Ethnic differences in achievement - Education

?
What is ethnicity?
a shared culture, identity and history- individuals see them selves as a distinct group
1 of 40
Ethnic Minority
a group of people with a different skin colour from the rest of the population (ie. in England, non-white people such as African are the main ethnic minority)
2 of 40
Best, average and worst ethnic groups in achievement
>Black and Pakistani pupils do worst >White pupils do average (due to them making up the majority) >Chinese and Indian do best
3 of 40
Two types of factors explaining differences in achievment
>Internal factors: things within school and education system (pupil-teacher interaction and educational policies) >External factors: things outside the education system (home and family background)
4 of 40
External factors and ethnic differences
There are 3 main external factors, each with many sub-factors effecting them: cultural deprivation, material deprivation and class, and racism in wider society
5 of 40
Cultural deprivation theory (CDT)
CDT claims the under-achievement of some ethnic groups is caused by inadequate socialisation in the home
6 of 40
Intellectual and Language skills I
CDT claims children from low-income black families fail to provide intellectual stimulation; they fail to develop reasoning and problem solving skills. Some claim children who don't speak english at home may be help back educationally
7 of 40
Intellectual and Language skills II (research)
Bereiter and Englemann claim that due to the language of poor African families being ungrammatical (according to theory), children are unable to express abstract ideas
8 of 40
Attitudes, Values and family structure
Differences in attitudes and values towards education may be result of differences in socialisation. Most children are socialised into mainstream culture (instills competitiveness and desire to achieve) ; equipping them for success in education
9 of 40
Fatalism and immediate gratification
CDT claims some black children are socialised into sub-cultures that are fatalistic and focus on immediate gratification;lack of motivation
10 of 40
Lack of male role model
A lack of a male role model may anchorage many African-Caribbean boys into anti-educational macho 'gang culture'. New Right (Murray '84) argues high single parent rate leads to underachievement in some minority pupils
11 of 40
Culture of Poverty
Moynihan ('65) argues absence of male role model of achievement in black matrifocal lone parent families produces inadequately socialised children who fail at school, become bad parents and then perpetuate a culture of poverty
12 of 40
Asian families
Sewell argues Chineseand Indian pupils benefit from supportive families with an 'Asian work ethic'
13 of 40
White Working-class pupils
White working-class pupils often have lower aspirations , often due to a lack of parental support
14 of 40
Compensatory Education
This is an educational policy that aims to counter the effects of cultural deprivation. Operation head start:in USA, compensates children who suffer due to deprived backgrounds.Sure start UK: supports developmen in preschool children in deprived area
15 of 40
Criticisms of CDT
> Keddie argues CDT victim blames >Compensatory education imposes dominant white middle-class maleculture on minority ethnic group pupils own culture
16 of 40
Material deprivation and class
Material Deprivation (poverty) is a lack of physical or economic resources essential for normal functioning in society. MD explanations of ethnic differences in achievement argue that educational failure is due to material factors
17 of 40
MD facts
>half of ethnic minority children live in low-income housing >ethnic minorities are 2x more likely to be unemployed >minorities face discrimination in housing and labour market
18 of 40
Racism in wider society
MD clearly effects pupils ability to achieve, it may be the product of racism in wider society
19 of 40
Racism in wider society (chain of events)
Racial discrimination in jobs/ housing>>>>social exclusion>>>>unemployment, low pay, inadequate housing>>>>>affects children's education
20 of 40
Internal factors and ethnic differences
Some sociologists focus on factors within school as causing ethnic differences in achievement: > labelling >pupil subcultures >ethnocentricity and institutional racism
21 of 40
Labelling
Interactionists focus on small-scale interactions (interested in effects of the labels teachers give to students from different backgrounds).
22 of 40
Effects of Labelling
Due to labelling, teahcers may treat ethnic minorty studewnts differenly, disadvantaging them and bringing about a self-fulfilling prophecy that leads to under achievement
23 of 40
Labelling on Black Pupils (Gillborn and Mirza 2000) I
found in one area that black students entered school system 20 points above average, but fell 21 points below average by the time of GCSE (suggests school is to blame for educational failure)
24 of 40
Labelling on Black Pupils (Gillborn and Mirza 2000) II
Teachers have racial expectations, expected behavioural issues. Pupils felt underestimated and bullied. Concluded conflict between teacher and student stems from racist stereotypes teachers hold, not students behaviour
25 of 40
Labelling on Black Pupils (Gillborn and Mirza 2000) III
This causes underachievement because it leads to: >higher levels of exclusions of black boys >black people being placed in lower streams
26 of 40
Labelling on Asian Pupils (Wright 1992)
Found Asian primary school students were stereotyped by teachers: assumed pupils had a poor grasp of english, mispronounced their names, saw them as a problem they could ignore
27 of 40
Affects of Labelling Asian pupils
Asian pupils (especially girls) were marginalised and prevented from participating fully, affecting their self asteem
28 of 40
Pupil Subculture
Pupils can react to labelling by forming pupil subcultures. Sewell (1998) found black boys adopted many responses to teacher labelling
29 of 40
Types of Subcultures
Conformists, Innovators, Retreatists, Rebels
30 of 40
Conformists
Largest group, keen to succeed, accepted rules and had friends in different ethnic groups
31 of 40
Innovators
Second largest group, pro-education but anti-school. Valued success but not teachers approval
32 of 40
Retreatists
Tiny minority, disconnected from both school and black subcultures outside of it
33 of 40
Rebels
Small but highly visible minority. rejected rules, conformed to stereotype 'black macho lad'. Result is underachievement in boys, not just rebels, as stereotype was generalised to all black boys not just rebels
34 of 40
Rejecting negative Labels (Fuller 1984)
Study of a group of high achieving black girls who rejected teachers stereotypes, recognised value of education, but only worked hard while giving the appearance of not doing so. Maintained friendships with black girls in lower streams
35 of 40
Institutional Racism
Discrimination against ethnic minorities that is built into the way institutions such as schools operate on a routine, rather than conscious intentions of individual teachers
36 of 40
Critical Race Theory (CRT)
CRT sees institutional racism as a deep-rooted, 'locked in' feature of the education system
37 of 40
The Ethnocentric curriculum
Many sociologists argue that the British curriculum is ethnocentric (focuses on priorities of one culture while disregarding another)
38 of 40
Research to supporting ethnocentric curriculum
>Troyna and Williams note it gives priority to white culture and English language >David argues National curriculum is 'specifically British' and teachers the culture of the 'host community'
39 of 40
Evaluation of Ethnocentric Curriculum
It isnt clear what the impact of the ethnocentric curriculum is as it ignores the successes of Asian cultures as being above average
40 of 40

Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

a group of people with a different skin colour from the rest of the population (ie. in England, non-white people such as African are the main ethnic minority)

Back

Ethnic Minority

Card 3

Front

>Black and Pakistani pupils do worst >White pupils do average (due to them making up the majority) >Chinese and Indian do best

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

>Internal factors: things within school and education system (pupil-teacher interaction and educational policies) >External factors: things outside the education system (home and family background)

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

There are 3 main external factors, each with many sub-factors effecting them: cultural deprivation, material deprivation and class, and racism in wider society

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
View more cards

Comments

No comments have yet been made

Similar Sociology resources:

See all Sociology resources »See all Education resources »