AIN T NO MAKIN IT PAPER GUIDELINES 1 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY WICK: FALL Due Date: Monday, November 24 th

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1 AIN T NO MAKIN IT PAPER GUIDELINES 1 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY WICK: FALL 2003 Due Date: Monday, November 24 th Objectives: The primary aim of the Ain t No Makin It paper is for you to draw on the wide range of skills we have worked to develop over the course of the semester thinking sociologically, effectively reading scholarly research, making informed critiques and arguments, and conveying your ideas in a clear manner in order to understand, explain, and critique an important sociological study. As you read MacLeod s book, please draw on the useful questions included in the Questions to Guide Your Reading of Jay MacLeod s Ain t No Makin It handout attached to these guidelines. Structure: After introducing your paper, briefly summarize one of the five social reproduction theories discussed in Chapter 2 of Ain t No Makin It. Provide at least one illustration of its applicability, and a general discussion of the theory s strengths and weaknesses. Next, I want you to provide a broader treatment of the arguments and evidence presented by MacLeod. According to MacLeod, school-related experiences are crucial to understanding the aspirations and attainment of the students from Clarendon Heights. Why are the Brothers committed to pursuing success in school while the Hallway Hangers reject the idea that school will work for them? In your paper, discuss the impact the following factors have on the Brothers and Hallway Hangers attitudes towards schooling: a) the family b) work experiences c) peer group influence d) recent historical differences in the experiences of low-income African-American and Caucasian racial groups Finally, explain and discuss MacLeod s answer to the question why teenagers in the Clarendon Heights neighborhood Ain t Makin It? Who and/or what is to blame for the lack of successes among these two groups? Is it structure (e.g., lack of employment, access to education, spatial segregation, generational deprivation), culture (e.g., values and views held), agency (e.g., weaknesses and shortcomings of individuals), or some combination of these factors? Divide your paper into three sections following the components outlined above. Base your analysis on references to and citations from MacLeod s book. You should also apply other course materials where relevant. It should be clear in your paper that you read the book and understand MacLeod s argument. Be sure to cite all ideas that are not your own (i.e., paraphrased ideas, quotes, etc) using ASA citation format (see handout). Length of Paper: Papers are to be a minimum of 5 pages and maximum of 7 pages. This restriction requires you to pay attention to the focus of your paper. Your title and reference pages do not count towards your page total. 1 Adapted from Professor Arunas Juska, East Carolina University

2 Format: Your paper must be word-processed, written in 12-point font, double-spaced, and have standard margins. Because the clarity of your thoughts and ideas are contingent upon your ability to express yourself, poor spelling and grammar will negatively affect your grade. Grading: Papers will be graded according to your understanding of the arguments presented in Ain t No Makin It, your analysis of the book based on the questions above, and your ability to communicate your thoughts in writing. Proofreading: I am happy to proofread your papers. However, I will accept papers for proofreading no later than ten days before the due date. If you would like me to make comments and suggestions on your work, please submit a copy in to me on or before Friday, November 14 th. This date allows me time to proofread and return your paper so you can make corrections. I also strongly encourage you to have a friend read through your paper for spelling/grammatical errors and clarity. Late Papers: In the interest of fairness to all students, all papers must be turned in on November 24 th. Papers not turned in on time will have 5 percentage points deducted for each day late. 2

3 QUESTIONS TO GUIDE YOUR READING OF JAY MACLEOD S AIN T NO MAKIN IT Compiled by Professor Marieke Van Willigen, East Carolina University Chapter 1 1. What is the research question that McLeod is trying to address in this study? 2. What research methods does he use to collect data for this study? 3. How does McLeod s approach represent an ethnographic approach to doing research? Chapter 2 1. What is the site that both theorists and the public tend to believe is where individuals futures as far as social class are determined? And, what is the difference between what the American Dream tends to promote about the role of this society in determining our futures, versus what these theorists argue, in general? 2. In what way, according to Bowles and Gintis, is the structure of schooling in the U.S. reflective of the capitalist economic relations according to Marx? 3. What is the correspondence principle? 4. What is cultural capital? 5. How is it that class differences in cultural capital disadvantage the academic performance of lower-class students and advantage the upper-class students, according to Bourdieu? 6. What is habitus and how does it affect the academic performance of lower class versus upper-class students, according to Bourdieu? 7. What aspect of culture do Bernstein and Heath argue is most important in reproducing the class structure in the U.S. overtime? 8. What is the difference between a restricted and an elaborated code, and why do Bernstein and Heath argue that lower-class students are (consciously or unconsciously) trained by their families to speak in restricted code whereas middle and upper-class kids are trained to speak in elaborated code? 9. Why does the use of restricted code disadvantage lower-class students in school, according to Bernstein and Heath? 10. According to Willis, the working class males he studied responded to their structural disadvantage by creating a culture which has what kind of outlook on schooling? 11. How is this outlook related to their conceptions of masculinity? 12. How does McLeod see social structure and culture coming together to determine individuals class position? Chapter 3 1. A subculture is a group whose values, beliefs, and norms for behavior are different from those of the dominant society. How are the Hallway Hangers a subculture and the Brothers not? 2. What is the main criterion for status in the Hallway Hangers subculture? What does it take to meet this criterion? 3. How do the Hallway Hangers view the upper- and middle-classes? 4. How important is solidarity to the Hallway Hangers and how is it expressed? 5. What kinds of attitudes do the Hallway Hangers have about race? Why? 6. In what way do the Brothers differ from the Hallway Hangers in their values, norms, and group structure? 3

4 Chapter 4 1. In what ways are the families of the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers similar in terms of structure, history, and educational backgrounds? How do they differ? 2. How do the parents of the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers compare in terms of parental authority and in shaping their children s aspirations for the future? Chapter 5 1. What is the difference between aspirations and expectations? 2. What is the difference between a career and a job? 3. What kinds of aspirations do the Hallway Hangers have for future employment? 4. What factors have led them to have these kinds of aspirations? 5. What kinds of aspirations do the Brothers have for future employment? 6. McLeod concludes that Willis argument about a distinct lower-class culture among kids that devalues, and therefore discourages, white-collar work is not supported in his research. Why? 7. What differences are there in to what the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers attribute their lack of success so far on the job market? How does each relate to the dominant ideology in the United States about what determines whether you get ahead? 8. What is different and what is the same about the structural factors related to work (ie. exposure to others who are successful in employment, personal experience with employment, etc) among the Hallway Hangers versus the Brothers that might affect the aspirations they have? Chapter 6 1. How do the experiences and orientations of the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers to school differ? 2. What kinds of factors played into the choices that the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers made about which academic programs to pursue? 3. McLeod says that the Brothers are more integrated into the school than the Hallway Hangers. What does he mean and on what does he base this conclusion? 4. How do the teachers try to enforce discipline in the school? 5. How do variations in the extent to which the Brothers and the Hallway Hangers feel about the achievement ideology promoted by the teachers affect their orientation toward and behavior in school? 6. McLeod concludes from his review of the research that we do not know enough about why lower-class kids earn lower grades than do upper-class kids. What does he argue is missing from the research? 7. To what extent do family structures affect the Brothers and Hallway Hangers ability to comply with the expectations of the school? 8. Why do the Hallway Hangers have different levels of respect for different teachers in the school? Chapter 7 1. In what way does, McLeod argues, the school legitimate and perhaps encourage the students to have leveled aspirations? 2. How does the Hallway Hangers sense of solidarity contribute to their individual decisions and attitudes about school and work? 3. How does racism help the Hallway Hangers to deal with their belief that their opportunities 4

5 are constrained? 4. How do the different orientations of their parents and differences in their work experiences help to explain the differences in how the Hallway Hangers and the Brothers view the achievement ideology and their aspirations? 5. McLeod says that the Brothers may go through a cooling out process once they get out of school and into the job market. What does he mean? 6. McLeod argues that the Brothers may experience greater decreases in their self esteem as a result of low academic success and low occupational achievement than will the Hallway Hangers. Why? 7. McLeod argues that the differences in orientation to the achievement ideology and occupational aspirations among the HALWAY HANGERS and the Brothers may be in part related to their race and recent historical differences in the experiences of blacks and whites in the lower classes. What does he mean? Chapters 9 and Compare and contrast the employment histories, successes, and failures of the Hallway Hangers to the Brothers. How are they alike and how are they different? 2. McLeod argues that some of the Hallway Hangers are reconstructing the meaning of being a father in order to maintain their sense of masculinity. In what way? 3. What role does race play in the successes and failures of the Hallway Hangers versus the Brothers? In what way are the experiences of the Brothers atypical or typical of black men in the US at this time point? 4. What role does racism play in the Hallway Hangers ability to cope with their lives? 5. McLeod argues that the New Right has rescued the achievement ideology through promoting the belief in reverse discrimination. What does he mean? (p. 189) Chapter McLeod argues that race and class are inextricably intertwined? How? 2. So, who is to blame for the lack of successes among these two groups of kids? Is it structure, culture, or agency? 3. What suggestions does McLeod offer for how society could address the issue of social reproduction of the class system? Do you agree with any of these suggestions? Why or why not? 5