Understanding Pro-school Subcultures
In every school, you'll notice different groups of students with their own attitudes, behaviours and values. Some of these groups are very positive about education - we call these pro-school subcultures. These students generally accept school rules, work hard in lessons and value educational success.
Key Definitions:
- Subculture: A group within a larger culture that shares distinct values, norms and behaviours.
- Pro-school subculture: A student group that generally accepts school values, follows rules and is committed to academic achievement.
- Cultural capital: Knowledge, skills and attitudes that give advantages in the education system.
📚 Characteristics of Pro-school Subcultures
Students in pro-school subcultures typically:
- Complete homework on time
- Participate actively in class
- Follow school rules and respect teachers
- Value academic achievement
- Have future goals linked to educational success
- Often engage in extracurricular activities
💡 Why Study Pro-school Subcultures?
Understanding pro-school subcultures helps us:
- Identify factors that promote educational success
- Understand how social groups influence learning
- Develop strategies to encourage positive attitudes to education
- Recognise how school experiences differ between student groups
- Examine links between cultural values and educational outcomes
Types of Pro-school Subcultures
Sociologists have identified several types of pro-school subcultures, each with different motivations for engaging positively with education:
🎓 Conformists
These students fully accept school values and rules because they believe in the intrinsic value of education. They enjoy learning for its own sake and often come from families that highly value education.
Example: A student who reads extra books on topics they're studying because they find the subject fascinating.
💼 Instrumentalists
These students see education as a means to an end. They work hard not because they necessarily enjoy all subjects, but because they understand education is necessary for their future career goals.
Example: A student who works diligently on all subjects because they want to become a doctor or lawyer.
🏆 Achievers
These students are motivated by competition and recognition. They enjoy the status that comes with academic success and often thrive on praise from teachers and parents.
Example: A student who works hard to be top of the class and proudly displays their certificates and awards.
Factors Influencing Pro-school Subcultures
Several factors contribute to the formation of pro-school subcultures:
Family Background and Social Class
Research shows that family attitudes toward education significantly influence whether students join pro-school subcultures. Students from middle-class backgrounds often have parents who:
- Have higher levels of education themselves
- Actively support learning at home
- Communicate regularly with teachers
- Provide educational resources and experiences
- Have high expectations for academic achievement
However, it's important to note that pro-school attitudes can develop in any social class. Working-class families who value education can also foster pro-school attitudes in their children.
Peer Group Influence
Students are significantly influenced by their friends' attitudes toward education. When surrounded by peers who value learning, students are more likely to develop pro-school attitudes themselves.
Pro-school peer groups often:
- Study together and help each other with homework
- Positively compete to achieve good results
- Reinforce the importance of following school rules
- Create a culture where academic effort is socially acceptable or even admired
School Ethos and Teacher Expectations
Schools themselves play a crucial role in fostering pro-school subcultures through:
- Creating a positive learning environment
- Setting high but achievable expectations
- Recognising and rewarding academic effort and achievement
- Building strong teacher-student relationships
- Offering extracurricular activities that reinforce academic values
Case Study Focus: Fuller's Research on Black Pro-school Girls
Mary Fuller's research (1980) challenged stereotypes about ethnic minority students by studying a group of Black British girls who formed a strong pro-school subculture.
These girls:
- Worked hard and achieved good academic results
- Saw education as a way to overcome potential discrimination in the job market
- Supported each other's educational goals
- Maintained their cultural identity while embracing school values
Fuller's research showed that these students were instrumentalists who saw education as a route to social mobility, challenging the stereotype that ethnic minority students reject school values.
Pro-school vs Anti-school Subcultures
Understanding pro-school subcultures becomes clearer when we compare them to anti-school subcultures:
👍 Pro-school Subcultures
- Accept school rules and authority
- Complete assignments and participate in class
- Value academic qualifications
- See education as relevant to their future
- Often have positive relationships with teachers
- Tend to achieve higher grades
👎 Anti-school Subcultures
- Reject school rules and challenge authority
- May disrupt lessons or avoid schoolwork
- Question the relevance of academic qualifications
- Often seek status through non-academic means
- Frequently have conflicts with teachers
- Tend to achieve lower grades
Impact of Pro-school Subcultures on Achievement
Being part of a pro-school subculture typically has positive effects on educational outcomes:
- Academic achievement: Students in pro-school subcultures generally achieve higher grades and qualifications.
- Skill development: These students develop study skills, time management and self-discipline that benefit them beyond school.
- Future opportunities: Higher qualifications open doors to university and better career prospects.
- Teacher relationships: Positive interactions with teachers provide additional support and guidance.
- School experience: Students in pro-school subcultures often report more enjoyable and fulfilling school experiences.
Criticisms and Limitations
While pro-school subcultures are generally viewed positively, some sociologists have raised important points to consider:
- Not all students have equal access to the cultural capital that makes it easier to adopt pro-school attitudes.
- Schools may value certain types of knowledge and behaviour that align with middle-class culture, disadvantaging students from other backgrounds.
- Some pro-school students may experience stress and anxiety from pressure to achieve.
- Conformity to school rules doesn't always indicate deep engagement with learning.
Real-World Example: "Swots" and Social Pressure
Even within pro-school subcultures, students may face challenges. In many UK schools, highly academic students (sometimes called "swots" or "geeks") might face teasing from peers.
To manage this, some academically-oriented students develop strategies to balance their pro-school attitudes with peer acceptance:
- Downplaying their effort ("I barely revised")
- Participating in sports or other popular activities
- Forming tight-knit friendship groups with similar values
- Developing a confident persona that can withstand teasing
This shows how pro-school students navigate complex social environments while maintaining their commitment to education.
Conclusion: The Significance of Pro-school Subcultures
Pro-school subcultures play a vital role in the educational system. They demonstrate how positive attitudes toward education can develop through a combination of family influence, peer support and school environment. Understanding these subcultures helps us recognise that educational success isn't just about individual ability but is shaped by social groups and cultural values.
For students, recognising the influence of subcultures can help them make conscious choices about the peer groups they join and the attitudes they adopt toward their education.