Scholarship students in elite South African schools : the gift of a scholarship / Jennifer Wallace, Jennifer Feldman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wallace, Jennifer.

Contributor:

Feldman, Jennifer.

Series:

Cultural studies and transdisciplinarity in education ; v. 16.

Cultural Studies and Transdisciplinarity in Education ; v.16

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

South African students--Social conditions.

South African students.

South African students--Economic conditions.

Scholarships--South Africa.

Scholarships.

Elite (Social sciences)--South Africa.

Elite (Social sciences).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (150 p.).

Place of Publication:

Singapore : Springer, 2022.

Summary:

This book provides a narrative account of the experiences of twenty former scholarship students from historically disadvantaged communities who attended elite public and private secondary schools. It draws on in-depth, one-on-one semi-structured interviews conducted with former scholarship recipients who were between the ages of 19 and 24 years at the time of the interviews. Various themes are explored, specifically focusing on elite schooling in relation to the experiences and navigational practices of the scholarship recipients and the adjustments that they felt they needed to make in order to fit into the elite school space. The book analyses and discusses the reflective experiences of students who were awarded a scholarship to attend an elite secondary school. It reveals that accepting the gift of a scholarship is far more complex, multi-layered, and at times harsh and even painful for the individual recipients than is possibly realized by those involved in this practice. This book contributes to academic educational debates within the sociology of education, elite schools and schooling in the post-apartheid South African context.

Contents:

Intro

Foreword

References

Acknowledgements

Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction

Introduction

Framing the Research

The Contextual Landscape of the Study

Education during Apartheid

Education in the "New" South Africa

The Blurring of Race and Class

Organization of the Chapters

Chapter 2: The Gift of a Scholarship

The Role Players

The Donor Foundations

The Partner Schools

The Scholarship Recipients

A Bourdieusian Framing

Habitus

Field

Capital

Misrecognition and Symbolic Violence

Research Design

Participant Selection Considerations

Conclusion

Chapter 3: Setting the Scene: Students in Elite Educational Contexts

South African Elite Schools

Elite Schools as Purveyors of "Social Success"

The "Gift Economy" of Elite Schools

Elite Schools as "Assimilationist Endeavors"

The Gendering Practices of Elite Schools

Chapter 4: Entering the Field

Earning Their Place

Ready, Set, Go

Chapter 5: Cultural Capital in the Wrong Currency

Introduction

The Shock of the Elite: "Another (Surreal) World"

"The Underwear of Boarding"

"Trophies of Diversity"

"A Different (Academic) Playground"

Sporting Standards: Being "Base-Line from Everyone Else"

Cultural Differences: "The Foreignness Hit Me Hard"

Chapter 6: Fitting into the "New Normal"

Making the "Required" Adjustments

Discussion

Finding Their Place

Chapter 7: Changing Habitus?

Embodying "A Certain Quality"

Developing Beyond "A Box-Mentality"

Living "A Bipartite Life"

Benefitting from "A Certain Type of Status"

Chapter 8: Conclusion: Reflections and Playing It Forward

Key Insights Emanating from a Bourdieusian Analysis

Equal Players, Level Playing Field?

The Implicit Social Contract of the Gift

Effects and Consequences

Implications for Practice: "Breaking the Bubble"

References

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

Online resource; title from PDF title page (SpringerLink, viewed November 29, 2022).

Other Format:

Print version: Wallace, Jennifer Scholarship Students in Elite South African Schools

ISBN:

9789811975363

9811975361

OCLC:

1351201695

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.