Last Updated on October 27, 2026 by Karl Thompson
This classic ethnographic study of four inner-city primary schools suggests that teachers’ labelling of ethnic minority pupils gave them a more negative experience of school than white children.
Cecile Wright’s research was published in 1992 as Race Relations in the Primary School. The main research methods were classroom observation and interviews with teachers, parents and children, and Wright looked at what happened both inside and outside the classroom, as well as at relations between parents and schools.
Wright’s main conclusion was that, although most staff seemed genuinely committed to treating pupils from different ethnic backgrounds equally, in practice there was discrimination within the classroom.
The study supports the labelling theory of education and suggests that in-school factors are one of the main reasons for the lower achievement of some ethnic minority pupils.
Asians in Primary Schools
Wright found that Asian pupils were often left out of classroom discussions because teachers assumed they had a poor grasp of the English language. When teachers did involve Asian pupils, they often used simplified language.
Asian girls seemed almost invisible to teachers and received less attention than other pupils. Teachers also sometimes showed insensitivity towards their cultural norms.
Wright concluded that teachers’ stereotypical attitudes could lead other pupils to be hostile to Asian pupils, and leave the Asian pupils isolated.
It also made the Asian pupils more ambivalent about school. When a school brought a celebration of Asian culture into the curriculum, for example, the Asian pupils felt some pride in having their culture recognised, but they were also worried that it might lead to more teasing and harassment from white children.
Teachers did, however, see Asian pupils as hardworking and well-behaved, and expected them to do well academically.
Black Caribbeans in Primary Schools
Teachers expected Black Caribbean pupils to behave badly and expected to have to punish them. Teachers also seemed insensitive to the fact that many of these children had experienced racism.
Black Caribbean pupils received a disproportionate amount of teachers’ negative attention. Compared with white pupils who behaved in the same way, they were more likely to be:
- sent out of the class
- sent to the head teacher
- have privileges removed
In other words, Black Caribbean pupils were judged by their behaviour more than by their work, which is a pattern other researchers, such as Paul Connolly, have also found.
Trivialising Ethnic Minority Cultures
Wright found that teachers could make minority ethnic cultures seem exotic or unimportant, for example by mispronouncing names, which caused white pupils to laugh and minority ethnic pupils to feel embarrassed.
Racism from White Students
Minority ethnic pupils also experienced racism from other pupils, which made their school life even more difficult. White children sometimes refused to play with Asian children and subjected them to name-calling. Both Asian and Black Caribbean children had to deal with intimidation and rejection.
Conclusions
Wright points out that this disadvantaging of ethnic minority pupils was not intended. The schools and teachers appeared genuinely committed to equality and to celebrating multiculturalism; they were just poor at putting these values into practice, and their actions often had the opposite effect!
Wright believed that some Black children are disadvantaged by their negative experiences in primary school, and that this holds them back at later stages of their school career.
Evaluation of the study
The study doesn’t explain why Black Caribbean pupils are held back by negative experiences in primary school when this doesn’t seem to affect the later achievement of Asian pupils as badly. Today, Indian and Bangladeshi pupils score above the national average at GCSE, while Black Caribbean pupils score below it (see ethnicity and education statistics).
The study can be criticised for presenting ethnic minority pupils as passive victims of racism. In contrast, studies by Heidi Safia Mirza and Máirtín Mac an Ghaill show pupils responding much more actively, and in much more diverse ways, to racism in schools.
It’s a small study of four schools, so we can’t be sure how typical they were.
Maybe obviously, the date! This research is from more than 30 years ago. However, more recent large-scale evidence suggests that teachers’ expectations still matter for Black Caribbean pupils: Steve Strand (2012) found that Black Caribbean pupils were less likely than White British pupils with the same prior attainment and family background to be entered for the higher tiers of tests at age 14.
Wright in the exam
Wright is examined on Paper 1 (7192/1). AQA’s mark scheme lists her among the sources for this question:
- June 2021 (sat November 2021), Q03: Applying material from Item A, analyse two ways in which teaching and learning in schools may affect the educational experiences of minority ethnic groups. [10 marks]. See the worked answer.
She is also useful as evidence for in-school factors in the 30-mark question on ethnic differences in achievement (June 2019, Q04): see the full essay.
Sociology of Education Revision Bundle
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Signposting
This material is relevant to the sociology of education, usually taught in the first year of A-level Sociology. Related posts: ethnicity and educational achievement: in-school factors and Tony Sewell.
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Sources
- Wright, C. (1992) Race Relations in the Primary School. London: David Fulton.
- Strand, S. (2012) ‘The White British–Black Caribbean achievement gap: tests, tiers and teacher expectations’, British Educational Research Journal, 38(1), 75–101.