Ken McCulloch

‘We just hang out together’: Youth Cultures and Social Class

This paper argues that young peoples subcultural styles and identities are closely bound up with social class. We show that youth subcultures have been explained in a number of ways since emerging as a subject of serious study in the second half of the twentieth century, and that these explanations are located within a broader social scientific discourse. Fieldwork data collected through interviews with young people in Edinburgh and Newcastle indicate that, rather than being a free-floating lifestyle choice, young peoples membership of subcultural groupings is largely determined by social class. In particular, the study shows that young people labelled as ‘Chavs’ or ‘Charvas’ should be understood as a subcultural group with specific social class affiliations. The paper concludes by considering some implications of these findings for theory, for further field research and for practical action.

Sail Training as Education: More than Mere Adventure.

This paper describes the process and findings of a multinational study of the characteristics of sail training for young people. The study used a structured qualitative method and involved ‘indigenous practitioner‐researchers’ who collected the majority of the data. Our findings show that participation provides an opportunity for learning in the practical and cognitive domains in relation to skills and knowledge, and in the affective domain in relation to social confidence. The data collected provide evidence that sail training has positive benefits in terms of participants’ social confidence and their self‐perceptions of capacity to work collaboratively with others. It is argued that while sail training experiences are generally positive and beneficial, some appear to be more effective than others in developing social confidence. We also show that it is not principally the seamanship dimension of the experience, but the combination of a structured purposeful programme with the unique character of the seafaring environment that provides the basis for that learning. The more effective experiences in this respect appear to be those where there is a greater emphasis on specific programme activity. Sail training should therefore be understood not solely as adventurous recreation but as a powerful educative experience.

Ideologies of Adventure: Authority and Decision Making in Sail Training.

Abstract Case studies of the contemporary UK sail training movement are used to illustrate the competing expressions of purpose in this field. Two sail training organisations are described and a case study voyage under the aegis of each is presented. The differences between the approaches are analysed as “traditions” or ideologies, articulated through distinctive interpretations of power and contrasting approaches to participation in decision making. It is argued that choices regarding the type of vessel used and the voyages made are not neutral technical decisions but have ideological significance. In conclusion the application of such an analysis to other kinds of outdoor and adventure education is considered.

Living at Sea: Learning from Communal Life Aboard Sail Training Vessels.

This paper considers features of domestic and social life aboard sail training vessels, exploring the particular character of life at sea, and how these features contribute to the distinctive character of sail training experience as a context for learning. Methodologically, the study lies in the sociological tradition of ethnography, focusing on the actions of participants and on the meanings ascribed to participation. Learning that takes place as a consequence of the residential and communal living dimensions are claimed by proponents as key elements of the sail training experience, and this account seeks to illuminate such claims and to make comparison between the experiences of participants and the accounts of practitioners and advocates of sail training. Space, movement and privacy are considered, alongside the inescapability of the setting, and the impact of domestic and working routines. These features are shown to create conditions that should be understood as those of a ‘total institution’ aboard ships. It is argued that the claims in respect of learning arising from communal domestic life are generally borne out by the empirical evidence. Situated learning is considered as a framework for understanding the processes taking place, and it is argued that it is the institutional character of life aboard a sail training vessel that creates its particular power as a learning experience.