examples of socialization in school

Introduction to the Sociology of Education, A Case Study of a Major Education-Related News Item in Canada, Using the Sociology of Education to Help Understand the Events in Attawapiskat, Bronfenbrenner and Ecological Systems Theory, The Development of Education in the Rest of Canada, The History of Aboriginal Education in Canada, Funding of Primary and Secondary Education in Canada, Public and Private Post-secondary Education, Historical Events in Canadian Curriculum Development. This group tended to care the least about schoolwork and did not participate in extracurricular activities. 2007). Students academic abilities are identified early in their academic career through the grades they receive. Instead of passive citizens who are expected to follow rules handed down from positions of authority, students in these alternative schools are active citizens who participate in the democracy of the school structure. From an early age until adulthood, school is a place where children spend a large portion of their daysand, indeed, their lives. Similarly, students who attend private schools can be conceptualized as having been streamed into elite classes that tend to reproduce social stratification in society. Recognizing that such negative peer interactions can have a profound impact on childhood socialization and later-life well-being (Canadian Council on Learning 2008), many schools have adopted strict anti-bullying policies that are incorporated into their school rules. Being presented with that curriculum is one way that children are socialized into becoming desirable members of the public. Especially in early grades, the relationship that a child has with his or her teacher has a very important impact on emotional, social, behavioural, and academic adjustment (Pianta 1999). 2010). Streaming, seen this way, may therefore act to reproduce social inequalities by limiting post-secondary opportunities (Sweet et al. Children who are home schooled do not attend formal school and are taught usually by a parent in the home environment. (2010) found that in Grade 9 streaming practices in Ontario, Black African and Caribbean students were disproportionately found in the lower streams. Some schools encourage active citizenship wherein students participate in creating and modifying schools codes of conduct, and other aspects of their schooling, including course content. School administrators argued that the girls were in violation of the school dress code and that the practice had been banned by school because the duct tape outfits had become too racy in previous years.7. Teachers who hold negative stereotypes about low-achieving or minority students may also expect such students to consistently perform poorly. Girls are bullied for being unattractive, not being dressed fashionably, and being physically overdeveloped (Shakeshaft and Barber 1995). Schools are directly responsible for making people worthwhile in their respective societies. Girls who wear tank tops and are reprimanded are at risk of being deemed immoral or slutty, and boys who violate certain rules aimed at them may be labelled gangsters. Pomerantz argues that implicit in many of the dress code discourses is the message that it is a females moral duty to keep herself covered. 2. Characteristics of children that may be perceived to threaten classroom management may attract negative attention from teachers. The home schooled comprise about one percent of student population in Canada (Hepburn 2001). Examples-socialization must occur for a high school freshman to adjust to their new situation. Students in such tracks often indicate that they are bored and that they are not engaged with the course materials (Berends 1995). Rather than committing acts of physical violence toward each other, girls are much more likely to participate in covert acts of aggression such as spreading rumours and excluding individuals from their social group. Table 6.1 Structural Differences between School and Family Settings. Overall, Raby and Domitrek (2007) have found that Canadian youth seemed to be generally supportive of rules they regarded as protective (rules prohibiting fighting and bringing weapons to school, for example), as long as they were presented as logical and enforced fairly in practice. Within the family, children are socialized into particular ways of thinking about morals, cultural values, and social roles. This type of aggression is often simply referred to as meanness. Rules that students opposed were those that seemed pointless and arbitrary, particularly those around dress codes (Raby 2005). It should be noted that informal mechanisms of streaming, however, can also be understood as the outcomes of other schooling practices that occur at the level of the institution. In a study of secondary students responses to dress codes, Raby (2010) found that many girls regarded specific aspects of dress codes overly restrictive (such as the prohibition of tank tops with spaghetti straps) but were often quick to condemn girls who wore revealing clothing as sluts. While wanting to challenge gender inequalities, they were also active participants in reproducing them. Conflicts within relationships are dealt with in ways such that the relationship itself becomes the weapon. In addition to the two dominant uniforms, Pomerantz (2008) noted that girls also described their styles as comfortable, sporty, goth, punk, alternative, dressy, classy, preppy, regular, casual, weird, skater, random, hip hop (p. 10) and various combinations. Benefits. As noted by Sweet et al. School settings often place children in heterogeneous classes with large groups of children of the same age, where they participate in very specific school-oriented activities and events. It can be difficult for teachers to be warm and supportive when behavioural disruptions from students make it challenging for the teacher to perform his or her instructional role (Jennings and Greenberg 2009). What Is Socialization All About? - ThoughtCo Such instances spark debate around the role of schools in promoting particular social values. In contrast, the English language arts academic trajectory in Alberta is ELA 10-1, 20-1, and 30-1 [which] provides a more in-depth study of text in terms of textual analysis. The alternative peer groups found in most middle and secondary schools can also be thought of as a form of youth resistance. Teachers are more than just a new person from whom the child must take direction; they influence the socialization of children in several ways. The child interacts with many features of his or her environment which all contribute to the childs social development. Such rules were routinely broken and created resentment among students for what they perceived as ridiculous rules that teachers spent far too much time enforcing, and were often seen to enforce in targeted and unegalitarian ways. The self-fulfilling prophecyis a term coined by sociologist Robert Merton in 1948 and refers to situations in which preconceived ideas about how someone will act cause that person to act in such a way, even if the belief about that person was initially incorrect.11 Riley and Ungerleider (2008) found that pre-service Canadian teachers rated the student records of those they were led to believe were Aboriginal less favourably compared to identical student records of those identified as non-Aboriginal, suggesting that teachers do alter their perceptions of students based on fixed characteristics. For example, if a child came from an absent family, or was put in a school or daycare when they were an infant or toddler, a school-like institution may influence primary socialization (Whitbeck, 1999). Single-sex schools have also been suggested as a solution to the boy problem. Greig (2003) argues that proponents of such arguments are engaged in a discussion that assumes that boys are in need of gender repair (Lingard and Douglas 1999). This finding points to important differences in provincial educational policies and practices with regard to streaming. Describe how peer victimization, peer rejection, and relational aggression impact on the socialization experiences of students. The term became associated with school disciplinary procedures in 1994 when the Gun-Free Schools Act was passed in the United States, which required that students who possessed a firearm at school be expelled for no less than one year (Cerrone 1999). The others category was a catchall for various other peer groups, such as nerds, band club, normals, loners, and the unpopular. Social ties that students have among each other have been found to have effects on academic achievement (Broh 2002), such that positive social interactions in the school environment spill over into how well they do in their schoolwork. These agents include the family, education, religion, peer groups, and the media, and they all play a significant role in shaping an individual's beliefs, values, and behaviors. In addition to features of the school and teacher characteristics, a major part of socialization at school involves students interaction with their peer group. You can help your child work on Raby (2006) identifies several ways that youth express resistance to what they perceive as dominant forces of socialization. A significant part of a teachers job is to evaluate students and, often, to decide if a student is best suited for a particular ability track. Teacher education suggests that tailoring into ability groups allows for teachers to best match the learning needs of students. The Safe Schools Act changed the policy to one of mandatory suspensions and expulsions and police involvement for particular rule infractions, provided that mitigating factors were taken into account. Skelton (2001) has noted, however, that the predominance of female teachers is not a new thing but has been the status quo since the nineteenth century. However, as Greig (2003) points out, this approach assumes that all boys like a particular type of book and that there is a standardized masculine identity that should be cultivated. 1010 Chapter 4: Socialization, Interaction, and the Self A major objective of socialization in the school setting is to make a child socially competent. 9. So far, it has been argued that children must adapt to features of school that are much different from their family environments. Although the mitigating factors clause was supposed to protect such students, the statistics indicated otherwise. Other researchers have found that school sports coaches create conformity among their players by using misogynistic and homophobic comments to criticize players (Schissel 2000), further contributing to stereotypes about what is considered appropriate male behaviour. Other perceived benefits of school uniforms, such as improved student achievement, improved self-esteem (particularly if less well-off students cannot afford the latest fashions), and the overall improvement of the learning environment (Pate 2006), have also been touted as rationales for implementation. Resistance by youth to the socialization forces of the school and its inherent power relationships can be expressed in a variety of ways. The names given to peer groups usually correspond greatly to their style of dress (particularly in the case of girls) and tastes in leisure activities. There are, however, a significant number of children, not only in Canada but in the United States and beyond, that do not attend school in the way that has been described here. The most frequently mentioned motivations were the desire to bond the family through a common educational pursuit, objections to the organization of schools, and a desire to personally enrich the curriculum. Did you interact with people in other groups? The government also funds other programs that provide Summarize how streaming contributes to socialization in schools. Theories in the Sociology of Education, 3. Deviants, elites, and to some extent jocks were more likely to drink, while deviants were the group most likely to use marijuana. Gender Socialization. In an analysis of streaming processes by province, Krahn and Taylor (2007) examined how course selection limited the post-secondary education options available to students in selected provinces. In addition to teaching student subject matter, teachers are often regarded as being responsible for managing the emotional lives of their students (Jennings and Greenberg 2009). WebHowever, there are some ways in which school can be considered primary socialization. 2010). Other research has suggested that cultural differences between childrens families and teachers result in the enforcement of zero tolerance policies for perceived minor infractions being viewed as excessive and impersonal by parents (Bernhard et al. In early 2011, eight female students at a Catholic high school in Windsor, Ontario were suspended for one day and faced not being able to go to their prom because they wore yellow and blue duct tape tops to a school hockey game in December. This bottom-up approach to decision making has proven to be a very effective one for students who, for various reasons, were not successful in the mainstream system. Box 6.2 What Do Academic and Applied Streams Look Like? Creating and enforcing codes of conduct can therefore be viewed as a form of socialization whose objective it is to create the desirable student. The What were the characteristics of unpopular students. Racialized students and those who have had previous conduct problems within schools are much more likely to drop out of school. Many codes of conduct in Canadian schools specify attire that is deemed unacceptable for wearing to school. (Ontario Ministry of Education 2009) were circulated to teachers in order to put creative strategies in place for improving boys literacy. Policy in which specific code infractions result in immediate punishment, usually in the form of suspension or expulsion, and sometimes involving the police. Elsewhere in Canada, zero tolerance policies are likely to be in place around specific actions. In contrast, Pre-calculus mathematics is described as designed for students who will be continuing studies at the post-secondary level in fields related to mathematics and science. Children gain an impression of how people perceive them as the Stanley Cohen (1972) coined the term moral panic to refer to the social phenomenon of mass attention being given to topics that appear to threaten the established social order. 7 & 10(Accessed March 2012). Socializationrefers to the ongoing process of learning the expected behaviours, values, norms, and social skills of individuals who occupy particular roles in society. While the characteristics of teachers in the process of socialization have been discussed above, another related feature that has been found to be associated with behavioural outcomes in children is school climate. Elites were regarded as having high status, and members were generally successful in extracurricular activities and academics. 2003). School dress codes can be a particularly contentious topic, particularly when the dress code rules appear to be targeting particular groups and if they do not appear to be enforced fairly. course sequence provides for the study of texts at a variety of different levels of sophistication, to meet the needs of a more diverse student population in terms of student aspirations and abilities, students who aspire to post-secondary education, but not necessarily to careers related to the English language arts, may register in this course sequence. Children who withdraw from peer interactions also limit their ability to fit into their peer group (Coie and Kupersmidt 1983; Dodge 1983). First, it teaches members the skills necessary to satisfy basic human needs and to defend themselves against danger, thus ensuring that society itself will continue to exist. Willis (1977; see Chapter 2) argued that working-class boys resisted the values and behaviours promoted in the school environment by acting in deviant ways: by fighting and skipping class. 1.3: Methods of Socialization - Social Sci LibreTexts The school setting is where the learning of the new role as a student occurs. Schools socialize children by teaching them their formal curricula but also a hidden curriculum that imparts the cultural values of the society in which the schools are found. One of these values is the need to respect authority, as evidenced by these children standing in line. As noted earlier in this chapter, students with social and emotional disabilities are more likely to be punished under school disciplinary codes of conduct. During the process of cultural conformity, children learn about accepted perspectives and styles of expression. The Consumer Mathematics curriculum addresses financial management, career exploration, home ownership and maintenance, as well as more traditional topics such as trigonometry and statistics. What were the characteristics of popular students? What kinds of lessons do they plan around the topic of morality? They found that Chinese boys were stereotyped as unmanly by White boys and that the White, middle-class definition of masculinity was realized through the rewarding of physically aggressive performances in PE class by these males and by their physical and verbal intimidation of the Chinese-Canadian males through the playing of football and dodgeball. In general, students who plan to attend a post-secondary institution, regardless of their specific career aspirations, need to familiarize themselves with the entry requirements of the institution and program the plan to enter. The goal of such acts is to damage others reputations and social standings within the peer group. Public schools tend to focus more on the testing side of the education because that is where they obtain their funding and a child might be offered a chance to be introduced to diversity, whereas private school has more time and the means to explore socialization in many other forms like field trips and such. Current practices appear to reflect the desire to create obedient future employees or citizens (Raby 2005). She notes that while dress code infractions for girls typically are focused on body containment (e.g., showing too much cleavage), for boys it is about containing ethnic or racial identities. As discussed in Chapter 2, Millington, Vertinsky, Boyle, and Wilson (2008) studied physical education curriculum in a Vancouver high school. Such outcomes suggest that the home schooled adults who answered the survey did not suffer from barriers due to socialization problems. Identify how the role of the family differs from the role of the school in the socialization process. Instead of occurring in the public sphere, girls resistance was contained to private spaces to avoid the risk of being criticized. Teachers, however, shape the socialization of students by other processes as well, which are discussed below. WebSocialization is the process by which people learn the culture of their society (Chambliss and Eglitis 87). Prior to attending school, childrens main source of socialization comes from their families. The peer group becomes more important in adolescence as a source of emotional security and identity. Young people are more likely to agree with rules that they accept as offering them protection. Streaming not only serves to increase the efficiency of teaching and classroom management, but also results in social groupings of students that have significant social meaning within and outside of the school. Agents of Socialization: Definition & Examples - Simply Sociology As Krahn and Taylor (2007) argue, students from disadvantaged backgrounds may have the ability to succeed in advanced academic courses, but an assortment of other factors may be reducing their likelihood of taking these courses. Meanness also includes such behaviours as name-calling, ridicule, sarcasm, and giving other girls the silent treatment. Research on girls meanness has found that middle-class girls more frequently participate in this type of aggression because it is within this social class that the rules of femininity are the least flexible. What group(s) were you in? Often such students have difficult home lives and such supports may be lacking in the home environment. For example, with small children, socialization tends to focus on control of biological and emotional impulses, such as drinking from a cup rather than from a bottle or asking permission before picking something up. School board rules also prohibit vandalism, aggression, and racist, homophobic, sexual, and gender-biased speech. The term zero tolerance first gained popularity in the area of law enforcement in the United States. Moral education and character education are even found in some provinces curricula (Box 6.1). What are the rationales given for dress codes and school uniforms? Socializing This is the complete list of articles we have written about socializing. Researchers have suggested that codes of conduct may be more positively received when they are worded in a manner that includes. Many schools across North America have official codes of conduct to be followed by teachers and students. Standardized tests (discussed in Chapter 5) often exert considerable influence in allocating children into specific streams. Justifications for student dress codes often centre on arguments about maintaining a desirable school image, respect of ones self and others, and preventing distractions (Raby 2010). The outer ring consists of implicit moral instruction, where students are provided with moral exemplars in more sophisticated ways, such as through the curriculum of history and literature. Types of socialization: primary, secondary and tertiaryPrimary socialization. You might say that primary socialization is the most important since its the first stage you go through in childhood.Secondary socialization. Secondary socialization comes next. Tertiary socialization. Some authors talk about a third type of socialization in people, which begins with old age and goes into retirement. Critics such as Greig (2003) argue that single-sex settings reinforce traditional gender roles and stereotypes that encourage teachers to treat boys and girls differently. She notes that style is perceived to be a voice of resistance among many girls, but also queries whether such an en masse expression of resistance through consumption of fashion and music can really be considered resistance if so many young people seem to be doing itat least to some extent. As well, children who cannot engage themselves with the material being taught in the classroom may turn to disruption of peers due to boredom and frustration. And they appear to be functioning effectively as members of adult society (p. 119). They have good self-esteem and are likely to display fewer behavior problems than do other children. Describe how they all impact on student socialization. Raby (2005) and Pomerantz (2007) also suggest that dress codes are more likely to be enforced on more physically developed females or those who belong to stigmatized subgroups (e.g., Goths). Less overt ways of instilling values through curricular practices are also found in citizenship education, which teaches students about being good citizens. Citizenship education is present in the primary and secondary curricula of all Canadian provinces and territories (Evans 2006). This curriculum is intended as preparation for calculus at the university level.. For example, we learn the importance of obeying authority and Streaming, as a way of dividing students into ability groupings, was described as creating internalized roles for students which may force them into social categories that are difficult to move out of. Secondary socialization happens throughout our lives, as we interact with The main thrust of this argument is that teaching staff are disproportionately comprised of females who value certain behaviours (like passivity and obedience, which tend to be found more in girls) and subject matter (like reading, which does not appeal to males as much), and that to improve boys performance, more males must be brought into the profession (Skelton 2002; Titus 2004). A dimension of socialization including the self-regulations of the body required of students to fit into the school environment, such as raising a hand or sitting still. Many of these features of the core can be understood as not only socializing children into being students, but also preparing them for life as adults within bureaucracies. 10. What are some conflicts that arise around the topic of school rules? The first of these dimensions is behavioural conformity. The influence teachers exert over students in their delivery of curriculum has been addressed above and in the previous chapter. Character education is part of the official curriculum in some parts of the country. Charter schools (Chapter 4) can also be thought of as streaming children, but of instead of streaming them into ability groups, they are streamed into particular philosophical or religious orientations. Students are active in decisions surrounding the administration of the school, content of learning, and social events. Agents of socialization are the social structures in which socialization occurs. Homeschooled children have stronger relationships with their parents and Children must learn the work ethic that goes along with school and understand the goals of learning as well as adjusting their efforts according to teacher feedback. In an overview of studies (Sussman et al. Sex-typing of childrens play (e.g., specific activities for boys and others for girls) can also contribute to reinforcing gender differences in behaviour and the understanding that children have about the appropriate roles for males and females. The conflicts that students have with such rules were also highlighted. See Box 6.3 for further discussion about zero tolerance policies in Canada. Schools were not equipped to deal with students with social and emotional disabilities, and it was these very students who were disproportionately punished through the Safe Schools Act. Socialization that occurs within the family, where children first learn their own individual identity, acquire language, and develop cognitive skills. The physical and emotional abuse experienced by children from other childrenotherwise known as bullying.