Racism is linked to the educational achievement of minority ethnic groups, however the connections are complex. Gilborn and Mirza conclude that ‘social class and gender differences are also associated with differences in attainment but neither can account for persistent underlying ethnic inequalities: comparing like with like, African Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi pupils do not enjoy equal opportunities.’ They also argue that in promoting educational inclusion as a means of raising standards, there is a need ‘for clarity and guidance in translating the commitment to equality and inclusion into policy proposals and practice at the local and school level. A recent research report found that: • Children whose first language is other than English do not perform as well as other children across the Foundation Stage scales • Pupils for whom English was an additional language have lower attainment than pupils whose first language is English. The difference between the two groups is
The African Child’s Identity Elliott’s White Veneer demonstrates how sufficiently the veneer covers a dark surface, an African American child. In the 1930s African and white children were split into different schools. In this era white Americans discriminated against African Americans because they did not have the same skin color. For this reason, African Americans were mistreated and also misconceived. This primarily affected African American children because their education system was different from the white children.
Many sociologists have linked labelling in school, especially by teachers, with the difference in achievements in terms of ethnicity. Negative stereotypes and labels may cause teacher to treat students from an ethnic minority differently, which could in turn, disadvantage them and ultimately, result in them underachieving. Studies from different sociologists back up and support this. Gillborn and Youdell (2000) found in their studies that teachers were more likely to discipline black students quicker than they would with their white counterparts, due to the fact that teachers held “racialised expectations”. They argued that they stereotyped and expected black students to present behaviour such as threatening and challenging authority, which leaves the student feeling underestimated and picked on.
Assess sociological explanations of ethnic differences in educational achievement Some sociologists argue that some ethnic groups maybe underachieving in the education system whereas some say that these ethnic groups differ in the education system. Material factors may affect ethnic groups in the education system, material deprivation explanations see educational failure as results from factors such as substandard housing and low income. Ethnic minorities are more likely to face these problems according to Flaherty as unemployment is three times higher for African and Bangladeshi/Pakistani people than for whites, Pakistanis are nearly twice as likely to be in unskilled or semi-skilled jobs compared to whites. Ethnic minorities are more likely to be engaged in shift work. These inequalities parallel those in educational achievement e.g.
A school that requires its attendants to pass a test is charged with discrimination when it does not meet the quota for its admittance. The answer to this problem, from a supporter of affirmative action, is the inflation of the minorities’ grades on these tests. Institutions are then forced to keep a certain balance in the diversity of their student body, which can lead to the inflation of the minorities’ grades on all subjects. This grade inflation would then lead to a poorer education and the reality of a failing education system. This same kind of comparison is evident in the work force.
Ethnic minorities are also more likely to undertake low-paid, low-skilled work, and the vicious circle that stems from this – inferior housing, poorer living standards, and substandard schools in deprived areas – is actually partly caused by the welfare state system, which institutionalises this discrimination. The unique problems faced by ethnic minorities must be addressed individually, and until recently social policy has failed to do this. Furthermore, the emphasis on tackling crime that has underpinned New Labour's social policy and that of the previous Conservative governments has impacted on ethnic minorities due to the often discriminatory nature of initiatives to cut crime. The ‘stop and search' programme is unfairly targeted toward black youths, to the extent that many believe being black is tantamount to a social problem (McGhee, 2005). Such flaws in British social policy have undoubtedly contributed to a growing sense of isolation amongst ethnic minority groups, and thus it could be argued that social policy is often more harmful than
Payne stated that students should learn the “hidden rules” of the middle class from their educators so that they have another set of rules to use if they choose to do so. Impoverished students, compared to students of middle or upper class, often have a lack of proper funding, thus, a lack of appropriate resources to use in their education. Due to this, they are often unprepared for school, not having the money to purchase books and other educational tools. Both authors realize this, but argue that the responsibility lies on different shoulders. Payne states that impoverished students face inequality at school, insinuating that the school should be responsible for helping to provide for these students so that they can have a better education.
This type of stereotype is similar to that of the “dumb jock”, and like the students in the experiment college athletes are often portrayed as inferior academically (Lubus, 2011). These stereotypes cause the students to feel inferior because of the self-fulfilling prophecy, and the students adopt these attributes and behaviors because that is how their environment makes them feel. This study shows how our society can easily use stereotypes and prejudice to create an environment where they become the reality. The self-fulfilling prophecy uses the expectations of these stereotypes to create that environment, and this will affect a person’s own behaviors and self-impressions. I believe this creates a false sense of the stereotypes playing true, and that in actuality the people classified in the stereotype may be nothing like
The following paper will argue against single-sex schools and display various reasons as to how they are counter-productive to student needs. A report published in the journal Science, states that students who attend single-sex schools are no better educated than those who attend co-ed schools. Plus, children are more likely to accept gender stereotypes when they go to an all-boys or all-girls school. "There's really no good evidence that single-sex schools are in any way academically superior, but there is evidence of a negative impact," said Lynn Liben, professor of psychology and education at Penn State and co-author of the study. "Kids' own occupational aspirations are going to be limited, and there could be long-term consequences where, for example, girls are used to being in roles only among other girls, then they have to face the real world where that's not the case."
Asian Americans and white Americans have differ in many ways such as family socialization practices, and cultural framework that promotes adolescents school performance (Kiyoshi 2). Whites and Asian American parents are extremely different when comparing mechanisms of internalization of educational values in academic and education. Researches and studies have been shown that Asian Americans are known to be more engaged in studding work like activities, and activities importance competence in these situations for education and high expectations for achievements then white Americans. To this day forward Asian American shave been known to have a higher pay rate price than whites for achieving a given level of education, not to mention the time spent on weekends. The working classes of Asian Americans seem to be much higher and are known to be a lot better than the white American community (Gakvin