Introduction
Dilly (2002) defines context as 'a set of connections construed as relevant to someone, to something or to a particular problem and this process yields an explanation, a sense, an interpretation for the object so connected." Understanding context is believed to be one of the main central concepts of socio-cultural studies, it is often said to be in connection with interpretation, so interpreting situations in the way that is intended is essential to be able to correctly analyse situations that occur within civilization; which many sociologists define as advanced development of human social interaction and cultural values. Context can be found at any level in society, and it is said by Dilly (2002) that all anthropologists use context in socio-cultural studies to 'interpret social and cultural phenomena', but sometimes the context of the situation can be interpreted in many different ways, causing the problem of context that Dilley (2002) discusses within his article.
According to the Poverty Site (2010), within the UK '11-year-old pupils eligible for free school meals are around twice as likely not to achieve basic standards in literacy and numeracy as other 11-year-old pupils'. Children who receive free school meals (FSM) are usually from families that are in receipt of out-of-work benefits, so therefore this is a proxy to help us determine the low classes within society. Working class, Middle class and Upper class are usually the most recognized groups when it comes to defining social class. Within the 'Findings from the BBC's Great British Class Survey' Savage, et al. (2013) divides social class into seven different groups from highest class to lowest class;
1. Elite - who are seen as the most wealthiest class in society
2. Established Middle Class
3. Technical Middle Class
4. New Affluent Workers
5. Traditional Working Class
6. Emergent Service Workers
7. Precariat who are seen as the most deprived class in society
(Savage, et al. 2013)
It has been discussed by many sociologists that there is a strong link between Social Class status and Academic Achievement. Perry and Francis (2010) state that social class 'remains the strongest predictor of educational achievement in Britain'. Within this paper the authors discuss the issues of why children from working class backgrounds are less likely to head onto Higher Education as they believe they are not suited or are not intelligent enough in comparison to children from middle class families. This influence of society on educational achievement, will continue to be discussed and analysed throughout this assignment, to outline the social and cultural context involved. Although there is a high percentage of children from working class families that are seen to underachieve, this is not necessarily always the case. Children from a working class or a low class background often have assumptions made about how well they are going to achieve and the way that they are likely to behave, this is has been developed into the 'Labelling Theory' which is an interactionist view within society; this is discussed further in the Labelling theory tab of this webpage.
From a functionalist perspective, education is a key component in society as it is believed to shape the minds of children and teach them values and skills which are believed to contribute to the future of society (Wexler, 2009). If the current research into poverty and social class is accepted as accurate and without doubt having an impact on academic achievement of children over the country, the functionalists theory would therefore show that this could be potentially damaging to society as a whole. This particular approach is defined by Giddens (2006) as 'the study of society and the way its institutions connect together and change.' Emile Durkheim is said to be a crucial influence in the study of sociology, he focused on understanding the 'social facts' and 'group phenomena'(Giddens, 2006), he looked at the dynamic relationship of the social and cultural influences on society and tried to understand the actions of individuals. Durkheim suggested that it is the structure within society that prevents us from taking part in certain activities, 'setting limits to what we can do as individuals' (Giddens, 2006). Often functionalists make the comparison of society to that of a body needing all organs in order to be able to function in the correct way, in this instant the 'organs' of society are the social institutions that interact in order to make society work (Bartlett and Burton).
(736 words)
Dilly (2002) defines context as 'a set of connections construed as relevant to someone, to something or to a particular problem and this process yields an explanation, a sense, an interpretation for the object so connected." Understanding context is believed to be one of the main central concepts of socio-cultural studies, it is often said to be in connection with interpretation, so interpreting situations in the way that is intended is essential to be able to correctly analyse situations that occur within civilization; which many sociologists define as advanced development of human social interaction and cultural values. Context can be found at any level in society, and it is said by Dilly (2002) that all anthropologists use context in socio-cultural studies to 'interpret social and cultural phenomena', but sometimes the context of the situation can be interpreted in many different ways, causing the problem of context that Dilley (2002) discusses within his article.
According to the Poverty Site (2010), within the UK '11-year-old pupils eligible for free school meals are around twice as likely not to achieve basic standards in literacy and numeracy as other 11-year-old pupils'. Children who receive free school meals (FSM) are usually from families that are in receipt of out-of-work benefits, so therefore this is a proxy to help us determine the low classes within society. Working class, Middle class and Upper class are usually the most recognized groups when it comes to defining social class. Within the 'Findings from the BBC's Great British Class Survey' Savage, et al. (2013) divides social class into seven different groups from highest class to lowest class;
1. Elite - who are seen as the most wealthiest class in society
2. Established Middle Class
3. Technical Middle Class
4. New Affluent Workers
5. Traditional Working Class
6. Emergent Service Workers
7. Precariat who are seen as the most deprived class in society
(Savage, et al. 2013)
It has been discussed by many sociologists that there is a strong link between Social Class status and Academic Achievement. Perry and Francis (2010) state that social class 'remains the strongest predictor of educational achievement in Britain'. Within this paper the authors discuss the issues of why children from working class backgrounds are less likely to head onto Higher Education as they believe they are not suited or are not intelligent enough in comparison to children from middle class families. This influence of society on educational achievement, will continue to be discussed and analysed throughout this assignment, to outline the social and cultural context involved. Although there is a high percentage of children from working class families that are seen to underachieve, this is not necessarily always the case. Children from a working class or a low class background often have assumptions made about how well they are going to achieve and the way that they are likely to behave, this is has been developed into the 'Labelling Theory' which is an interactionist view within society; this is discussed further in the Labelling theory tab of this webpage.
From a functionalist perspective, education is a key component in society as it is believed to shape the minds of children and teach them values and skills which are believed to contribute to the future of society (Wexler, 2009). If the current research into poverty and social class is accepted as accurate and without doubt having an impact on academic achievement of children over the country, the functionalists theory would therefore show that this could be potentially damaging to society as a whole. This particular approach is defined by Giddens (2006) as 'the study of society and the way its institutions connect together and change.' Emile Durkheim is said to be a crucial influence in the study of sociology, he focused on understanding the 'social facts' and 'group phenomena'(Giddens, 2006), he looked at the dynamic relationship of the social and cultural influences on society and tried to understand the actions of individuals. Durkheim suggested that it is the structure within society that prevents us from taking part in certain activities, 'setting limits to what we can do as individuals' (Giddens, 2006). Often functionalists make the comparison of society to that of a body needing all organs in order to be able to function in the correct way, in this instant the 'organs' of society are the social institutions that interact in order to make society work (Bartlett and Burton).
(736 words)