Self-Reported Delinquency: A Cultural Analysis

An individual 's sense of self develops through interactions with others (Brym and Lie 2015:15). If interactions with students are encouraging, this creates a positive environment with a stable growth of academic skills, and maturity. However, if the interaction is negative this can lead to the student questioning who they are, what they believe in and their skills. As discussed in “Teacher Disapproval, Delinquent Peers, and Self-Reported Delinquency: A Longitudinal Test of Labeling Theory” by Mike S. Adams and T. David Evans explains how labelling has a connection and is a contributor to delinquency. This peer review examins the teachers who gave negative labels and how it affects delinquency, students, and relationships that are formed because …show more content…
The type of language teachers use can be constructive or critical; when a teacher reads a student’s essay marking where corrections are a necessary this is constructive, but when feedback becomes critical it is discouraging. In “A Cultural Analysis of the Achievement Gap Discourse: Challenging the Language and Labels used in the work of School Reform” by Roderick L. Carey criticizes the labels and language used towards the achievement gap discourse. This peer review argues for schools to reshape discussions and thoughts about school education for students of color and low-income to improve the achievement gap discourse (Carey 2014 444). However, Discourse means language and other semiotic tools used by social context, the broad cultural and ideological processes (Carey 443). The definition of achievement gap discourse is the discussion of the academic success and failures of low-income also coloured students (Carey 441). This article observes the achievement gap discourse and focuses on how teachers assume certain students will do poorly. Consequently, this forms, terminology like under performing, adequate yearly progress, below basic (Carey 2014 443). These words serve as labels towards students decreasing growth, victimizing and shaping interactions of students. Careys argument analysis the achievement gap discourse and the terminology used as labels for students and the blame teachers deal with. Therefore, understanding the hidden meaning of labels changes the discourse in public schools. In conclusion, Carey states labels and categories utilized towards students are unproductive to student growth, and the focus should be to reshape public schools to look beyond labels. Another concern as noted in the essay is about comparing non-whites to the achievement of whites and, as a result, labels everyone else “unworthy”. These thoughts, on race, gender, socioeconomic, and