sociology education inequality - ethnicity + global context

ethnicity - inside school - Gillborn and Youdell

 research in the extent of labelling in school

teachers saw ability as something fixed which determined potential - ability can be measured based on ‘cognitivie ability’

black pupils experienced discrimination from teachers - treated many of the ‘clever’ middle class students differently by being punished less than the wokring class and black peers, reflecting teacher labelling in schools

this made black and working class children were placed in lower sets, making them negatively labelled, based on teachers’ belief. they also were placed into lower levels of GCSE, with these both creating a self-fulfilling prophecy based on labelling

ethnicity - inside school - Coard

racism is the main cause of underachievement

African Caribbean boys compared to white counterparts:

1. age 11 - fallinng behind age 16 = lowest peforming ethnic group

2. due to racism in schools with many Afri-Car children wrongly placed in ESN schools / labelled educationally subnormal

3. only 10% return to normal schools if put in special schools

teachers negatively label / have low expectations of black students ability

lowers self-esteem and self-fulfilling prophecy

1. lower sets expected to fail

2. black children’s true identity made to feel inferior

ethnicity - inside school -Wright

Wright:  

Even when steps have been taken, there is still discrimination towards Asian females in classrooms.  

1. Nursery – excluded from class discussion due to assumption of poor English and when involved, use simplistic / childish language  

2. Asian girls seem ‘invisible to teachers’ - feeling isolated, and presented disapproval of traditional Asian values e.g. privacy when getting changes  

Afri-Cari boys receive disproportionate amounts of teacher's negative attention compare to white behavioural counterparts e.g. Marcus criticised for shouting answers but not white students 

3. Ethnic minorities also experience racism from white peers – they would mispronounce names, causing white children to laugh, making ethnics embarassed  

ethnic - inside school - Connely - Black boys and girls

Teachers were more likely to criticise black boy behaviour than other ethnic group  

• Some teachers saw them as a danger of growing up to be violent criminals and now, as a threat to school discipline

• They also brought their own values of hyper masculinity, with the ‘bad boys’ successful in establishing themselves as: the toughest, best at football, most attractive to girls, encouraged concentration on non-academic ways of earning status  

Black girls were also negatively labelled 

1. Perceived by teachers and disruptive and more likely to be singled out

2. Teachers also underplay black girls’ educational achievement and more focused on their social behaviour

ethnic - inside school - Connely - Asian boys and girls

South Asian boys had difficulty gaining status as males  

1. Seen as immature rather than deviant

2. Some were described as little by teachers and some needed looking after

3. This meant males exert the masculinity over them with attacks and exclusion

South Asian girls were ignored by teachers 

1. Seen more obedient than their male counterparts, with teachers taking it for standard

2. but it felt there was little need to give these help aid when needed, with them expected to cope without it  

ethnicity - outside school - Sewell

study on black male students and their lower achievement rate:

home life, street culture, black masculinity

1. 57% raised in lone parent families (32% MORE than white families)

2. lacking father figure makes them more vulnerable to peer pressure

3. some join street gangs and emphasize MACHO masculinity which brings an anti-school culture

practicing hegemonic masculinity provides a comfort zone for many men

1. the lack of authority leads to peer pressure by extreme groups, going against academic achievement

Ethnicity - Outside school - Murray

Like the USA, there is a growing underclass which is a threat to stability of British society  

1. Government policies encouraged British people to become dependant on benefits 

2. this saw the growth in never married, black, single parents with black youths losing interest in a job, the increasing benefits discouraging educational success 

Underclass in terms of behaviour  

1. A type of poverty defined by their behaviour rather than their income / circumstances  

2. children in school ill-behaved and became delinquents, placing little value on educational success 

This culture results in rising rates of illegitimacy and a raising crime rate among the underclass and an alleged unwillingness among many British youth to take jobs 

• Traditional values e.g. honesty, family life and hard work have been undermined 

• children in a situation similar to the underclass values of their parents  

Ethnicity - Outside school - Archer

Study on how Muslim boys saw themselves, aged 14-15 of mainly Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage 

Males adopt laddish identities  

3. Boys drew partly on African Caribbean / American styles who were seen as cool and strong e.g. members of gangs, walked the walk, and wore the latest fashion  

Some boys felt that the value of qualifications was reduced by racism: 

1. This made it more difficult for them to translate qualification to appropriate occupations. Some saw falling back on family  business as it did not require education  

2. Young south Asian boys constructed their identity around African Caribbean gangster styles of masculinity and who perceived education as not preventing the future

ethnicity - outside school - Ball et al

a high correlation between parents occupations and the bands children are placed in

the division of the 3 ability bands found about 2/3rds of band 1 pupils had middle class parents compared to 1/6th in band 2, showing working class children were more likely to be negatively labelled

band 1 pupils were more prepared for exams - they were taught at a faster pace, resulting in a self-fulfilling prophecy

comprehensive schools, even when mixed, the national curriculum and examinations will still socially divide pupils

The teacher in a mixed-ability class may still have preconceptions of different types of children and rank them according to perceived academic ability. They are likely to be set different tasks and pupils may receive varying amounts of encouragement

solutions - ethnic - Aiming High Initiative - strategy

initiative by New Labour to improve ethnic underachievement by improving teacher-student relations by ensuring high expectations are placed by teachers

1. lesson planning was inclusive and effective - support for bilingual students and having specific improvements in areas e.g. maths, literacy

2. enhancing parental involvement so they play full part in the life and development in schools with materials given to them e.g. newsletters

3. this launched the African Caribbean achievement projects - addresses Afri-Caribbean underachievement via the collection of ethnic performance data

solutions - ethnic - Aiming High Initiative - support and criticism

support:

Ball et al - the difference between white middle class parents skills and involvement in school impacts ethnic student achievement

Mirza and Wight - teacher labelling is a big factor in ethnic disadvantage

criticisms:

1. Black Caribbeaan boys are still the worst performance group

2. they are still placed i lower sets.

solutions - ethnic - Excellence in Cities - definition

New Labour policy - programme of support serving schools in disadvantaged areas

1. focusing on teaching and learning, behaaviour and attendance

2. as part of the project EMAG (Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant) was developed

3. 35 schools took part, with them identifying target students and running a wide range of programmed e.g. gifted and talented pupils, leaning mentors

4. LSU(Learning Support Units) - pupils who would benefit from time away from the normal classroms

5. City Leanring Centres provide ICT resourced to a smal number of schools

solutions - ethnic - Excellence in Cities - support

McKnight et al - Excellence in Cities found that it was more effective than educational action zones in improving achievement rates, the poerty penalty prevents the same levels of success, affecting ethnic minorities and they disporportionately live in poverty

Department of Education and Skills - Black African girls have made greater progress than non EiC students

solutions - ethnic - Multicultural curriculum

since the 80’s, schools adopted a multicultural curriculum after the influences Swann report highlight the importance of a diver / inclusive system

The Children’s plan, promoted:

1. community cohesion

2. diversity

3. human rights equality

this curriculum is to include ‘ new stand of work’ ‘exploration of what it means to be a UK citizen today’

by 1991, 95% of local authorities have adopted these policies, with progres sbeing seen with the first black studies course at Birmingham City Uni

solutions - ethnic - Multiculturalism - support and crticisms

Coard - the British curriculum is ‘ethnocentric’ as it focuses on white British history rathe than other ethnicities, showing the alienation of other cultures and ethnicities

cummings and Ogbu - significant school failure does not occur in groups which a positively geared to their own and others cultures and demonstrate higher academic attainment

criticism:

1. since 9/11 we have moved towards assimilation rather than multiculturism

2. it is tokenistic - done once a year to tick a box

Global context - Gender - Un Millennium Goals

goals to ‘eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education by 2015’

however, the UN data shows in 61 developing countries, poorer households are more likely to exclude girls from schools, and in sub-Saharan Africa, 23% of of poor girls complete primary education

YEMEN - 92% of poorest young women have not completed primary school compared to 47% of men

Global context - Gender - Mayer

criticised the Un for doing to little:

1. the organisation have condemned racial forms of segregation in schools, but not gender segregation

2. the Un imposed sanctions on South America during it’s racial apartheid (segregation) but reluctant to put gender sanctions

Global context - Gender - UNESCO

(United Nations Educational and Social and Cultural Organisation, 2012)

poor countries restrict girls opportunities for education:

1. constraints on families - girls have to be domestic as boys are given more preference

2. constraints within society - pressure of early marriage, violence and cultural beliefs

3. policies of school systems - may not meet the needs of girls in e.g. the curriculum, teaching, lack of careers etc.

4. benefits of education - school does not translate to the workplace for women

Global context - Poverty - World Inequality Database on Education (WIDE)

1. children are less likely to attend school in poor nations, and if they do, over shorter periods of time

2. in Pakistan, 64% of the poorest children have never been to school (ages 14-17)

3. 36% of children in Pakistan have had less than 4 years of education (education poverty)

Global context - Poverty- UNESCO

poor children are often taught by untrained teachers

e.g. Senegal, South Sudan, Guinea Bissau - less than 50% of primary teachers are teacher trained

Global context - Poverty- DR Congo

opportunities for uni are confined to wealthy groups, with poor children having little to no chance

locally - conflict also plays a part e.g. conflict in DR Congo has meant chances of education is dependant on being in a conflict zone or not, often depending on being born into a rich or poor family