Voluntary and Involuntary Minorities: A Cultural‐Ecological Theory of School Performance with Some Implications for Education

TLDR

The authors view minority group typology as a heuristic for analyzing differences in school experience. The article aims to describe Ogbu's classification of minorities, explain his cultural‑ecological theory of school performance, and propose pedagogical implications. The authors describe Ogbu's classification of minorities into autonomous, voluntary, and involuntary groups and outline his cultural‑ecological theory linking minority status to school performance.

Abstract

This article has three objectives. First, it describes Ogbu's classification of minorities: autonomous, voluntary or immigrant, and involuntary or nonimmigrant minorities. Second, it explains Ogbu's cultural‐ecological theory of minority school performance. Finally, it suggests some implications of the theory for pedagogy. The authors regard the typology of minority groups as a heuristic device for analysis and interpretation of differences among minority groups in school experience.