ethnicity in education Flashcards
Ethnic group
People who share a common history, customs and identity, seeing themselves as a distinct group
Trends seen with ethnic differences in education
Black children do worse at GCSEs than white and asian children.
In all ethnic groups, girls do better than boys
External factors
Cultural deprivation
Material deprivation
Racism in wider society
Main aspects of cultural deprivation
Intellectual and Linguistic Skills
Attitudes and Values
Family Structure and Parental Support
How cultural deprivation affects linguistic skills and cognitive development
Many low income black families lack intellectual stimulation which means they are poorly equipped for school.
Bereiter and Engelmann say the language spoken in black families is poor
Students that speak English as a 2nd language are held back
Bereiter and Engelmann on the language spoken in black families
poor and ungrammatical which means children start school without the proper language skills
How cultural deprivation affects attitudes and values?
Many black children are not socialised to be ambitious so have a lack of motivation. They live in the moment so don’t value education
How cultural deprivation affects family structure and support?
Black families have a dysfunctional structure and are normally lone parent so they are deprived of adequate care and a father role model
How Sewell argues that lone parent black families cause under achievement
Street gangs take the place of father figures by offering loyalty and love to their members. They hold anti-school values and see success as white
How Sewell argues that Asian children succeed due to their culture
Asian work ethic places a high value on education and the adult authority structure is similar to school so it’s easier for Asian children to adapt
What are the main criticisms of cultural deprivation?
Ignores positive effects
Institutional racism
Victim blaming
How does Driver criticise cultural deprivation?
Ignores the positive effects of culture such as how it provides girls with strong role models
How does Eddie criticise cultural deprivation?
Its a victim blaming explanation and ignores the fact that the education system favours European culture
Why are ethnic minorities at greater risk of poverty?
Many live in urban areas with high unemployment
Cultural factors may prevent women from working
Some have poor language skills or qualifications that aren’t recognised in the UK
What proportion of ethnic minority children are in low income households?
1/2
