Identity

• Class:

  > habitus

  > symbolic violence

  > Nike identities

  > educational success

  > self-exclusion
• Gender:

  > male peer groups

  > teachers and discipline

  > male gaze

  > double standards

  > verbal abuse

  > hyper-heterosexual feminine identity
• Ethnicity:

  > ideal pupil identity

  > pathologised pupil identity

  > demonised pupil identity
• Class - Habitus:

  > Archer - focuses on the interaction between WC pupils' identities and school, and how this produces underachievement (habitus)

  > the MC has the power to define its habitus as superior, and impose this on the education system e.g. elaborated code

  > school then places higher value on MC preferences and attitudes, putting them at an educational advantage
• Class - Symbolic Violence:

  > schools have a MC habitus, so MC pupils gain 'symbolic capital' (status from the school), whereas the WC habitus is devalued

  > Bourdieu - withholding of symbolic capital is symbolic violence, which reproduces class structure

  > Archer - WC pupils feel that they need to change how they talk or present themselves to be successful (feel unable to access MC spaces, such as university or professional careers)
• Class - Nike Identities (1):

  > symbolic violence leads to WC pupils seeking alternative ways of creating self-worth, status and value - created meaningful identities by investing in styles, especially through branded clothing like Nike

  > styles were heavily policed by peers - not conforming was 'social suicide', but the right appearance = approval
• Class - Nike Identities (2):

  > however, these styles conflicted with the school dress code

  > Archer - the schools' MC habitus stigmatises WC identity - while MC view Nike identities as tasteless, they are a way for the WC to generate symbolic capital

  > Nike styles also play a part in the WC rejection of higher education
• Class - Educational Success:

  > Ingram - studied two groups of WC Catholics boys from the same neighbourhood (one group went to grammar school, other went to local secondary school)

  > found that WC identities were inseparable from belonging to a WC area (sense of belonging) and WC communities place greater emphasis on conformity - issue for the grammar school boys, who experienced tension between WC habitus and MC school

  > for WC students to succeed, they have to abandon their identity
• Class - Self-Exclusion:

  > many WC students go to university, but experience a clash between identity and habitus of higher education which can become a barrier to success (self-exclusion)

  > Evans - found that 21 WC girls from South London were reluctant to apply to elite universities (sense of hidden barriers/not fitting in)

  > Reay - self-exclusion from elite unis narrows the options of WC pupils and limits their success
• Gender - Male Peer Groups:

  > use verbal abuse to reinforce their definitions of masculinity e.g. Willis' study

  > Mac an Ghaill shows how peer groups reproduce masculine gender identities e.g. the 'macho lads' were dismissive of boys who worked hard and aspired for a career
• Gender - Teachers and Discipline:

  > Haywood and Mac an Ghaill - male teachers told boys off for 'behaving like girls' and teased them when they achieved lower than girls

  > Francis - girls are expected to be quiet and conformist, and those who weren't were punished more severely than boys that were behaving in the same way
• Gender - Male Gaze:

  > Mac an Ghaill refers to the male gaze as a way of viewing girls as sexual objects

  > male gaze is a form of surveillance, through which dominant masculinity is reinforced and femininity is devalued

  > this is achieved through the retelling of sexual conquests - boys who do not display heterosexuality in this way are at risk of being labelled as 'gay'
• Gender - Double Standards:

  > a double standard exists when we apply one set of moral standards to one group, but a different set to another e.g. boys boast about sexual conquests but girls are called a 'slag'

  > sexual conquest is given status among boys, but attracts negative labels among girls

  > reinforces hegemonic masculinity - dominance of heterosexual masculine identity
• Gender - Verbal Abuse:

  > Francis - boys dominate class discussions and often belittle the contributions of girls

  > they belittle behaviour they see as girly or gay, which reinforces heterosexual masculinity

  > boys use terms of abuse related to women or female body parts
• Gender - Hyper-Heterosexual Feminine Identity:

  > Archer - WC girls gain symbolic capital by performing a hyper-heterosexual feminine identity

  > Currie - girls have to balance competing demands (loyalty to the female subculture but competing for boys)

  > too competitive = slut-shaming, but no competing = frigid - shaming is used to police identities

  > girls who want to succeed must present an asexual identity - lacking interest in boys or fashion
• Ethnicity & Identity:

  > Archer - teachers dominant discourse define ethnic minority pupils' identities as lacking the favoured identity of the ideal pupil

  > 3 identities: ideal, pathologised or demonised

  > ethnic minorities likely to be seen as 2 or 3 - Asian girls stereotyped as quiet and passive, black students seen as challenging, excessively sexual and with non-aspirational home cultures
• Ethnicity - Ideal Pupil Identity:

  > a white, MC, heterosexual identity

  > this student is seen as achieving in the 'right' way, through natural ability and initiative
• Ethnicity - Pathologised Pupil Identity:

  > an Asian, 'deserving poor', feminised identity - either asexual or oppressed sexuality

  > seen as a plodding conformist and culture-bound achiever - achieving through hard work rather than natural ability
• Ethnicity - Demonised Pupil Identity:

  > black or white, WC, hyper-sexualised identity

  > seen as unintelligent, peer-led, culturally deprived underachievers