Determinants of Educational Achievement
TITLE
To what extent is educational achievement determined by a student’s intelligence and effort?
ESSAY
**Educational Achievement: A Sociological Perspective**
**Introduction:**
Educational achievement is a complex phenomenon influenced by a variety of factors. This essay seeks to explore the extent to which a student's intelligence and effort determine their academic success.
**Arguments For:**
1. **Intelligence as a Determining Factor**: Some proponents argue that intelligence plays a crucial role in educational achievement. IQ tests and other assessments are used to gauge students' cognitive abilities and inform educational decisions such as school selection.
2. **Meritocracy and Effort**: Functionalists propose that education functions as a meritocratic system where individuals can succeed based on their natural abilities and efforts. This perspective emphasizes the importance of hard work in achieving academic success.
3. **Social Mobility**: The functionalist viewpoint also suggests that individuals from underprivileged backgrounds or minority ethnic groups can excel in education through intelligence and effort. This is exemplified by instances of students from diverse backgrounds achieving academic success.
4. **Universal Standards**: The existence of standardized criteria and a national curriculum ensures that all students are judged by the same standards, providing equal opportunities for success based on ability and effort.
5. **Sifting and Sorting**: Educational systems sort students by ability through mechanisms like setting and streaming. Bright students are pushed to achieve higher qualifications, while those with different aptitudes pursue vocational pathways.
6. **Comprehensive Schools**: Comprehensive schools offer equal educational opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds. Students who are intelligent and put in effort can excel in these settings by being placed in top sets or streams.
**Arguments Against:**
1. **Social Class**: Research indicates that students from lower social classes tend to underachieve compared to their higher-class counterparts. This disparity is attributed to systemic inequalities rather than individual effort or intelligence.
2. **Ethnicity and Gender**: Educational outcomes are impacted by factors such as racism and gender biases, leading to unequal opportunities based on ethnicity or gender, irrespective of intelligence or effort.
3. **School Factors and Peer Influence**: School-related aspects like teacher labeling, institutional practices, as well as peer group dynamics, can significantly affect a student's academic performance independently of their intelligence or effort.
4. **Home Factors and Material Resources**: The role of parental support, home environment, and access to resources such as private tuition and educational tools can impact a student's educational achievement beyond individual capability.
**Conclusion:**
Educational achievement is a multifaceted phenomenon shaped by a myriad of interconnected factors. While intelligence and effort are essential elements, external influences such as social class, ethnicity, gender, school environment, and home circumstances play significant roles in determining academic success. Therefore, a holistic approach that considers the intersectionality of these factors is imperative in understanding educational achievement comprehensively.
SUBJECT
SOCIOLOGY
LEVEL
O level and GCSE
NOTES
**To what extent is educational achievement determined by a student’s intelligence and effort?**
Possible answers:
**Arguments for:**
- Some people argue that some individuals are more intelligent than others, which may explain their performance in schools.
- IQ tests are utilized in education to assess student intelligence and capabilities for school selection procedures, such as the 11+ exam for admission into high-achieving grammar schools.
- Functionalists believe in meritocracy, allowing individuals to succeed based on their natural ability and efforts.
- Social mobility is possible for those from underprivileged backgrounds and minority ethnic groups who are bright and work hard in education.
- Universal standards and a shared national curriculum provide equal chances of success based on ability.
- Functionalists believe in sorting students by ability using methods like setting and streaming to push bright students towards professional careers.
- Comprehensive schools offer equal educational opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds, allowing intelligent and hardworking individuals to excel.
- Any other reasonable response.
**Arguments against:**
- Social class disparities affect educational achievement, attributing lower achievement in the lower classes to inequality rather than effort or ability (Marxism).
- Minority ethnic groups may face educational challenges due to racism rather than lack of effort or intelligence.
- Gender bias in education may favor boys over girls, leading to unfair advantages regardless of intelligence or effort (feminism).
- School-related factors such as teacher labeling, school type, and institutional practices can influence educational achievement.
- Peer group pressure and subcultures may impact pupil achievement.
- Home factors like parental engagement, community support, and the value placed on education can impact educational achievement.
- Material factors like family wealth can influence educational achievement, impacting access to private tuition, resources, internet, study space, etc.
- Education success is likely influenced by the intersection of multiple factors rather than a single factor like ability.
- Any other reasonable response.
*Source: 15 0495/22 Cambridge IGCSE – Mark Scheme PUBLISHED October/November 2023 © UCLES 2023 Page 15 of 27 Question Answer Marks 2(e)*