Pupils’ experiences and use of social studies skills

A qualitative study of social class inequalities in Norwegian upper secondary school

Abstract

Social studies skills are meant to enable pupils to participate in society on equal terms, but little is known about how this happens. To better grasp inequalities in skill-acquisition, I draw on Bourdieu’s (1985, 1977) theory on social class and cultural capital and Barton (2015) when interviewing pupils about five classroom situations in which I had observed them. Two types of tasks were especially relevant for making skills explicit: class discussion and argumentative texts. The research question is: Do pupils with unequal social class backgrounds differ in their experience and appreciation of social studies skills?

The middle-class pupils’ experiences of argumentative text skills appeared more process-oriented, in which the goal of discussion was to explore different perspectives. In comparison, the working-class pupils had a more fact-and-result-oriented under­standing of the task. Concerning classroom discussion, the middle-class pupils experi­enced discussions as interesting and participation focused on explorative learning through conversations with others. In comparison, the working-class pupils could experience class discussions more stressful, and about presenting “the right answers”. These differences are linked to teachers’ expectations of Bildung, which middle-class pupils largely comprehend. Additionally, the middle-class pupils report receiving better grades than the working-class pupils who focus on completion of the school subject. In line with Bourdieu and Passeron (1990), the middle-class pupils express how they learn skills at home and appear to have a more elaborate learning-process compared to their working-class peers.

Further research should clarify what social studies skills entail, and develop the teaching for participation in study life, work, and society.