sociologists for ethnicity

Question 1

gillborn & youdell (2)

Answer 1

teachers negatively label black students, positively label asian students. saw black pupils as a threat to authority due to behaviour/dress/speech. therefore they’re more likely to be placed in lower sets and 3x more likely to be excluded (could lead to gangs)

marketisation gives schools more scope to select pupils meaning negative stereotypes influence admissions. ‘some students are sacrificed to the more important goal of raising attainment in the league table statistics’. tended to be black caribbean and working-class as ‘less able’. white pupils over twice as likely to be identified as gifted + talented.

Question 2

cecile wright

Answer 2

studied 4 multi-racial primary schools, found although staff said they were committed to equal opportunities, asian pupils largely ‘invisible’ and were treated insensitively and felt their traditions were disapproved of (headscarves, etc)

Question 3

margaret fuller

Answer 3

studied a group of high-achieving black girls - maintained positive self-image by rejecting teacher stereotypes + recognising value of education. kick back, self-refuting prophecy)

Question 4

mirza (2)

Answer 4

studied pupils in london schools. group of 3 black girls achieved better results than white pupils + black boys. evidence of labelling and racism, but had high self-esteem and proved teachers wrong.

Question 5

coard

Answer 5

uk -> multi-cultural. what is taught mainly reflects white british culture.
- assemblies -> british values
- school holidays -> centred around christian traditions/celebrations.
- languages taught -> european based
- geog and history -> emphasise positives of british colonialism
- english lit -> focuses on british authors
- sociology -> focuses on british education/criminal system
ethnic groups feel their culture is ignored + not valued. negative effect on education.

Question 6

strand (2)

Answer 6

black students more likely to be entered for lower tier exams due to teacher labelling

Question 7

taylor

Answer 7

identified many teachers as being very sensitive to multi-cultural issues

Question 8

hammersly

Answer 8

even teachers who were racist in private did not bring it into the classroom (this is flawed)

Question 9

tony sewell (2)

Answer 9

lack of positive ethnic-minority role models in schools affects achievement - 17% of students are from black asian and ethnic minority backgrounds but only 7% of teachers

afro-caribbean underachievement caused by boys being raised in lone-parent families headed by women. makes them vulnerable to peer pressure, anti-school subcultures and gang culture.

blames black culture instead of racism - victim blaming?

Question 10

bereiter & engelmann

Answer 10

language used by black american students from poorer families lacked correct use of grammar, structure, complex vocab, creating a barrier to their learning

Question 11

driver & ballard (2)

Answer 11

asian students who spoke a different language at home were as good at english as white classmates by 16 years old.

close-knit extended families and high parental expectations increase levels of achievement in asian communities

Question 12

modood

Answer 12

high performance of indian pupils indicates that any language disadvantage is temporary.

Question 13

the swann report

Answer 13

language doesn’t affect progress for later generations

Question 14

ruth lupton (2)

Answer 14

teachers reported poorer levels of behaviour and discipline in white working-class schools due to lack of parental support and negative attitudes from parents towards education

ethnic minority parents more likely to see education as a route to social mobility, while white working-class have a negative view of the system affecting performance

Question 15

gillborn

Answer 15

chinese, indian and white middle-class labelled as ‘ideal students’ because of positive attitudes towards school

Question 16

louise archer & becky francis

Answer 16

chinese parents viewed education as hugely important and a ‘family project’ having high expectations and investing lots of time into kids

Question 17

charles murray

Answer 17

higher levels of divorce, single parent families and lack of male role models causes afro-caribbean underachievement.

wrong, as figures are marginal; 21% single parent compared to 16% nationally

Question 18

pryce

Answer 18

underachievement of afro-caribbean students due to ‘turbulent’ family life and the lasting impacts of slavery. black culture shaped around racism.

Question 19

wright

Answer 19

some teachers openly labelled asian culture as inferior to british culture