1. LO3 – Sociology in Education - Essay
By Kirsty Champion Page 1
“The Hidden Curriculum can contribute to differential achievement in some
sectors of school population”
In this essay I shallbe analysing and comparing the impact the Hidden
Curriculumhas on pupils. I will give different sociologicalview points on the
subjectand conclude whether or not The Hidden curriculum can contribute to
differential achievement in some sectors of schoolpopulation.
The Hidden Curriculumis the unintended lessons that are learned in schools, it
is not intended to be conscious learning. Itis the unwritten and unofficial
values and perspectives taught by teachers and schoolroutines. (Abbott 2014).
The reason it is hidden is becauseit is not put into the curriculumthat students
will learn to respectteachers for example, or be on time for school. There is a
“formal” curriculumthat teachers have to follow with subjects thatare taught
to pupils that they will be awareof such as; Maths, English and science as the
essential subjects. But the Hidden Curriculumdoes not appear on paper.
(Bryant 2014). Supposedly theHidden Curriculum teaches pupils the values
they will need later on in life, essentially preparing them for socialisation. In a
functionalist view this would be a positive point, as they believe that for us to
function as a society we all need to have these values that the Hidden
Curriculumrepresents. Positiveexamples of the Hidden curriculumcould be;
lining up in the canteen waiting your turn (Patience), addressing theteacher
with Mr or Miss (respect), wearing uniform(being presentable), becoming part
of a team in P.E (working with other people), using positivereinforcement on
pupils when obeying rules or doing homework (reward for hard work), (Miles
2006).
On the other hand the Hidden curriculum can have negative aspects with
regards to individual pupils. Not every pupil will conformto the rules and
routines of school. If a student disregards therules of a classroomor is not
doing well in a subjectthat pupil is then punished with detentions and is
suppressed further. TheHidden Curriculumgives no chance for a different
mechanismto learning. There is only one model for the classroomthat is to be
followed by all pupils attending school. The Hidden Curriculum has specific
structures and timetables that need to be followed by all pupils but not all
students will work bestthis way. Thereforesmall amounts of pupils in schools
may be rejected by the education system. They may be labelled ‘notsmart
enough’, ‘not working hard enough’ or ‘something wrong with the pupil’. But
the structureand mechanisms of schoolwill never be questioned, (Lozenski
2012).

2. LO3 – Sociology in Education - Essay
By Kirsty Champion Page 2
Marxists would disagree completely with the Hidden Curriculumin schools
because they would believe that the way the structureis set up is exploiting
the pupils to be submissiveto authoritative figures.
“Marxistsarguethehidden curriculumisa tool or instrument of the
ruling class. Bowlesand Ginitisargueit teaches the children to accept their
position in society. And to accept the society is unequal and exploitative”,
(Thomson 2008).
This shows thatMarxists believe that pupils learn to accept the schools
structureand haveto comply; otherwisethe pupils will be punished for
rebelling. Students who find it hard to understand the Hidden Curriculumcan
be labelled a ‘bad student’ or a ‘disruptive’ studentbecause they do not
conformto this way of learning. Children with learning disabilities for example;
Asperger Syndrome, (AS), havedifficulty with social skills and will find school
routines and adhering to timetables extremely difficult to follow. These pupils
will then have to be taught separately from‘normal’ students justbecause
they do not fit into the structureof school, (Simpson2014).
The Hidden Curriculumcan affect some pupils’ achievement in schools. Some
reasons for this could be gender, ethnicity or social class. Feminists view the
Hidden Curriculumas a way of male dominance over women. The typical
hierarchy in schools is that Head teachers are male. This could portray to girls
that only boys are capable of achieving high Authorative job roles. This could
affect how a girl sees her potential in school, therefore affecting her grades.
Teachers have stereotypical views on how girls and boys should behave,
potentially giving the pupil a disadvantageif the teacher expects certain
behaviour froma pupil and that pupil acts in an opposite manner, (Bryant
2014). This could affect their gradedue to not being able to work to their full
potential. In a functionalistview, stereotypically men are supposed to earn a
living whilst the women stay at home looking after the children. But the
following statistics show that women may haverealised their potential as they
become more equal in society;
“Data also showed that 72.3 per cent of exams sat by girlswere graded C or
better, compared with just 63.7 per cent of boys’ test papers...”, (Paton
2014).
This is suggesting that girls are brighter than boys and may overtakethe boys
in grade achievements, which could then reversethe fact that mostly men are

3. LO3 – Sociology in Education - Essay
By Kirsty Champion Page 3
an authoritative figure. Another reason feminists would disagreewith the
Hidden Curriculumis becausewhen the National Curriculumwas introduced in
1988 girls werestill only allowed to take cooking classes or sewing classes as a
choice of subjectand the boys had to learn wood work or graphics. This is
stereotyping gender without physically saying this to pupils; therefore pupils
will not question these activities and would conformto the curriculum. This
was teaching stereotypical gender roles in society, (Didau2012).
The results from ‘The London Effect’ generalises ethnic minorities as being the
key to having a successfulschool;
“The key to successful schools is having lots of pupilsfrom ethnic minorities,
according to a new study which suggests the work ethic of immigrant
familiesleads to better exam results”, (Garner 2014).
This is suggesting that without ethnic minorities the schools will not succeed in
results with examinations. This article is suggesting that if the British take on
board the ethics that the ethnic minorities have we will all succeed in school.
Fromthis study teachers may have a stereotypicalview on an ethnic student
and may favour them for encouragement, ensuring their success as they
believe they are worth putting their time and effort into. But this may affect
the ethnic pupil’s results if the teacher’s expectations of them are too high.
Social class in schools can be very obvious to children, the reason uniformwas
introduced in schools was to bring a senseof belonging, and to prevent any
judgement frompupil to pupil. But pupils in secondary schools arestill aware
of the differences between one another. When a pupil lives in a low income
household they may be entitled to free schoolmeals. This is labelling this pupil
as a poor child. This could affect the pupil’s achievement becauseof low self
esteem. The pupil may be awareof the fact that they do not have the latest
trainers to wear or being able to replace a broken bag if theirs gets damaged
for example. All these aspects could become apparentto the pupil leaving
them vulnerableto low self esteem, potentially affecting their achievement as
they focus too much on how they look to other pupils then listening in class,
(Thomas & Raj 1982).
Another aspectof social class and the Hidden Curriculumis that if the pupil is
awareof the fact that they are of a lower class compared to most of their class
mates then this will definitely affect their achievement in school. They may
rebel against the structureof the schoolbecause at home they do not have to

4. LO3 – Sociology in Education - Essay
By Kirsty Champion Page 4
adhere to rules and timetables. But in an upper class household the pupil will
have experienced learning in this way, with timetables and respecting a
hierarchy, thereforeconforming to the functions of school.
“......deviant behaviour at home was significantly associated with lack of
academic success and also with the manifestation of behavioural disordersin
school”, (Mitchell &Shepherd 2011).
This shows thata lack of achievement in schoolis linked to behaviour at home
and can lead to behaviouraldisorders becauseof not accepting the structure
of schools.
To conclude, the Hidden Curriculumhas positive and negative points. From
sociological perspectives I believe only functionalists would agree with the
Hidden Curriculum. Itteaches children to be respectful, work as a team and to
listen. These values need to be taught for society to be peaceful. But Marxists
believe that the Hidden Curriculumis a way of exploiting the lower class to be
dominated by the elitist societies. Feminists would also disagree with the
Hidden Curriculumbecausein their view it undermines the potential of
women. They believe it is a way for men to dominate the women.
In my opinion, the Hidden Curriculumis a good way of teaching children the
values needed to survivein the outside world. I believe it does affect
achievement in a good way as long as the pupil is comfortable with the
structureof school. But the structuremay not be the best resourcefor learning
for everybody and can result in bad behaviour of pupils. But there should be an
alternative learning structureto ensureall pupils have the chanceat
succeeding in their education, without being labelled a troubled student for
not adhering to the rules. Rebelling againstthe rules may be a way of saying I
cannot learn this way. If therewas an alternative way of learning every pupil
will have a chance in education regardless of their ethnicity, social class or
gender.

5. LO3 – Sociology in Education - Essay
By Kirsty Champion Page 5
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