Ethnicity: Internal Factors

Question 1

What are the 3 internal factors for ethnicity in education?

Answer 1

1. Anti-school Subcultures.
2. Labelling, identities and responses.
3. Institutional Racism.

Question 2

1. (Anti-school Subcultures and Pupils’ Identities) What 3 identities did Archer (2008) give for pupils?

Answer 2

• Ideal pupil identity.
• Pathologized pupil identity (treating others differently based on non-normative behaviour or characteristics). (Ethnic minorities = more likely to be viewed as demonised or pathologized.
• Demonised pupil identity.

Question 3

What did Archer (2010) say about Asian girls’ behaviour?

Answer 3

Asian girls are submissive, docile and passive (respectful…).

Question 4

What is Shain (2003) say the outcome is to go against this stereotype?

Answer 4

Severe punishment.

Question 5

How are Asian pupils praised, viewed and do they achieve success in the right or wrong way?

Answer 5

• Chinese pupils are both praised and viewed negatively.
• They achieved success in the ‘wrong way’.
• ‘Negative positive stereotype’.

Question 6

(How students respond…) What was Fuller’s (1984) findings from his research studying a group of Year 11 Black girls in a London comprehensive school?

Answer 6

• Untypical → high achievers.
• Girls’ anger was channelled into the ‘pursuit of educational success’.
• Didn’t seek approval from teachers.
• Didn’t limit themselves - in terms of friendship groups.
• Maintained a positive self image by relying on their own efforts.
• Students can still succeed even when they aren’t similar in terms of behaviour (when they choose not to conform).

Question 7

What did Mac an Ghaill (1992) find from his study of a group of Black and Asian A Level students?

Answer 7

• Students who had been labelled did not necessarily accept it.
• Response depended on ethnic group and gender.

Question 8

What did Mirza and Sewell (2000) look at?

Answer 8

The effects of social class on ethnic groups in the education system.

Question 9

What did Mirza and Sewell find from data from Youth Cohort studies between 1997 and 1998?

Answer 9

Showed there was a strong relationship between social class and achievement in all ethnic groups.

Question 10

What else did Mirza and Sewell find?

Answer 10

• In all groups, middle-class children did better than working class children.
• However, African Caribbean pupils didn’t do as well as pupils in other ethnic groups, even when class was taken into account.
• Pupils from Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi groups did better.
• The relative success of pupils from some minority ethnic groups = cultural capital.

Question 11

2. (Labelling and Teacher Racism) What did Gillborn and Mirza find in 2000 about Black pupils?

Answer 11

• In one education authority, Black children were the highest achievers on entry to primary school (20% points above the local average).
• By GCSE = the worst results of any ethnic group → 21 points below average.

Question 12

What research did Strand (2010) conduct and what were the findings?

Answer 12

• Analysis of the entire national cohort (over 530,000 7-11 year olds).
• Found that Black Caribbean boys that aren’t on FSM made significantly less progress than White pupils.

Question 13

What theory does all of this labelling and teacher racism challenge?

Answer 13

All of this challenges cultural deprivation theory → black children do not enter the system underprepared.

Question 14

What do interactionists focus on?

Answer 14

• Interactionists focus on the different labels teachers give to pupils from different ethnic backgrounds.
• E.G. Black and Asian pupils aren’t viewed as the ‘ideal pupil’.

Question 15

What did Gillborn and Youdell (2000) find about ‘racialised expectations’?

Answer 15

Teachers are quicker to discipline black pupils than others for the same behaviour.

Question 16

There is a higher level of exclusions from school for black boys. What did Bourne find that supports this?

Answer 16

• Schools sees Black boys as a threat.
• Only 1 in 5 excluded pupils achieve 5 GCSEs.

Question 17

What did Osler (2001) find about Black pupils and exclusions?

Answer 17

Black pupils more likely to suffer from unrecorded unofficial exclusions. It’s more likely to be placed in PRUs (pupil referral unit).

Question 18

Black pupils are more likely to be placed in low sets due to negative stereotyping. Does Foster’s (1990)study support this?

Answer 18

His study supports this theory (negative stereotypes surrounding black pupils’ behaviour).

Question 19

What did Wright find about Asian pupils being victims of teachers’ labelling?

Answer 19

• Studied multi-ethnic primary school.
• Found that teachers used simplistic language when speaking to them.

Question 20

What are disadvantages in classroom interaction that can affect pupils who are victims of teachers’ labelling?

Answer 20

• Pupils left out of class discussions.
• Teachers expressing disapproval of customs and mispronunciation of names.
• Asian pupils are not seen as a threat but a problem that could be ignored (marginalisation).

Question 21

3. (Institutional Racism) What did Steve Strand (2012) find using data from the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England?

Answer 21

• Found that in Britain, African Caribbean did significantly less in education at the age 14 than their White peers.
• The study also shows that African Caribbean pupils were less likely to be entered for higher level GCSEs than their White British counterparts.

Question 22

What were the factors that accounted for this?

Answer 22

• African Caribbean pupils were more likely to have been excluded from school and to have had a statement of special educational needs.
• For every 3 White British pupils entered for higher-tier exams in Maths and English, only 2 African Caribbean pupils were entered.

Question 23

What did David Gillborn (2002) discovers about teachers contributing to making school a racist institution?

Answer 23

• Teachers interpret policy in a way that disadvantages Black pupils.
• For example, setting schemes for the gifted and talented pupils, and vocational schemes for the less academic all underrate the abilities of Black children, regulating them to low-ability groups, a restricted curriculum and entry for lower-level exams.

Question 24

What has the increased marketisation of schools led to?

Answer 24

An ‘A-C economy’.

Question 25

The increased marketisation of schools has led to an ‘A-C economy’. According to Gillborn and Youdell (1999), what does this create?

Answer 25

• According to them, this creates a rationing of education → teachers are forced to focus on those in danger of not realising their potential and fostering them to enable them to achieve a C grade or above.
• Therefore, they neglect both the ‘no-hopers’ and the ‘high-achievers’, leaving them on their own.
• Many Black pupils are judged, often unfairly, to be ‘no-hopers’.

Question 26

What did David Gillborn (2008) find about racism affecting ethnic minorities?

Answer 26

• Racism affects some ethnic minorities much more than others.
• Model minorities, such as Chinese and Indian pupils, who are seen as having positive attitudes towards education, are treated differently from minorities who are seen as a potential problem.
• Furthermore, institutional racism may be entrenched (a habit, ingrained, unlikely to change) in the organisation of schools and the way that power is distributed within them.

Question 27

What is an example that demonstrates this?

Answer 27

• For example, Ranson (2005) highlights the unrepresentativeness of school governing bodies, which are ‘disproportionately White, middle-aged, middle-class, middle-income, public community service workers’.
• For these reasons, ethnic inequalities in education are often a low priority.

Question 28

(Evaluation) Racism isn’t linked to low achievement. What did Fuller (1980) find in her study to support this? (Year 11 Black girls)

Answer 28

Fuller (1980) studied a group of high-achieving Black girls in year 11 of a London comprehensive and found that the girls resisted the negative labelling that the teachers had imposed on them, and formed a pro-school subculture.

Question 29

What studies used ethnography (a type of research method) and why does it provide them with methodological limitations?

Answer 29

• Wright, Gillborn and Mac an Ghaill.
• Ethnography involves direct observation of a small group. Because the sample is small, generalisations cannot be made from the findings (applies to all multi-ethnic schools).

Question 30

‘Teachers aren’t racist’. How does Taylor (1981) support this?

Answer 30

Taylor (1981) identified many teachers as being sensitive to multicultural issues and was actively concerned about developing a fair policy towards ethnic minorities.

Question 31

The ethnocentric curriculum turned into a … curriculum?

Answer 31

Multicultural.
It goes against the old racist stereotypical views that Afro-Caribbean Black individuals are good at music and sports and made no real further advancement.