Educational aspirations in inner city schools

Abstract

This research aimed to assess the nature and level of pupils’ educational aspirations and to elucidate the factors that influence these aspirations. A sample of five inner city comprehensive secondary schools were selected by their local authority because of poor pupil attendance, below‐average examination results and low rates of continuing in full‐time education after the age of 16. Schools were all ethnically mixed and coeducational. Over 800 pupils aged 12–14 completed a questionnaire assessing pupils’ experience of home, school and their peers. A sub‐sample of 48 pupils, selected by teachers to reflect ethnicity and ability levels in individual schools, also participated in detailed focus group interviews. There were no significant differences in aspirations by gender or year group, but differences between ethnic groups were marked. Black African, Asian Other and Pakistani groups had significantly higher educational aspirations than the White British group, who had the lowest aspirations. The results suggest the high aspirations of Black African, Asian Other and Pakistani pupils are mediated through strong academic self‐concept, positive peer support, a commitment to schooling and high educational aspirations in the home. They also suggest that low educational aspirations may have different mediating influences in different ethnic groups. The low aspirations of White British pupils seem to relate most strongly to poor academic self‐concept and low educational aspirations in the home, while for Black Caribbean pupils disaffection, negative peers and low commitment to schooling appear more relevant. Interviews with pupils corroborated the above findings and further illuminated the factors students described as important in their educational aspirations. The results are discussed in relation to theories of aspiration which stress its nature as a cultural capacity.

Keywords:

• educational aspirations
• ethnic group
• attitudes
• achievement
• attainment
• gender

Notes

1. Interestingly, these figures hardly differed between Year 7 and Year 10 pupils. Data were not disaggregated within ‘black’ and ‘Asian’ groupings.

2. One special school was also approached but withdrew with competing external pressures (including an impending OFSTED inspection) given as the reason.

3. School 5 joined the project after the fieldwork was completed.

4. This was important so as not to exclude from subsequent regression analyses those pupils who had omitted only a small number of questionnaire items. As a check, the factor analysis was also completed with listwise data deletion and gave the same eight‐factor structure.

5. Note that the factor analysis identifies factors 5 and 6 as two distinct factors, not opposite poles on a single factor.

6. The way odd‐ratios are expressed depends on the base or reference category. The ratio A:B can equally be expressed as the ratio B:A. Thus a ratio of 0.5:1 (A is half as likely as B) is symmetrical and equivalent to a ratio of 1:2.0 (B is twice as likely as A). To express all odds ratios in a common direction the comparator category can be reversed when a factor has a negative association with aspirations.

7. The PLUM procedure within SPSS V13 was employed.

8. Because the factor scores are continuous variables, the effect size is estimated by comparing the probabilities for a student scoring 1‐SD below the mean with the probabilities for a student scoring 1SD above the mean – i.e., a two SD range (see Strand 2004).

9. See McLeod (1995, 57–59, 110).

10. In a recent article, former Prime Minister Tony Blair wrote: “New Labour today is the party of aspiration, for middle‐class and poorer families; for all” (2005, 33).