Ethnicity and Achievement

Question 1

What does labelling refer to?

Answer 1

Labelling refers to the process where meaning is attached to behaviour

Question 2

Which ethnic minorities are more likely to be given negative labels?

Answer 2

Ethnic minority students such as Black Caribbeans are more likely to be given negative labels having a negative impact on their educational achievement

Question 3

What are Black Caribbean twice as more likely to be labelled as having?

Answer 3

Black Caribbean twice as more likely to be labelled as having behavioural, emotional or social difficulties compare to white British boys

Question 4

What effect do labels have on Black Caribbean boys?

Answer 4

Labels can have a powerful effect on Black Caribbean boys achievement as they are likely to become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Boys internalise the labels they’ve been given and act accordingly

Question 5

What is the misallocation of sets?

Answer 5

Where students are put in the wrong set

Question 6

What can being in the bottom set have a negative impact on?

Answer 6

Being in the bottom set can have a negative impact on a students self confidence

Question 7

What did Fuller find out from studying Black Caribbean girls in Year 11 in a London school whose teachers gave them negative labels?

Answer 7

Fuller found out the girls didn’t develop a self-fulfilling prophecy, instead they rejected the labels and were determined to succeed.

At school - anti-school subculture

At home - determined to succeed

Question 8

What is the ethnocentric curriculum?

Answer 8

Ethnocentric curriculum is the idea that the school curriculum regards white British culture as superior to other cultures and does not value the contribution of other cultures

Question 9

What are some examples of ways schools are ethnocentric?

Answer 9

Schools only teach European languages

History is taught from a British perspective

School holidays are set according to Christian festivals

Arrangements for P.E

Question 10

How is schools only teaching European languages ethnocentric?

Answer 10

Only teaching European languages devalues the languages of some ethnic minorities

Question 11

How is history being taught from a British perspective ethnocentric?

Answer 11

History being taught from a British perspective may lead to a biased view of the history of other cultures

Black history taught in schools is based around slavery and colonialism - make black children feel their culture is inferior resulting in low self esteem

Question 12

How is school holidays being set according to Christian festivals ethnocentric?

Answer 12

Christianity is the dominant religion in Britain thus ignoring other religious festivals in other cultures

Children from other faiths may have to attend school on big festivals

Question 13

How is arrangements for P.E ethnocentric?

Answer 13

e.g. showers, changing rooms, dress code may go against cultural requirements for modesty.

Muslim girls are expected to keep their bodies covered

Question 14

What does the ethnocentric curriculum reflect?

Answer 14

Ethnocentric curriculum reflects critical race theory, that racism is ingrained feature of society

Question 15

What can the ethnocentric curriculum not explain?

Answer 15

Ethnocentric curriculum cannot explain the underachievement of white working class students

Question 16

What has the government introduced to support other cultures?

Answer 16

Government introduced policies supporting a multi-cultural education to celebrate and teach about the cultures of different ethnic groups e.g. cultures week, Black history month

Question 17

What are some examples of institutional racism?

Answer 17

A lack of ethnic minority teachers

Subconscious decisions about giving responsibility to students of certain ethnic groups in school

Disciplining some ethnic groups more than others

Question 18

What did Mirza find about girls strategies to deal with racism?

Answer 18

Mirza found out that the girls developed strategies to deal with racism such as not taking part in class discussions and not choosing subjects that had racist teachers

Girls strategies restricted their opportunites to achieve at school resulting in low achievement

Question 19

What are the criticisms of institutional racism?

Answer 19

Not just black students who develop strategies to deal with racism, their parents do to

Historically black children have not done well at school and black middle-class parents worry that teachers will have low expectations of their children

Question 20

Why can running a school like a business disadvantage some ethnic groups such as Bangladeshi and Pakistanis?

Answer 20

Running a school like a business might disadvantage some ethnic groups because they may not be fully aware of how to ‘play the system’

Question 21

What examples are there of how running a school like a business disadvantage some ethnic groups?

Answer 21

Prospectus may not be available in their language

May not understand application process (educational capital)

Cannot afford transport costs to send their children to schools outside their catchment area (material deprivation)

Lack cultural capital to challenge school decisions about admissions

Question 22

What types of capital do middle class Chinese and Indian families tend to possess?

Answer 22

Chinese and Indian families tend to be middle class, possessing all 4 types of capital - economic, cultural, educational and social

Question 23

What are middle-class families with all 4 types of capital able to do?

Answer 23

Middle-class families with all 4 types of capital are able to ‘play the system’ ensuring their children get accepted into the best schools

Schools more likely to ‘cream-skim’ Chinese and Indian students believing that they will achieve excellent exam results

Question 24

What did Sewell find from studying pupils subcultures among Black Caribbean boys?

Answer 24

The rebels - rejected the goals and rules of schools. Anti-authority. Only a small number of black boys were ‘rebels’ although this is how most teachers saw them

The conformists - they wanted to do well, accepting the goals of the schools and making friends with different ethnic groups

The retreatists - isolated individuals ‘loners’ not part of a subculture

The innovators - pro-education but anti-schools. Valued success but didnt seek approval from their teachers

Question 25

What did Gilbern argue marketisation allowing school to select pupils did?

Answer 25

Gilbern argued it disadvantaged some ethnic groups e.g.

Information about schools and the application process may not be available in their first language

Reports from primary schools may stereotype ethnic minority pupils

Question 26

What problem does ethnic minority groups lacking educational capital create?

Answer 26

Ethnic minority groups lacking educational capital means parents may be less able to ensure their children attend the best performing schools

Question 27

What problem does ethnic minority groups lacking cultural capital create?

Answer 27

Ethnic minority groups lacking cultural capital means parents can’t challenge schools about admission decisions as they don’t feel comfortable approaching schools and talking to teachers

Question 28

What problem does ethnic minority groups suffering from material deprivation create?

Answer 28

Ethnic minority groups suffering from material deprivation cannot afford transport costs to send their children to schools outside their catchment area

Question 29

Why does ethnic groups lacking all 4 types of capital suggest that parentocracy is a myth?

Answer 29

These disadvantages mean that not all parents have an equal opportunity or choice when choosing what school to send their child to