Neoliberal Policy and the Meaning of Counterintuitive Middle-class School Choices

Abstract

K. (2010) Neoliberal policy and the meaning of counterintuitive middle-class school choices. Current Sociology, 58 (4). p. ISSN 0011-3921We recommend you cite the published version. The publisher's URL is http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0011392110368003Refereed: Yes (no note) Disclaimer UWE has obtained warranties from all depositors as to their title in the material deposited and as to their right to deposit such material. UWE makes no representation or warranties of commercial utility, title, or fitness for a particular purpose or any other warranty, express or implied in respect of any material deposited.UWE makes no representation that the use of the materials will not infringe any patent, copyright, trademark or other property or proprietary rights. UWE accepts no liability for any infringement of intellectual property rights in any material deposited but will remove such material from public view pending investigation in the event of an allegation of any such infringement. 3 Introduction Michael Apple speaks for many when he notes the "…increasingly powerful discourses and policies of neo-liberalism concerning privatisation, marketisation, performativity, and the "enterprising individual"". Apple also suggests "…that any analysis of these discourses and policies must critically examine their class and race and gender effects at the level of who benefits from their specific institutionalisations and from their contradictory functions within real terrains of social power" (Apple, 2001, p.409, emphasis added). This paper attempts to enter into such a critical examination with regard to "counter-intuitive" educational choices amongst white middle class families in urban England. We begin by describing a research study that has provided data and analysis which we feel helps to illuminate the issues at hand. We then suggest two ways in which the situation being studied is "globally connected" -one to do with parental readings of social change, the other to do with neo-liberal discourse. This leads us to highlight the importance of a mutual affinity between middle class families and state secondary schools in performative conditions. Finally, we argue that dominant themes in policy do not reflect the complexity and subtlety of the relationship between social class and education, and that contrary to appearances, the experiences and effects of counter-intuitive school choice suggest the continuation of class-based advantage being realised through educational means, albeit in a subtle and unusual form.

‘The children have only got one education and you have to make sure it's a good one’: parenting and parent–school relations in a neoliberal age

“…Some may buy a private educationwith all the resources, access to networks, and a high chance of returnsthat that suggests (Kenway, Fahey, and Koh 2013). Some may seek to manage the 'risk' (the risk being that the child's potential may not be fully realised) through high levels of monitoring and intervention (Vincent and Martin 2000;James et al 2010). Others may simply hope for the best (Vincent 2001).…”

How Bourdieu bites back: recognising misrecognition in education and educational research

“…The outcomes of the study are extensively reported elsewhere (e.g. Crozier et al, 2008;James et al, 2010;Reay et al, 2007;Reay et al, 2008;Reay et al, 2011Reay et al, [2013): Here, some brief details are given to contextualise the discussion, but the main purpose is to consider how Bourdieu's concept of misrecognition was put to work in the study, and to give some consideration of how this illuminates a tension between a Bourdieu-inspired approach and some common values and understandings that run through the world of education.…”

Local links, local knowledge: Choosing care settings and schools

“…This is a point eloquently made by Reay and her colleagues, who explore the decisions of some middle‐class parents to choose, apparently counter‐intuitively, lower‐performing, local inner‐city schools. They note that ‘in a stratified system middle‐class families are in a position to make choices that the market holds up as much less favourable and they can do so without apparent detriment to their acquisition of educational credentials, opportunities and progression’ (James et al ., 2010, forthcoming). In many cases, when it comes to choosing care setting or school, the working‐class parents in our research have little other choice but the local.…”