EDUCATION: Ethnicity and education - Internal factors (Labelling and teacher racism)

Question 1

How do teachers generally see

• Black pupils
• Asian pupils

Answer 1

Black: Agressive
Asian: passive

Question 2

a)
What study did Gillborn + Youdell conduct
- What did they find
- Why did this happen / name of process and explain
- How did pupils respond and feel
- What was concluded from the study

Answer 2

STUDY: Black pupils + discipline
FOUND: Teachers were quicker to discipline black pupils than others for the same behaviour.
WHY: RACIAISED EXPECTATIONS - teachers expect black pupils to present more discipline problems
RESPONSE: Pupils responded negatively = further conflict.
- Black pupils felt teachers underestimated their ability and picked on them
CONCLUSION: Much of the conflict between white teachers and black students came from teachers stereotype rather than their actual behaviour

Question 3

a)
Following from Gillborn + Youdell,
What does Bourne say about this

Answer 3

BOURNE: This is why there are higher exclusion rates for black children

Question 4

a)
Following from Gillborn + Youdell,
What does Osler say about this

Answer 4

OSLER: Black pupils are more likely to suggest from unrecorded unofficial exclusions and internal exclusions.
- Are also likely to be placed in PRU’s which exclude them from main stream curriculum.

Question 5

b) 
Black pupils and streaming 
Foster 
- What did he suggest about teacher stereotypes 
- What did this result in

Answer 5

FOSTER:
WHAT: Teacher stereotypes of black pupils being badly behaved = being placed in lower sets than other pupils of the same ability
RESULT: negative self fulfilling prophecy and underachievement.

Question 6

c)
Asian pupils
Wright
- What study did he conduct
- What did he find out
- What were pupils response / feelings to this
- What were teachers response / feelings to the pupils

Answer 6

STUDY: School who claimed to provide and commit to equal opportunities despite teachers having ethnocentric views
WHAT: Teachers assumed asian children would have poor grasping of English = leaving them out of class discussion and using simplistic language when speaking to them
RESPONSE: Asian pupils were marginalised and isolated when teachers expressed disapproval of their customs or mispronounces their names
TEACHERS RESPONSE: Saw Asian pupils as not a threat, but more as a ‘problem’ they could ignore

Question 7

What are the 3 sections labelling and teacher racism covers

a)
b)
c)

Answer 7

a) Black pupils + discipline
b) Black pupils and streaming
c) Asian pupils

Question 8

Evaluation
+
-

Answer 8

+
- Rather than blaming the childs home background, does show how teacher stereotypes play a part and can cause failure

-
- Danger of seeing stereotypes as only individual teachers prejudices rather than racism in the way the school system operates as a whole
- Danger in assuming once labelled, pupils automatically fall victim to the self-fulfilling prophecy and fail
However, Mirza shows although pupils devise strategies to avoid racism, it only limits their opportunities

Question 9

Why are internal factors important

Gillborn + Mirza

Answer 9

Gillborn + Mirza: Found Black children were the highest achievers on entry to primary school, but at GCSES. they had the worst results of any ethnic group

• If groups can begin education as high achievers and finish at lowest, this challenges cultural deprivation theorists believing that black children enter the school unprepared
• The evidence suggests there are major factors within school which produce different levels of achievement in different social groups