The Conflict Theory Looks At Life As A Competition.docx

Criteria 3 The conflict theory looks at life as a competition, and focuses on the distribution of resources, power and inequality; it includes social class, shapes social structure and also relationships. As described by DeMarrais & LeComte, “Schools tend to magnify class differences by sorting individuals into occupational niches, not so much by their ability as by their social class origins. Thus children from middle- or upper-class families are thought to be more able and so are pushed toward professional or other desirable careers.” Saying this, one would look at class seeing how resources are used equally, noticing that the teacher would have a greater amount of power compared to the students and how the students would look up to the teacher. One will also see that there are different social classes amongst the group, through observation of their attire, and the way the teacher treat these differences. The conflict theory approach, therefore, would suggest that as the emphasis on standards-based curriculum tightens, the growth and widening of educational attainment increases, and the intensification of academic intelligence continues, maintaining individual social status will become inherently more difficult and society will witness heightened stratification and greater polarization of the class structure. Having identified the problem – the educational system as a tool used by the dominant class to retain power – how do the Conflict theorists propose to fix it? “Their view is a pessimistic one, giving no consideration to how individuals could interact to ameliorate achievement or alter the constraints of the system” (DeMarrais & LeComte) Critical theory” analyzes sources of oppression, with special focus on the successes and failures of previous social theories to understand society. Critical theorists see themselves as unobjective advocates who hope to actually solve some of society’s inequities, an activist rather than deterministic viewpoint (in special contrast to Marxism). From my experience in the classroom, class differences are magnified throughout the

school day. Students who are from families with low socioeconomic status have disadvantages when compared with upper class students because teachers may favour the latter. Conflict theory perfectly describes what can occur in a classroom and in a school in general if teachers and administrators are ignorant, thoughtless, or lazy: use the language of educated adults to speak to those students already comfortable with their own language (a minority of the classroom), to the exclusion of the others. Ultimately, most students are not from the upper class, and to the extent that they differ from that model of the entrenched dominant class; these students have the potential to feel alienated in a classroom led by a teacher who is a member of the elite. By alienating his students, a teacher can be the direct cause of poor attendance, distraction, antagonism, and despair, all of which can contribute to students’ failure in the classroom. And thus the teacher becomes the reason for the student’s failure. The question “Why are some students more successful in school than others?” can be read as being about relatively minor differences in achievement– an native speaker of English compared to an English learner in a math class, for example, who picks up an algorithm perfectly but misses some of the fine details such as vocabulary and exceptions – but if can also be about huge differences in success. The biggest question of success is whether or not a student actually graduates from high school. As described in “Framing Dropouts” (Fine, 1991) some high schools seem to pick out the most troublesome students and repeatedly and creatively try to push them out of school. Fine describes an interview with the administrators and counselors at an inner-city high school where it appeared that the school was aware of students’ rights not to be permanently discharged but that they were hiding this fact from the students. During the conversation, a counselor confirmed this impression: “What [Fine] is saying is true. We do throw students out of here for no good reasons. They feel terrible. We deny them their education. Black kids especially. They care a lot.”

Opposed to conflict theory is functionalist theory. This theory sees meritocracy in education as a working and effective practice within schools. Schools function to assess and sort students into jobs and careers that are best for them based on their achievement. This theory views the institution of education in a positive light and gives more credibility to the teacher being held accountable for student achievement. Criteria 4 Crosnoe and Johnson suggest that “…schools can be viewed as important aspects of the ecology of human development – institutional settings influencing the more proximate contexts that, in turn, direct development” (Crosnoe and Johnson, 2004, p. 75). Teachers in these environments must be aware of this fact and do everything in their power to enhance it. We have seen how teacher standards in the classroom regarding homework and overall performance aid students in achieving a higher effort and, sometimes, higher grades. Crosnoe and Johnson tell us in their study that interpersonal relationships between the students and their teachers also foster a more enjoyable learning environment and a higher level of achievement. Students, however, cannot be solely responsible for establishing these interpersonal relationships. Sometimes a student may be too shy to approach a teacher and ask for help. In this case, it is the teacher’s responsibility to recognize that student’s struggle and assist him or her. This is a part of what Kounin refers to as “withitness”, being able to observe what is going on in the classroom around you and being able to adjust accordingly. Teachers who effectively apply praise to reinforce desired behaviours cultivate built-in motivation in their students. It was found out that teachers can improve motivation of their students to behave in a proper way through the approach of positive reinforcement (Diedrich, 2010) Teachers need to be conscious of such issues and need to know how to handle them. Teachers effect on their students’ achievement. Sometimes, however,

students simply do not want to learn, and we must be careful to keep that in mind as we teach. Recognizing these students is the first step. Then, we must do everything in our power to inspire in them a love of learning, or at least, an acceptance of it. However, we also must be careful not to give them too much attention, because all that will do, in some cases, is foster more errant behavior. So, as teachers, we walk a fine line. Our influence, our expectations and our goals, and our relationships with our students, hold a lot of power. We must be careful not to abuse that power. We have been trusted with it; now, we must earn that trust. Bibliography Christiansen, R.J. (2002).Student/Teacher Relationships and Scholl Success: Perceptions of Students from Grade 9-12.July. Pp.1-52. DeMarrais, K.B., & LeCompte, M.D. (1999). The way schools work: A sociological analysis of education (3rd ed.). New York: Longman. Fine, M. (1991). Framing dropouts: Notes on the politics of an urban public high school. Albany: State University of New York Press. Hallinan, M. T. (2008). Teacher influences on students’ attachment to school. Sociology of Education, 81(3), 271-283. Hyun, J. (n.k). Facilitating Student-Teacher Relationships. Kinder Training.pp.1-12.