Bourdieu (1985) has researched French preparatory schools that appear to emulate a similar formula as Olive Grove Academy in Part Two of The State Nobility. He observed that many of these schools, and specifically, their teachers, focus on learning how to succeed in school rather than on what they are learning. This presents itself through gaining the skills needed to quickly and effectively complete assignments, as well as an exposure to knowledge at a fast pace without an influx of information. Bourdieu argues that this allows students to be prepared for executive level jobs where they must quickly process information and deliver results that appease others and live up to required standards.
As we are researching how Olive Grove prepares its students for democratic leadership, we must consider what democratic leadership means in the job sense. It often presents itself as a high- powered, executive job even if the ultimate goal is to lead citizens and work for their benefit. These leaders are required to also think on their feet, know how to work the system to get what they (and their constituents) want, and especially to process information and disregard the irrelevant in order to do their job as effectively as possible. With Bourdieu’s framework in mind, we must thus assume that Olive Grove Academy creates an academic environment that prepares students for how to effectively do a job as a democratic leader, beyond just getting the job. Democratic leaders do not always get their start in politics, but are often successful as executives in the business world and other high powered positions, and this is a way of preparing for and ensuring success. They have to be able to present information and answer questions based only on what they know. Getting sidetracked in a university setting may be considered an intellectual pursuit, but a democratic leader must be precise and concise, just as assignments are made to be within Olive Grove. Ahmad and Sara understand the importance of good grades in order to reach the next level, whether that be school or a career, demonstrating that Olive Grove has cultivated an environment where students are prepared for the day to day work of democratic leadership.
As we research, it is always important to keep focus on our research question. Bourdieu’s theory allows me to understand a key component of the school, the academics, in a framework that applies to our question. Often, school and teachers are thought of as deliverers of content, but I had to consider, how does the delivery of content and the role of the student in receiving the content play into their status of becoming democratic leaders? It is easy to forget in research such as this that school is first and foremost meant for learning, but there is a purpose beyond the content. There is a reason Olive Grove is not relaxed and solely intellectual in nature like the universities Bourdieu mentions, and that relates directly to our research question.
References
Bourdieu, P. (1998). The state nobility : elite schools in the field of power. Polity Press.
