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Lecture 6Social Class

Lecture Overview

• Conceptualising Social Class

• Myths relating to Social Class in Australia– Australia is a society characterised by equality– Schooling success is only about individual ability– Social class is all about money

The Trouble with Social ClassClass? There is no word or concept that is more off-limits in our boundless tell-all culture right now than class. As a society, we

have rapidly progressed over several generations in developing a common language to talk about differences of gender, race, and sexual orientation ... when it comes to class, it’s as if we stumble and go speechless ... of course class differences exist, and people

talk about them, but often in code and euphemism. Our discourse on class is in arrested development compared to our

conversations about the other ways we differ from one another(Yeskel and Ladd, 2005).

Conceptualising Social Class• In part relates to socio-economic status but not just socio-

economic status – it is focussed on more than the material aspects of social stratification

• Social class includes:• Income/Wealth• Occupation• Consumption• Social Prestige• Manners, fashion and cultural refinement• Education and qualifications• Family and kinship structures

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gedPy6DjwEk

Class StructureClass structure of Australian society:• Upper/ruling class• Middle class• Working class• Underclass – ‘poverty’

Traditionally, class defined in terms of:• Ownership and control of scarce economic resources• Ownership of marketable skills and qualifications• Wage labour

IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT ANY CLASS MODEL WILL HAVE “GREY AREAS” – for example, do plumbers, teachers and doctors fit into the same class? The important thing to remember is that it is not about fitting people neatly into categories but rather being unable to highlight unequal access to

wealth and power based on the structure of our society

Social Class Hierarchy

Upper

Middle

Working

The most basic class distinction is around the

“powerful and powerless”

Social Class and Education

MYTH 1: Australia is a society characterised by equality

MYTH 2: Schooling success is only about individual ability

MYTH 3: Social class is all about money

Myth 1: Australia is a society characterised by equalityWhere does Australia Stand? (Source CIA, 2013)

RANK COUNTRY INCOME EQUALITY

1 Sweden 23.0

2 Slovenia 23.7

3 Montenegro 24.3

4 Hungary 24.7

5 Denmark 24.8

6 Czech Republic 24.9

7 Norway 25.0

8 Luxembourg 26.0

9 Slovakia 26.0

10 Austria 26.3

21 Australia 30.5

Myth 1: Australia is a society characterised by equalityWho attends which type of school? (Source Preston, 2013)

State Catholic Independent0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Low IncomeMiddle IncomeHigh Income

Myth 2: Schooling success is only about individual ability

Myth of Meritocracy?• A meritocratic education system allows those with

ability and fortitude to succeed regardless of social background

• It allows people to achieve success proportionate to their talents and abilities

• It supposes equality in opportunity for successful educational outcomes

SUCCESS = IQ + EFFORT

Myth 2: Schooling success is only about individual ability

Which schools win the education race? (ABS, 2013; Better Education, 2015)

State Catholic Independent0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

% of all schools% of schools in each State's 'Top 20' for exam results (2013)

How do sociologists explain this? Critical Theory (Althusser)

Key Terms

Ideological State Apparatus: mechanisms which exert control through the use of ideas

Bourgeoisie: the ruling class

What the bourgeoisie has installed as its number-one, ie. as its dominant ideological state apparatus , is the educational apparatus,

which has in fact replaced in its functions the previously dominant ideological State apparatus, the Church (Althusser, 1971, p. 103-104)

How do sociologists explain this? Critical Theory (Bowles and Gintis)

Bowles and Gintis (1976) Schooling in Capitalist America: Correspondence Theory

Meritocracy –IQ + effort = merit + reward + work hard and you’ll succeed

REALITY

Education and future occupation related to family background rather than talent and ability and hard work

‘Correspondence’ becomes evident in various levels of the education system

For those destined to lower levels of work, rule following is emphasised in the classroom and schools

For those destined to middle levels of work ‘dependability’ and some ability to work independently is emphasised

For those destined to higher levels of work, the emphasis is on making pupils believe in the significance of what they are doing, the ability to work independently and to take control over their academic work is emphasised

How do sociologists explain this? Critical Theory (Giroux)

Hidden Curriculum...those unstated norms, values, and beliefs embedded in and transmitted to students through the underlying rules

that structure the routines and social relationships in schools and class room life (Giroux and Purpel, 1983, p.

47)

The notion that the education system prepares students for their place in society according to economic and

capitalist concerns

So what can we conclude from Critical Theory?

• Schooling success is about more than individual ability

• They contend that through political action at all levels, it is possible that schools can be about change rather than reproduction of inequality

• Class is more about money – critical theory points to issues including: the myth of meritocracy, the role of schooling ideologies in social reproduction, and the effects of the hidden curriculum

Myth 3: Social class is all about money ... Back to Bourdieu

Economic Capital: money, property, shares ... readily convertible possessions and investments

Cultural Capital:Habitus: a set of socially acquired dispositions, skills and forms of conduct. In schools – linguistic dexterity, bodily self-discipline, good manners

Embodied Cultural Capital: physical practices (as above) and the forms of conduct associated with a particular social group (for example, attending the theory versus attending the footy). Also includes linguistic capital (that is, the effective use of capital).

Code Theory (Cultural Capital – Linguistic Capital at work)

Bernstein: Code TheoryEstablished as a way of explaining for the relatively poor performance of working class children on language based subjects

Codes: organising principles used by members of a social group. The idea is that the language we use reflects and shapes the assumptions we hold about our relationship with a certain group. Our relationship with the group influences the way we use language

• Elaborated code (middle class)• Restricted code (working class and middle class)

Code Theory Example

Restricted CodeThey're playing footballand he kicks it and it goes through thereit breaks the window and they're looking at itand he comes out and shouts at thembecause they've broken itso they run awayand then she looks outand she tells them off

Elaborated CodeThree boys are playing football and one boy kicks the balland it goes through the windowthe ball breaks the windowand the boys are looking at itand a man comes out and shouts at thembecause they've broken the windowso they run awayand then that lady looks out of her windowand she tells the boys off

Implications of Linguistic Capital• Restricted code works well when there is a great deal of shared and taken for granted knowledge• Elaborated code spells everything out and is necessary so that everyone can understand it• Bernstein's research argued that working-class students had access to restricted code - but middle-class

students had access to both restricted and elaborated codes

AND IMPORTANTLY HE ARGUED• Schools, as concerned with the introduction of new knowledge which goes beyond existing shared meanings

thus require elaborated

BOTTOM LINEIf you can't handle elaborated code, you are not going to succeed in the educational system.

Schooling and testing conducted in middle class languages hence culture and language practices of working class place

them at a disadvantage in the educational environment

Bourdieu (Cultural Capital) continued ...

Objectified cultural capital: this incorporates physical objects that provide the owner with status. For example, paintings, musical instruments, particular makes of cars – while they can be sold, they have value in their own right as they speak about the owner (think prestige and status)

Institutionalised cultural capital: the recognition associated with institutional qualifications (University degree versus a TAFE qualification)

Bourdieu (Social Capital)

Social Capital: Relationships, mutual acquaintances, and memberships that an individual can call upon

Symbolic Capital: This incorporates issues such as status, prestige and honour. The right to be listened to that exists within social groupings. For example, captains of school sporting teams and attendance at an elite school

Social Justice“I want to create a better educated society. I want to empower

children with the skills to make a difference to the world…I want to work with disadvantaged students (low socio economic

areas…) to improve their opportunities in life. Empower them with the skills to change their circumstances” (Whitehead in

Campbell, 2010, p.127).

ReferencesBallantine, J.H. & Spade, J.Z. (2012). Schools and Society: A Sociological Approach to Education. California: Pine Oakes Press.

Campbell, C. (2010) Class and Competition (Text)

Connell, R. W., Adhenden, D.J., Kessler, S., & Dowsett, G.W. (1982) Making the Difference: Schools, Families and Social Division. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Germov, J. (1998) A Class Above the Rest? Education and the Production of Class Inequality in Sociology of Education: Possibilities and Practices (J Allen ed.) Katoomba: Social Science Press.

Holmes,D., Julian, R. Hughes, K. (2012). Australian Sociology: A Changing Society. Frenchs Forest: Pearson Australia.

Thomson, P. (2002). Schooling the Rustbelt Kids: Making the Difference in Changing Times. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Walker, J.C. (1988). Louts and Legends: Male Youth Culture in an Inner City School. Sydney. Allen & Unwin.

Welch, A. (1996). Australian Education: Reform in Crisis. St Leonards: Allen & Unwin.

Willis,. P. (1977). Learning to Labour: How Working Class Kids Get Working Class Jobs. New York: Columbia University Press.