Differences in Educational Achievement

What the resources cover

This unit looks at why some groups of pupils achieve more than others in school. The listed resources group around three themes: social class, gender and ethnicity. Many are written for A-level Sociology and GCSE Sociology, and most are mind maps made by GoConqr users.

Where to start

Begin with the note on cultural capital. It explains Bourdieu's idea that cultural and material factors work together, which helps with almost every other topic here. Next, read the note on material deprivation, which covers poverty and a lack of material necessities such as adequate housing and income.

Then open the mind map Class differences in achievement. It sets out the class pattern and splits the causes into internal and external factors. Once that split is clear, the maps on external factors, cultural deprivation and internal factors are much easier to follow.

Moving on to gender and ethnicity

• The mind map Feminisation of Education looks at the claim that boys fall behind because education has become feminised.
• The flashcard deck Gender Identity and Schooling covers terms such as hegemonic masculinity, patriarchy and subculture.
• The mind map Ethnic Inequality Education and the note on differences in achievement by ethnicity cover the third theme.

Using quizzes and maps together

There are only a few quizzes, so use them as checkpoints. Read a map, then take the quiz Sociology - Working class subcultures to see what stuck. Try Explanations for girls' improvement in achievement. after the gender maps. Note the questions you miss, go back to the matching map, and then test yourself with a flashcard deck on the same topic.

Flashcards are good for names and studies, such as the questions in the deck called Topic 2 on labelling. The exam-style map on the view that the education system reproduces and legitimizes social inequalities shows how to turn the theory into an answer plan.

Where this unit sits

This unit belongs to the Education strand of Sociology. Choose one theme, work through its map, deck and quiz, and then make your own versions in your own words.