Ethnic attitudes of minority students and their contact with majority group teachers

Journal of Social Issues

Grundel

2014

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This study examined the imbalance of power thesis by investigating the link between ethnic classroom composition and peer victimization in 94 Turkish–Dutch (minority) and 374 native Dutch (majority) preadolescents (ages 9–13) living in the Netherlands. These children came from the same multi‐ethnic classrooms (N = 31) and were considered as mutual out‐group members. Analyses showed that children with more out‐group classmates reported more peer victimization but only when those classmates evaluated their own ethnic group more positively than the out‐group. This interaction effect was similar for minority and majority children, and no longer significant once children's experiences with ethnic peer discrimination were partialled out. Results indicate that ethnicity is not inevitably used as a criterion to victimize out‐group members who are less well represented in the classroom. The findings partly support the imbalance of power thesis.

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Ethnic Classroom Composition and Peer Victimization: The Moderating Role of Classroom Attitudes

Journal of Social Issues

Grundel

2014

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“…Because of their strong acquaintance potential, positive relationships with ethnic outgroup teachers can be important additional sources of outgroup contact despite the general role and status differences between students and teachers. Indeed, this is what was found in a study among ethnic minority primary school children (9–12 years) with ethnic Dutch teachers (Thijs & Verkuyten, ). Students who experienced the relationship with their teacher as close and warm were more positive towards the native Dutch.…”

Section: Theoretical Perspectivessupporting

confidence: 84%

School ethnic diversity and students' interethnic relations

2013

Brit J of Edu Psychol

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155

163

School ethnic diversity is not enough to promote interethnic tolerance. It is important to examine diversity in relation to other aspects of the school environment that may influence how students respond to the ethnic diversity within school. Important factors to consider are the presence of multicultural education and inclusive school identities, student-teacher relationships, and peer norms and networks, but also the role of parents and of peer relations outside the school context.

“…In evaluating our hypotheses we considered four additional control variables. First, we controlled for children's gender because ethnic in‐group bias appears to be lower among girls (e.g., Thijs & Verkuyten, ). Next, we controlled for norm dispersion (the degree to which there is variation around the average attitude in each classroom) and class size.…”

Section: Social Influence and Social Projectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnic Attitudes and Social Projection in the Classroom

2016

Child Development

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This research examined the process and conditions of social projection of biased ethnic attitudes to classmates in two samples of Grades 4-6 children (n = 342, Mage = 10.75, SD = 0.98; 49% girls; and n = 525, Mage = 10.49 years, SD = 0.96; 51% girls). Children reported on the ethnic group norm in their classroom and on their own ethnic attitudes. Multilevel analyses showed that ethnic majority (Studies 1 and 2) and ethnic minority (Study 2) children's norm perceptions were partly accurate as they not only reflected the aggregated attitudes in each classroom but also related to children's unique attitudes that indicated social projection. Projection was stronger for the most disadvantaged minority group and for children with less depressed affect.