Digital Technology and Social Stratification: The Great Equalizer?

• In Event: 2484 - Section on Sociology of Education Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 24. Technology and Education

Abstract

This paper discusses a current niche in sociological literature: technology and interaction rituals in elementary schools. In particular, the relationship between school success/school engagement, and the increasing availability and accessibility of new forms of technologies (i.e. iPads, robotic kits, Smart Boards) in what has now become known as “21st century classrooms”. In doing so, it utilizes Collins (2004) interaction ritual theory (IRT), along with Bourdieu’s (1986) concept of cultural capital, to establish the possibility that the continual use of digital tools in classroom can create new sets of rituals with valued cultural capital. This in turn can actually reduce social stratification. Through a qualitative inquiry consisting of K-8 classroom observations, interviews, and focus groups, with teachers and students in ten school boards across Ontario, Canada, I propose that one of the unintended consequence of using technology as an educational tool, compared to more traditional forms of print media (i.e. books), has been the reduction of home-based inequalities, and a more “even playing field” for students of varying SES. This has implications for sociologists, educational researchers, and policy-makers alike.

Author

• Jessica Rizk, McMaster University