Linguistic capital and bodily hexis in Pierre Bourdieu: subjective criteria in school assessment

Abstract

Among the assessment tools used in everyday school life, “school projects” in the form 
of “oral presentations”, whether or not preceded by written research, are commonly employed. In this 
article, the objective was to analyze how the assessment criteria for these school assignments are 
structured, in light of Pierre Bourdieu’s theorization, based on an investigation of the influence of 
subjective social categories on teacher’s evaluations. The analysis was based on a literature review, using 
as theoretical tools two concepts developed by Bourdieu: “linguistic capital” and “bodily hexis.” The 
results indicate that student’s forms of bodily and linguistic expression play a central role in the 
assessment of school projects, constituting the main criteria, to the detriment of other forms of 
learning. With a preference for behavioral and linguistic dispositions closer to those developed by 
classes possessing greater legitimate cultural capital. According to the analyses, teachers tend to assign 
more positive evaluations to students who align with these dispositions.