hidden curriculum
traits of behavior or attitudes that are learned at school but not included within the formal curriculum. for example, gender differences.
cultural capital
the advantages that well-to-do parents usually provide their children.
tracking
dividing students into groups that receive different instruction on the basis of assumed similarities in ability or attainment.
achievement gap
disparity on a number of educational measures between the performance of groups of students, especially groups defined by gender, race, ethnicity, ability, & socioeconomic status.
intelligence
level of intellectual ability, particularly as measured by IQ (intelligence quotient) tests.
IQ (intelligence quotient)
a score attained on tests of symbolic or reasoning abilities.
acting white" thesis
the thesis that black students do not aspire to or strive to get good grades because it is perceived as "acting white".
abstract and concrete attitudes
(1st word) are ideas that are consistent with mainstream societal views, while (2nd word) are ideas that are based on actual experience.
cultural navigators
people who draw from both their home culture & mainstream culture to create an attitude that allows them to succeed.
gender gap
the differences between women & men, especially as reflected in social, political, intellectual, cultural, or economic attainments or attitudes.
stereotype threat
idea that when African American students believe that they're being judged not as individuals but as members of a negatively stereotyped social group, they will do worse on tests.
local knowledge
knowledge of a local community, possessed by individuals who spend long periods of their lives in it.
mass media
forms of communication, such as newspapers, magazines, radio, & television, designed to reach mass audiences.
communication
the transmission of information from 1 individual or group to another. (word) is the necessary basis of all social interaction. In face-to-face encounters, (word) is carried on by the use of language & by bodily cues that individuals interpret. with the d
public sphere
the means by which people communicate in modern societies, the most prominent component of which is the mass media--movies, TV, radio, videos, records, magazines, & newspapers.
global village
a notion associated with Marshall McLuhan, who believed that the world has become like a small community as a result of the spread of electronic communication. for instance, people in many different parts of the world follow the same news events through T
hyperreality
an idea associated with Jean Baudrillard, who argued that as a result of the spread of electronic communication, there is no longer a separate "reality" to which TV programs & other cultural products refer. instead, what we take to be "reality" is structu
mediated interaction
interaction between individuals who are not physically in one another's presence; for example, a telephone conversation.
mediated quasi-interaction
interaction that is one-sided & partial; for example, a person watching a TV program.
world information order
a global system of communication operating through satellite links, radio & TV transmission, & telephone & computer links.
cyberspace
electronic networks of interaction between individuals at different computer terminals.
information poverty
the "information poor" are those people who have little or no access to information technology, such as computers.