1.2 Education - Ethnic Differences in Achievement

Question 1

What are the highest and lowest performing ethnic groups?

Answer 1

Highest: Chinese and Indian
Lowest: Black Caribbean and Gypsy/Roma

Question 2

Cultural Deprivation is an external factor. Which 3 areas are looked at as being factors for ethnic differences in achievement?

Answer 2

1. Intellectual and Linguistic Skills
2. Attitudes and Values
3. Family Structure and Parental Support

Question 3

Which two sociologists believe that the language spoken by low income, black American families is inadequate for success?

Answer 3

Bereiter and Englemann

Question 4

Which two sociologists rejected the idea that language was a key determinant of why ethnic minority students underachieved?

Answer 4

Gillborn and Mirza

Question 5

In the Attitudes and Values section of CD theory, what values are Black children argued to be socialised into?

Answer 5

‘Live for today’ which doesn’t value education. Much like Sugarman’s theory of ‘present time orientation’.

Question 6

What did Moynihan find when looking at family structure and parental support?

Answer 6

Many black families are headed by a lone mother, where she
struggles financially in the absence of a male breadwinner. This also means boys do
not have a male role model to look up to.

Question 7

Who said that Black Caribbean culture is less
cohesive and less resistant to racism, leading to low
self-esteem and underachievement.

Answer 7

Pryce

Question 8

What happens in the absence of fathers for young black males according to Sewell?

Answer 8

They look for media-inspired role models. They also seek status from their peers and this often means being rebellious in school.

Question 9

Who said that Asian families have an ‘Asian Work Ethic’?

Answer 9

Sewell

Question 10

What did Lupton say about Asian family structure?

Answer 10

That adult authority in Asian families is similar to the model used in
schools. This meant parents were more likely to support the school’s behaviour
policies.

Question 11

Who found that ethnic minority students are more likely to aspire to university than white students?

Answer 11

McCulloch

Question 12

What is often seen as the answer to cultural deprivation?

Answer 12

Compensatory education

Question 13

How does Driver criticise the cultural deprivation theory?

Answer 13

CD ignores the positive effects ethnicity can have on achievement. Within
black Caribbean families, girls are provided with positive roles models of strong independent women.

Question 14

What stats around material deprivation did Palmer find?

Answer 14

1. Almost half ethnic minority children live in low income households, against a
   quarter of white children.
2. Almost half of Bangladeshi
   and Pakistani workers
   earn minimum wage
   compared to only a
   quarter of whites.
3. Ethnic minorities are x3 more likely to be homeless.
4. Ethnic minorities are x2 as likely to be unemployed compared with whites

Question 15

Intersectionality - does class override ethnicity? What did Madood find?

Answer 15

Madood (2004) found while children from low income families generally did less well, the effects of low income were mush less for other ethnic groups than whites.

Question 16

What did Wood do in his study to assess racism in wider society?

Answer 16

Wood et al (2010) sent three closely matched job applications to 1000 job vacancies. These applicants
had names associated with particular ethnic groups (1 application appeared to come from a white
person, 2 from members of ethnic minority groups.) Wood et al found only 1 in 16 ethnic minority
applications received an interview, compared to 1 in 9 “white” applications.

Question 17

Who found that teachers were quicker to discipline black children?

Answer 17

Gillborn & Youdell

Question 18

What did Wright find when looking at labelling and Asian pupils?

Answer 18

Teachers assumed Asian pupils would have a poor grasp of English and left them out of group
discussions, they also felt isolated when teachers disapproved of their customs or mispronounced
names.
Unlike black pupils they were not seen as a threat but a problem to ignore.

Question 19

Who looks at pupil identities?

Answer 19

Louise Archer

Question 20

What pupil identity is feminised, conformist and asexual - often associated with Asian?

Answer 20

Pathologised

Question 21

What pupil identity is hypersexual, unintelligent and peer-led - often associated with black or white working class?

Answer 21

Demonised

Question 22

Who studied a group of black girls who rejected their label of underachievers?

Answer 22

Fuller

Question 23

What are the 4 responses from boys from ethnic minorities according to Sewell?

Answer 23

1. Conformist - Boys were keen to succeed, accepted goals of the school.
2. Rebels - only a small minority, rejected goals and rules of the school and expressed this though peer group membership. They conformed to the stereotype of anti-authority, anti-
   school “black macho lad”.
3. Innovators - pro education, but anti school, valued success but didn’t seek teachers’ approval.
4. Retreatists - tiny minority, disconnected from both school and black subcultures, they were despised by the rebels.

Question 24

Critical Race Theorists say that there is institutional racism in the system. What are the 5 ways in which the education system may be institutionally racist?

Answer 24

1. Marketisation & Segregation
2. New IQ’ism
3. Assessment
4. Ethnocentric Curriculum
5. Access to Opportunities

Question 25

What is New IQ’ism?

Answer 25

Education places little emphasis on potential and this disadvantages ethnic minority students who may be at an immediate disadvantage due to language barriers etc.

Question 26

What are ‘model minorities’?

Answer 26

Those ethnicities who are used as examples that racism does not exist. For example Chinese and Indian pupils succeed so how can there be institutional racism? Gillborn says this disguises the reality of the racism.