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Challenging Classes?

Exploring the Role of Social Class within the Identities and Achievement of British Chinese Pupils

King's College, London

Becky Francis

Roehampton University

British Chinese identities remain under-theorized within sociology and the sociology of education – and yet they offer a potentially interesting angle to debates around the (re)production of privileges/inequalities given the growing phenomenon of Chinese educational ‘success’. British Chinese pupils’ educational success is especially interesting given the ‘working-class’ positionings of many Chinese families in Britain. In this article we explore the utility of Bourdieuian-influenced theories of social class as a lens through which to examine the identities, educational experiences and achievement of British Chinese pupils. In so doing, we aim to extend existing class theories through a more detailed consideration of the racialized context of class. We suggest that British Chinese families can be read as employing particular forms of family capital (cultural, social and economic), together with a diasporic discourse of ‘Chinese valuing of education’, to promote educational achievement. However, structural inequalities/injustices remain key concerns.

Key Words: achievement • Chinese • ethnicity • identity • social class

Sociology, Vol. 40, No. 1, 29-49 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0038038506058434


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