internal factors influencing ethnic differences in achievement (institutional racism) Flashcards
1
Q
what distinction do Troyna and Williams make when explaining differences in achievement?
A
- argue we must look at how schools routinely and even unconsciously discriminate against ethnic minorities
- individual racism: results from the prejudiced views of individual teachers and others
- institutional racism: discrimination built into the way institutions like schools and colleges operate
2
Q
how does critical race theory view racism?
A
- racism is an ingrained feature of society
- involves institutional racism, not just intentional actions of individuals
- according to Carmichael and Hamilton (founders of the Black Panther Party):
- institutional racism is less overt, more subtle, and less identifiable
- it originates in the operation of established and respected forces in society
3
Q
what does Roithmayr say about institutional racism? (critical race theory)
A
- institutional racism is a ‘locked-in equality’
- historical discrimination is so large that no conscious intent to discriminate is needed
- inequality becomes self-perpetuating, it feeds on itself
4
Q
how does Gillborn apply the concept of locked-in inequality to education? (critical race theory)
A
- Gillborn applies locked-in inequality to education, seeing ethnic inequality as deep-rooted and inevitable in the education system
- Critical race theorists view the education system as institutionally racist in several ways
5
Q
how does marketisation affect school admissions according to Gillborn? (marketisation and segregation)
A
- argues marketisation gives schools more scope to select pupils
- it allows negative stereotypes to influence decisions about school admissions
6
Q
what does Moore and Davenport’s research show about selection procedures? (marketisation and segregation)
A
- support gillborns view
- Moore and Davenport’s research shows selection leads to ethnic segregation
- minority pupils fail to get into better secondary schools due to discrimination
- eg: found primary school reports used to screen out pupils with language difficulties
- application process difficult for non-English speaking parents
- these procedures favoured white pupils and disadvantaged those from ethnic minorities
- they conclude selection leads to an ethnically stratified education system
7
Q
what did the commission for racial equality find about school admissions in britain? (marketisation and segregation)
A
- ethnic minority children more likely to end up in unpopular schools due to racism in admissions
- reasons include:
- stereotyped reports from primary schools
- racist bias in interviews for school places
- lack of info and forms in minority languages
- ethnic minority parents often unaware of waiting list system and deadlines
8
Q
what is the ethnocentric curriculum and why is it seen as racist?
A
- ethnocentric means giving priority to the culture of one ethnic group while disregarding others
- the ethnocentric curriculum reflects the dominant culture, usually white
- seen as a form of institutional racism
- because builds racial bias into the everyday workings of schools and colleges
9
Q
what are examples of the ethnocentric curriculum?
A
-
languages, literature and music:
- troyna and williams: little provision for teaching asian languages vs european ones
- david: national curriculum is ‘specifically british’, ignores non-european content
-
history:
- ball: curriculum ignores ethnic diversity, promotes ‘little englandism’
- eg: curriculum tries to recreate a ‘mythical age of empire’, ignores history of black and asian people
10
Q
how does coard explain the impact of the ethnocentric curriculum?
A
- coard argues it can lead to underachievement
- in history, british are shown as bringing civilisation to ‘primitive’ peoples
- this presents black people as inferior, undermines black children’s self-esteem
- leads to failure in school
11
Q
what are criticisms of the impact of the ethnocentric curriculum?
A
- unclear what impact it actually has
- indian and chinese pupils do well despite being ignored in the curriculum
- stone: argues black children do not suffer from low self-esteem
12
Q
how does gillborn view the assessment system?
A
- ‘assessment game’ is rigged to validate dominant culture’s superiority
- if black children succeed as a group, the ’rules are changed to produce failure’
- example: baseline assessments (tested pupils when starting compulsory schooling) replaced in 2003 by foundation stage profile (fsp)
13
Q
what was the impact of changing to the foundation stage profile?
A
- black pupils suddenly appeared to be doing worse than white pupils
- in one area, black children went from being 20% above average in 2000 to being ranked lower than whites in 2003
- FSP measured six developmental areas, black children scored lower in all
- gillborn: includes black educational success was rewritten, black failure became the norm again
14
Q
why does gillborn say the reversal happened? (assessment)
A
- the fsp is based entirely on teachers’ judgements
- baseline assessments often used written tests as well
- a change in the timing: the fsp is completed at the end of reception year
- baseline assessments were done at the start of primary school
15
Q
what does gillborn say about the gifted and talented programme? (access to opportunities)
A
- aimed to help more able pupils in inner-city schools
- while it seems to benefit bright minority pupils, gillborn points out official stats show whites over twice as likely as black caribbeans to be identified as gifted and talented
- whites five times more likely than black africans
16
Q
what did tikly et al find about exam tiers in the ‘aiming high’ initiative? (access to opportunities)
A
- found that in 30 schools in the ‘aiming high’ initiative, blacks more likely than whites to be entered for lower tier gcse exams
- blacks placed in lower sets
- only able to gain a grade C at best
17
Q
what did strand find about the white-black achievement gap? (access to opportunities and exam tiers)
A
- analysis of large scale data
- used data from the longitudinal study of young people in england
- found achievement gap in maths and science at age 14
- found this to be result of black pupils under-represented in higher tier test entry
- suggests that it reflects teachers’ expectations
- leads to a self-fulfilling prophecy
18
Q
why are black pupils disadvantaged in access to higher sets or gifted programmes? (the ‘new IQism’)
A
- teachers’ assessments heavily influence access to opportunities
- gillborn found black pupils often placed in lower ranked groups
- decisions based on perceived potential and motivation
- teachers use disciplinary concerns and attitude to determine sets
-
gillborn and youdell found teachers had ’racialised expectations’
- black pupils seen as more likely to cause discipline problems
19
Q
what is gillborn’s concept of the new iqism?
A
- argues teachers and policymakers make false assumptions made about pupils’ ability or potential
- see potential seen as fixed and measurable
- used to justify placing pupils in specific sets or programmes (gifted and talented, etc)
- gillborn and youdell found schools using iq tests to stream pupils
- iq tests used at secondary school entry to allocate streams
20
Q
what does gillborn say about measuring potential? (the ‘new IQism’)
A
- no genuine way to measure a pupil’s potential
- tests only show what a person can do now, not in the future
- eg like a driving test, failing doesn’t mean you’ll never succeed
- measuring potential as fixed is misleading and limiting
21
Q
what is gillborn’s conclusion about the education system? (the ‘new IQism’)
A
- from his analysis of school assessment methods, programmes and measuring potential, Gillborn concludes education system is institutionally racist
- ethnic minority pupils are routinely disadvantaged
- assessment methods and gifted programmes contribute to inequality
- Gillborn: race inequality is constant and central in education
- racism is a fundamental defining characteristic of the system
22
Q
criticisms of Gillborn
A
- two issues from critics:
- the underachievement of some minority groups eg black boys
- the ’overachievement’ of Indian and Chinese pupils
23
Q
criticisms of Gillborn: black boys’ underachievement
A
- gillborn: institutional racism is main cause of underachievement
- internal factors like assessment and setting disadvantage black boys
- produce failure of large numbers of ethnic minority groups
- sewell: racism exists but isn’t the main barrier to success
- sewell focuses on external factors
- includes **peer pressure, anti-school attitudes, and nurturing role of fathers
24
Q
criticisms of Gillborn: model minorities: Indian and Chinese achievement
A
- point to overachievement of indian and chinese students
- these groups perform better than the white majority
- argue this challenges claims of institutional racism
- say if some minorities succeed, racism can’t be the main factor as critical race theorists claim
25
criticisms of Gillborn: model minorities: Indian and Chinese achievement (Gillborn CA)
- views **'model minorities'** (e.g., indian, chinese) performs as an **ideological function**
- conceals fact that educational system is institutionally racist:
- makes the education system seem **fair and meritocratic**
- suggests that indians and chinese succeed because they make the **effort** and take advantage of **opportunities**
- justifies the failure of other minorities, like black pupils, by **blaming their 'unaspirational' home culture**
- ignores that 'model minorities' **still suffer racism** in schools eg chinese students report similar levels of **harassment** to black caribbeans
26
what does evans argue about ethnicity and achievement? (ethnicity, class and gender)
- we need to ethnicity interacts with **gender and class** to affect achievement in order to fully understand relationship between ethnicity and achievement
- eg sociologists often focus on **culture and ethnicity of black children**
- rarely consider the **role of class** in affecting black children's achievement
- calls for a **more intersectional approach** to understanding achievement
27
how does connolly’s study show ethnicity and gender intersect to affect achievement? (ethnicity, gender and class)
- study of **5-6 year olds** in a **multi-ethnic inner-city primary school**
- teachers constructed **masculinity** differently for **different ethnicities**
- black boys seen as **disruptive under-achievers**, punished more
- teachers channeled black boys’ energies into **sport**
- black boys sought status in **non-academic ways** like **kiss-chase and football**
28
how were asian boys viewed differently in connolly’s study? (ethnicity, class and gender)
- teachers saw asian boys as **passive, conformist, and academic**
- **misbehaviour** by asian boys seen as **immature**, not threatening
- other boys excluded them from playing football to assert their masculinity
- both teachers and pupils saw asian boys as **more ‘feminine’**
- asian boys viewed as **vulnerable** and in need of **protection from bullying**
29
what do studies by evans and connolly show about ethnicity, gender, and class?
- ethnicity cannot be considered in isolation from gender and class
- eg: connolly highlights an **'interaction effect'** between class, gender, and ethnicity
- the impact of class and gender **varies depending on the ethnic group**
- for example, the **achievement gap** is bigger between white mc and white wc pupils than between black mc and black wc pupils
30
contemporary:
- **uk schools** have seen a sharp rise in racist incidents and exclusions, especially in london and primary schools
- **northern ireland** reports nearly half of ethnic minority students face racist bullying
- **church of england** criticised for institutional racism in appointing black clergy, affecting school structures
- **usa (illinois)** school faced backlash after racist student posts, prompting equity training
- **uk schools and colleges** accused of failing their legal duty to tackle racism, with black students facing harsher discipline
