State Schooling And The Reproduction Of Social Inequalities

This book critically explores the role of state schooling in the reproduction of social class inequalities in the UK. By uniquely combining critical ethnographic methods with participatory and visual research, it foregrounds the experiences and recollections of working class adults in relation to their past schooling. Drawing upon her own lived experiences, Jones theorises the experiences of her participants using an analysis of Marxist, Bourdieusian and Freirean frameworks to uncover relations of power and illustrate how schooling has reduced individual agency and sustained lived inequalities. By creating space for a Visual Intervention within Critical Ethnography (VICE) alongside her analysis of class and society, Jones successfully illuminates that working class struggles are not permanent, and that agency can be activated. The book also addresses an important need by centring research from the lived educational experiences of the working class, and, in particular, working class adults. Making a unique theoretical and methodological contribution using an innovative combined methodology approach, the text ultimately highlights the potential of empowering disadvantaged individuals by raising critical consciousness. Though it is focused on the experiences of adults, this book has important understandings for all sectors of education and will be of interest to academics, researchers and students interested in the sociology of education, research methods in education, social inequality, social class and education politics.

A university education has long been seen as the gateway to upward social mobility for individuals from lower socio-economic backgrounds, and as a way of reproducing social advantage for the better off. With the number of young people from the very highest socio-economic groups entering university in the UK having effectively been at saturation point for several decades, the expansion witnessed in participation rates over the last few decades has largely been achieved by a modest broadening of the base of the undergraduate population in terms of both social class and ethnic diversity. However, a growing body of evidence exists in the continuation of unequal graduate outcomes. This can be seen in terms of employment trajectories in the UK. The issue of just who enjoys access to which university, and the experiences and outcomes of graduates from different institutions remain central to questions of social justice, notably higher education’s contribution to social mobility and to the reproduction of social inequality. This collection of contemporary original writings explores these issues in a range of specific contexts, and through employing a range of theoretical and methodological approaches. The relationship between higher education and social mobility has probably never been under closer scrutiny. This volume will appeal to academics, policy makers, and commentators alike. Higher Education and Social Inequalities is an important contribution to the public and academic debate.

Sociology of Education in Canada utilizes a contemporary theoretical focus to analyze how education in Canada is affected by pre-existing and persistent inequalities among members of society. It presents the historical and cultural factors that have shaped our current education system, examines the larger social trends that have contributed to present problems, discusses the various interest groups involved, and analyzes the larger social discourses that influence any discussion of these issues. To achieve this, Karen Robson uses many current, topical, and relatable issues in Canadian education to ensure that readers fully comprehend the information being presented and leave with an appreciation of how the sociology of education is inextricably linked to issues of stratification.

Crystallizing the essential principles of social reproductive theory, this anthology provides long-overdue analysis of everyday life under capitalism. It focuses on issues such as childcare, healthcare, education, family life, and the roles of gender, race, and sexuality--all of which are central to understanding the relationship between exploitation and social oppression. Tithi Bhattacharya brings together some of the leading writers and theorists, including Lise Vogel, Nancy Fraser, and Susan Ferguson, in order for us to better understand social relations and how to improve them in the fight against structural oppression.

"This book focuses on primary education in India and interrogates what schooling means and does to children from weaker sections of Indian society and which values underpin the school system. It examines whether the concept of "education for all" is just a mechanically conceived policy target to chasing enrolment and attendance or whether it a larger social goal and a deeper political statement about the need for attacking entrenched social inequalities, and above all an affirmation of the idea that schooling has a liberating potential. Drawing on original data collected in the two states of Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, the authors first present the multiple ways in which social class impinges on the educational system, educational processes and educational outcomes. In the second part of the book, issues around autonomy and accountability are explored via an analysis of the position of teachers within the educational hierarchy, and by looking at the various possibilities of making teachers accountable. The last part centres on the learning process, with a particular focus on the classroom. The conclusion includes recommendations that are related to the necessity for a larger debate and normative framework, which includes private schools as possible partners in the pursuing of a public good for which a public entity should take some responsibility, and in conjuncture to that, the necessity to move from government action and responsibilities to a broader concept of public action"-- Provided by publisher.

Universalization of primary education has been high on the policy agenda in India. This book looks at the reproduction of social inequalities within the educational system in India, and how this is contested in different ways. It examines whether the concept of `education for all’ is just a mechanically conceived policy target to chasing enrolment and attendance or whether it is a larger social goal and a deeper political statement about the need for attacking entrenched social inequalities. Drawing on original data collected in the two states of Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, the authors present the multiple ways in which social class impinges on the educational system, educational processes and educational outcomes. The book goes on to explore issues around autonomy and accountability via an analysis of the position of teachers within the educational hierarchy, and by looking at the various possibilities of making teachers accountable. Recommendations related to the necessity for a larger debate and normative framework are made, including whether private schools should play a role, and whether it is necessary to move from government action and responsibilities to a broader concept of public action. The book presents in interesting contribution for students and scholars of South Asian studies, as well as Education and Public Policy studies.

Recognising that social change over recent decades has strengthened the need for early childhood education and care, this book seeks to answer what role this plays in creating and compensating for social inequalities in educational attainment.