Ethnic differences in achievement (internal)

Question 1

Labelling and teacher racism
Gillbourn and Youdell (2000)

Answer 1

in their study - found that teachers were more likely to have “negative expectations of black pupils”
> they were quicker to discipline them in comparison to other backgrounds.
> teachers held “racialised stereotypes” of black pupils.
> when teachers acted, confrontations occurred, which got these black pupils in even more trouble - black pupils claimed teachers ‘picked on them’
>Gillbourn and Youdell claim that black pupils did not behave worse, teachers were just less tolerant of them.
> this explains black pupils having the “highest exclusion rate”
EVAL - unclear why teachers only have racialised stereotypes of black pupil and not other ethnic minority groups.
EVAL - better teacher training and racism being taken more serious nowadays.

Question 2

Louise Archer (2008)
Teacher perceptions and pupil identities

Answer 2

explore relationship between processes such as teacher labelling and how they impact pupils see themselves.
> three main ways school shapes the identities of ethnic minority students and how this can influence achievement:
IDEAL PUPIL IDENTITY - typically refers to white, middle class students who are considered high achieving by teachers.
PATHOLOGISED PUPIL IDENTITY - often involve teachers regarding the passive quiet characteristics often Asian girls as ‘abnormal’ and a ‘cause for concern’ teacher pereceptions involve these Asian girls as oppressed by strict home life.
DEMONISED PUPIL IDENTITY - involves black or white working class pupils, overly-sexualised, peer-led and culturally deprived achievers. Stereotypes focus on boys who are considered “trouble” - this is not true but can be after a “self-fulfilling prophecies” occur.
EVAL - classifications too simplistic - isnt clear what evidence Archer uses to make the three distinctions.

Question 3

Tony Sewell (1998)
4 responses to negative label black pupils

Answer 3

examines the ways in which “black pupils” coped with negative labelling and teacher racism.
> found that teachers held a view of “black machoism” which sees all black boys as rebellious and anti-school.
they boys in his study responded in 4 ways:
THE REBELS - rejected everything school stands for - embraced black masculinity and felt that “womanising” and being ‘macho’ desirable
THE CONFORMISTS - many black boys continue to follow rules and do work - had friends from other ethnic groups and were anxious to avoid the negative stereotyping of teachers.
THE RETREATISTS - isolated individuals, who didnt have many friends at all. They withdrew from school, keeping heads down.
THE INNOVATORS - pro-education, but anti-school, they weren’t interested in impressing teachers but wanted to achieve well for themselves
EVAL - can easily create the impression that all teachers are racist and all teachers negative label black boys, this isnt the case.
EVAL - not all students accept negative label, some resist it and use it as motivation, they assume they always accept the label.

Question 4

Mary Fuller (1984)

Answer 4

study year 11 black girls that achieve highly - they reject the “negative labelling”
> instead of accepting negative label, they “channelled their anger at being labelled into their work”
> they were not interested in impressing teachers, instead they wanted to ‘prove themselves’
> they succeeded in this respect showing that not all students accept this negative label
EVAL - it isnt clear what evidence the girls had for the negative labelling they recieved and the study is rather dated.

Question 5

Ethnocentric curriculum

Answer 5

ethnocentric curriculum is once which gives priority to the culture of one particular ethnic group - therefore ignoring cultural diversity and making everyone feel included.
Evidence of this may include:
> school year calendared around Christian festivals and celebrations
> subject content e.g. history focusing on White-British experiences
> school uniform requirement clash with cultural expectations of dress.
eval - white working class boys underachieve the most in our education system. This goes against the ethnocentric argument that the curriculum focuses on white people.

Question 6

Institutional racism