How Race Gender and Class may affect Academic Achievement

For instance, working class children with similar ability levels to middle-class children will inevitably attain lower grades. Gender has also been known to affect educational achievements. The discussion herein examines the challenging societal identity constructions of gender, race, and class and how they affect educational attainment. The discussion uses two theories- social constructionism and essentialism- to explore the topic further. Social Constructionism Social constructionism refers to the notion that humans do not share an objective reality. The approach also confirms that the establishment of a social identity is more complicated than most people understand. Race Racial differences are characterized by differences in appearance, including facial features and skin color (Quinn 120). From an essentialist perspective, however, each race has a set of distinctive mental, intellectual, and behavioral characteristics that set it apart from other races.

For instance, there is a longstanding belief that Hawaiians are not only easy-going and hospitable but also lazy, promiscuous, and have a low intellectual capacity (Zilanawala, Sacker, Nazroo and Kelly 97). Essentialists also suggests that such characteristics are genetic and that some races transcend others. The social constructionism theory does not presume race to be a biologically and genetically defined characteristics, but a complex mix of beliefs regarding conflict, identity, hierarchy, and inequality that help in the differentiation, shaping and regulating reactions between members of a community. Racial differences are enveloped in social institutions. Education is an institution-based concept, and as such, social constructionism should apply. Social constructionism is the belief that differences in the learning abilities of students stem from social, political, and historical factors, not simply reveal underlying realities (Riegle-Crumb and Humphries 26).

The United Kingdom, United States, and other developed nations have introduced moves aimed at eliminating racism within their respective education systems. No child is born with stereotypes- a child first learns to differentiate between men and women before learning the different set of characteristics associated with each (Mensah and Kathleen 240). Stereotypes not only describe the differences between male and female members of the society but also dictate the roles that each ought to play. Stereotypes still influence the question of whether female students should perform better at school than their male counterparts. Gender-based stereotypes often lead to inequality and oppression while facilitating the perpetuation of injustices. However, the advent of feminism has increased awareness in which men oppress women (Mulvey 682). It means that they can barely afford the items necessary to guarantee the academic success of their children like computers, games, books, serene reading areas, and quality food.

It affects emotions, thereby affecting children’s attitude towards school and educations (Zilanawala, Sacker, Nazroo and Kelly 103). Such children have a different perspective of education from the middle class and rich students. While the latter lot perceive education as a means to a better life, poor children view education in a negative perspective, suggesting that education only stops them from appearing stupid. The theory of cultural deprivation points out that the cultures of working class kids and kids from richer socioeconomic backgrounds are different, and the differences result in educational underachievement in working-class students. Everything about education- from tuition, boarding and commuting expenses to books- is expensive. Socioeconomic inequalities may steer middle-class students towards cheap, less appealing courses that leave them ill-prepared to attend the best tertiary institutions despite having the requisite intellectual capacity.

The gap between the rich and the poor keeps widening, implying that socioeconomic class issues still play a role in education. Pierre Bourdieu, for instance, carried out a study of educational institutions in France and concluded that schools continue to reflect socioeconomic inequalities present in the society. The same is also true in the United States as can be seen in the case of elite institutions of higher learning such as Harvard favoring children of their former students in their admissions process. Works Cited Gillborn D, Rollock N, Vincent C, Ball SJ. ‘You got a pass, so what more do you want?’ race, class and gender intersections in the educational experiences of the Black middle class. Race Ethnicity and Education. 2012; 15(1):121–39 Mensah, Fiona K.