Sociology · May / June 2024 · Paper 21 · Question 2
0495
As printed in the paper
The question as text
Education differs across the world and there are many different types of schools. Formal education is very different to informal education. Sociologists debate what affects educational achievement, for example home factors and deferred gratification. 2
Read automatically from the paper; the printed page above is exact.
Show the answer and mark scheme
2(a)[2]
What is meant by the term ‘deferred gratification’? One mark for partial definition e.g. wanting to get to University. Two marks for clear definition e.g. having long-term aims in life and being willing to postpone immediate rewards in order to achieve these.
2(b)[4]
Describe two examples of formal education. Possible answers:
setting – formal education takes place in classrooms inside schools (institutions or schools created for the purpose of learning);content – learners are taught set, agreed content from a syllabus;roles – there are clearly defined roles of teachers and learners within formal education;assessment – standardised testing is used to judge candidate performance e.g. national examinations;any other reasonable response. One mark for each point correctly identified (up to maximum of two). One mark for each point that is developed (up to a maximum of two).2(c)[6]
Explain how comprehensive schools function. Possible answers:
non-selective – entry to a comprehensive school is open to all children of that secondary school age, regardless of ability;local area – comprehensive schools were said to encourage social mixing as all children in a local area would be educated together resulting in a strong, cohesive community spirit;free – comprehensive schools are paid for and run by the government meaning no one is prevented from attending because of financial hardship;life chances – comprehensive schools offered all students the chance to succeed in their qualifications and so improve their life chances through upward social mobility – very few students leave comprehensive schools without any qualifications;replaced tripartite system – introduced in 1960’s in the UK and replaced the ‘three school system’ based on ability and testing that was thought to label children unfairly aged 11;meritocratic – comprehensive schools are thought to be a fairer system of schooling where all children are given equal opportunities and chances of success through studying the same subjects and curriculum, judging everyone on an equal footing via universal standards;working class children – comprehensive schools are thought to particularly benefit working class children who are the least likely to be able to get into grammar schools due to material and cultural deprivation;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of the question. Responses may be short and un/underdeveloped. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2–3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point, but there may be a tendency towards simplistic answers, engaging with sociological ideas without using sociological language. Band 2 [4–6 marks] Answers in this band will have clear and accurate explanation, showing good sociological knowledge and understanding. Sociological terms and concepts should be expected and explained. At the bottom of the band, the range of points covered may be narrow or lack detail. Higher in the band, answers will cover more than one point in a well-developed way or cover several points in less detail.2(d)[8]
Explain why IQ tests can be criticised. Possible answers:
environment – it may be that the environment and home a child has been brought up in affects intelligence – thus high test results may indicate a more nurturing and academic background rather than higher intelligence per se;narrow range of skills tested – how intelligence is defined in IQ tests is thought to be very narrow, other types of intelligence exist which the tests do not measure = reduced accuracy;writers’ assumptions – IQ tests are written by members of the educated, higher social classes who inevitably build their own cultural assumptions and values into the questions – those from different cultures and those without cultural capital will thus find the test more challenging;snapshot scores – IQ tests represent just one moment in time whereas intelligence develops through a person’s education or lifetime which means test results may not be accurate;performance factors – how well a person does in an IQ test can be affected by anxiety/nerves and illness which leads to questions being asked about the validity of the results;practice – the more someone takes IQ tests, the higher scores they tend to get – this suggests that the test does not necessarily measure intelligence, but how well practised in the style of questioning someone is;success in later life – some people who get high IQ scores do not succeed in later life and vice versa, suggesting that there are flaws in how the tests measure human intelligence;impact on student – receiving a low score from an IQ test may negatively impact upon a student’s self-esteem and may result in a self-fulfilling prophecy as they feel labelled as ‘unintelligent’;material factors – if IQ tests are used as part of a selection process for schools e.g. private schools and grammar schools, then parents will pay for tutors to help their child understand and access the types of questions found on the IQ test. Maybe it therefore measures how much money a person has rather than intelligence?any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of the question. A tendency to description is likely. Responses may be short and undeveloped and points stated without explanation. Sociological terms and concepts are unlikely to be used. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2–3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point. Band 2 [4–6 marks] Answers in this band will show basic sociological knowledge and understanding. Responses maybe underdeveloped and lacking in range. At the bottom of the band, candidates are unlikely to use sociological terms and concepts accurately. Higher in the band, candidates may be beginning to use sociological terms and concepts with greater accuracy. However, some aspects of the answer may only be partially developed/explained. Band 3 [7–8 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding and will be well-developed and explained. Sociological terms and concepts will be used accurately overall. Answers will be well-focused on the question and there will be a range of points presented. At the top of the band explanations will be clear throughout.2(e)[15]
To what extent are home factors the main influence on educational achievement? Possible answers: Arguments for:
material factors – the amount of money a student’s family has is a home factor that affects achievement e.g. being able to afford educational resources, having a quiet place to study etc.;part-time work – children from poorer families are more likely to have a part-time job to help support them in their education, this may detract from the time they can spend on their studies and so lead to less educational success;cultural deprivation – research indicates that a culture of fatalism and immediate gratification is found in working class homes and this negatively affects educational achievement (opposite in higher class homes where a culture of deferred gratification leads to better educational success);parental role models – an absence of parental role models who have been successful in education may lead to imitation from the children and a cycle of underachievement;parental values – children of parents who value education typically achieve higher than those who don’t, e.g. engagement with the school through parents evenings etc.;cultural capital – Bourdieu – middle class families have more of this than the working class which advantages the higher social classes when it comes to educational success e.g. visits to museums, the theatre and galleries, having books at home etc.;ethnicity – research shows that different ethnic groups perform differently at school which suggests that home factors and the value placed upon education has a part to play here e.g. Archer’s research on the success of Chinese children in school;gendered socialisation and social control – research shows that girls and boys are brought up differently and that this home factor may affect educational achievement e.g. girls are encouraged to read independently and quietly, boys are not;language codes – Bernstein – middle class children are more likely to use and be familiar with the elaborated code (the style of language and grammar used in schools and in exams) whereas working class children are more familiar with the restricted code – this home factor advantages higher class children;language at home – if the language of school is not the language used at home, as is the case for many ethnic minority children, then it is harder to do well at school, to communicate effectively and to understand exam questions;any other reasonable response. Arguments against:type of school – the type of school attended is thought to be a bigger influence on achievement than home factors, e.g. private schools typically get the best examination results;teacher expectations – teachers make assumptions about a child’s ability and behaviour based on social factors and stereotypes and the labelling that can follow from this is likely to be more influential when it comes to educational achievement than home factors (Becker, Ball, Rosenthal and Jacobson etc.);setting and streaming – this creates ‘winners and losers’ in education and can lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy amongst students. This can be more influential on educational achievement than home factors;pupil sub-cultures – the sub-culture a student finds themselves in, e.g. pro or anti-school, may have a huge effect on educational achievement - more so than home factors e.g. Willis ‘The Lads’;gender – patriarchal ideologies and/or the culture of masculinity may be the main reason for gendered differences in education, not home factors;ethnicity – ethnic minorities typically do less well than the ethnic majority when it comes to educational achievement, suggesting it maybe ethnicity rather than home factors that explains differences in educational achievement;school factors – Rutter et al discovered from their research that it is how a school is organised that has the greatest influence over educational achievement, not home factors, e.g. teacher preparation, school culture of reward and success etc.;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–4 marks] Answers in this band may be vague and largely based on common sense showing limited knowledge of the debate. Use of sociological terms or concepts is very unlikely. Responses may be short, undeveloped and one- sided. Lower in the band (1–2 marks), expect one or two weak points. Higher in the band (3–4 marks) candidates may offer more than two points and provide a weak definition of key terms in the question. Band 2 [5–8 marks] In this band candidates will show some basic knowledge of the debate. Alternatively, they may offer an answer which is list-like in nature but there will be no real attempt to assess the issues raised by the question. There may be limited/some use of sociological terms or concepts. Responses may be underdeveloped and lack range. Answers may be simplistic and two-sided or only cover one side of the debate. Lower in the band, the response may be rather narrow in the points covered and there may be some development. Higher in the band, more points are likely to be covered with some development. Alternatively, a list-like answer with some development covering both sides of the argument may score up to 8 marks. A one-sided answer cannot score higher than 8 marks. Band 3 [9–12 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding of the debate. Sociological terms and concepts will be used with greater accuracy and/or frequency. For the most part, answers will be well- developed, focused on the questions and there will be a range of points presented. There will be a two sided response but it may lack range on one side. At the bottom of the band, candidates may provide a narrower range of developed points. At the top of the band, expect a wider range of developed points and clear focus on the question. Band 4 [13–15 marks] Answers in this band will show excellent knowledge and understanding of the debate. There will be a strong grasp of the arguments as well as accurate and frequent use of sociological terms and concepts. Answers will be well- developed, clearly focused on the question and discuss a wide range of points. Responses will be two-sided and have a range of points on each side. At the bottom of the band (13 marks), the answer may lack a specific conclusion. Higher in the band, there will be a clear attempt to offer an assessment of the ‘To what extent?’ part of the question through a focused conclusion.
Make a free account to save your answers and see your weak topics and ask the AI why a wrong answer is wrong.