Ethnicity and Learning Patterns: A Replication and an Explanation

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Abstract
Eleven-year old boys and their parents from five Canadian ethnic groups were used in an examination of the relationships between ethnicity, social class and the levels and patterns of a set of mental ability test scores. It was found that: (a) both social class and ethnicity influenced the level of intellectual performance, but that (b) different patterns of abilities associated with ethnic group membership remained invariant across social class divisions. These results replicated previous research studies. In an attempt to account for the pervasive influence of ethnicity on the pattern of abilities, the interrelationships between ethnicity, social class, a set of environmental forces and the mental abilities were examined. From the results it was proposed that: (a) ethnic groups fostered the development of different patterns of environmental forces which were related to different ethnic group patterns of mental abilities, while (b) social class groups fostered the development of similar patterns of environmental forces which were related to the development of similar social class patterns of mental abilities.

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