SCOTT DAVIES

Ph.D.: University of Toronto, 1992, Department of Sociology

Professor and Ontario Research Chair in Educational Achievement and At-Risk Children; Core Member, Offord Centre for Child Studies; Associate Member, Department of Political Science

Educational Interests

Courses & Teaching Interests

Sociology 2p06 Sociology of Education
Sociology 4bb3 Sociology of Education
Sociology 3h06 Research Techniques and Data Analysis
Sociology 3l03 Selected Topics in Occupational Sociology
Sociology 716 Sociology of Education
Sociology 713 Social Stratification
Sociology 718 Sociology of Occupations

a) Social Inequality and At-Risk Children:
I can work with students who are interested in any form of inequality in education and other institutions. My research has focused on classic issues of inequality by race, class, and gender. Early in my career I examined differing educational attainment and labour market rewards by gender, class and race, in some instances tested various cultural theories of inequality. More recently I have turned my attention to stratification within school systems, both k-12 and post secondary, comparing Canada to other nations. In my current appointment as Ontario Research Chair I am examining the determinants of educational achievement among at-risk children.

b) Education Policy, Politics, and School Achievement:
I am interested in working with students who are interested in educational policy and politics, and those willing to conduct quantitative studies of the determinants of school achievement, especially those that can be used to test current policies. As part of my current appointment, I am currently using Ontario's EQAO data to examine the links between various socioeconomic indicators and student achievement, and am testing whether Catholic schools outperform comparable public schools. Also, I am interested in the broader politics of education and the impact of social movements. In two papers I looked at the “framing” tactics of educational interest groups, highlighting how social movements strategically communicate their ideas to take advantage of emerging political opportunities, and trends in educational politics at the global level.

c) The Impact of Privatization and Markets:
I am interested in working with students who are fascinated by issues of privatization and organizations in education and other institutions. In recent years I have examined privatization and the use of market forces in education. With Professors Janice Aurini and Linda Quirke, I have investigated the emergence of new types of private schools, tutoring franchises, homeschooling, and similar innovations. We have written a series of articles on these topics.

d) Youth, Deviance and Subcultures:
I am interested in working with students on issues of school deviance, crime and disorder. Early in my career I examined various notions of “cultural resistance” among youth. More recent work has investigated the impact of delinquency and labelling on various life chances. Currently I am interested in how a school's disciplinary climate affects its levels of achievement, and which policies can effectively address school deviance, crime and disorder. In recent years students of mine have done projects on school bullying, educational diversion programs for deviant youth, drug courts, and the rise of restorative justice initiatives.

e) Work, Labour Markets and Organizations:
I sometimes teach graduate and undergraduate courses on work and the professions. Currently I am looking at the implications of privatization on teacher professionalism and educational organizations. A particular focus is on using New Institutional Theory to understand various innovations in education. Former students researched the teaching profession, and have written publishable papers on a wide array of fascinating topics, including journalism, nursing, professional economics, midwifery, human resources, tutoring, weight-loss businesses, and social work.

Davies, Scott (principal investigator) and Neil Guppy. 2005-8. “School Choice in Canada: A Sociological Investigation of Structures and Processes.” SSHRC Regular Grant, 3 years,

Guppy, Neil, Scott Davies, and 5 others. 2005-6. “Analyzing Change in Education.” Society for Advancing Excellence in Education

Davies, Scott. 2002-3. “ Educational Innovations in the New Economy: The Rise of Tutoring Businesses and New Sector Private Schools.” SSHRC INE Grant

a) Inequality and At-Risk Children:
Davies, Scott and Vicky Maldonado. 2008. “Socioeconomic Inequalities in Canadian Education.” Social Inequality in Canada: Patterns, Problems, and Policies (5th edition) edited by Edward Grabb and Neil Guppy. Toronto: Prentice Hall. Forthcoming. For earlier versions of this chapter, see the 3rd and 4th editions.

Davies, Scott and Janice Aurini. 2008. “School Choice as Concerted Cultivation: The Case of Canada” In The Globalization of School Choice? Edited by Martin Forsey, Scott Davies and Geoffrey Walford. Symposium Books: Oxford Studies in Comparative Education, Oxford. Forthcoming.

Davies, Scott. 2005. “A Revolution of Expectations? Three Key Trends in the SAEP Data.” Pages 149-165, chapter 6 in Preparing for Post Secondary Education: New Roles for Governments and Families, edited by Robert Sweet and Paul Anisef. Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press.

Quirke, Linda and Scott Davies. 2002. “The New Entrepreneurship in Higher Education: The Impact of Tuition Increases at an Ontario University.” Canadian Journal of Higher Education 32(3):85-110.

Davies, S., and Neil Guppy. 1997. "Fields of Study, College Selectivity, and Student Inequalities." Social Forces 73(4):131-151.

b) Education Policy and Politics:
Zarifa, David and Scott Davies. 2007. “Balance of Powers: Public Opinion on Control in Education.” Canadian Journal of Sociology 32(2):259-278.

Davies, Scott and Floyd Hammack. 2005. "Channelling Competition in Higher Education: Comparing Canada and the US". Journal of Higher Education 76(1):89-106.

Davies, Scott. 2002. “The Paradox of Progressive Education: A Frame Analysis” Sociology of Education 75(4):269-286.

Davies, Scott. 1999. "From Moral Duty to Cultural Rights: A Case Study of Political Framing in Education." Sociology of Education 72(1):1-21.

Guppy, Neil and Scott Davies. 1999. “Understanding Canadians' Declining Confidence in Public Education” Canadian Journal of Education 24(3):265-280.

Davies, Scott, and Neil Guppy. 1997. "Globalization and Educational Reforms in Anglo- American Democracies" Comparative Education Review. 41(4):435-59.

c) Privatization and Market Forces in Education:
Davies, Scott and Stephanie Howells. 2008. “Private Schools.” In Encyclopedia of the Life Course and Human Development. Forthcoming. Edited by Deborah Carr. Cengage Learning. Farmington Hills, MA.

Davies, Scott and Linda Quirke. 2007. “The Impact of Sector on School Organizations: The Logics of Markets and Institutions.” Sociology of Education 80(1):66-89.

Davies, Scott. 2007. “School Choice.” P 4014 to 4016 in Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, Edited by George Ritzer. Blackwell Publishing.

Davies, Scott and Janice Aurini. 2006. “Rethinking 'Macro' and 'Meso' Levels of Institutional Analysis: The Case of International Education Corporations.” In The Impact of Comparative Education Research on Institutional Theory, edited by David Baker and Alex Wiseman. Elsevier Science, Ltd.

Davies, Scott, Janice Aurini, and Linda Quirke. 2006. "Institutional Theory Goes To the Market: The Challenge of New Forms of Private Education." in The New Institutionalism and the Study of Education, edited by Heinz Meyer and Brian Rowan. Albany: SUNY Press.

Davies, Scott and Linda Quirke. 2005. “Providing for the Priceless Student: Ideologies of Choice in an Emerging Educational Market.” American Journal of Education 111(4):523-547.

Aurini, Janice and Scott Davies. 2005. “Choice Without Markets: Homeschooling in Context of Private Education.” British Journal of Sociology of Education 26(4):461-474.

Davies, Scott and Janice Aurini. 2005. “Home Schooling and Canadian Educational Politics: Rights, Pluralism, and Pedagogical Individualism.” Evaluation and Research in Education 17(2&3):63-73.

Davies, Scott. 2004. “School Choice by Default? Understanding the Demand for Private Tutoring in Canada.” American Journal of Education 110(3):233-255.

Aurini, Janice and Scott Davies. 2004 “The Transformation of Private Tutoring: Education in a Franchise Form.” Canadian Journal of Sociology 29(3):419-438. Reprinted in Phi Delta Kappan (October):123-128.

d) Youth, Deviance and Subcultures:
Davies, Scott and Julian Tanner. 2003. “The Long Arm of the Law: A Test of Labelling Theory." Sociological Quarterly 44(3):385-404.

Tanner, Julian, Scott Davies and Bill O'Grady. 1999. "Whatever Happened to Yesterday's Rebels? Longitudinal Effects of Teenage Delinquency on Education and Occupational Outcomes." Social Problems 46(2):250-274.

Davies, Scott. 1999. "Subcultural Explanations and Interpretations of School Deviance." Aggression and Violent Behavior: A Review Journal. 4(2):191-202.

Davies, S. (1995). "Leaps of Faith: Shifting Currents in Critical Sociology of Education." American Journal of Sociology 100(6):1448-1478. Reprinted as “Les Miracles de la foi: la transformation des courants critiques en sociologie de l'education.” Education et Societes: Revue Internationale de Sociologie de L'Education 5:93-116. 2000-1.

Davies, S. (1995). "Reproduction and Resistance in Canadian High Schools: An Empirical Examination of the Willis Thesis." British Journal of Sociology 46(4):662:687.

e) Work, Labour Markets and Organizations:
Davies, Scott and David Zarifa. 2008. “Higher Education.” In International Encyclopedia of Education, edited by Gary McCulloch and David Crook. London: Routledge, Forthcoming.

Zarifa, David and Scott Davies. 2008. “Institutional Theory and the Weberian Tradition.” In Canadian Perspectives on the Sociology of Education. Edited by Cynthia Rasky-Levine. Oxford: Toronto. Forthcoming.

Aurini, Janice and Scott Davies. 2004 “The Transformation of Private Tutoring: Education in a Franchise Form.” Canadian Journal of Sociology 29(3):419-438.

Guppy N. and Davies S. (1996) "Labour Market Dynamics in the Teaching Profession" Education Quarterly Review 3(4):33-43.

Davies S. (1990) "Inserting Gender into Burawoy's Labour Process Theory." Work, Employment and Society 4 (3): 391-406.

Books:
In addition, I have co-authored and co-edited several books on more general topics:

Davies, Scott and Neil Guppy. 2006. The Schooled Society: An Introduction to the Sociology of Education. Toronto: Oxford University Press. See www.oup.com/ca/isbn/0-19-542108-6

Guppy, Neil and Scott Davies 1998. Education in Canada: Recent Trends and Future Challenges. Ottawa: Statistics Canada (203pp, xxxix); also published in French as L'Education Au Canada: Tendances Recentes et Defis a Relever. (Ottawa: Statistics Canada; 226pp, xlii)

Forsey, Martin, Scott Davies and Geoffrey Walford (editors). 2008. The Globalization of School Choice? Symposium Books: Oxford Studies in Comparative Education, Oxford. See www.symposium-books.co.uk/books/bookdetails.asp?bid=70

Office Hours:
Wed. 14:30-16:30

Full Address:
Department of Sociology
McMaster University
Kenneth Taylor Hall, Room 609
1280 Main Street West
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4M4
Phone: 905-525-9140, ext. 23607
Email: daviesrs@mcmaster.ca