Attainment - black and minority ethnic groups (UK)

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Attainment - black and minority ethnic groups (UK)
Evidence
Identifying underachievement
Context - influencing factors
Interventions
Case studies of success
Local, regional, national data
Teacher perceptions of parents, pupils, cultures
Challenging practice scenarios
International data
Curiculum
Assessment
Pedagogic factors
Evaluation of impact
School structure
Parental involvement
Strength of Evidence
Transferability
Editors' Comments

Identifying underachievement

Thorndike (1963 - see Smith, 2003:577) views 'underachievement' as 'achievement falling below [a particular standard] what would be forecast from our most informed and accurate prediction, based on a team of predictor variables'.

According to Gorard and Smith (2004) underachievement is used to refer to achievement relative to another group, whilst Gillborn and Gripps (1996:1) suggest it is a 'relatively crude term relating to differences in group averages' and educational outcomes among different ethnic groups (Gillborn and Mirza, 2000).

Criticism of underachievement definitions:

Smith (2003: 585) contends that 'applying the 'underachievement' label to a diverse group of individuals is incorrect' and suggests instead that a 'more apposite term might be 'low achievement' or, more generally, 'differential achievement' (p. 576).

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