Sociology · Oct / Nov 2025 · Paper 22 · Question 2
0495
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2(a)(i)[2]
Define the term gendered curriculum. Award one mark for a partial definition, e.g. boys subjects;
Award two marks for a clear definition, e.g. the subjects taught and the content covered are biased towards one gender, usually boys. Accept any other reasonable response.
2(a)(ii)[2]
Define the term pro-school sub-culture. Award one mark for a partial definition, e.g. doing well at school;
Award two marks for a clear definition, e.g. a group of learners whose norms and values agree with those of the school. Accept any other reasonable response.
2(b)[2]
State two linguistic factors that can affect educational experience. Award one mark for each correct example (up to a maximum of two). Possible responses:
bilingualism – speaking two languages (or more);elaborated code – speaking the formal language of school at home;restricted code – limited/informal vocabulary from home can hinder performance at school;host language – speaking the same language at home as at school helps performance;native language – may be devalued by education and deemed inappropriate for school;accent – some accents are deemed to be ‘posher’ or ‘less smart’ by teachers and so affect how students are treated/thought of;any other relevant response.2(c)[6]
Describe three features of the official curriculum. Award one mark for each point correctly identified (up to a maximum of three). Award one mark for each point that is developed (up to a maximum of three). Possible responses:
national curriculum – the government in many countries outlines the subjects and set content to be taught therefore learners of a similar age all have to learn the same things in every school e.g. science, maths, language etc;standardised testing – the official curriculum requires learners to take national tests to assess progress and to measure the performance of different schools, according to universal standards, hence it is meritocratic;primary education – the first years of learning in most countries comprise of reading, writing and mathematics with an introduction to other subject areas;taught by experts – the official curriculum is typically taught by trained teachers through formal teaching and textbooks;school-based – the official curriculum is typically delivered in educational establishments such as schools. It is delivered in classroom settings with specialist equipment;subjects – the official curriculum is delivered via subjects which will have set content and a syllabus of what needs to be covered;any other reasonable response.2(d)[6]
Explain three ways education is meritocratic. Award one mark for each point correctly identified (up to a maximum of three). Award one mark for each point that is developed (up to a maximum of three). Possible responses:
comprehensive schools – admit all students from a local area regardless of money or ability, giving them all the same opportunities for success;role allocation – functionalism – meritocracy in education means that the best achieving learners should be able to enter their chosen career. It is a system of ‘sifting and sorting’, getting the children of different abilities into the most appropriate job – a fair and meritocratic system of selection by ability;compensatory education – e.g. bursaries, free preschool places, extra support for students from disadvantaged backgrounds and scholarships – the brightest children will not be held back academically as they can be awarded financial assistance to support them in attending, for example, private schools;setting by ability – learners all have different abilities and schools will set them by ability accordingly. Functionalists argue that it is unfair to delay learners who progress more quickly by slowing the pace of teaching for learners who need extra support. Thus, setting is seen to be meritocratic;alternative approaches to education – education can be delivered in the best way for the learner and their context making it an equal and democratic process e.g. unschooling, progressive schooling, home- schooling etc;vocational education – for those students who are not able to succeed academically, vocational education is available allowing all students the chance to train and develop their skills;national curriculum – this ensures that all students follow the same curriculum ensuring that they all have the same opportunities for success;standardised testing – all children will be tested in the same ways and this is another way that education is seen to be meritocratic and fair – no one is advantaged or disadvantaged e.g. examinations;equal opportunities – legislation has changed to ensure that all children have the same rights to an education, regardless of ethnicity, gender, disability or social class (wealth and income);free education – in most countries access to education is free, this is clearly meritocratic as it does not prevent anybody from getting an education;education allows for social mobility – e.g. if a working class student works hard they can gain good qualifications which will allow them to achieve a middle class job like an engineer or teacher;any other reasonable response.2(e)[8]
Discuss the limitations of the Marxist view of education. Use Table A to mark answers to this question. Possible responses:
social class inequalities – the Marxist focus on class inequality means that not enough attention is paid to ethnic and gender inequalities which are equally as serious – it is a biased/blinkered perspective;social conformity – many sociologists think Marxists exaggerate the extent to which schools produce conformist students and thus a compliant workforce. At school many learners rebel against rules and authority;ruling class control – the Marxist claim that the ruling class control the education system and schools can be challenged as many schools are controlled locally and there are growing numbers of free schools. Teachers do have some control and say over what and how they teach;out of date – the Marxist view seems a little out of date as today factory workers are no longer needed to the same extent as they were in the past as we see the move to a service/technology-based economy. In fact, many employers want workers with a range of skills – creative thinking, problem solving, decision making and autonomy, all of which are the antithesis of the Marxist view of education;alternatives to education – as these continue to grow in popularity across the globe, so the Marxist claim of uniformity and ideological social control from schools seems less convincing. Education does not have to be gained in schools these days and, even if it is, the ways it is taken are very diverse;compensatory education – this is now commonplace and means that the disadvantages previously faced by lower class children in education are diminished as schools become meritocratic (functionalism). This can be achieved through positive discrimination, reduced entry offers, scholarships/bursaries and equal access schemes;functionalists argue that meritocracy is a reality, not a myth as Marxists argue – efforts and talent are rewarded in school through positive sanctions, higher achievement etc;feminism – argues that Marxism is genderblind and ignores the discrimination and stereotyping that affects girls in education;any other reasonable response.2(f)[14]
Evaluate the view that material factors have the most influence on educational achievement. Use Table B to mark answers to this question. Possible responses for:
quiet place to study – not having somewhere quiet to study and focus in an overcrowded home can negatively affect a student’s educational achievement;part-time work – poorer students are more likely to work part-time in order to help support the family financially and juggling this with schoolwork often leads to lower educational achievement;inadequate diet – poorer children tend to eat a diet lacking in nutrition and therefore do not have the ‘brain food’ needed to best support educational success;not affording the ‘extras’ – parents are expected to afford school uniforms, sports kit, tutors, equipment for lessons and to contribute to the cost of trips – poorer children miss out on these if money is restricted and this is thought to negatively affect educational achievement;lack of pre-school education – it tends to be poorer children who have not been to pre-school because parents could not afford it and this often means they start primary school academically behind the more well-off children – this then affects educational achievement;lack of access to digital technology – having a laptop or a tablet or a PC has become increasingly important for success in education but poorer children often do not have access to these or to the internet at home – this can negatively impact educational success;lack of resources at home – not having books, quality newspapers or study materials means poorer students have less independent support than their more well-off counterparts and this can result in them not achieving as highly in education;poor health – poorer children may live in damp/mouldy conditions and this impacts their health resulting in them having more days absence than more affluent children. This will then negatively affect their educational achievement;any other reasonable response. Possible reasons against:cultural factors – Bourdieu – the higher social classes have more ‘capital’ than the lower classes and this advantages them in education leading to higher educational achievement;linguistic factors – Bernstein – the higher social classes are more likely to engage with the elaborate code at home than the lower social classes and as this is also the language of school and exams, this benefits them when it comes to educational achievement;type of school attended – private schools with their smaller class sizes, better resources and facilities are where educational achievement is highest, so attending one of these institutions will benefit the student;setting and streaming – students in the higher sets typically perform better than those in the lower sets and this may well be the most influential factor in determining educational success (Ball);teacher labelling – expectations from teachers may determine the quality of teaching a student receives, how hard they are pushed to succeed and how much homework they are set – this can often result in either a self- fulfilling prophecy or the halo effect (Rosenthal and Jacobson);gender – factors such as sexism, lack of role models in the higher positions of the hierarchy and the gendered curriculum may be more influential than material factors in determining educational success;ethnicity – factors such as racism, lack of role models and the ethnocentric curriculum may be more influential than material factors in determining educational success;scholarships and bursaries – material factors do not influence educational achievement as for the brightest students there is financial support available to negate the effects of their lack of money;functionalism – educational achievement is not thought to be about material factors but instead about hard work, natural ability and talent (meritocracy);any other reasonable response.
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