Educational Inequalities Among School Leavers in Ireland 1979-1994



EDUCATIONAL INEQUALITIES AMONG SCHOOL LEAVERS

269


between social classes in their level of educational participation, controlling for
prior academic performance (“secondary effects”) (Boudon, 1974).1 Differences
in academic performance are seen to reflect differing cultural resources in the
home environment (Bourdieu and Passeron, 1977), and/or class bias within the
school (see, for example, Willis, 1977). However, it has been argued that such
performance differences are not large enough to explain existing levels of
inequality in educational attainment nor why children from different social
classes with similar performance levels differ in their tendency to remain in
full-time education (Erikson and Jonsson, 1996).

One approach to explaining this pattern is the “rational choice” model adopted
by Erikson and Jonsson (1996; see also, Goldthorpe, 1996). From this perspective,
educational choice is regarded in terms of the costs and benefits associated with
continued participation, with variation in outcomes related to a number of
factors.2 First, lack of economic resources will limit participation if families cannot
afford the direct and indirect (opportunity) costs of such participation. The
relative costs of schooling are likely to vary by social class and family income
levels. Second, different social class groups differ in their cultural resources.
Parents with higher levels of education will have greater knowledge of the
educational system and will be better equipped to help their children with
homework and study. Among recent cohorts, the effects of cultural resources
(such as parental education) have become stronger than those of economic
resources (Erikson and Jonsson, 1996; De Graaf and Ganzeboom, 1993). Third,
the perceived benefits of educational participation may differ between class
groups. The middle-classes have more to lose by not staying on in education
since they risk social demotion, whereas in high unemployment areas, young
people from working-class backgrounds may not see much benefit to staying on
at school. Fourth, the probabilities of success within the educational system
may differ between social groups (Erikson and Jonsson, 1996).

II CHANGES IN SOCIAL INEQUALITIES OVER TIME

The second half of the twentieth century has been a period of considerable
expansion in educational participation in many countries. This expansion has
been accompanied by a marked reduction in gender inequalities in educational

1. The concept of “academic ability” is far from unproblematic (Gardner, 1987; Lynch, 1985).
However, prior academic performance (in standardised tests or examinations) is found to be highly
predictive of educational participation decisions.

2. The rational choice perspective has also been applied to gender differences in educational
participation (Breen and Goldthorpe, 1997). Thus, it is argued that previously low female labour
force participation resulted in a lack of incentive for parents to “invest” in female education. However,
educational participation among young women may also represent a response to the lack of
alternatives in terms of employment and/or marriage (see Smyth, 1993).



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