Topic 3 - Ethnic Differences in Achievement

Question 1

Cultural deprivation

Answer 1

• Intellectual and linguistic skills
• Attitudes and values
• Family structure and parental support

Question 2

Intellectual and linguistic skills

Answer 2

• CD theorists see a lack of intellectual and linguistic skills as a major cause of underachievement for certain ethic groups
• Many low income black families lack intellectual stimulation and enriching experiences, leaving them poorly equipped for school

Question 3

BEREITER and ENGLEMANN Cultural deprivation

Answer 3

• Language spoken by low income, black American families is inadequate for educational success
• A concern has also been that children who do not speak English at home may be held back

Question 4

A03 GILLBORN and MIRZA
Cultural Deprivation

Answer 4

• Reject this as they found Indian pupils do very well despite often not having English as their first language

Question 5

Attitudes and values

Answer 5

• CD theorists blame a lack of motivation as a major cause of the failure of many black children
• Most pupils are socialised into mainstream culture, instilling ambition, competitiveness and a willingness to make sacrifices to achieve long term goals = success in education

Question 6

Subculture: Attitudes and values

Answer 6

• CD theorists claim black children are socialised into a subculture which believes we should “live for today” which doesn’t value education
• SUGARMAN “present time orientation”

Question 7

Family structure and parental support

Answer 7

• CD theorists argue this failure to adequately socialise children is a result of dysfunctional family structures
• MOYNIHAN many black families are headed by a lone mother, where she struggles financially in the absence of a male breadwinner. This also means boys do not have a male role model to look up to
• PRYCE black Caribbean culture is less cohesive and less resistant to racism, leading to low self-esteem and underachievement
• Slavery was culturally devastating to black people as they lost their language, religion, and family structure. By comparison Asian pupils do better because they haven’t been affected in the same way by colonialism

Question 8

SEWELL - Fathers, gangs, and culture

Answer 8

• Not the absence of fathers, but a lack of fatherly nurturing or “tough love”
• Instead other black, fatherless boys present with media-inspired role model of anti-school black masculinity
• Many black boys are subject to anti-educational, peer group pressure. Speaking in standard English and doing well at school was viewed as suspicious
• Black pupils do worse than Asian pupils due to cultural differences in socialisation and attitudes to education

Question 9

A03 Family structure and parental support

Answer 9

• GILLBORN argues it is not peer pressure but institutional racism within the system which leads to the failure of black boys

Question 10

Asian families

Answer 10

• SEWELL believes Asian and Chinese students benefit from supportive families, having an Asian work ethic and placing high emphasis on education
• LUPTON found adult authority in Asian families is similar to the model used in schools. This meant parents were more likely to support the schools behaviour policies

Question 11

White working class families

Answer 11

• White working class pupils often underachieve and have low aspirations
• MCCULLOCH surveyed 16000 pupils and found ethnic minority pupils were more likely to aspire to go to university than white British pupils
  This low level of aspiration could stem from parental attitudes:
• LUPTON ethnic minorities are more likely to see education as a way up in society
• EVANS argues white working class street culture can be brutal, as a result of these power games which are played on the street can be replicated in school, bringing disruption and making it had for pupils to succeed

Question 12

A03 Compensatory education

Answer 12

Some theorists reject compensatory education as an attempt to impose dominant white culture:
- Multicultural education: recognises and values minority cultures and includes them in the curriculum
- Anti-racist education: challenges prejudice and discrimination

Question 13

A03 Cultural deprivation theory

Answer 13

• DRIVER: CD ignores the positive effects ethnicity can have on achievement. Within black Caribbean families, girls are provided with positive role models of strong independent women
• LAWRENCE: Black pupils underachieve not because of low self esteem, but because of racism
• KEDDIE: Ethnic minorities are not culturally deprived but culturally different. They under achieve because schools are ethnocentric

Question 14

Material deprivation

Answer 14

• Lack of physical necessities, resulting from things such as inadequate housing and low income. Ethnic minorities are more likely to face these problems

Question 15

PALMER Material deprivation stats

Answer 15

• Almost half ethnic minority children live in low income households, against a quarter of white children
• Almost a half of Bangladeshi and Pakistani workers earn under £7 an hour compared to only a quarter of white people
• Ethnic minorities are 3x more likely to be homeless
• Ethnic minorities are 2x as likely to be unemployed compared with whites

Question 16

Reasons for material deprivation

Answer 16

• Many live in economically depressed areas, with high unemployment and low wages
• Cultural factors can prevent women from going out to work (e.g., the radiation of Niqab in Muslim households)
• A lack of language skills or foreign qualifications which are not recognised in the UK
• Asylum seekers may not be allowed to work
• Racial discrimination in labour market and housing market

Question 17

A03 Intersectionality does class override ethnicity

Answer 17

• Chinese and Indian students who are MD still do better than most
• This suggests MD and class factors do not completely override the influence of ethnicity
• MADOOD found while children from low income families generally did less well, the effects of low income were much less for other ethnic groups than white people

Question 18

Racism in wider society

Answer 18

• Racial discrimination can lead to social exclusion and result in poverty for ethnic minority groups
• WOOD ET AL sent three closely matched job applications to 1000 job vacancies. These applicants had names associated with particular ethnic groups (1 application appeared to come from a white person, 2 from members of ethnic minority groups) and found that only 1 in 16 ethnic minority applications received an interview, compared with 1 in 9 white applicants

Question 19

A03 Racism in wider society

Answer 19

• This explains how ethnic minorities are more likely to face unemployment or low pay, which will then impact their child’s education

Question 20

Internal factors

Answer 20

• If learners begin education as the highest achievers, yet leave the lowest, this disputes CD theories that black children are not prepared for education. Instead it suggests factors inside the school lead to under-achievement
• GILLBORN and MIRZA found in one educational authority black children were the highest achievers on entry to primary school, but by GCSE they had the worst results of any ethnic group

Question 21

Internal factors

Answer 21

• Labelling and teacher racism
• Pupil identifies
• Pupil responses and subcultures

Question 22

Labelling and teacher racism

Answer 22

• INTERACTIONISTS studies show black and Asian students are often seen as being far from the ideal pupil, for example, black pupils seen as disruptive and Asian pupils as passive
• Black pupils and discipline: GILLBORN and YOUDELL teachers are quicker to discipline black pupils
• Asian pupils: WRIGHT found teachers held ethnocentric views. Teachers assumed Asian pupils had poor grasp of English and left them out of group discussions, they felt isolated when teachers mispronounced their names
• Unlike black people, they were not seen as a threat but a problem to ignore

Question 23

Pupil identities

Answer 23

• ARCHER found 3 different pupil identities: ideal pupil, pathologised pupil, and demonised pupil
• ARCHER found that ethnic minorities are likely to be seen as pathologised or demonised, and Asian girls as passive, quiet, or docile
• SHAIN found if Asian girls challenge this they’re often dealt with more severely
• Chinese pupils: ARCHER achieved success in the wrong way = hard work and conformism not natural ability
• Students from ethnic minorities seen as over achiever as proper achievement is seen to be that natural preserve of the privileged, white, middle class ideal pupil

Question 24

Ideal pupil

Answer 24

• A white, middle class masculinised identity with a normal sexuality. Achieves in the right way through ability and initiative

Question 25

Pathologised pupil

Answer 25

• Asian “deserving poor”, feminised identity, either asexual or with an oppressed sexuality
• A conformist and culture bound “over achiever” and succeeds through hard work

Question 26

Demonised pupil

Answer 26

• A black or white working class, hyper-sexualised identity
• Unintelligent, peer led, culturally deprived, and an under-achiever

Question 27

Pupil responses and subcultures

Answer 27

• Racism and labelling = disruptive and withdrawn/refuse to accept the label and decide to prove it wrong by working extra hard

Question 28

A03 Internal factors

Answer 28

• FULLER studies a group of year 11 black girls, who were untypical because they were high achievers in a school where most black girls were placed in low streams
• Instead of accepting negative stereotypes they channelled their anger into achieving educational success, they did not seek approval of teachers who they regarded as racist but instead relied on impartiality of external exams