CULTURAL CAPITAL ACCUMULATION AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: CASES OF GAZİOSMANPAŞA AND BAKIRKÖY Z . H . A ŞE R C U L T U R A L C A P I T A L A C C U M U L A T I O N ZEYNEL HAKAN AŞER A M O N G H IG H S C H O O L S T U D E N T S 2 0 1 7 İSTANBUL ŞEHİR UNIVERSITY SEPTEMBER 2017 CULTURAL CAPITAL ACCUMULATION AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: CASES OF GAZİOSMANPAŞA AND BAKIRKÖY A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES OF İSTANBUL ŞEHİR UNIVERSITY BY ZEYNEL HAKAN AŞER IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN SOCIOLOGY SEPTEMBER 2017 ABSTRACT CULTURAL CAPITAL ACCUMULATION AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: CASES OF GAZİOSMANPAŞA AND BAKIRKÖY Aşer, Zeynel Hakan MA in Sociology Thesis Advisor: Assist. Prof. Alim ARLI September 2017, 109 pages This research aims to reveal the process of cultural capital accumulation among Turkish high school students attending high schools in Istanbul. The study focuses on (1) the general cultural activities of high school students relating to Bourdieu’s concept of cultural capital, and (2) in relation with the assumed role of family culture shaping intentions and knowledge for choosing a university and profession in the future, alongside (3) ongoing socialization and constant reflexivity of students’ preferences through socialization, and (4) the role of the school representing the education system at the intersection of the abovementioned processes. The research was conducted in two Anatolian High Schools. One of them is Anatolian High School from their inception.1 The other one lately transformed Anatolian High School. One of the high schools is located in Ataköy, a neighbourhood in Bakırköy, Istanbul, which is assumed to be an upper-middle class neighbourhood. The other one is located in Gaziosmanpaşa, well known as a disadvantaged Istanbul neighbourhood. Using socialization theories about parenting styles, childrearing practices, especially Annette Lareau’s (2010) concept of converted cultivation, I have tracked different routes of dominant parenting patterns amongst the students of these schools. Moreover, discussing the dynamic nature of acquiring cultural capital, I have relied on skills rather than high culture elements, as Lareau & Weininger (2003) suggests. 1 In 2008, the government has decided to change many other general high schools to Anatolian High Schools. See: http://www.eokulegitim.com/genel-duz-liseler-anadolu- liselerine-donusturuluyor/ iv Keywords: High School Education, Cultural Capital, Inheritance, Future Expectations. v ÖZ LİSE ÖĞRENCİLERİNİN KÜLTÜREL SERMAYE BİRİKİMİ: GAZİOSMANPAŞA VE BAKIRKÖY ÖRNEKLERİ Aşer, Zeynel Hakan Sosyoloji Yüksek Lisans Programı Tez Danışmanı: Yrd. Doç. Dr. Alim Arlı Eylül 2017, 109 sayfa Bu araştırma lise öğrencileri arasında kültürel sermaye birikimi süreçlerinin dinamik yapısını ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Buna yönelik olarak, bu çalışma, (1) Bourdieu’nün kültürel sermaye kavramı ışığında öğrencilerin kültür ürünlerine dair genel eğilimleri, (2) aile kültürünün, öğrencilerin gelecek tahayyülleri ile ilgili olarak üniversite ve iş seçimindeki rolü, (3) öğrencilerin devam eden sosyalizasyon süreçleri içinde kendi durumları üzerine yaptıkları yorumlar ve (4) okulun bu süreçlerin kesişiminde nasıl bir rol oynadığına odaklanmaktadır. Saha araştırması iki Anadolu lisesinde gerçekleştirilmiştir. Bu okullardan biri İstanbul’un üst-orta sınıf mahallelerinden biri olarak bilinen Ataköy, Bakırköy’de konumlanmaktadır. Diğer Anadolu lisesi ise Gaziosmanpaşa semtinde konumlanmıştır ve kuruluşundan bu yana Anadolu lisesidir2. Bu semt de dezavantajlı ailelerin bulunduğu bir semt olarak görülmektedir. Ailelerin ebeveyn olma pratikleri, çocuk yetiştirme stilleri ile ilgili sosyalizasyon teorilerinden yararlanarak, özellikle Annette Lareau’nun (2010) “concerted cultivation” kavramı ışığında, bu liselerde öğrencilerin ebeveynlerinin genel bir şema içinde hangi ebeveyn olma stillerinin veçhelerini izledim. Bununla birlikte, yine Lareau & Weininger’in gösterdiği üzere kültürel sermaye birikimi dinamiğini, yüksek kültür ürünlerine yatkınlık yerine, çeşitli alanlarda yetenek geliştirme üzerinden anlamaya çalıştım. 2 2008’de Hükümet, genel düz liselerin Anadolu liselerine dönüştürülmesini öngörmüştür. Bkz: http://www.eokulegitim.com/genel-duz-liseler-anadolu-liselerine-donusturuluyor/ vi Anahtar Kelimeler: Lise öğrenimi, Kültürel sermaye, Aktarım, Gelecek Tahayyülleri. vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I owe a great debt of gratitude towards numerous people for their contribution in the process of writing this thesis. First and foremost, I want to indicate my love and gratitude to my mother, and my family. Without their support, in every sense, I could not accomplish any of these steps leading my life. And I would like to express my gratitude towards my thesis advisor, Alim Arlı. From the beginning, his guidance, his never-ending ideas about this research’s concerns and sociological theory taught me an enormous depth of experience. For their valuable comments before and later in the jury, I would like to indicate my gratitude towards Eda Ünlü Yücesoy and Mustafa Gündüz. And I would like to say thanks to Şehir University’s valuable members for their guidance at courses, and seminars, and at other occasions. And of course, I should indicate my gratitude towards Şehir University’s personnel for giving us broad opportunities at this university. I should say thanks to my friends at Şehir University. I would like to thanks to my closer friends specifically naming them here. Yunus and Ammar listened me and shared their valuable ideas which led me to see different aspects. I would like to say thanks to Can for his guidance when I was on the field. To my older friends, Cengiz, Recep, Erdem, and Çağrı, I am deeply grateful for their support. I would like to say thanks to Büşra, as she read my drafts and corrected several places, and shared her ideas with me. I want to indicate my gratitude towards my professors at Ondokuz Mayıs University, Sociology Department, and especially my older office mate Hüseyin in Samsun, for his valuable support. Lastly, I want to express my love and gratitude towards my mother. Without her love and support, I could not accomplish any of these. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ....................................................................................................................... iv Öz ................................................................................................................................ vi Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... viii Table of Contents ........................................................................................................ ix List of Tables ................................................................................................................ xi List of Figures ............................................................................................................. xii CHAPTERS 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1 1.1. The High School System in Turkey ................................................................... 3 1.2. From Maarif Colleges to Anatolian High Schools, and the “decreasing reputation” of Anatolian High Schools .................................................................... 4 1.3. Rationale, and Research Questions ................................................................ 12 1.4. Theoretical Insights ........................................................................................ 13 1.4.1. A Review of Sociology of Education: Reproduction ............................... 13 1.4.2. Socialization Theories ............................................................................. 17 1.4.3. Parenting Styles ...................................................................................... 18 1.4.4. Hidden Curriculum and Cultural Capital ................................................. 24 1.4.5. A Synthesis of Theoretical Background and Conceptual Framework .... 26 1.5. Methodology and Research Design ................................................................ 28 2. SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTS, PEER-SOCIALIZATION, AND PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT .................................................................................................................................... 27 2.1. A School Having Flows of Students from Its Distant Neighborhoods: OAHS . 27 2.1.1. Flourishing a School Spirit: Institutional Identity ................................... 35 2.1.2. Counselling Department and Compensation ......................................... 39 2.2. An Older Anatolian High School, JAHS: “Better Quality of Teachers” ........... 41 2.2.1. Discontinuous School Spirit .................................................................... 47 2.2.2. Counselling and its Supportive Role ....................................................... 49 2.3. Comparison of the Two Cases ........................................................................ 50 2.4. Parental Involvement into High School Education: OAHS ............................. 51 ix