Social class, identity and the 'good' student: negotiating university culture

Authors

Jane Pearce, Murdoch UNiversity
Barry Down, Murdoch University
Elizabeth Moore, Murdoch University

Abstract

Through the use of narrative portraits this paper discusses social class and identity, as working-class university students perceive them. With govern- ment policy encouraging wider participation rates from under-represented groups of people within the university sector, working-class students have found themselves to be the objects of much research. Working-class students are, for the most part, studied as though they are docile bodies, unable to participate in the con- struction of who they are, and working-class accounts of university experiences are quite often compared to the middle-class norms. This paper explores how working- class students see themselves within the university culture. Working-class students' voices and stories form the focus of this paper, in which the language of `disadvantage' is dealt with and the ideologies of class identity explored.

Recommended Citation

Pearce, Jane; Down, Barry; and Moore, Elizabeth (2008) "Social class, identity and the 'good' student: negotiating university culture," Australian Journal of Education: Vol. 52: Iss. 3, Article 4.
Available at: https://research.acer.edu.au/aje/vol52/iss3/4