Parents who value it and encourage children to have high aspirations tend to see better results from their children.
- Some parents put a large amount of pressure on their children to succeed academically, and this may have the opposite effect.
Other parents might think that education isn’t necessary and important.

External Processes

Language development

Social class: parents of different social classes might use language differently.
Language spoken at home: students who don't speak English at home may be delayed in their learning compared to their classmates who are native speakers.

Employment

The job market today is very competitive and it might work as a motivational factor.
Gender: girls might feel more social pressure to try hard at school because there are more opportunities for them than in previous generations.

Government

Some of the government's educational policies can affect pupils’ attainment.
For instance, the removal of coursework might have a negative impact on pupils who tend to do well on that, but benefit other pupils.

Willis on Counter School Cultures

Willis

Willis is a Marxist.
He highlighted the fact that there is conflict within the education system.
He believes that education is not necessarily a good agency of socialisation.
He also claims that education might not always benefit capitalism.

Research methods

Willis studied a school in the Midlands close to a working-class housing estate.
His research methods were: observation, participant observation, recording group discussions, informal interviews and diaries.
Willis wanted to see schooling through the eyes of the students.

Conclusions

Willis concluded that there is counter culture.
Counter culture describes a group that oppose the values of the school by feeling superior to the teachers and the conformist students.
The students of the anti-school subculture avoided lessons and resented the school's rules to control them.

Conclusions cont.

However, Willis concluded that this negative attitude towards the school prepared them for unskilled manual work which was quite easy to obtain in the 1970s.