Equality and Power in Schools

Redistribution, Recognition and Representation

Anne Lodge, Kathleen Lynch

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2004
• Print ISBN: 9780415268059
• eBook ISBN: 9781134497034
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Based on a study of 12 schools over a two-year period, this book explores issues of equality and power both in the classroom and in the staffroom. Through classroom observation, interviews with pupils and staff, focus groups and questionnaires, the authors examine classroom practice, grouping and streaming, peer group relations and attitudes to power relationships both between pupils and teachers, and amongst teachers themselves. They also look particularly at the different experiences of pupils in single sex and co-educational schools. The authors' findings offer an insight into the way schools operate in terms of social class, gender, religion and ethnicity, and raise fundamental questions about the use and abuse of power in schools and how this affects the lives of pupils and staff. This book will be of interest to those studying education, sociology, gender studies and women's studies, and to policy makers and teachers in senior management roles.

Part 1 Setting the scene

Introduction

Formal education plays a foundational role in determining the character of the political, economic and socio-cultural life of any given society. Education is the institution in which everyone participates to a greater or lesser degree. It plays a key role not only in distributing cultural heritage, but also in defining the parameters of that heritage, in excluding as well as including; it is a key player in legitimating and ordering socio-cultural relations. Schools and other educational institutions are recognised arbiters of what constitutes the culturally valuable, not only in terms of what is formally taught, but also in terms of the manner in which it is taught, to whom, when and where.

The role of education is not purely cultural however; it is also deeply social and political. In a globalised geo-political order, in which knowledge, particularly credentialised knowledge, plays an increasingly powerful role in determining the pattern of occupational opportunities, education is a central player in the distribution of privilege. Those who receive much formal education are considerably advantaged over those who receive little, and those who receive their education in elite institutions are privileged over those who do not (Bourdieu 1996).

Given the central role that education plays in the ordering of political, economic and socio-cultural relations it seems imperative that we analyse how it works, especially in its compulsory phase. The purpose of this book therefore is to advance such understanding. Building on the work of colleagues both nationally and internationally, we try to explore the inside life of schools, in classrooms and staffrooms, in corridors and in recreational spaces where students and teachers live out the practice of education on a daily basis. Using a triangular research strategy, we go deep inside the culture of schools, by listening to what students and teachers tell us, by observing classes, and by checking out our interpretations with those whom we observed and to whom we spoke. We do not confine our analysis of equality issues to the micro-actions of the school, however. We also try to locate the micro within the macro, to locate the subjective interpretation within the wider structural frame.

Our approach to the subject of education is not that of detached and disinterested observers however. Although we are deeply committed to the principle of objectivity in the deployment of our research instruments, including the tools of interpretation, we are also keenly aware of the naïve character of claims to absolute objectivity. Like all social scientists, we work out of paradigmatic as well as domain assumptions that are deeply value laden no matter how much we protest to the contrary (Gouldner 1970). Consequently we are happy to declare that the purpose of this book is not just to advance understanding of how schooling promotes equality or inequality in different ways, its goal is also to contribute to change by offering insights into how inequalities and injustices can be addressed. It is hoped that it will not only stimulate debate about the multiple and interlocking ways in which schools operate to promote different types of inequality, of a distributive, recognition and representational kind, but that it will also encourage and promote egalitarian change.

Schooling is compulsory until the age of 16 years in Ireland. While it is not legally compulsory after that time, it is de facto compulsory for many students as they know that without completing second-level education to the Leaving Certificate (the equivalent of the Baccalaureate in France, Highers in Scotland or A levels in England) their chances of good employment, or indeed further or higher education, are limited (Smyth and Hannan 2000). If the State requires young people to stay in school by law then it is imperative that their education in school is an enabling and enriching experience. It is imperative that it not only develops their capabilities, but that it also reinforces their sense of well being and self-esteem. To achieve such an objective it must promote an egalitarian culture for both the teachers and the students. If teachers are undervalued, either by management or colleagues, the chances that they will promote a positive and supportive learning environment for students are severely constrained. If all students are not treated with equal respect and enabled to develop their capabilities to the full, this raises important moral questions about the right of the State to confine people in an institution that may have enduring negative effects, be that culturally, economically or socially (Epp and Wilkinson 1996). Because schooling has been normalised as a social practice in most societies, we reflect little on the fact that it is mandatory. Its mandatory and universal character, however, places the question of equality in education centre stage. It is not an optional extra, either for the students or for teachers.

In this book we examine the core relations of schooling from an egalitarian perspective. Our approach to the subject is holistic rather than sectional; we do not focus exclusively on any single equality issue, or on any particular aspect of school life. Taking an inclusive view of the equality project and of schooling, we try to isolate the discrete ways in which schooling works in the development of particular sets of social class relations, so-called ‘ability’ relations, gender relations, minority relations and power relations. Drawing on the work undertaken with our colleagues in the Equality Studies Centre at University College Dublin (Lynch et al. 2001), we identify three inter-related core contexts in which inequality is generated in education, namely the socio-economic, the socio-cultural and the political.¹ The data suggest that, in social class and in so-called ‘ability’ terms, the problem of equality in education is primarily a redistributive one, while in terms of ethnicity (Travellers), sexual orientation, disability and religion the generative cause of inequality is the lack of recognition or mis-recognition of differences; it is a problem of social status rather than of redistribution of wealth or resources per se. The way power relations operate in schools also poses serious equality questions for education, not only in terms of student—teacher relations, but also in terms of student—student, and teacher—teacher relations. It is not possible, however, to draw a neat dichotomy between power, status and economic inequalities, particularly in the case of social groups where each of the three generative contexts of inequality are operating simultaneously, with no evident priority. Gender inequalities are, we suggest, exemplary of types of inequalities that are multiply generated; gender is a paradigm case of a multivalent status in equality terms.

Outline of the book

Part 1 of the book sets the scene for the analysis in the succeeding chapters. It opens in Chapter 1 with a review of the equality debates in egalitarian theory. Here we outline the scope of the academic debate about equality, and suggest that there are at least three major types of social injustices that need to be addressed in education, namely redistributive, recognition and representational injustices. To address these effectively in the policy domain, there is a need to have a closer alliance between social scientists and egalitarian theorists. A closer alliance between ethical and analytical discourses would, we suggest, help critical scholars to develop paradigms for transformative action.

While Chapter 1 sets the theoretical context for the study, Chapter 2 outlines the empirical scope of the work. It explains the research design and methodology as well as profiling the twelve schools involved.

Part 2 of the book examines issues of distributive justice in schooling. Using data from multiple sources, Chapter 3 presents an overview of the ways in which social class inequalities are produced in schools. We suggest that social class inequality is produced like a play with at least four major stages: it begins at the pre-school market stage when income and wealth are stratified thereby ensuring that some have more educational choice and capacity than others; the selection stage of class stratification takes place when students from different classes ‘choose’ schools; the allocation stage occurs when students are tracked by tests of attainment that favour the already advantaged; while social class differentiated classroom experiences complete the class experience.

Chapter 4 focuses on how the grouping or allocation practices of schooling reinforce social class inequalities, while simultaneously creating new stratifications and divisions around so-called ‘ability’.

Part 3 is the longest section of the book; it addresses not only the inequalities of recognition experienced by different minority groups in schools, but also the interplay between recognition and other inequalities that arise in the gender area. Three of the four chapters (Chapter 5, 6 and 6) are devoted to the analysis of how single-sex schools differ from each other, and from co-educational schools, in the formation of gendered identities. The reason that we focused on school types as a means of understanding individual experiences is because of the desire to explore the complex subject of gender differentiation across schools in depth, a differentiation that is quite unique at this time in Western Europe. The focus on gender, as opposed to other social differentiations, is also related to the salience of gender as a structural division within Irish society. In terms of its scale and depth it is comparable to social class. Our data suggest that while gender relations are deeply status differentiated, they are more than this; they are also a deeply socio-economic and political set of relations that generate inequalities not only in terms of social status or culture, but also in terms of power and economic relations. Gender is a paradigm case of a multivalent status. Chapter 8 examines the position of minorities in schools. It highlights the long history of segregation in schooling, as well as the silences that have hidden, and continue to hide, the reality of differences. The equality problem for different minorities is often one of mis-recognition and/or of non-recognition of differences, either in terms of ethnicity (especially for Travellers), sexuality, religion or disability.

Part 4 of the book is devoted to the analysis of power relations. It suggests that equality in education is neither simply an issue of redistribution nor of recognition, it is also a problem of power, and how power relations are managed in schools. Taking the views of the students (Chapter 9) and the teachers (Chapter 10) we explore the multiple ways in which the ordering of power relations exercises both groups, not only in vertical terms but also in horizontal terms. We name the power dimension of inequality, the ‘representational dimension’, the third of the 3Rs, because the representation of interests is a core issue in the equalisation of power. Having political equality is about ensuring that one’s definition of the situation is not disregarded, that one’s voice is equal to that of others, that one is given the space and capacity to act autonomously

The book closes with a discussion of the three major sets of relations that need to be addressed in education, namely the relations of redistribution, recognition and representation. It explores the importance of these, not only as discrete entities but also as sets of overlapping practices and procedures that need serious reformation and change.

Chapter 1 The equality debates

DOI: 10.4324/9780203018620-2

When we set out to publish this book, and in particular to give it a name, we were advised that the language of equality originated in another time, another age, when naïve social scientists and political theorists failed to appreciate the complexity of the post-modern world, a world in which the grand narratives of Marxism, feminism and other normative discourses were redundant. Others suggested that to speak in terms of equality in education was to ally oneself too closely with the ethical assumptions of political theory, and too far away from the ‘objective’, analytical discourses of the social sciences. Writing about equality in education was to place oneself outside of fashion, not to be seen to be part of the contemporary debates where modernist and progressive ideals had been abandoned because of their innocent preconceptions. The arguments were not dissimilar to the arguments presented against the founding of Equality Studies itself over ten years ago (Lynch 1995).

Yet equality is a fundamental principle underpinning the operation of all democratic societies. It is enshrined as a core value in numerous international agreements, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights, the Amsterdam Treaty of the European Union, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It is also a principle to which there is deep commitment in education, albeit one that is often ill defined and minimally implemented. Given the centrality of equality to the discourse of contemporary politics, including the politics of education, it seemed both credible and desirable that it be the focus of a study on education.

A further reason for making equality a central focus of this study is because inequality in education, howsoever defined, has been one of the core subjects of research in the social scientific analysis of schools in recent history (Lynch 2000a). What has become abundantly clear as this research has progressed is that schools are major players in the determination of patterns of inequality in society. As knowledge-based industries and services gain increasing pre-eminence in the global economy, schools have become increasingly powerful players in the determination of life’s chances. Their role as producers and disseminators of cultural products has also meant that they play a powerful role in determining the ordering of cultural relations in society, and in elevating and denigrating different cultural forms.

This book is about the issue of equality in education in all its complexity. While it analyses questions of difference and diversity, issues of power, and questions of distributive justice, it defines and interprets these not as separate and discrete entities, but rather as core, interfacing problematics within the wider equality project. It is eclectic in its approach, both intellectually and empirically. Although it is informed in large part by research within the social sciences on education, it does not confine itself to these perspectives. In particular it draws on work in normative egalitarian and feminist theory, to understand the complex ways in which schooling can produce different, and often unequal, outcomes in education, and to identify options for change. Two core principles inform the work therefore, an ethical set of principles that assume that inequalities in education are unjust and must be changed, and a pluri-disciplinary analytical framework that recognises the multivalent and interlocking character of student identities as relational subjects. We cannot draw a neat dichotomy between the material and the symbolic, between class, ethnic, gender and other social relations, if we want to understand social reality, in particular if we want to understand how inequality is perpetuated (Cole 2000; Crompton 1998; Fraser 1995; Anthias 2001). One’s materially defined structural location, in class terms, and one’s place on the circuits of power, are also strongly influenced by one’s gender, ethnicity and regional location in an increasingly global social order.

Given the fact that the debate about equality, in equality terms, as opposed to stratification terms, takes place in political theory rather than in sociology, we want to draw on the insights gained from normative egalitarian theorists, in particular from critical theorists, feminists and Marxist-inspired thinkers within this field. Egalitarian theory is not of a piece. It comprises authors from the very different intellectual orientations including conservative thinkers such as Nozick (1974); neo-liberal scholars such as Waltzer (1985) and Dworkin (2000); classical liberals such as Ra...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Acknowledgements
• Part 1 Setting the scene
• 1 The equality debates
• 2 The design of the study and a profile of the schools
• Part 2 Issues of redistribution
• 3 The Class Act A one-act play in four stages
• 4 The grouping process Selecting out, selecting in
• Part 3 Issues of recognition and multivalent identities
• 5 Girls' schools Diligence, surveillance and resistance
• 6 Boys' schools Peer regulation and sporting prowess
• 7 The complex cultures of co-educational schools Diversity, silence and hegemony
• 8 The diversity deficit Minorities and the recognition of difference
• Part 4 Discipline and power
• 9 Regimes of power and resistance
• 10 Vertical and horizontal power Teachers' experiences
• 11 Inequality and the 3Rs—redistribution, recognition and representation
• Appendix A: Tables
• Appendix B: Figures
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index