Teachers in the Social Space of Positions: A Bourdieusian Analysis of Five French Primary School Teachers’ Perceptions

Abstract

法國著名社會學家皮埃爾·布迪厄(Pierre Bourdieu)寫了 Distinction 的書。他分析了評分系統(品味)和生活條件(社會階層) 之間的關係。他製作了一個社會階級和社會分類的表格，其中包含生 活方式。因此，布迪厄根據不同的標準對許多職業進行了分類。小學 教師是其中的一部分。這個研究是想了解這些老師在布迪厄的職位的 社會空間如何，以及現在的老師的看法是否相同。對於這個定性研究， 我們選擇了五名法國小學教師。我們對他們對於法國社會階層教師的 看法進行了半指導性訪談。採訪中還討論了遵循布迪厄邏輯的品味和 愛好問題。這些老師都是年輕教師。因此，更容易理解他們目前的生 活方式與跟上一代老師的差別。者所研究也使用了布迪厄所設定資本 (社會，經濟，文化)。並且了解他們目前的社會狀況和地位。在對 布迪厄的訪談和理論進行分析之後，通過對這兩個結果的比較得出結 論。結果表明，教師們似乎是屬於中產階級，但他們在某種程度上與 布迪厄的推論不同。然而，年齡的差異表明這些教師們的特徵差異很 大。 從教師的看法來看，大問題似乎是他們在社會中的形象。因此， 這項研究有助於更新布迪厄的研究，但也有助於更新社會學中社會階 層和社會地位的研究主題。 這是社會學中的一個主要問題。Pierre Bourdieu, the renowned French sociologist, wrote a book titled Distinction in which he analyzes the relationships between grading systems (social class) and living conditions (taste). The result of his analysis is a table of social status and classifications according to lifestyle. Thus, Bourdieu is able to classify many professions, including teaching, according different criteria. In this study, I consider how Bourdieu primary school teachers in the social space of positions he created and compare this with the perception of primary school teachers today. For this qualitative study, five French primary school teachers were selected for semi-structured interviews that focused on their opinions on the social class of teachers in France. In following the logic of Bourdieu, the interviews also address the issues of taste and hobbies. As these teachers are all young, it is easier to understand their current lifestyles and their current social condition and status. I also used the different forms of capital he has setting(cultural, social and economic). Following analysis of the interviews and Bourdieu’s theory, the results of these analyses are compared. The results demonstrate that teachers always seem to belong to the middle class though this differs somewhat from Bourdieu’s notion of it. The differences between generations are observable in the great differences in the characteristics of the teachers. An important issue for the teachers seems to be their image in society. This study helps to update the work of Bourdieu as well as to define the social status of teachers, which is an important issue in sociology.