Sociology Homework-Joyce Williams-Moreno
Sociology Homework-Joyce Williams-Moreno
Sociology Homework-Joyce Williams-Moreno
QUESTION 2
a) Material deprivation is the inability to afford basic resources and this could impact
a pupil’s educational achievement. This will mean pupils are unable to afford things
like sufficient food, heating or clothing and educational resources, which is
subsequently very likely to affect educational performance and lead to
underachievement. The consecutive paragraphs will discuss how educational
achievement could be affected by material deprivation.
The Marxist approach favours material deprivation as an explanation for
differential achievement as it involves a combination of factors that disadvantage
working-class pupils. Gibson and Asthana (1999) pointed out that there is a
correlation between low household income and poor educational performance; poor
diet, the lack of private study facilities and resources, and the need to work to
supplement family income. Basically, it can prevent a child gaining a good education
because parents are less able to meet the Hidden costs of education such as finding
money for school trips and home resources such as computer and it also means a
family is more likely to live in a deprived area with worse schools. Lack of money
impacts negatively on family dynamics, especially parental involvement in education,
and have the effect of lowering educational aspirations.
However, some students from material deprived backgrounds do well and so it is
much too difficult to just be blunt and find a link between material deprivation and
educational achievement- especially if functionalists think of the education system as
meritocratic. As a result, there is nothing more than a causal relationship between
these two variables and it would be more accurate to say that it disadvantages
working class students and makes it more difficult for them to succeed. Again, there
are other differences between classes that may lead to working class
underachievement. For example, those from working class backgrounds are not just
materially deprived, they are also culturally deprived. The cultural capital and class
reproduction of the middle classes also advantages them in education and ensure
that middle-class spots are reserved for middle-class pupils.