The Education System Essay Example

The Education System Essay This point has caused one of the main criticisms of looking at cultural deprivation as the reason for working class underachievement. Critics have argued that working class parents seem less interested and less encouraging because of their situation and circumstances. They want to show their children what life is like realistically for the working class, that high occupational status is a dream. Another criticism of cultural deprivation has been by those who feel that material factors are more important. These critics are structuralists, and think that it is important to focus on what parents can provide materialistically that would encourage their children to do better at school, for example a quiet room for homework and appropriate books. If there is not enough money for books, the student has to get a part-time job which is likely to result in less time spent on schoolwork, thus not doing well in exams. There are other critics of cultural deprivation who feel it is important to look at factors of the school which affect the performance of different social class students. For example, there are subcultures (anti-social, anti-school) which working class students are more likely to be drawn into, and so their educational performance is obviously affected. The next explanation was a criticism of the last one material deprivation, or material factors. These theorists believe the students homes background influences and affects them the most. This is very much a structuralist view. The argument is that working class parents cannot afford the materials necessary for their children to do well. We will write a custom essay sample on The Education System specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Education System specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Education System specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The children are likely to share bedrooms with other siblings and dont have a quiet place for study, and my have to get a part-time job if their parents are not financially secure. Working class parents are also less likely to be able to attend parents meetings because they have a clash of time with work. Working class students are less likely to continue to higher education because their parents simply cannot afford tuition fees and the extra necessities of university. All these negative aspects of material deprivation are why many sociologists argue that material factors are why working class students are relative failures in the education system. However, as with inheritance and heredity, and cultural deprivation, material factors have also been criticised. Those who do not believe in material deprivation focus more on in school factors and how these affect performance. They argue it is more important to look at how the school can provide materialistically, but overriding this, culturally. For example, they look at the dominant culture and value system of teachers. In school, teachers have authority and students of working class, in particular, feel intimidated and do not want to do well. This often results in a case of teacher versus student values debate. Where the teacher may encourage the benefits of education, the student may feel that the teachers authority and nagging is discouraging. There are many other in school factors that sociologists have put forward, which became the next explanation interpretivist arguments. The interpretivist explanation for working class underachievement focuses on in school factors. They believe there are many things that happen inside school which prevent working class students performing as well as middle class students. One of these factors is subcultures, both anti-school and anti-social. Working class students find themselves easily drawn into these subcultures, often with excuses such as the teachers picking on me so Im not going to his/her lesson. Peer pressure is also a major issue in anti-school subcultures. When one student decides that school isnt for them and does not attend, they need somebody or several fellow students to truant with. Students who may have previously conformed do not want to be left out and join the anti-school feeling. Two important in school factors of the interpretivist argument are teacher labelling and streaming. Labelling is where a teacher prejudges a working class student, labelling them as useless, thus giving middle class students more attention and support. This drives working class students away in anti-school subcultures and holds them back from educational success. Streaming is where students are split and taught in groups of their perceived ability. David Hargreaves, an interactionist, claimed streaming created an increased amount of feeling inferior as lower stream boys progress to more mature ages. This affects how they feel towards education and more than often results in poor exam performance. As older students feel inferior and join anti-school subcultures, younger students find themselves without role models and in turn feel anti-school. Both labelling and streaming involve teachers stereotyping students of all social classes, which can lead to discrimination, e. g. sexism and racism. Again, interpretivists have also found themselves being criticised for their views. The critics are structuralists who feel it is more important to look at out of school factors and the students home background, in other words material and mainly cultural factors at home. Focuses are on things such as the values of and attitudes to education at home, and religious and cultural values. Critics argue that parents of working class students have very different values and attitudes to education than middle class parents. For example, working class parents may find it important to emphasise survival as key in their childrens futures, whereas middle class parents could believe in encouraging their children to aim as high as possible and achieve all they possibly can. Religious and cultural values are also important in the structuralist view. Where features of religion may interfere with how students are taught, their parents may choose to pull them out of the education system. A current example of this is the banning of the Muslim scarf in French schools. It is a vital aspect of Islam for females to wear a scarf, so where I has been banned, huge protests have been held and many Muslim parents have taken their children somewhere Islam can be practised and the children can be educated. Critics of interpretivists also think peer pressure in the area where the student lives is important. If there is an anti-school subculture in the area, the student is extremely likely to be a part of it as it its where they spend most of their time. As time has passed, each of the explanations offered for working class underachievement have become more developed, and have also faced more criticism. The first sociologists to look into this issue believe intelligence is inherited and measurable, and middle class parents are generally more intelligent. They also believe in IQ tests and think they are an excellent way of measuring intelligence. However, there are opponents to this suggestion who believe IQ tests are unfair and cannot be used to test member of different social classes and people of subcultures within social classes and ethnic groups. There are many weaknesses and not many strengths to the argument of inheritance and heredity. Though the sociologists argue that intelligence is inherited from parents, there has not been a study to prove that this is so, i. e. no evidence has been provided to back up this idea. They do, on the other hand, not deny that there are less intelligent middle class students and more intelligent working class children. I agree with the critics who claim that IQ tests are unfair because when an IQ test is created, it will in some way be biased to a certain group (usually the middle class). There would be questions on the test that working class children would not be familiar with, thus failing to perform well and being labelled unintelligent. This is an extremely unfair way to explain why working class students are relative failures in the education system. Cultural deprivation was offered by those sociologists who felt working class children were brought up in a culture where people around them placed a lower value on education and where their parents were much less interested in their schooling than middle class parents. I agree with the critics who say that it is unfair to say working class parents are uninterested in their childrens education because it is their circumstances that put them in that position. A weakness of this argument is that although a researcher may have looked into a working class family and found that their argument was proven correct, not all working class families are this way and many do encourage academic success. As a reason for working class underachievement, cultural factors are important to look at but do not apply to all working class families. The sociologists who argue that material deprivation at home is the cause for working class underachievement have a strong argument. They claim that working class parents are unable to afford the materialistic requirements of school and that this forces their children to fall behind and perform badly. Though this is a very valid argument, it is important to look at other factors as well as materialistic factors at home. For example, material and cultural factors at school are equally important, and should all be taken into consideration. The interpretivist argument focused on in school factors and how these affected the performance of students. The sociologists looked at things such as anti-school subcultures and teacher labelling and streaming. Like the sociologists who agree with material factors, interpretivists fail to look at other factors. They see in school factors as the sole reason for working class underachievement, which is not correct. Though it is also a valid argument like material deprivation, it should not be forgotten that the home background of a student is equally important to look at as well as the state of the school. I think that inheritance and heredity do not cause working class underachievement, but that a combination of cultural and material factors both at home and at school cause working class students to be relative failures in the education system. Where each individual theory counts out the others as valid reasons, I think this is wrong and that all count equally towards working class underachievement.

Clinical psychology essayEssay Writing Service

Clinical psychology essayEssay Writing Service Clinical psychology essay Clinical psychology essayThe Asperger Syndrome (and High-Functioning Autism) Diagnostic Interview (ASDI): A Preliminary Study of a New Structured Clinical Interview.What is the proposed purpose of the ASDI?The article makes it clear that the purpose of the Asperger Syndrome Diagnostic Interview (ASDI) is to diagnose such psychiatric disease as autism spectrum disorder in children and adults of certain age groups. The interview is intended especially for clinical psychiatrists who are well acquainted with the symptoms and methods of treatment of the Asperger syndrome and other psychiatric or psychological disorders in the autism related spectrum. The interview is based on the investigations of the clinicians and aimed at diagnosing the Asperger Syndrome in the autism spectrum. The article’s purpose is to investigate the affected children and adults who find it difficult to socially interact having delayed motor development and uncoordinated movements.It is well known that chil dren and adults with the Asperger syndrome have difficulties in cognitive or language development. In this regard, the interview presented in the article takes into account all of the peculiarities of children affected by the Asperger syndrome or other autism related disorders. The sphere of diagnosis included impaired social interactions, speech, communicative challenges, verbal skills, movements and other signs of disorder of the interviewed group of people who suffer from Asperger syndrome. Thus, the major aim of the ASDI is to investigate the symptoms of the disorder in order to find the best means of its treatment. It needs to be mentioned that ASDI proved to be effective in diagnosing siblings or parents who comprised the major part of the informants. Finally, it is worth saying that with the help of self-awareness and therapy, the majority of children and adults learn how to cope with all the challenges of the Asperger syndrome. Thus, ASDI is not only an effective way of diag nosis, but also a way of helping the affected individuals to cope with the challenges related to the Asperger Syndrome.What are the strengths and weaknesses of using the ASDI for clinical psychologists interviewing clients who may fall on the autism spectrum?The major strength of the interview lies in the fact that it turns to be an effective way of diagnosing the Asperger Syndrome. It is proved by the results of the ASDI carried out by clinical psychologists. However, the established diagnoses of the Asperger Syndrome are impossible to distinguish from other psychiatric or psychological disorders and normality. It turned out that the interview failed to show the distinction between the Asperger Syndrome and autism. Thus, there must be certain exclusive criterion for autism.Moreover, the interview has a number of other weaknesses as well. Thus, it needs to be mentioned that as the informants were either parents or their siblings, the results obtained could be applied to only first-d egree relatives as a key group of informants. Furthermore, the results of the interview are applicable to only those cases when the informants have known the individual with the Asperger Syndrome or other autism spectrum disorder for certain period of time. However, there should be carried out separate studies apart from the interview. The studies should be conducted with the involvement of informants other than siblings and parents.In such a way, it would be reasonable to recommend the ASDI for making preliminary diagnostic decisions when young people or adults are supposed to suffer from autism spectrum disorders, including the Asperger Syndrome. Taking into account all of the above-mentioned weaknesses of the interview, it is worth saying that the ASDI cannot be used as a final means of diagnoses, but rather as a direction for further deep clinical examination of adults and children suffering from the autism spectrum disorders and the Asperger Syndrome in particular.Clinical psyc hology   essay part 2

Political ideologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Political ideologies - Essay Example However, despite having attempted to define the word, it must be noted that there cannot really be any single definition for the term ‘ideology.’ This is because different people look at the word with different meanings; some might imply it to be some sort of an identity thinking, others might look at it as some sort of a necessary illusion. Many people feel that an ideology is something that should be ruled by the dominant thoughts within society. However, this is a wrong notion because in just the same way, a minor section of society might be thinking along different lines, and creating their own set of beliefs which might not be as acceptable, but are something that they live by anyway. Ideologies may also be termed as illusions or mere fragments from within the thought process of a person. Some of the world’s famous ideologies that have been penned down have included the works of Hegel, Marx and even Georg Lukacs. It has been known through studies in history and politics that the nineteenth and the twentieth centuries have had a great impact on how people live today. These eras marked the inception of ideologies laid down by famous thinkers and intellectual powerhouses. Names like Freud, Keynes, Darwin and Smith shaped the way people existed, and gave life new meanings. They spoke about various things ranging from evolution to economics and helped people understand the reason for their existence. Thus, this is how an ideology might create conflict within culture and society, and the people because not everything is compatible with each other. It depends from one person to another. For example, if one actually would like to understand what the term signifies, then they must do it by putting themselves in different people’s shoes and trying to ascertain what they might be going through and how they might perceive a certain