External factors- Language

Question 1

What are the overall arguments surrounding the language used by ethnic minorities ?

Answer 1

These arguments suggest that some ethnic groups (especially black, low-income groups) lack adequate linguistic stimulation through their socialisation

Question 2

What do Beriter and Englemen argue about the language used by ethnic minorities ?

Answer 2

Beriter and Englemen- consider the language spoken by low-income Black American families as inadequate for educational success. They see is at ungrammatical, disjointed and incapable of expressing abstract ideas

Question 3

Why is their concern surrounding GCSE’s and A-levels and the language used by those of ethnic minority ?

Answer 3

There is also a concern that pupils who do not speak English at home (as their first language) will do worse than those who do

Question 4

How do Bollard and Driver evaluate the above claims ?

Answer 4

Bollard and Driver- Language problems cease to be a problem by age 16

Question 5

How does the Swan Report (1985) evaluate the above claims ?

Answer 5

The Swan (1985) report found that language differences had little impact on achievement

Question 6

What do stats show about the differences between students with English as their first language and those without English as their first language?

Answer 6

Statistics show that in 2010, pupils with English as their first language (55.2%) were only 3.2 points ahead of those without ENglish as their first language (52.0%) when it came to gaining 5 A*- C GCSE’s