Cultural Capital
What does Cultural Capital mean at Wootton Lower School?
Cultural capital is the accumulation of knowledge, behaviours and skills that a child can draw upon and which demonstrates their cultural awareness, knowledge and competence; it is one of the key ingredients a pupil will draw upon to be successful in society, their career and the world of work. Cultural capital promotes social mobility and success in our stratified society. It gives a pupil power. It helps them to achieve goals, become successful, and rise up the social ladder without necessarily having wealth or financial capital. For example, being able to perform well in school, knowing how to talk in different social groups or societies, accessing higher education and being successful in work or a career.
Ofsted define cultural capital as…
‘As part of making the judgment about the quality of education, inspectors will consider the extent to which schools are equipping pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life.’
The national curriculum suggests that ‘it is the essential knowledge that pupils need to be educated citizens, introducing them to the best that has been thought and said and helping to engender an appreciation of human creativity and achievement.’
At Wootton Lower School, we strive to equip pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in life. It is the essential knowledge that pupils need to be educated citizens. We want our children to leave us at the end of year 4 with a range of skills, deep knowledge, a love of learning and ambition. Cultural capital is not something that is ‘given’ or ‘taught’. It is about culture, language, traditions and experiences. At Wootton Lower, we want to celebrate the uniqueness of us all and share our differences and individualism. It is the learning beyond the curriculum.
We recognise that for pupils to aspire and be successful academically and in the wider areas of their lives, they need to be given rich and sustained opportunities to develop their cultural capital. Wootton Lower School recognises that there are six key areas of development that are interrelated and cumulatively contribute to the sum of a pupil’s cultural capital:
- Personal Development
- Social Development
- Physical Development
- Spiritual Development
- Moral Development
- Cultural Development
We have created cultural capital overviews for each key area. This includes all the aspects of the cultural capital, which researchers have evidenced enriches children’s knowledge and understanding and will equip and prepare them for their futures. Some aspects are covered in our curriculum, other aspects are explored in assemblies, incidental conversations and daily life at school. Other aspects can be discovered at home through experiences and conversations, especially when visiting places or on trips.