Social capital and educational achievements: Coleman vs. Bourdieu

The influence of social capital on an individual’s educational achievements is the subject of numerous scientific papers. Research on social capital is most frequently based on Coleman’s (1988) or Bourdieu’s (1986) theories of capital, which are related to different paradigms of social theory: whereas Coleman’s approach has its roots in structural functionalism, Bourdieu’s approach contains elements of conflict theory. A number of authors, starting with Bourdieu, attempt to explain and prove that, when connected with the education of individuals, the activity of social capital facilitates social reproduction. Other authors support the notion that social capital is, in fact, a powerful weapon that encourages social mobility. A third group of researchers emphasise that neither of these approaches in isolation can entirety explain the influences of social capital on an individual’s education (Ho, 2003). The present paper offers a review of research focusing on the influences of social capital on educational achievements, while outlining the fundamental differences between the two theoretical approaches that are most frequently used for research of this topic. The aim of the paper is to explain the influence of social capital on an individual’s educational achievements under Bourdieu’s and Coleman’s theoretical concepts, and to establish whether combining the approaches is possible. The conclusion and arguments show that it is legitimate to use all three theoretical approaches. (DIPF/Orig.)

Parental involvement in education /

"June 1991"--T.p. verso.

Equality of opportunity and equality of outcome

The report on the findings of extensive empirical research on equality of educational opportunities carried out in the US on a very large sample of public schools by Coleman and his colleagues has had a major impact on education policy and has given rise to a large amount of research and various interpretations. However, as some interpreters have highlighted, even more important than the findings of the survey themselves has been Coleman’s redefinition of equality of opportunity, abandoning the then prevailing conception of equality of educational opportunities as equality of starting points and replacing it with the concept of equality of educational opportunities as equality of educational outcomes. The question is, therefore, whether equality of outcomes really is one of the two types of equality of opportunity. The purpose of the present article is to show that equality of opportunity and equality of outcomes are two different types of equality. If they are different, the interpretation that Coleman has redefined the concept of “equality of educational opportunity” turns out to be incorrect. (DIPF/Orig.)

Coleman’s third report

The article analyses the (third) Coleman Report on private and public schools. The report scrutinises the relationship between private and public schools and shows that private school students show better academic achievement. Coleman concluded that these findings provided a strong argument in favour of public financial support for private schools. However, he identified a number of school characteristics that he believed to be related to student achievement. According to his analysis, these characteristics were not limited to private schools; public schools exhibiting the same characteristics also had good results. Coleman interpreted the available data in favour of financial aid to private schools, although this was not the only possible interpretation. An alternative conclusion would have been to encourage these characteristics in public schools. Why did Coleman disregard this possibility? Why did he deviate from his usual scientific rigour? The present article suggests that there appear to be two reasons for the narrow interpretation of the relationship between public and private schools in Coleman's third report. The first lies in Coleman's notion of contemporary society as a constructed system in which every individual actor holds a place in the structure and requires incentives in order to act to the benefit of society. In the case of education, the goal of the institution is to ensure the high cognitive achievement of students, and the incentive is related to choice and competition. The second reason is related to Coleman's vision of sociology as a discipline aiding the construction of an effective society. (DIPF/Orig.)

Father Pollock and his brother : mission priests of St. Alban's, Birmingham / with a letter from Charles Gore.

http://anglicanhistory.org/bios/pollock/ View document online

Bogotá no tiene mar pero tiene playa: el vallenato y sus intérpretes costeños en Bogotá

La Playa es un sector de la ciudad de Bogotá, donde se encuentra la oferta de músicos informales más grande de Colombia: mariachis, tríos de cuerda y grupos vallenatos. En esta investigación, se analiza la migración de músicos vallenatos provenientes del Caribe colombiano a este sector de la capital del país; se examina el trabajo de estos músicos en La Playa; y se revisa el proceso de consolidación del vallenato como música nacional.

Cytogenetics and embryology of Eupatorium laevigatum (Compositae)

Embryological studies indicate Eupatorium laevigatum to have Antennaria type diplospory with precocious embryony. The embryo sac is of the Polygonum type and the polar nuclei fuse before anthesis (maturation of the stamens). Endosperm development is autonomous and the central cell divides only after the initial stages of embryo formation. It is estimated that about 10% of the florets in anthesis contain an undivided egg which can be used for sexual reproduction. The study of microsporogenesis revealed abnormalities in chromosome pairing which result in the formation of univalents, bivalents, trivalents and higher polyvalents, with the consequent production of lagging chromosomes, unbalanced nuclei, micronuclei and sterile pollen. We found that, as represented by the material studied, E. laevigatum is an autohexaploid (2n = 6x = 60) in which each chromosome of a basic set of ten chromosomes is repeated six times and that E. laevigatum is an essentialy obligate apomictic.

Speeches on Zionism

by Earl of Balfour. Ed. by Israel Cohen. With a foreword by Sir Herbert Samuel