Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital has been widely used to explain the pervasive inequalities in educational outcomes in modern Britain. Indeed, notwithstanding the irony of Bourdieu’s Marxist credentials, both the government and Ofsted have recently identified the accumulation of cultural capital as central to the reinvigoration social mobility, particularly in deprived communities.
So what is cultural capital and how is it related to this blog? For Bourdieu, cultural capital refers to the symbolic attributes a person acquires through their socialisation within a particular social class. These will include attributes such as accents, interests, values, clothing, knowledge, skills, material belongings and posture. We all share cultural capital with those around us – for instance, a lot of young people now share an interest in grime and use this to form a sense of collective identity. In this context, grime is more than a genre of music, it is a culture with its own lexicon, clothing, brands, mannerisms, credentials and associated cultural interests. A young person’s relationship to this culture (their cultural capital) will determine their group position within this emerging subculture. On the face of it, this may seem rather innocuous. However, Bourdieu also recognised how some forms of cultural capital, such as being university educated, are more valued by society than others; a deficit of which can result in individuals facing institutional barriers, a lack of social mobility and ultimately rising inequality within society.
My experience whilst teaching in universities and schools has highlighted the very real impact that a deficit in cultural capital has on student outcomes. This is not merely about a deficit in knowledge, it is about feeling that you ‘belong’. Indeed, there is a strong correlation between a deficit in cultural capital and students feeling alienated from their learning environment. Social class signifiers such as accent, knowledge and interests often manifest in a lack of confidence in insecure environments, and, to be quite frank, this is often compounded by the perceived social class superiority of the teacher. This is often reaffirmed by poor results or an inability to access learning material or cultural references employed within lessons. As a result of their alienation, these students tend to find it difficult or, in some cases, impossible to seek guidance, and therefore they often do not fulfil their potential.
Having sais this, the logical consequences of valuing some cultural capital over others, is that certain forms of knowledge are considered sacrosanct. Of course it is difficult to identify exactly what this ‘knowledge’ is because it is always relative to the topic being discussed, however examples could include political philosophy, ancient civilisation, Shakespeare and so forth. Those who do not have access to these forms of prior knowledge are considered to be poorly educated and uncultured. Whilst this is clearly a prejudice view that does not take into account differing forms of cultural capital, it has become clear to me that students who have access to this ‘knowledge’ do in fact perform better in their final exams. The sad fact is that many (but not all!) students will acquire this knowledge through exposure to broadsheet newspapers, books, documentaries, experiences and people that have been afforded to them by virtue of their parents priviledged class position.
As I have already attested, these inequalities are clearly a consequence of Britian’s enduring social class structure and therefore can only truly be challenged through radical social change. However, having said this, I do believe that teachers can make meaningful changes to their practise to help curb some of the worst inequalities perpetuated by the class system. If these changes have the potential to help improve the life chances of just one of my students, however moderately, I believe it will be a worthwhile endeavour.
Firstly, we need to carve out a space in our classroom that allows us to broaden the sociological knowledge that we deem ‘valuable’. Of course, we have to do this in a responsible way because ultimately we cannot change the tested curriculum. However, what we can do is find ways to bring students own cultural knowledge and values into the classroom experience. This means teachers need to work in collaborative ways with their students, jettisoning their exclusive reliance on the straightjacket of prescription built into the architecture of learning software such as PowerPoint, in favour of fluid and organic interchange and exchange of knowledge with their students. To this end, this blog is intended to promote teacher-student dialogue and the application of sociological theory and insights to a broader of cultural knowledge and interests. Students will be invited to comment and submit blog posts, news articles, music and other interesting links, whilst as the same time, this blog will be used as a teaching resource in lessons. The ambition is to make the learning of sociology more inclusive and less abstract by empowering students to forge their own route through the content by linking it to knowledge that is more familiar and relevant to their own lives.
Secondly, if we are to empower our students by developing their cultural capital, we need to find further opportunities for students to discuss, debate, explore, respond and research sociological material. It is only by developing their quality of thinking and approach to knowledge acquisition that we will be able to improve their confidence and ability to engage in academic enquiry and discussion. Whilst we continue to live in a society which values certain forms of cultural capital over others, it is incumbent upon us to ensure our students are equipped to deal with any sense of alienation that they might encounter when they access Higher Education or the workplace. In this respect, this purpose of this blog is to create an online environment where students are given the opportunity to develop these skills. They will be exposed to challenging sociological commentary that goes beyond the prescribed curriculum, which will be used to faciliate discussion and debate, and will be invited at different times to contribute to the blog through guest blog posts. In time, I hope to accompany this blog with a reading group that will similarly focus on the development of the key skills outlined here.
Whilst this project is still in its infancy, I hope it can harness some of the egalitarian spirit of Bourdieu by providing a productive (and perhaps even inspiring) space for my students to develop their sociological skills and knowledge for their A-Levels and beyond.
The Sociology Teacher
The Art of Sociology 