External social class

• Material deprivation


  The lack of resources and ability to purchase goods compared to other members of society
• David Bulls: 'The lack of financial support means children from poor families cannot afford the added factors of free state schools. It is a heavy burden on poor families, as although they don't have to pay for the state education of their children, the supplementary cost of education can be considerable, this includes meals, uniform, transport and books.'
• Children from lower social classes


  • Higher rate of hyperactivity and anxiety which have negative effects on the child's activity
  • Poorer children are much more prone to emotional and behavioural problems
• Emily Tanner: 'Children had to rely on hand-me-downs and cheaper equipment resulting in them being bullied. She found that the cost of items such as transport, uniforms and books were a heavy burden on poor families.'
• Tess Ridge: 'Material deprivation leads to bullying. She did an instructed interview on a girl called Bella. She primarily focused on free school meals. Ridge found that Bella rejected her free school meals as she was bullied for it, and she was already bullied for her appearance. This led to a barrier for learning.'
• Housing 


  Poor housing can affect children's achievement both directly and indirectly
• Direct effect of housing

  • Overcrowding
  • Impaired development through lack of space for safe play
  • Temporary living results in frequent disruption
• Indirect effect of housing

  • Health and welfare (damp housing causes ill health)
  • Temporary accommodation risks more psychological distress, infections, etc.
• Selection by mortgage - Leech and Campos

  • Study showed middle class parents are most likely to afford a house in a catchment area that is placed highly in exam league tables.
  • Selection by mortgage increases the cost of houses near to successful schools which excludes working class families.
• Marilyn Howard - Nutrition

  • Found that children from poorer houses may come to school hungry or have poor nutrition.

  Can lead to children having weaker immune systems leading to more absences, lower energy levels leading to difficultly concentrating and engaging in class, and behavioural issues. 
• Jan Flaherty

  • Found that 20% of those eligible for FSM don't use it due to stigmatisation and not feeling comfortable using it.
  • These children feel excluded as they are publicly labelled in school as being working class.
• Smith and Noble

  • The 'cost of free schooling' can lead to 'barriers of learning', which included:
  • Students being bullied because families can't afford uniform and materials.
  • Students having restricted access to computers, desks and books.
  • Students may have to work a part time job to support their family or their studies to go to university. The drop out rate is rising due to debt.
• Calendar and Jackson - The cost of higher education

  • Saw more costs than benefits of going to university.
  • The costs of going to university may deter many working class students.
  • Working class parents are less likely to be able to pay for tuition fees, offer financial support and help with living costs like middle class parents can.
  • Working class students who go to university may be restricted to living at home, which gives them less opportunity to the highest universitites.
• Assisted place schemes

  • Aimed to help high performing, low income students attend private schools.
  • A study by the Sutton Trust compared the students on the scheme with similar students who went to state schools.
  • They found that the students attending the private schools got better results are were more likely to be accepted into Oxford or Cambridge.
  • However, Kynaston notes that once at university, the former state school pupils tend to do better than former private school students.
• Define cultural deprivation


  Refers to being deficient in attitudes, values and knowledge necessary to succeed in the education system.
• Main factors that contribute to cultural deprivation

  1. Language
  2. Parents education and involvement
  3. Working class subculture
• Language


  The development of language skills is important so that children can explain, describe and compare which are necessary if a child is to progress through the education system.
• Basil Bernstein - Language

  • Identified differenced between working class and middle class language.
  • Working class parents socialise children into a restricted speech code.
  • Middle class parents socialise into a elaborated speech code.
  • Recognises it is the school, not just the home which influences children's achievement.
  • Suggests that schools fail to teach working class pupils how to use the elaborated code and as a result working class children are deficient in language and suffer through the education system.
• Restricted speech code

  • Limited vocabulary.
  • Short, simple sentences.
  • Gestures.
  • Disjointed phrases.
  • Have to work harder as they start off at a lower ability.
  • Feel excluded/uncomfortable as it is unfamiliar.
• Elaborated speech code

  • Use wider vocabulary.
  • Based on longer, grammatical sentences.
  • Education uses elaborated speech code to teach ie. textbooks
• Troyna and Williams

  • Found that working class underachievement isn't the result of the language they use but the teacher attitudes towards it.
  • Suggest there is a speech hierarchy which teachers use to label middle class language.
  • Teachers are biased against working class and black speech and expect them to fail.
  • Teachers don't give these children the correct attention they need.
• Feinstein - parental involvement

  • Found that material deprivation had some effect on achievement but though cultural deprivation was much more important.
  • Found parental encouragement was largely determined on how well they did in education.
  • Educated parents - consistent discipline, high expectations, encouragement of active learning and exploration.
  • Less educated parents - harsh or inconsistent discipline, don't teach independence or self-control, poor motivational skills.
• JWB Douglas - Cultural

  • Believed parents attitudes towards education are a key factor in affecting children's achievement.
  • Found that working class parents place less value on education and had less supportive attitudes.
  • For example: unlikely to turn up to parents evening, children had less encouragement, less disciplined by parents.
• JWB Douglas's study - The home and school

  • Followed 5,300 children born in May 1946 until they were 16.
  • Took IQ tests from all children, and subdivided the results into 4 categories dependant on social class.
  • Results shows that having a lower social class closely related to having a lower IQ.
• Blackstone and Mortimore

  • Believed working class parents are as interested as middle-class parents, yet struggle to show it as much.
  • They argue that reasons for low attendance at parents evening include:
  • Working class parents having to work longer and less regular hours so find it hard getting time off work.
  • Working class parents may be uncomfortable with the middle class environment of school.
  • Could feel patronised or embarrassed of their appearance or the way they speak.
• Barry Sugarman - subculture

  • The fatalism of the working class means they generally don't think they have the power to improve prospects though hard work.
  • The collectivist approach means that they are more likely to stick together and less likely to pursue individual success.
  • Found that children internalise the values of their subculture which has been taught through primary socialisation within the home.
• Keddie's criticism of cultural deprivation

  • Argues cultural deprivation is a myth and sees is as a victim blaming approach as a child cannot be 'deprived' of its own culture.
  • Working class failure is due to the education system being dominated by middle class values.
  • Argues that anti-working-class prejudices of teachers should be challenged and should be encouraged to build on the strengths of the working class culture instead of dismissing it.
• Sure start

  • SureStart is an example of compensatory education and was set up in the most disadvantaged areas for anyone to attend.
  • It gave a head start to children who may struggle starting school, took stress and chaos away from the home and individualised the environments of the home and education.
  • Englemann believed it gave equal opportunities when starting school, gave working class families greater life satisfaction and lowered children's BMIs.
• Power and Whitty

  • Compensatory education scheme didn't work.
  • It blames failure on the child and their background.
  • Failed to tackle material deprivation.
  • Lacked recourses
  • Initial enthusiasm wears off
  • Seems patronising to well-educated working class parents
• Cultural capital

  • Refers to the taking for granted ways of thinking, being or acting that are shared by a particular social class
• Pierre Bourdieu

  • Argues no one habits is intrinsically better than another but the dominant class has the power to impose its own habits in the education system.
  • Middle class parents have more the 'play the system' to gibe their children the best chances.
  • They know how to make a good impression on the headteacher and how to mount an appeal if their chid was unsuccessful in application.
  • Working class parents lacked economic capital to pay for transport to send their children to better schools further away.
• Sullivan

  • Believed cultural capital was not the biggest determinant of education success.
  • It was possible for children to achieve good grades with low cultural capital.
  • Concluded that the greater resources, education level and aspirations of middle class parents explained the remainder of the class gap in achievement.