Comparing the Relationships with the Community based on Students Respondents

Get Complete Project Material File(s) Now! »

INTRODUCTION

The key to success is [inheritance] from family, parents, and the family environment, and connections and knowing the right people … (Bowles & Gintis, 2002: 3, own emphasis). This thesis explores in detail the social factors, conditions, and nexus of relationships, shaping the educational achievement of Korean students. It also examines educational achievement in detail and considers how it impacts on the social standing and social mobility of individuals and groups in society. Understanding the catalysts of high achievement and social mobility are central and very relevant concerns in contemporary sociology of education studies in Korea. In the Republic of Korean1 context education has for a long while been perceived as the strongest medium through which higher social status and social positions could be achieved. For this reason access to the best schools and universities has become a priority of families of all classes and social groups because it is viewed as the route to higher educational achievements and ultimately to social advancement (Shin, 2012; Kim & Lee, 2006).

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Education is regarded as one of the most important factors in the attainment of socio-economic status (SES) within Korean society (Kim, 1983; King, 1988; Seo, 2004: Yu, 2006; Kim, 2000). Koreans have popularly relied on education as a means to attain social mobility and a life which is deemed to be successful. During the last few decades the Korean economy has made great strides; and, indeed, steady economic growth in Korea has led to the country being defined as one of the most flourishing and upwardly mobile of the twentieth century (Lee & Brinton, 1996; Kim, 1993). Since the end of the Korean War (1953) educational investment has played an extremely important role in the economic growth of the country (Morris, 1996). The rapid economic growth of the newly industrialised countries in Asia (NICs) – South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan – depends, in particular, on labour-intensive industries which are, in turn, based on human resources in the fields of science and technology. This rapid economic growth is as a result of investment and success in education because education has produced a steady supply of educated people to work in various institutions and fields, including human resources (Clark, 2000: 122).

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this research has been to explore differences in respect of the educational achievements of Korean high school students and to examine these achievements in relation to SC. The research focuses on the educational achievements of Korean 11th grade high school students in three schools regarded as ‘achieving schools’. It was not desirable to seek out comparisons between ‘achieving’ and ‘non-achieving’ schools because most schools in Gangnam are in fact ‘achieving’ schools. However, ‘high-achieving schools’ do have mixed student populations – with minority under-achievers. Thus, the emphasis is on examining the different factors driving achievement in these schools. The identification of various factors which influence high achievement on the part of students might, ultimately, lead to overall improvement in terms of broadening the base of educational achievement.

STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS

This thesis consists of six chapters. Chapter One introduces the study and outlines the purpose, research questions and objectives. Background information on the Korean educational system and also Korean society is presented. Chapter Two offers a detailed literature review on social capital research and theory and lays the foundation for an original approach to the study of social capital in terms of education. Chapter Three outlines the research design as well as the selection of research sites and sampling, the selection of method, ethical issues, and data analysis procedures as a methodological approach. Chapter Four presents the quantitative data of the research. Chapter Five offers the analysis in terms of a Research Model and links the results to the literature which was discussed in Chapter 2. Finally, in Chapter Six, recommendations for improving the performance of low achieving students are presented. Here the roles of parents, schools, and the community are outlined, as well as the unique contribution to sociology made by this thesis.

Historical Social Capital

As a concept, social capital came into ‘active’ use in the 1980s. However, one could argue that the first reference to it was made in the nineteenth century. The French writer, Alexis de Tocqueville, and the sociologist, Emile Durkheim, (Kim, 2005; Field, 2008; Halpern, 2005) discussed the concepts of trust and social solidarity, which refer to coherence and cohesiveness linked to social capital. A number of scholarly works illustrated that the issue of human relationships and social connectivity concerned social theorists for a long time. According to de Tocqueville (1832), interaction in voluntary associations serves as a ‘social adhesive,’ in terms of social trust, which acts to unite individuals in social groups (Kim, 2005). Kim (2005: 195) draws on de Tocqueville (1832) to suggest that voluntary organisations and associational activities generate participation and thus bring into being generalised social trust.

Conceptual Social Capital

The concept of social capital deals with, ultimately, the issue of relationships (An, 2005; Field, 2008; Lin, 2001; Coleman, 1988). How do scholars understand the concept? It appears that many researchers, despite different points of view, perceive social capital to be a form of resource, and that the core theme is the nature of social relationships. It alludes to structural constraints and opportunities as well as actions and choices on the part of the actors (Lin, 2001). Thus, in terms of the general theory of capital, social capital encompasses a variety of capitalisation processes which explicitly engage hierarchical structures, social networks, and actors. In Marx’s analysis, capital forms part of the surplus value appropriated by capitalists or the bourgeoisie, who control the means of production in the circulation of commodities and monies between the production and consumption processes. However, in the past four decades the classical theory of capital has been revisited by neo-capital theorists who, essentially, criticised class explanations.

Social Capital at a Micro-Level of Individual, Family, and School

Social scientists offer many definitions of social capital (see Table 2.3). Although, in a broad sense, there are no major differences between these definitions, minor differences are discernable. There are three possible conceptual definitions of social capital, depending on their scope. Firstly, the definitions depend on whether they focus on an individual, family, or school. In this instance Bourdieu (1985: 248) focuses on useful ‘supports’ in the relationships between parents and children, that is, a significant influence on the development of a student as “the aggregate of the actual or potential [familial] resources.” Coleman (1994) points out that social capital can highlight groups for which trustworthiness and mutual trust offer a foundation that creates many advantages for young people. Therefore, in a context of smooth relationships between individuals, and within families and schools, social capital refers to the micro-level set of relationships between actors. Below, definitions and meanings of social capital are offered in a table format. This allows the reader to review the differences in the meaning of social capita

Table of Contents :

• Abstract
• Abstrak (Afrikaans)
• Abstract (Korean)
• Acknowledgements
• Table of Contents
• List of Tables
• List of Figures
• Glossary of Terminology and Acronyms
• CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: SOCIAL CAPITAL AND THE FACTORS SHAPING EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT
  • 1.1 INTRODUCTION
  • 1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
  • 1.3 PURPOSE, RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS
  • 1.3.1 Purpose of the Study
  • 1.3.2 Objectives of the Study
  • 1.3.3 Specific Research Questions
  • 1.4 SELECTED BACKGROUND ON THE REPUBLIC OF KOREAN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AND SOCIETY
  • 1.5 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
• CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW AND FRAMEWORK FOR ANALYSIS
  • 2.1 INTRODUCTION
  • 2.2 EXPLORING THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL CAPITAL
  • 2.2.1 Historical and Conceptual Social Capital
  • 2.2.1.1 Historical Social Capital
  • 2.2.1.2 Conceptual Social Capital
  • 2.2.2 Dimensions of Social Capital
  • 2.2.2.1 Relational Dimension of Social Capital
  • 2.2.2.2 Structural Dimension of Social Capital
  • 2.2.2.4 Summary
  • 2.3 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
  • 2.3.1 Social Capital According to Bourdieu
  • 2.3.2 Social Capital According to Coleman
  • 2.3.3 Social Capital According to Putnam
  • 2.4 SOCIAL CAPITAL AND EDUCATION
  • 2.4.1 Family and Educational Achievement
  • 2.4.2 School and Educational Achievement
  • 2.4.3 Community and Educational Achievement
  • 2.4.4 Summary
  • 2.5 CONCLUSION
• CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY: THE QUANTITATIVE APPROACH, DATA GATHERING AND METHODS OF ANALYSIS
  • 3.1 INTRODUCTION
  • 3.2 POSITIVISM AND SURVEY METHODOLOGY
  • 3.3 SOURCE OF DATA
  • 3.3.1 Selection of Research Site and Sampling
  • 3.3.2 Selection of Method and Data Collection Techniques
  • 3.3.3 Research Subjects
  • 3.4 RESEARCH INSTRUMENT
  • 3.4.1 Mathematic Assessment
  • 3.4.2 Contextual Questionnaires
  • 3.5 MEASUREMENT OF VARIABLES
  • 3.6 RESEARCH MODEL AND HUPOTHESES
  • 3.6.1 Research Model
  • 3.6.2 Research Hypotheses
  • 3.7 DATA ANALYSIS
  • 3.8 ETHICAL CONSIDERATION
  • 3.9 CONCLUSION
• CHAPTER 4 PRESENTATION OF THE CORE DATA: SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS
  • 4.1 INTRODUCTION
  • 4.2 SOCIAL AND DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SUBJECTS
  • 4.2.1 Social and Demographic Characteristics of Students
  • 4.2.2 Social and Demographic Characteristics of Fathers
  • 4.2.3 Social and Demographic Characteristics of Mothers
  • 4.3 COMPARISON OF STUDENT PARTICIPANTS
  • 4.3.1 Comparing the Distribution of Demographic Characteristics of Students
  • 4.3.2 Comparing the Relationships of Students Respondents with their Parents
  • 4.3.2.1 Relationships with Fathers
  • 4.3.2.2 Relationships with Mothers
  • 4.3.3 Comparing the Relationships with the Schools based on Students Respondents
  • 4.3.4 Comparing the Relationships with the Community based on Students Respondents
  • 4.4 COMPARISON OF PARENT’S RESPONSES
  • 4.4.1 Distribution of Demographic Characteristics of Parents
  • 4.4.2 Relationships of Parents Respondents with their Children
  • 4.4.2.1 Relationships between a Father and His Child
  • 4.4.2.2 Relationships between a Mother and Her Child
  • 4.4.3 Comparing the Relationships between Parents and their Child’s School
  • 4.4.4 Comparing the Relationships between Parents and the Community
  • 4.5 CONCLUSION
• CHAPTER 5 FINAL ANALYSIS AND THEORETICAL ARGUMENTS: SIGNIFICANT ELENENTS SHAPING ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
  • 5.1 INTRODUCTION
  • 5.2 RESULTS OF REGRESSION ANALYSIS
  • 5.2.1 Results Relating to Familial Social Capital
  • 5.2.1.1 Physical Dimension of the Familial Social Capital
  • 5.2.1.2 Relational Dimension of the Familial Social Capital
  • 5.2.1.3 Structural Dimension of the Familial Social Capital
  • 5.2.1.4 Cognitive Dimension of the Familial Social Capital
  • 5.2.2 Results for School Social Capital
  • 5.2.2.1 Physical Dimension of the School Social Capital
  • 5.2.2.2 Relational Dimension of the School Social Capital
  • 5.2.2.3 Structural Dimension of the School Social Capital
  • 5.2.2.4 Cognitive Dimension of the School Social Capital
  • 5.2.3 Results for Community Social Capital
  • 5.2.3.1 Physical Dimension of the Community Social Capital
  • 5.2.3.2 Relational Dimension of the Community Social Capital
  • 5.2.3.3 Structural Dimension of the Community Social Capital
  • 5.2.3.4 Cognitive Dimension of the Community Social Capital
  • 5.2.4 Summary
  • 5.3 NEW ARGUMENTS OF SOCIAL CAPITAL: ORIGINAL FINDINGS
  • 5.3.1 Familial Social Capital
  • 5.3.2 School Social Capital
  • 5.3.3 Community Social Capital
  • 5.4 CONCLUSION
• CHAPTER 6 CONCLUDING THE STUDY: MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS
  • 6.1 INTRODUCTION
  • 6.2 RECOMMENDATIONS
  • 6.2.1 Recommendations for Low-Achieving Students and Their Parents
  • 6.2.2 Recommendations Regarding School and Community
  • 6.3 THE STUDY’S CONTRIBUTION TO KOREA’S SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION
  • 6.4 CONCLUSION
  • REFERENCES

GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT
SOCIAL CAPITAL AND EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT IN THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA