pupils identity’s (internal factors)

• Sociologists look at how pupils' class identities that are formed outside of school interact with the school and it's values-and whether this produces educational success or failure
• Archer et al (2010)


  Focuses on the interaction between WC pupils identities and school and how this makes underachievement
• Nike identities


  • Symbolic violence led WC pupils to finding other ways to obtain worth and status
  • They did this by constructing class identities revolving around fashion and brands such as Nike
  • These style performances were policed by peers, so not conforming was 'social suicide
  • The right appearance gained pupils symbolic capital from their peers, as education already denied them of it
• The schools MC habitas


  Clashed with WC identities as it went against rules and dress codes, and risked pupils being labelled as rebels
• Nike styles


  Can be WC pupils rejecting higher education as they see it as unrealistic for people like us, and undesirable as living of student loans costs them their style
• Habitus (Bourdieu, 1984)


  • The learned and taken for granted ways of thinking, being or acting in a social class
  • This includes tastes, preferences, outlook on life, consumption (fashion, leisure) and the expectations for 'people like us'
  • The MC has the power to define their habitus as superior, making it imposed on the education system, where schools see WC habitus as inferior
• The WC identity is inseparable from the WC habitus
• The neighbourhood's network of family/friends were a key part that gave WC boys a sense of belonging. Despite this, this habitus put emphasis on conformity and this can cause other WC boys to experience symbolic violence
• Even though WC pupils go to uni more now


  The class between their WC identity & HE habibus is a barrier to their success
• Symbolic capital


  Status/recognition from the school that MC pupils are superior
• Symbolic violence


  The withholding of symbolic capital, where the school devalues the WC habitus, seeing their tastes as tasteless and worthless
• WC pupils felt they had to lose themselves in the MC's habitus in order to succeed educationally
• WC identities and habitus formed outside of school

  Conflicts with the school's MC habitus, leading to symbolic violence and then underachievement from feeling like school isn't for them
• WC pupils using restricted code (external factor)


  Can lead to teacher labelling and the self-fulfilling prophecy (internal factor)
• Poverty (external)


  Can lead to bullying and stigmatising of pupils (internal)