Cultural Deprivation - Ethnic Differences

Question 1

Moynihan

Answer 1

Due to many black families being headed by a lone mother their children are deprived of adequate care because she has to struggle financially in the absence of a male breadwinner. Also due to a fathers absence boys lack a role model of male achievement. This is a constant cycle - inadequate socialised children will fail and become inadequate parents themselves

Question 2

Murray (new right)

Answer 2

High rate of lone parenthood and lack of positive male role model leads to underachievement of some minorities

Question 3

Pryce (new right)

Answer 3

Sees family structure as contributing to underachievement of black Caribbean pupils in Britain. Comparison of black and Asian pupils - Asian pupils are higher achievers because their culture is more resistant to racism and gives them a greater sense of self worth

Question 4

Arnot

Answer 4

Ideal role model of the anti-school black masculinity is - ‘the ultra-tough ghetto superstar, an image constantly reinforced through rap lyrics and mtv videos

Question 5

Gilborn

Answer 5

Argues that it is not peer pressure but institutional racism within the education system itself that systematically produces the failure of large numbers of black boys

Question 6

Ruth Lupton

Answer 6

Argues that adult authority in Asian families is similar to the model that operates in schools. She found that respectful behaviour towards adults was expected from children and this had a knock on effect in school

Question 7

McCulloch

Answer 7

Survey of 16,000 pupils found that ethnic minority pupils are more likely to aspire to go to university than white British pupils

Question 8

Lupton

Answer 8

Study of 4 schools, 2 mainly white, 1 mainly Pakistan and the other ethnically mixed. Found teachers reported poorer levels of behaviour and discipline in white students even though they had fewer children on free school meals. They blamed this on lower levels of parental support and the negative attitude that white working class parents had on education

Question 9

Driver

Answer 9

Criticises the cultural deprivation theory for ignoring the positive effects of ethnicity on achievement. Eg the black Caribbean family far from being dysfunctional provides girls with positive role models of strong independent women

Question 10

Lawrence

Answer 10

Challenges pryce and argues that black pupils underachieve not because of low self esteem but because of racism

Question 11

Keddie

Answer 11

Sees cultural deprivation as a victim blaming explanation. Argues that ethnic minority children are culturally different not culturally deprived. They underachieve because schools are ethnocentric - based in favour of white culture and against minorities

Question 12

Sewell

Answer 12

Lack of fatherly nurturing or ‘tough love’ that leads to underachievement. This results in black boys finding it hard to overcome the emotional and behavioural difficulties of adolescence
In this absence of a nurturing figure black boys turn to street gangs who offer ‘perverse loyalty and love’ these present boys with a media inspired role model of anti-school black masculinity

Question 13

Bereiter and Engelman

Answer 13

Language spoken by low-income black American families is ungrammatical, disjointed and incapable of expressing abstract ideas and therefore inadequate for educational success