Alumni Perspectives of Elite Education: Was It

Murdoch University College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education This thesis is presented for the degree of Masters of Education (Research) Alumni perspectives of elite education: was it worth it? Jennifer Featch February 2020 Declaration I certify that this thesis is my own work, except where indicated by referencing, and the work presented in it has not been submitted in support of another degree or qualification from this or any other university. ________________________ Jennifer Featch 28/02/2020 i Acknowledgements I respectfully acknowledge the unwavering guidance, support and advice given to me without judgement by my supervisors, Associate Professor Laura Perry and Dr Susan Ledger, for which I am very thankful. I would like to thank the Australian Government - Department of Education for the Research Training Program Fee Offset (RTP Scholarship). I also thank the participants of this study for their thoughtful contributions to this work; and Sian, for showing me that interviewing doesn’t have to be scary. My continued thanks go to Natalia, who believed without doubt that I could complete this study. I am especially grateful to my son, Nelson, whose relentless positivity lifted me from ground zero many times, and without whom I would never have lasted the distance. ii Abstract This project sought to establish whether elite alumni’s school experiences positively affected their post-school lives and what wider patterns or themes about elite education could be found. The study was guided by Bourdieu’s concepts of cultural and social capital, used to understand the benefits, limitations and opportunities afforded by attending elite private schools. In-depth interviews were conducted with eight participants, three male and five female, then audio transcripts were coded in Nvivo. Preliminary results showed the long-term value of social capital first acquired at school differed by gender. Some participants credited their elite schooling with steering them away from drug-taking and poor decisions about sexual behaviour, and towards university; they felt this would have been reversed had they attended a public school. The benefits of social capital that were found could easily be acquired at non-elite schools. Also, when compared with their parents, participants were either at about the same or of a slightly higher socio-economic status. Given these limited long-term benefits of elite schooling it could be timely to reconsider the utility of continued government subsidisation of private schools. iii Contents Table of Contents Declaration ..................................................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................................................. ii Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................................... iii Contents ........................................................................................................................................................................ iv List of figures ...............................................................................................................................................................ix List of tables ..................................................................................................................................................................x CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................ 1 Aims and purpose .............................................................................................................................................. 6 Defining an elite school ................................................................................................................................... 7 Background and positionality ...................................................................................................................... 12 Structure of the thesis .................................................................................................................................... 19 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................... 21 Class, capital and education ....................................................................................................................... 22 Social class ....................................................................................................................................................... 22 Social class and education ....................................................................................................................... 23 Bourdieu and Bernstein ............................................................................................................................ 23 Schools and social mobility..................................................................................................................... 25 Theory of capitals & connections to education ................................................................................ 27 Elite schools and what they do.................................................................................................................. 30 iv Characteristics of elite schools ............................................................................................................. 30 Class-based curricula, specialisation and hierarchies ................................................................. 31 Intergenerational and class closure acts as both an advantage and disadvantage .... 33 The effects of elite schooling ...................................................................................................................... 35 Elite schools and advantage ................................................................................................................... 35 Elite schooling and academic achievements .................................................................................. 39 Elite schooling, incomes and occupations ...................................................................................... 42 Health and personal benefits of attending elite schools ......................................................... 45 Summary ................................................................................................................................................................ 46 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................... 47 Theoretical framework................................................................................................................................... 47 Method ................................................................................................................................................................... 49 Research design ............................................................................................................................................ 50 Interpretative phenomenology, auto-ethnography, case study: the researcher as subject ................................................................................................................................................................................ 51 Participants ...................................................................................................................................................... 54 Participant narratives .................................................................................................................................. 57 Data collection .............................................................................................................................................. 60 Data analysis ................................................................................................................................................... 61 Ethics .................................................................................................................................................................. 62 Limitations of the study ............................................................................................................................ 63 CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS ........................................................................................................................ 65 v Findings ................................................................................................................................................................... 65 Research question one: What were participants’ experiences at elite private schools? .............................................................................................................................................................................. 65 Research question two: What were participants’ perceptions of the benefits and disadvantages of attending an elite private school?.................................................................................... 67 Research question three: How did attending an elite private school affect participants’ life opportunities? .............................................................................................................................

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