Internal Factors leading to Ethnic differences in Achievement - Theorists Flashcards
How do Gillborn and Mirza show internal factors affect pupils achievement more than external factors ?
Gillborn and Mirza found black children were the highest achievers on entry to primary school but by the time it came up to GCSE they had the worst results of any ethnic group - 21 points below the average
How does Strand show internal factors affect pupils achievement more than external factors ?
Strands study of over 530,000 7-11 year old’s shows how quickly many black pupils fall behind after starting school, he found that black Caribbean boys not entitled to free school meals , especially the more able pupils , made significantly less progress than their white peers.
This challenges the assumption made by cultural deprivation theorists that black children enter school unprepared , instead it suggests that factors internal to education play a major part in producing ethnic differences in achievement
What did Gillborn and Youdell find about how teachers discipline black pupils ?
Gillborn and Youdell found that teachers were quicker to discipline black pupils than others for the same behaviours , they argue this is the result of teachers racialized expectations as they found teachers expected black pupils to present more discipline problems and misinterpreted their behaviours as threatening or a challenge to authority.
Gillborn and Youdell conclude that much of the conflict between white teachers and black pupils stem from the racial stereotypes hold , rather than the pupils actual behaviours.
What did Bourne find out about exclusions for black boys ?
Bourne found schools tend to see black boys as a threat and therefore label them negatively leading eventually to exclusion which negatively affects their achievement
What did Osler find that in addition to higher rates of official exclusions black boys were more likely to face ?
Osler found in addition to higher rates of official exclusions , black pupils appear more likely to suffer from unrecorded unofficial exclusions and from internal exclusions , where they are sent out of the class . they are also more likely to be placed in pupil referral units that exclude them from accessing the mainstream curriculum.
How did Foster found black pupils were streamed ?
Foster found that teachers stereotypes of black pupils as badly behaved could result in them being placed in lower sets than other pupils of similar ability which can then lead to the self fulfilling prophecy of underachievement
What did Wrights study show about Asian pupils and teacher labelling ?
Wright’s study of a multi ethnic primary school shows that Asian Pupils can also be the victims of teacher labelling , she found that despite the schools apparent commitment to equal opportunities they held ethnocentric views - they took the British culture for granted and standard English is Superior
What are the 3 different pupil identities recognized by Archer ?
- The ideal pupil identity - A white middle class masculinized identity , with a normal sexuality . This pupil is seen as achieving in the right way through natural ability and initiative
-The pathologized identity - An Asian “deserving poor “ feminised identity , either a sexual or with an oppressed sexuality , seen as an over achiever who succeeds through hard work rather than natural ability
-The Demonized identity - A black or white working class , hyper sexualised identity . This pupil is seen as unintelligent , peer led , culturally deprived and an underachiever.
Archer and Francis what did they find teachers label Chinese pupils as ?
Archer and Francis sum up the teachers view of Chinese pupils as a negative positive stereotype because have achieved success in the wrong way hard work and seen as over achieving
Fuller - what was their study on the rejection of negative labels ?
Fuller’s study of a group of black girls in year 11 at a London comprehensive school. the girls were untypical because they were high achievers in a school where most black girls were placed in low streams.
fuller describes how , instead of accepting the negative stereotypes of themselves , the girls challenged their anger about being labelled into the pursuit of educational success. However , unlike other successful pupils they did not seek the approval of teachers , many of whom they regarded as racist. Nor did they limit their choice of friends to other academic achievers , instead they were friends with other black girls from lower streams. Also , unlike other successful pupils they conformed only as far as the schoolwork itself was concerned , they had a positive attitude towards academic success but rather than seeking the approval of teachers , they preferred to rely on their own efforts.
Fuller believes these girls still succeeded because they were able to maintain a positive self image by relying on their own efforts rather than accepting their teachers negative stereotypes of them.
Mac an Ghail - what did they find about the rejection of negative labels ?
Mac an Ghail study of black and Asian A level students at sixth form college reached similar conclusions to Fuller’ study . students who believed teachers has labelled them negatively did not necessarily accept the label. How they responded depended on factors such as ethnic group and gender and the nature of their former schools . For example some schools felt that the experience of having attended an all girl schools gave them a greater academic commitment that helped them to overcome negative labels . This study shows that a label doesn’t inevitably produce a self fulfilling prophecy
How did Mirza find racist teachers led to underachievement of black pupils ?
Mirza found that racist teachers discouraged black pupils from being ambitious through the kind of advice they gave them about career and option choices. For example , teachers discouraged them from aspiring to professional careers.
What were the 3 types of teacher racism that Mirza identified ?
The Colour Blind - teachers who believe all pupils are equal but in practice allow racism to go unchallenged.
The liberal Chauvinists - Teachers who believe black pupils are culturally deprived and have low expectations of them
What did the girls in Mirza study do to avoid the effects of the teachers negative attitudes and how did this affect them ?
Much of the girls time at school was spent `trying to avoid the effects of the teachers negative attitudes . The strategies they employed to do this included being selective about which staff they asked for help, getting on with their own work in lessons without taking part and not choosing certain options so as to avoid teachers with racist attitudes.
However unlike the girls in Fullers study , these strategies put the girls at a disadvantage as restricted their opportunities
What are the 4 responses Sewell identifies as how black boys respond to teache racism ?
-The Rebels -most visible and influential group but were only a small minority of black pupils. They were often excluded from school . They rejected both the goals and the rules of the school.
-The conformists - were the largest group , these boys were keen to succeed , accepted the schools goals and had friends from different ethnic groups , not part of a subculture and were anxious to be stereotyped by teachers or peers
-The retreatists - were a tiny minority of isolated individuals who were disconnected from both the school and black subcultures , and were despised by rebels.
-The innovators - Pro education but anti school , they valued their success but didn’t seek the approval of teachers and conformed only as far as schoolwork
