Reproducing Social Inequalities through Higher Education

Critical Thinking as Valued Capital

Datos Bibliográficos

ID4050329
AutoresLisa Tsui (autor de correspondencia)
Año2003
Volumen72
Número3
Páginas318
Fecha de publicación2003-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaThe Journal of Negro Education (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0022-2984 • E-ISSN: 2167-6437
EditorialJSTOR (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/3211250
OpenAlexW1999917239
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas6
Referencias citadas35

The American education system perpetuates social inequalities of a class hierarchy by allocating differential capital along class lines. As culminating stage of an ongoing sorting process operating within formal schooling structure, higher education enables members of privileged status groups to accrue greater educational advantages while those of less privileged backgrounds go educationally disadvantaged. Through a synthesis of evidence found in literature, this review strives to show that unequal critical thinking development at institutions of varying selectivity, coupled with positive association between socioeconomic status and institutional selectivity, constitutes one way by which postsecondary institutions engage in social reproduction. The important relationship between institutional selectivity and development of higher order thinking skills is one that is little studied and rarely scrutinized. Yet, significance of this linkage holds important implications concerning a systemic flaw that mars American higher education system. That certain valuable cognitive skills such as critical thinking1 are less pursued at nonselective colleges and universities (where individuals from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds tend to be concentrated) than at selective institutions suggests that higher education system engages in transmission of social inequality by availing opportunities to succeed in adult life for some while constraining opportunities for others. Such a notion is a direct challenge to much-cherished American ideology regarding equal opportunity through education. Higher education has longed served as gatekeeper to middle and upper level positions in class structure. In Economy and Society, Max Weber (1968) noted important role of education in society's allocation of rewards through expanding differentiation of credentials. A crucial shift in history occurred as assignment of society's positions of power and privilege became decreasingly determined by ancestry and increasingly dictated by possession of diplomas and certificates. As college attendance became more universal, prestige of one's alma mater became more significant. The competition to get into the best college seems to have intensified in recent years (Cook & Frank, 1996) and accounts for much of hoopla that surrounds annual ranking of colleges and universities by such publications as U.S. News & World Report. Mobility-minded parents' thirst for information by which to navigate successfully through plethora of choices associated with college admission process has helped make college national rankings big business (McDonough, Korn, & Yamasaki, 1997). High stakes are involved in reputation of an institution for it signals to prospective consumers what they can expect in terms of quality of a product (Fombrun, 1996). Presumably higher up in prestige hierarchy, superior education. And, in fact, both college selectivity (usually defined as average SAT score of students at that school) and prestige ratings have been commonly used as an index for college quality (Pascarella & Terenzini, 1991). Because higher education is recognized as being very important to economic and social mobility in American society, scholars interested in social stratification have sought to understand how institutional variation leads to differential effects on students. For example, research has investigated outcome differences between attendance at two-year and four-year colleges (see Pascarella & Terenzini, 1991). Despite facilitating social mobility for some, community colleges have been accused of reproducing class differences. Initial attendance at two-year versus four-year institutions has been found to adversely affect college persistence, degree attainment, and occupational status (e.g., Alba & Lavin, 1981; Breneman & Nelson, 1981; Dougherty, 1991, 1992; Monk-Turner, 1988, 1990; Pincus, 1980; Velez, 1985)

Capital (architecture) · Critical thinking · Demographic economics · Economics · Geography · Inequality · Mathematical analysis · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Social capital · Social inequality · Social science · Sociology · Higher Education Research Studies · Mathematics · Psychology · School Choice and Performance · Social and Cultural Dynamics