- Social class affects white pupils’ exam results more than those of ethnic minorities – study, By Jessica Shepherd, September 3, 2010, The Guardian: “A child’s social class is more likely to determine how well they perform in school if they are white than if they come from an ethnic minority, researchers have discovered. The gap between the proportion of working-class pupils and middle-class pupils who achieve five A* to C grades at GCSE is largest among white pupils, academics found. They analysed official data showing thousands of teenagers’ grades between 2003 and 2007. Some 31% of white pupils on free school meals – a key indicator of poverty – achieve five A* to Cs, compared with 63% of white pupils not eligible for free school meals, they found. This gap between social classes – of 32 percentage points – is far higher for white pupils than for other ethnic groups…”
- White British school children ‘worst hit’ by poverty, By Richard Garner, September 3, 2010, The Independent: “Poverty has a far greater influence on the performance of white British pupils at school than any other ethnic group, according to research published today. Figures show a 31 percentage point gap between rich and poor white British pupils obtaining five A* to C grade passes at GCSE compared with just five percentage points for Chinese pupils and seven percentage points for Bangladeshi youngsters. The findings will be unveiled at the British Educational Research Association conference at Warwick University later this morning…”
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty