The role of social capital in the explanation of educational success and educational inequalities

This article examines the role that social capital plays in school success and in the explanation of social and ethnic inequalities in the German educational system. Based on Coleman's well-known concept of social capital, different aspects of social capital are distinguished, including social network composition, parent–school interaction and intrafamilial social capital. In sum, the overall results indicate that the different aspects of social capital influence the school performance of pupils. In addition, social capital endowment is found to be of relevance for the explanation of inequalities in school grades between social classes and ethnic groups. In this respect, the analyses indicate that social capital endowment is part of the underlying mechanism responsible for educational inequalities.     

Effects of teacher feedback behavior on social acceptance in inclusive elementary classrooms: Exploring social referencing processes in a natural setting

Teacher feedback behavior is a key determinant of the social referencing processes that influence the social acceptance of pupils. The present longitudinal study explores how teacher feedback on academic performance and social behavior is related to social acceptance during classroom activities and recess in the natural setting of inclusive classrooms. Data come from a study with 32 teachers and their 546 first to third grade pupils in Switzerland. Teacher feedback behavior was videotaped and peer nominations and ratings were used to assess social acceptance. Multilevel regression analyses showed that feedback on incorrect social behavior was negatively correlated with feedback on correct academic performance. Teacher feedback on incorrect social behavior and on correct and incorrect academic performance predicted how pupils were accepted by their peers during classroom activities. However, teacher feedback did not affect social acceptance during recess. The effect of teacher feedback behavior on social acceptance appears to depend on context. Social acceptance during classroom activities is influenced by teacher feedback whereas social acceptance at recess is not.     

The role of teacher trust in segregated elementary schools: a multilevel repeated measures examination

This study aims to investigate how teachers’ trust in their students relates to reading comprehension achievement in socially and ethnically segregated elementary schools in Flanders (Belgium) by taking into account class composition characteristics. It is examined how student variables, ethnic diversity and the proportion of non-native students in the class, and teachers’ trust in their students relate to reading comprehension achievement and learning growth. A 3-level multivariate repeated measures analysis was conducted. At 2 measurement occasions, reading tests and questionnaires were administered to a sample (n = 417) of 7- and 8-year-old students in 32 classes. Teachers’ trust in their students was found to be a key factor relating to learning growth in reading comprehension, and mediated the relationship between the level of ethnic diversity in the class and learning growth. Teachers with a higher level of trust in their students seem to foster more learning growth in reading comprehension.     

The academic success of undocumented Latino students: School programs,non-profit organizations,and social capital

Based on 29 in-depth interviews with undocumented Latino college students and graduates in Southern California, this study explores how academic high achievers obtain the information, resources, and emotional support they need to achieve college-student status. The study highlights the importance of the programs offered by schools and nonprofit organizations to compensate for undocumented Latino students’ lack of social capital and their parents’ lack of human capital. Forging a trusting relationship with teachers and/or counselors remains crucial for navigating the unique application process for undocumented students and for identifying private funding sources.     

The role of social capital for teacher professional learning and student achievement: A systematic literature review

This systematic review synthesises research on social capital in relation to teachers and teacher professional learning between the years 2004–2019. The study was guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Statement and the Weight of Evidence framework for quality and relevance appraisal. After applying eligibility criteria, 66 empirical items were included in the final review. The review finds that social capital among teachers has been associated with five categories of outcomes: 1) teacher professional development, 2) the implementation of change, 3) the introduction of new and beginning teachers, 4) teacher retention and job satisfaction, and 5) improved student achievement. These have, in turn, been associated with the implicit outcome of promoting educational equity. A synthesis of enablers and barriers to building social capital among teachers identifies the pervasive role of organisational structures for moderating the relationship between social capital and these outcomes. Findings indicate that different organisational structures may foster different social capital dimensions, such as bonding, bridging, and linking. More research is needed on the relationship between these dimensions and schools' organisational structure to promote the desired outcomes of teacher social capital identified in this review.     

社会资本、人力资本与大学生就业绩效的关系研究

社会资本、人力资本对就业绩效的影响已经引起社会的广泛关注。大学生人力资本和社会资本概念的厘清为大学生就业绩效的提升奠定了理论基础。社会资本是就业过程中的一个重要工具,有助于提高就业绩效;人力资本对毕业生选择工作以及以后工作后的收入、权利和地位的获得起重要作用,在持续绩效水平高低中起决定性作用：社会资本和人力资本在大学生就业绩效中起着相辅相成的作用。     

The mismeasure of monkeys: education policy research and the evolution of social capital

This conceptual history traces the rise of ‘social capital’ from the theories of James Coleman and Pierre Bourdieu to its eventual adoption in fields such as primatology and evolutionary psychology. It argues that the earliest theories of social capital were formulated in response to a growing perception that education was an economic investment. It argues, moreover, that peculiarities in the earliest theories of social capital, as well as a confluence of historical factors, led to an explosion of social capital research during the 1990s and 2000s. Though researchers have attributed social capital’s meteoric rise to the expansion of neoliberal discourse, my account suggests that the factors behind the concept’s growth were more complex and manifold. Social capital has never been a singular idea with clear ties to a single theory or ideology. It is all the more troubling, then, that many researchers have discussed this nebulous concept as if it were a self-explanatory and universal empirical principle that can be used to generate ‘further knowledge.’ Recommendations for mitigating this problem are made by discussing how researchers should (and should not) use terms such as social capital, neoliberalism, and analytic concepts in general.     

Shifting selves: The emergence of new identities in South African schools

This is an exploratory study on the nature and extent of racial integration in South African schools in the post-apartheid period. While there is vigilant media attention to occasional, dramatic incidents of racial conflict in white schools, there is very little research on the ways in which student identities are framed, challenged, asserted and negotiated within the dominant institutional cultures of former white schools. The research findings suggest that student identities are shaped and framed within stable institutional cultures that remain impervious to change despite the changing demographics of the student body; but that even under these conditions student identities are constantly being questioned and recast as black and white students begin to engage each other in the daily routines of institutional life.     

Children’s conversion of cultural capital into educational success: the symbolic and skill-generating functions of cultural capital

Abstract

A prominent explanation of intergenerational educational inequality is Bourdieu’s cultural reproduction theory. Indeed, previous studies have frequently shown that children’s cultural capital relates to academic outcomes. However, it remains unclear how children convert their cultural capital into achievement. While Bourdieu argued that cultural capital influences academic outcomes primarily by biasing teachers’ grades, other researchers have proposed the alternative explanation that children’s cultural capital absorption directly translates into academic skills. Using survey data on 2975 fifth graders from the German National Educational Panel Study, we disentangle these two mechanisms of children’s cultural capital conversion; and argue that the main conversion mechanism depends on the cultural capital dimension examined. The results of our structural equation model suggest that both mechanisms are at work and that the main conversion mechanism depends on the dimension of cultural capital examined.     

Engagement profiles of elementary students in urban schools

This study identified engagement profiles and examined their relations to student characteristics (gender, grade, socioeconomic status) as well as mathematics and reading achievement among elementary students attending urban schools in the southeastern part of the United States (N = 564). Using latent profile analysis, four engagement profiles were identified including a Moderately Engaged, Globally Disengaged, Affectively Disengaged, and Behaviorally Disengaged profile. Subsequent analyses showed that grade level was a statistically significant predictor of profile membership, and the Moderately Engaged profile was associated with higher mathematics achievement compared to the Affectively Disengaged profile. Results contribute to the growing body of person-centered work that indicates that students’ engagement cluster into unique configurations of global, behavioral, affective, cognitive, and social engagement, which have important implications for their academic achievement.     

Social capital in the classroom: a study of in-class social capital and school adjustment

Social capital is generally considered beneficial for students’ school adjustment. This paper argues that social relationships among pupils generate social capital at both the individual and the class levels, and that each has its unique effect on pupils’ performance and well-being. The sample in this study consists of 1036 children in 60 first-grade classes in 46 Dutch elementary schools. Multilevel regression results show that a substantial proportion of the variance in school adjustment can be attributed to the class level and that both individual-level and classroom-level social capital have substantial effects on school adjustment. At the individual level, the size of one’s network is more important than its structure. At the collective level, social capital also has a ‘dark side’ because it can have negative effects on adjustment, lowering the academic performance in a class.     

The emerging landscape of school-based professional learning communities in South Korean schools

Abstract

Over the last decade, school-based professional learning communities (PLCs) have emerged as a key feature of the education system in South Korea. To understand this relatively new phenomenon in the context of South Korea, we provide a review of research on school-based PLCs in South Korea and an empirical analysis of the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2008 with a focus on school-based PLCs. Based on our findings from the literature review and analysis of the TALIS, we aim to provide a fuller picture of the emerging landscape of school-based PLCs in South Korean schools. In so doing, we focus on what constitutes school-based PLCs in South Korean schools and how they are similar to and/or different from their counterparts in other countries. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed.     

The impact of social capital in socio-emotional competencies of Spanish and immigrant adolescents from the Southeast of Spain

How important is the role that the different social institutions play in adolescents’ emotional development? This study alludes to the social capital framework to explain the influence that the family, school and peer relations have on the social-emotional competencies (SEC) of adolescents, immigrants and locals living in Southeastern Spain. Three social capital and socio-emotional competencies assessments scales were used in the study with 1614 pupils from 7 secondary schools. The results show that: (1) The social capital is a predictive and explanatory factor in adolescence. (2) The social relations that influence the SEC the most are those developed at school, followed by peer relations and, lastly, the family. (3) Spanish and Romanian teenagers show higher social capital and more SEC than Moroccans. (4) There are SEC gender differences among the Spanish group. (5) An immigrant school puzzle is observed in the Moroccan teenagers group who value school the most. (6) The family’s low emotional influence, particularly among Moroccan women, suggests that there is a deterioration of the institution and the existence of inter-generational differences. According to the results, schools remain a privileged space for SEC intervention programmes.     

The impact of social capital in socio-emotional competencies of Spanish and immigrant adolescents from the southeast of Spain

How important is the role that the different social institutions play in adolescents’ emotional development? This study alludes to the social capital framework to explain the influence that the family, school and peer relations have on the social-emotional competencies (SEC) of adolescents, immigrants and locals living in Southeastern Spain. Three social capital and socio-emotional competencies assessments scales were used in the study with 1614 pupils from 7 secondary schools. The results show that: (1) The social capital is a predictive and explanatory factor in adolescence. (2) The social relations that influence the SEC the most are those developed at school, followed by peer relations and, lastly, the family. (3) Spanish and Romanian teenagers show higher social capital and more SEC than Moroccans. (4) There are SEC gender differences among the Spanish group. (5) An immigrant school puzzle is observed in the Moroccan teenagers group who value school the most. (6) The family’s low emotional influence, particularly among Moroccan women, suggests that there is a deterioration of the institution and the existence of inter-generational differences. According to the results, schools remain a privileged space for SEC intervention programmes.     

Mediating effects of parental psychological distress and individual-level social capital on the association between child poverty and maltreatment in Japan

Child poverty is well known as a major risk factor for child maltreatment. However, it is not known whether parental psychological distress and individual-level social capital mediate the association. We examined the mediation effect of these two factors on the association between child poverty and maltreatment. In the Adachi Child Health Impact of Living Difficulty (A-CHILD) Study, a questionnaire was administered to all caregivers of first-grade children in every public elementary school in Adachi City between July and November 2015, and valid responses were used for analysis (N = 3944). Logistic and Poisson regression analyses were employed to examine the association between child poverty and maltreatment. Child poverty was defined in this study as meeting one of these criteria: 1) household income less than 3 million yen; 2) deprivation of specific material items that children or the household requires, or 3) experience of being unable to pay for lifeline utilities. Child maltreatment (physical abuse, neglect, and psychological abuse) was answered by parents. We confirmed a robust association between child poverty and maltreatment. Mediation analysis indicated that parental psychological distress mediated more than 60% of the association between child poverty on physical abuse and psychological abuse, while individual-level social capital mediated only 10% of the association with any type of maltreatment. In addition, structural equation modeling analysis revealed that the association was mediated by both parental psychological distress and social capital simultaneously. The findings suggest that supporting parental psychological distress may be an effective intervention to remedy the negative impact of child poverty on maltreatment.     

The development of elementary teacher identities as teachers of science

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the contributions of pre-service teachers’ memories of science and science education, combined with their experiences in a STEM-focused teacher preparation programme, to their developing identities as elementary school teachers of science. Data collected over three years include a series of interviews and observations of science teaching during elementary teacher preparation and the first year of teaching. Grounded within a theoretical framework of identity and using a case-study research design, we examined experiences that contributed to the participants’ identity development, focusing on key themes from teacher interviews: memories of science and science instruction, STEM-focused teacher preparation programme, field experiences, first year of teaching, and views of effective science instruction. Findings indicate the importance of exposure to reform strategies during teacher preparation and are summarised in main assertions and discussed along with implications for teacher preparation and research.     

Project Transfer—Shifts in the social and cultural capital of Further Education construction students involved in constructing an artwork

The International Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies at Newcastle University has been investigating the impact of artists working with young people in cultural sites and schools. This paper focuses on Transfer by the artist Wolfgang Weileder; the construction and de-construction of a full-scale replica of Milton Keynes Gallery at Station Square, Milton Keynes by construction students. The art project involved collaboration between the artist, two Further Education colleges and a construction company involved in the training of construction students. This paper will investigate how the different cultures interacted during the creative learning experience, concentrating on the impact upon the construction students.Transfer provided training opportunities for the students, who simultaneously developed an understanding of contemporary artistic practice and began to take on ownership of the piece. Insights from this project will be presented in order to draw out implications for future collaborations.     

The kid's speech: The effect of stuttering on human capital acquisition

A number of studies have shown that childhood speech disorders such as stuttering are associated with lower test scores and educational attainment. However, it is unclear whether these associations are causal in nature or whether they can be explained by difficult-to-measure heterogeneity at the community, family, or individual level. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and ordinary least squares, we show that stuttering is negatively associated with high school grades, the probability of high school graduation, and the probability of college attendance. However, empirical specifications with family fixed effects or controls for learning disabilities such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder suggest that these associations can, in large part, be explained by difficult-to-measure heterogeneity.     

The philosophies,contents and pedagogies of environmental education programs in 10 Israeli elementary schools

In this study, our aim was to understand how environmental education has been implemented in Israeli elementary schools. We selected ten schools that had implemented Education for Sustainability programs and analyzed their mission statements and curriculum documents. We observed each school’s activities and interviewed teachers. Our analysis shows ambiguity with respect to the rationales and the theoretical foundations of the programs. It also shows much didactic teaching of content, a strong focus on behavioral outcomes, especially with respect to reducing resource consumption and to increasing the levels of recycling, as well as some degree of working with the community. The unclear status of environmental education in Israel, in terms of its structure within the education system, prevents it from having sufficient resources for teacher education and curriculum development. It is suggested that this lack of clarity is the main cause of the ambiguity and for the use of the traditional pedagogies we found in our analysis.     

The classroom learning environment as perceived by students in Arab elementary schools

In this study, students’ perceptions of the classroom learning environment in Arab elementary schools were investigated. The sample included 261 students from Grades 5 and 6. The questionnaire was developed at an Arab college of teacher education by 16 fourth-year student teachers who were completing their studies toward a BEd degree. Articles on classroom learning environment were distributed to the students, who then wrote items to assess learning environment. The items were evaluated for content validity in relation to the Arab school culture, language, teachers’ teaching, students’ learning styles, teacher–student relations, order and organisation, discipline and behaviours. The Classroom Learning Environment of Elementary Students (CLEES) questionnaire consists of 32 items in four scales: Teacher’s Image, Group Work, Students’ Participation, and Order and Organisation. The CLEES was used in a pilot study in two Grade 5 and 6 classes in order to validate it. The student teachers administered the questionnaire to students in elementary schools. Data were analysed using SPSS (e.g. factor analysis and one-way ANOVA) to validate the CLEES. No significant differences were found between boys and girls in classroom learning environment. However, significant differences in CLEES perceptions were found between students from different grades (Grade 5 vs. Grade 6), age groups and schools. The results are explained in the discussion section in relation to the characteristics of their schools.