Questionnaire Analysis – Primary data

Males

Male teachers who teach either Mathematics or a Science:

The age range for the respondents who taught either Mathematics or a Science varied. Out of the 5 male teachers, 3 of them were between 31 and 40 (60%) whilst one was between 41 and 50 (20%) and the last respondent was over 51 (20%). On Question 3, all of the respondents answered differently regarding what ethnic group they believed they were. Two of the respondents wrote that they were ‘White British’, whilst one only wrote ‘British’ with another saying they were ‘white’ and the last said they were Welsh. The respondent who only mentioned that they were ‘British’ did not mention their skin colour which could suggest that either they did not want to state their skin colour because they may feel as though people may make a judgement and that they shouldn’t be defined by the colour of their skin, or because many may assume that every ‘British’ person is white, therefore their skin colour is not relevant. One individual did not mention their skin colour or that they were British, and said that they were ‘Welsh’ even though wales is a part of Britain. One respondent referred to themselves as only ‘white’ with no mention of whether or not they are British, which could suggest they assume that if they say they are white, everyone will automatically think they are British because of the stereotypes of a typical ‘British white male’.

In Question 4, the answers varied as to what their perception of ethnicity is. None of the respondents thought it was to do with skin colour, even though it would have been expected due to the results of the previous question. The overall view was that ethnicity is the shared culture and that it is people with different origins. In Question 5, the general answer given was that nationality is the country that you were born in or belong to, and that your ethnicity is genetic and cultural. One participant wrote that ‘you can have a nationality of French but an ethnicity of caucasian.’ This shows that this respondent realises the differences between ethnicity and nationality as an example as used, whereas the other answers were more basic and simply said that ethnicity related to culture whilst nationality was where you are from.

In Question 6, the views differed hugely as none of the respondents wrote the same. One thought that ethnicity only slightly influences the way someone speaks, with a similar view of another respondent who thought that it slightly does but it is more the individual’s regional dialect. However, a different respondent went on to say that ethnicity does change the way we speak as it has an influence on the language we learn. In Question 7, all five of the teachers ticked the same box, meaning they all shared the same view on what sentence they believed to be better in their opinion (Whom shall be joining us for dinner tonight?). Therefore, all the teachers share the same view on Standard English as they chose the Received Pronounciation form. Similarly, on Question 8, all male Science and Maths teachers ticked the same box again, showing they are similar in their views. It could be argued that as the participants were all of similar age groups and were teachers, they are more educated compared to students who probably would have differed in opinion.

In Question 9, one respondent thought that there was more slang, whilst another went on to explain that ‘bad’ forms of English are beginning to be more accepted as parents are not correcting their children. However, another respondent disagreed with the rest and said that it is not getting worse, it is simply evolving and that the majority of people supposedly speak ‘proper English’. In Question 10, all but one of the respondents (20%) thought that English is not being influenced by other cultures, they are only being lazy as the majority of people will speak ‘proper english’ in the workplace. Lastly, in the final question, all respondents ticked the box that said ‘yes’ meaning they thought children should not be taught any other form of Language besides the Standard English. It could be argued that this is not possible as we have become a multi-cultural society, meaning it is bound to happen, regardless of what anyone does to try and prevent it. Children should be taught other forms of language so they are able to understand what is right and wrong.

Sociology male teachers

Both of the Sociology teachers differed in age, with one being between 20 and 30 and the other between 31 and 40. In Question 3, one respondent (the one who was younger) wrote that they were just ‘British’ whilst the other one wrote ‘White British’. Again, the difference in opinion shows that ethnicity is difficult to define. In question 4, their answers were similar which could have been due to the subject they teach as they both wrote that ethnicity is the individual’s culture, norms and values with one adding that it is their national identity. In Question 5, one respondent thought that nationality was just a legal definition. It is then added that he could consider himself as irish because of his heritage (relating this back to culture) but in terms of nationality, he is British as he was born in this country. The other respondent states that nationality relates to the country you ‘belong’ to. In Question 6, one answered that through secondary socialisation (education) is when you are influenced by other cultures which is generally your peers or teachers. This suggests that if someone went to an all white British school, they would never mix with other ethnicities meaning they might speak differently compared to those who occasionally mix. On question 7 and 8, both of these teachers chose the same box as to what they believed to be better. As they teach the same subject, this could be the reason for the similarities between their answers. In Question 9, the view is relatively similar. One respondent does not think the English Language is getting worse at all, but believes it it simply evolving. Similarly, the other respondent thinks that Language remains the same and it is only gradually changing and that it is how people use the language which is causing it to be worse. Both thought that the English Language is being influenced by other cultures due to us living in a global community. One respondent then develops on to say that some cultures are using English incorrectly which could influence how we speak and alter the Standard English Language. In the final question, both respondents ticked yes in that they thought children should only be taught standard English.

Other subject male teachers

The final set of male respondents taught different subjects - a Media teacher, a PE teacher and a Business teacher. All three of these wrote that they were ‘white British’ showing that they consider the word ethnicity to refer to your skin colour. Their answer is very clear and shows that they understand what the word ethnicity means although it is difficult to define. In Question 4 regarding ethnicity, all three mentioned it was to do with culture. However, one of the respondents mentioned it was ‘a description of skin colour’ which could be the reason why he mentioned his colour of skin when writing his ethnicity. All three shared the same view on what the difference between ethnicity and nationality is, with all three saying that ethnicity is the cultural norms whilst nationality is where you were born. In question 6, the answers all vary. One respondent thought that ethnicity influences how you speak in the same way that region can affect your dialect, whilst another mentioned about the difference in language meanings and the last one mentioning the influence of peers. Again, in a similar way that the rest of the male teachers answered, their answer to Question 7 and 8 were exactly the same. In Question 9, all of the respondents thought that our language is developing and constantly evolving due to new words and meanings. In Question 10, all three answered yes and thought that it was a good thing that other cultures are influencing the English Language. Only 10% of all male respondents thought that children should only be taught Standard English rather than other slang forms which was a completely different answer compared to the rest of the answers I received.