The education system is mostly controlled by white middle-class people. Those who share these characteristics may well be viewed more positively and be more likely to succeed in the best and exams created to assess their abilities. The 11+ was criticised for middle-class bias as questions, such as being able to unscramble an anagram to form the word ‘Mozart.’ It is much easier for a middle class child who is familiar with such classical composer’s, classical music and operatic music often in association with the middle classes. Many working class and ethnic minority children may feel under-valued and demotivated by and educational system that fails to recognise their qualities, which are based on their class and ethic culture.
Ethnic minority underachievement has also been blamed on different circumstances such as cultural beliefs holding back Bangladeshi girls for example marrying early. Economic circumstances are also a problem and three quarters of children from Pakistani/Bangladeshi households grow up in poverty and living on less than 60% average UK income, these ethnic minority groups also often have large families leading to less money to spend.
Ethnic minority students are also at a disadvantage because of low teacher expectations, ethnic minority students often need special trained teachers for help with grammar and spelling if they struggle with the English language. Some ethnic minority students such as afro Caribbean boys have been labelled as being ‘unruly,’ and ‘disrespectful’ and ‘difficult to control’ applied to them, the teachers interpreted the dress and manner of speech of Afro-Caribbean boys as representing a challenge to their authority. Thus, the students behaving in accordance to their labels. Wright found that Asian pupils were paid less attention and used simplistic language in wrongly assuming they had poor English speaking skills. Teachers also lack sensitivity towards aspects of culture and displayed open disapproval of their customs and traditions. This made pupils feel undervalued and unable to feel of having the chance to succeed in education. This may be part of the reason why 1 in 3 muslims have no qualitfications.
Bourdieu P (1977) takes a Marxist view and has developed his own distinctive cultural explanation for achievement and suggests that there is an element of ‘cultural capital’ in society. Thus the higher a persons position in the class system, the greater the amount of dominant culture they are likely to have. Culture is regarded generally as superior as those at the top define it as such. Thus it becomes highly sought after and highly valued and consequently it forms the basis of the educational system. Thus because middle class culture is closer to that of the school culture they therefore are more likely to succeed. Evidence of this has already been discussed through Bernstein’s studies.
Cultural and material factors however according to Heath, Halsey and Ridge (1980) have a neglible affect on attainment once pupils have reached secondary school, as working class students were found to be almost as successful as those from the service class. They conclude that the main difference in attainment was primarily due to the fact that the service class stayed on at education because material aspects permitted.
Sociologists have argued that what is taught in schools via the curriculum disadvantages the working class and ethnic minorities as the knowledge they encounter at school does not identify with their own cultural experiences. Coard (1971) showed how the content of education also ignored black people. The people who are acclaimed tend to be white, whilst black culture, music and art are largely ignored. Coard argued that this lead to low self-esteem amongst black pupils. However, this assertion was ridiculed by both the Swann Report (1985) and the Stone (1981) who noted that, despite feeling discriminated against by some teachers, West Indian children had been able to maintain an extremely positive image.
The National Curriculum has also been criticised for being ethnocentric – emphasising white middle class culture at the expense of other cultures – especially in its focus on British history and literature. Also, addressing ‘multicultural education’ which acknowledges the contribution of all of the worlds cultures, however has been criticised for only focusing only on external factors and failing to address the real problem of racism. Ethnic minority languages still do not have the same status as European languages and schools are still required to hold Christian assemblies.
