scholarly journals Issues Faced by Minority Ethnic Groups’ Students Reflected in Their Writing

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-33
Author(s):  
Triastama Wiraatmaja
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Private University ◽  
Verbal Abuse ◽  
Thick Description ◽  
Minority Ethnic Groups ◽  
Individual Discrimination ◽  
Minority Ethnic

This research attempted to determine issues faced by minority ethnic groups’ students in English Language Education Department in private university in Malang, and whether ethnicity and social aspects played significant roles in the students’ language proficiency reflected in their vocabulary in writing class. The researcher analysed writing samples taken from 16 students from both minority and majority ethnic groups by utilising Voyant Tools which focused on vocabulary density and average words per sentence.  Followed with spreading questionnaires to eight students of minority ethnic groups and interviewing two of them who earned highest scored based on Voyant Tools. Those sessions were analysed with Thick Description to focus on related issues regarding vocabulary proficiency and ethnicities. The results taken from Voyant Tools indicated that students from minority ethnic groups were lesser than the students from majority one’s. Those results depicted the vocabulary proficiency of students from minority ethnic groups in writing, and those results were affected by educational deprived in their origins, and verbal abuse regarding their ethnicity. The researcher discovered that verbal abuse towards ethnicity regarded as individual discrimination that strengthens the majority’s idea to emphasise their superiority over the inferior. People tend to overlook the fact that verbal abuse among students was existed in universities and it affecting students’ performance. This notion was supported by the result taken from Voyant Tools in which the result shown that the minority ethnic groups were lesser than majority one’s and the effect were reflected at their writing, notably their vocabulary proficiency.

scholarly journals Issues Faced by Minority Ethnic Groups’ Students Reflected in Their Writing

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 22
Author(s):  
Triastama Wiraatmaja
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Private University ◽  
Verbal Abuse ◽  
Thick Description ◽  
Minority Ethnic Groups ◽  
Individual Discrimination ◽  
Minority Ethnic

This research attempted to determine issues faced by minority ethnic groups’ students in English Language Education Department in private university in Malang, and whether ethnicity and social aspects played significant roles in the students’ language proficiency reflected in their vocabulary in writing class. The researcher analysed writing samples taken from 16 students from both minority and majority ethnic groups by utilising Voyant Tools which focused on vocabulary density and average words per sentence.  Followed with spreading questionnaires to eight students of minority ethnic groups and interviewing two of them who earned highest scored based on Voyant Tools. Those sessions were analysed with Thick Description to focus on related issues regarding vocabulary proficiency and ethnicities. The results taken from Voyant Tools indicated that students from minority ethnic groups were lesser than the students from majority one’s. Those results depicted the vocabulary proficiency of students from minority ethnic groups in writing, and those results were affected by educational deprived in their origins, and verbal abuse regarding their ethnicity. The researcher discovered that verbal abuse towards ethnicity regarded as individual discrimination that strengthens the majority’s idea to emphasise their superiority over the inferior. People tend to overlook the fact that verbal abuse among students was existed in universities and it affecting students’ performance. This notion was supported by the result taken from Voyant Tools in which the result shown that the minority ethnic groups were lesser than majority one’s and the effect were reflected at their writing, notably their vocabulary proficiency.

scholarly journals Unequal impact of the COVID-19 crisis on minority ethnic groups: a framework for understanding and addressing inequalities

2021 ◽  
pp. jech-2020-216061
Author(s):  
Srinivasa Vittal Katikireddi ◽  
Sham Lal ◽  
Enitan D Carrol ◽  
Claire L Niedzwiedz ◽  
Kamlesh Khunti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Social Consequences ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Complex Interplay ◽  
Structural Racism ◽  
Theoretical Understanding ◽  
Minority Ethnic Groups ◽  
Minority Ethnic

Minority ethnic groups have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. While the exact reasons for this remain unclear, they are likely due to a complex interplay of factors rather than a single cause. Reducing these inequalities requires a greater understanding of the causes. Research to date, however, has been hampered by a lack of theoretical understanding of the meaning of ‘ethnicity’ (or race) and the potential pathways leading to inequalities. In particular, quantitative analyses have often adjusted away the pathways through which inequalities actually arise (ie, mediators for the effect of interest), leading to the effects of social processes, and particularly structural racism, becoming hidden. In this paper, we describe a framework for understanding the pathways that have generated ethnic (and racial) inequalities in COVID-19. We suggest that differences in health outcomes due to the pandemic could arise through six pathways: (1) differential exposure to the virus; (2) differential vulnerability to infection/disease; (3) differential health consequences of the disease; (4) differential social consequences of the disease; (5) differential effectiveness of pandemic control measures and (6) differential adverse consequences of control measures. Current research provides only a partial understanding of some of these pathways. Future research and action will require a clearer understanding of the multiple dimensions of ethnicity and an appreciation of the complex interplay of social and biological pathways through which ethnic inequalities arise. Our framework highlights the gaps in the current evidence and pathways that need further investigation in research that aims to address these inequalities.

scholarly journals Perceived major experiences of discrimination, ethnic group, and risk of psychosis in a six-country case−control study

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Supriya Misra ◽  
Bizu Gelaye ◽  
David R. Williams ◽  
Karestan C. Koenen ◽  
Christina P.C. Borba ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Psychotic Disorders ◽  
Case Control Study ◽  
Perceived Discrimination ◽  
Case Control ◽  
Excess Risk ◽  
Minority Ethnic Groups ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Minority Ethnic ◽  
Control Study

Abstract Background Perceived discrimination is associated with worse mental health. Few studies have assessed whether perceived discrimination (i) is associated with the risk of psychotic disorders and (ii) contributes to an increased risk among minority ethnic groups relative to the ethnic majority. Methods We used data from the European Network of National Schizophrenia Networks Studying Gene-Environment Interactions Work Package 2, a population-based case−control study of incident psychotic disorders in 17 catchment sites across six countries. We calculated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the associations between perceived discrimination and psychosis using mixed-effects logistic regression models. We used stratified and mediation analyses to explore differences for minority ethnic groups. Results Reporting any perceived experience of major discrimination (e.g. unfair treatment by police, not getting hired) was higher in cases than controls (41.8% v. 34.2%). Pervasive experiences of discrimination (≥3 types) were also higher in cases than controls (11.3% v. 5.5%). In fully adjusted models, the odds of psychosis were 1.20 (95% CI 0.91–1.59) for any discrimination and 1.79 (95% CI 1.19–1.59) for pervasive discrimination compared with no discrimination. In stratified analyses, the magnitude of association for pervasive experiences of discrimination appeared stronger for minority ethnic groups (OR = 1.73, 95% CI 1.12–2.68) than the ethnic majority (OR = 1.42, 95% CI 0.65–3.10). In exploratory mediation analysis, pervasive discrimination minimally explained excess risk among minority ethnic groups (5.1%). Conclusions Pervasive experiences of discrimination are associated with slightly increased odds of psychotic disorders and may minimally help explain excess risk for minority ethnic groups.

scholarly journals Constraints on innovation in English language teaching in hinterland regions of China

2020 ◽  
pp. 136216882097985
Author(s):  
Neil Murray ◽  
Antony J. Liddicoat ◽  
Gavin Zhen ◽  
Penny Mosavian
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
English Language ◽  
Time Pressure ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Eastern China ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Chinese Government

Since the start of the twenty-first century, English has come to be seen by the Chinese government as a linchpin of its continued economic and political influence. Its resultant efforts to promote innovation in English language teaching align with the aspirations of a population, many of whom regard competency in English as a determiner of opportunity and success in their careers, and thus a vehicle through which to provide a good quality of life for themselves and their families. However, despite government-driven initiatives to improve English language education, change has been slow to materialize, especially outside of the main urban areas of Eastern China. Here, we report on a study that sought to explore the constraints governing attempts by teachers of English to innovate in universities located in some of the so-called ‘hinterland’ regions of Southwestern China. Key determinants that emerged, and which we discuss, included time pressure and competing priorities; scepticism towards new ideas; lack of investment in resources; the primacy of the textbook; students’ language proficiency; and opportunities for professional development. Together, these findings indicate the need for a change of culture if innovation is to be welcomed, both in principle and in practice, as a driver of positive change in the teaching of English in these universities. Teachers, their line managers, and university senior managers need to feel willing and able to engage freely in constructive and informed discourse, and in doing so consider recalibrating institutional priorities, thereby helping reconcile the pressures and tensions currently experienced by English language teachers and which impede progress.

‘I'm Telling You … The Language Barrier is the Most, the Biggest Challenge’: Barriers to Education among Karen Refugee Women in Australia

2012 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 126-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula G. Watkins ◽  
Husna Razee ◽  
Juliet Richters
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Well Being ◽  
English Language Education ◽  
Barriers To Education ◽  
Refugee Women ◽  
Education Participation ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Impact

This article examines factors influencing English language education, participation and achievement among Karen refugee women in Australia. Data were drawn from ethnographic observations and interviews with 67 participants between 2009 and 2011, collected as part of a larger qualitative study exploring the well-being of Karen refugee women in Sydney. Participants unanimously described difficulty with English language proficiency and communication as the ‘number one’ problem affecting their well-being. Gendered, cultural and socio-political factors act as barriers to education. We argue that greater sensitivity to refugees' backgrounds, culture and gender is necessary in education. Research is needed into the combined relationships between culture and gender across pre-displacement, displacement and resettlement and the impact of these factors on post-immigration educational opportunities. Training is needed to sensitise educators to the complex issues of refugee resettlement. The paper concludes with recommendations for service provision and policy.

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