Family investment on school at the confluence of school and family dynamics

Author(s):

Ana Diogo

Conference:

ECER 2009

Network:

14. Communities, Families and Schooling in Educational Research

Format:

Paper

Session Information

14 SES 02, Family Involvement at Schools: Investment, Associations and Professional Support

Paper Session

Time:

2009-09-28

11:15-12:45

Room:

JUR, HS 10

Chair:

Raquel-Amaya Martínez-González

Contribution

The aim of this paper is to analyse how family school investment is affected by the schooling contexts. The framework of this analysis is the idea of the complex nature of the relationship between families and schools. As part of a growing family investment in school education, as a product of the recognition that school diplomas are a necessary condition for socioprofessional inclusion, the credentialist theories showed the vital importance of developing schooling strategies for the upper classes (to ensure social distinction), and the impact of those strategies in the school opportunities for all social groups, as well (Bourdieu, 1979, Collins, 1971; Vieira, 2003). New forms have joined the old modalities of social reproduction since the economic, cultural and educational changes in recent decades in European countries created new possibilities and constraints for family action (Zanten, 2005). Among these new processes there is the question concerning the frequency, selection and formation of differentiated school contexts. Being aware that the attended school context is a key ingredient to make a difference in children’s school careers, school (or class) choice is, increasingly, at the centre of family strategies (Gewirtz et al., 1995; Meuret et al., 2001). Furthermore, research has shown that family strategies can work in symbiosis with school strategies for students’ recruitment (Barthon and Oberti, 2000) and with policies focused on schools’ autonomy (Barroso and Viseu, 2003). The idea that the schooling context is not neutral (interfering with the investment made by individuals) has been stressed by the sociology of education at least since the 70s, through the school effects’ studies. These studies have essentially tried to show that schools make a difference, regardless family influence (Thrupp, 1999). This approach was developed as a critique to macrosociological studies that explained family school investment from a culturalist perspective (Bourdieu and Passeron, 1970) or from the theory of rational action (Boudon, 1973). Anyway, the perspective reveals to be unable to capture the complex phenomena of the relationship and mutual influence between schools and families (Epstein, 1992; Perrenoud and Montandon, 1987; Silva, 2003). Alternatively, we are interested to stress that families interfere in school characteristics and dynamics, triggering reactions and strategies in the schools, which, in turn, feedback an impact on those dynamics. Thus, the school context works as a crossroad between the particular interests and strategies of families and schools.

Method

We tried to research the relationship between family school investment (particularly the expectations of continuation of studies) and the social composition of schools and their classes; the involvement of young people and their parents in school work, teachers’ pedagogical practice; and the school organizational context. These variables are analyzed in individual and contextual perspectives (Duru-Bellat et al., 2004). The results come from two researches made in Portugal (at the archipelago of the Azores) and concern the end of compulsory schooling. The first, already completed, included a survey of 409 youngsters and 119 parents, and documental research., as well The second, still ongoing, includes a survey of 1913 students. Data analysis is quantitative, involving the use of descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis (Pampel, 2000).

Expected Outcomes

The outcomes show, firstly, that schooling investment is constrained by the school context (school and class), regardless the individual characteristics of families. Secondly, the analysis of the social composition of school contexts reveals the existence of selection practices, which have to be seen at the confluence of the schools and families strategies. Finally, trying to deepen the processes that explain the differences between schooling contexts, the research highlights factors such as the frequency of tutoring attendance and classroom dynamics, especially referring to teacher characteristics. The simultaneous projection of elements which, at first sight, can be clearly identified as family factors (tutoring attendance) and school factors (teaching) opens avenues for reflection on the porosity between family and school dynamics.

References

Barroso, J. and Viseu, S. (2003), “A emergência de um mercado educativo no plano da rede escolar: de uma regulação pela oferta a uma regulação pela procura”, Educação & Sociedade, 24(84), pp. 897-921 [http://www.scielo.br/pdf/es/v24n84/a08v2484.pdf] Barthon, C. and Oberti, M. (2000), “Ségrégation spatiale, évitement et choix des établissements”, in A. van Zanten (Eds.), L'École. L'État des Savoirs, Paris, Éditions la Découvert, pp. 302-310. Boudon, R. (1973, 1979), L'Inegalité des Chances: La Mobilité Sociale dans les Sociétés Industrielles, Paris, Armand Colin. Bourdieu, P. (1979), La Distinction: Critique Sociale du Jugement, Paris, Les Éditions de Minuit. Bourdieu, P., e J.-C. Passeron (1970, s.d.), A Reprodução: Elementos para uma Teoria do Sistema de Ensino, Lisboa, Editorial Vega. Collins, R. (1971, 1997), “Niveaux d’études et stratification sociale: théorie fonctionnaliste et théorie du conflit”, in J.-C. Forquin (Eds.), Les Sociologues de l'Éducation Américains et Britanniques, Paris-Bruxelas, De Boeck, pp. 111-140. Diogo, A. M. (2008), Investimento das famílias na escola. Configuração familiar e contexto escolar local, Oeiras, Celta. Diogo, A. M.; Caldeira, S.; Serpa, M. and Carvalho, C. (2008), “Contextos de escolarização e sucesso da experiência escolar dos alunos”, Arquipélago – Ciências da Educação, 9, pp. 89-114. Davies, J. (1976), “Les effets de la composition d’un groupe: technique d’analyse”, in R. Boudonand P. Lazarsfeld (Eds.), L’Analyse Empirique de la Causalité, Paris, Mouton, pp. 170-180. Epstein, J. (1992), “School and family partnerships”, in M. Alkin (org.), Encyclopaedia of Educational Recherch, New York, MacMillan, pp. 1139-1151. Gewirtz, S.; Ball, S. and R. Bowe (1995), Markets, Choice and Equity in Education, Buckingham, Open University Press. Meuret, D.; Broccholichi, S. and Duru-Bellat, M. (2001), “Autonomie et choix des établissements scolaires”, Les Cahiers de l'IREDU, 62. Montandon, C. e Perrenoud, P. (1987), Entre Parents et Enseignants: Un Dialogue Impossible?, Berna, Peter Lang, pp. 89-168. Pampel, F. (2000), Logistic Regression: A Primer, Thousand Oaks, Sage. Silva, P. (2003), Escola-Família, uma Relação Armadilhada: Interculturalidade e Relações de Poder, Porto, Afrontamento. Thrupp, M. (1999), Schools Making a Difference: Let's Be Realistic!, Buckingham, Open University Press. van Zanten, A. (2005), “New modes of reproducing social inequality in education: the changing role of parents, teachers, schools and educational policies”, European Educational Research Journal, 4 (3), pp. 155-169. Vieira, M. M. (2003), Educar Herdeiros: Práticas Educativas da Classe Dominante Lisboeta nas Últimas Décadas, Lisboa, Gulbenkian.

Author Information

Ana Diogo

Universidade dos Açores (Azores University)

Sciences of Education

Ponta Delgada

174

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