The Culture Trap by Derron Wallace compares the academic experiences of second-generation Black Caribbean youth in New York City and London, arguing that “ethnic expectations” shape students’ outcomes and perpetuate inequalities in each context. The insights from this rich ethnographic study could be applied in other contexts to combat restrictive ethnic stereotypes around education, writes Shankar Gugoloth.
A teacher advised Tom, a young Black Caribbean student at New York City’s Newlands High School, “You’re capable of more; the other West Indian kids are bright, and so are you…your mom told me not to let you settle; you know how to work harder” (4). At Londerville Secondary in London, Akilah’s teacher reassured her, “Don’t worry, remember this is just one exam, and you already exceed expectations”. Derron Wallace suggests these interactions exemplify “the culture trap,”(3) where success or failure in academic settings is predetermined based on ethnic culture.
Contrasting second-generation Black Caribbean youth in New York City and London, Wallace considers why Caribbean students excel in one context and struggle in another.
He contends that “using culture to explain Black students’ success or failure in schools is not only tricky but also a trap.” Contrasting second-generation Black Caribbean youth in New York City and London, Wallace considers why Caribbean students excel in one context and struggle in another. The book is the result of 16 months of ethnographic study in the two metropolises’ largest public schools: Newlands High School (New York) and Londerville Secondary School (London). Wallace engaged in 50 focus group discussions and 134 in-depth interviews, including students, parents, teachers and administrators.
The book is divided into two parts of three chapters each: “constructing the culture trap” and “negotiating the culture trap”. Wallace’s theoretical framework draws from scholars such as the British cultural theorist and sociologist Stuart Hall, whose idea of culture is that “Cultures consist of the maps of meaning, the frameworks of intelligibility, which allow us to make sense of the world” (32), and the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu’s ideas of distinction and habitus, which are used to explain racial inequalities and the understanding of culture and class. Both Hall and Bourdieu recommend locating class and culture within their situated contexts, which are shaped by past and present situations. Sociologist and educational researcher Diane Reay’s work on feminist analysis of gender relations and social class in school settings is utilised to examine the intersection of social class, ethnicity, gender and educational achievement.
Wallace’s theoretical framework draws from scholars such as the British cultural theorist and sociologist Stuart Hall […] and the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu […] to explain racial inequalities and the understanding of culture and class.
In New York City, second-generation Black Caribbean youth are viewed as the “model minority,” while those in London are perceived as the “failing minority”, according to Wallace. He contends that both notions are myths that exemplify the “culture trap”. Another manifestation of this trap affecting Black Caribbean students like Akilah and Tom in both cities is “ethnic expectations, the “dominant belief and routine, day-to-day estimations about what individuals in specific ethnic groups are capable of or likely to achieve” (6). These ethnic expectations invoke “culture as a reason, resource, and remedy for racialised academic achievement”(7).
In the first section, Wallace emphasises culture’s role in shaping the educational experiences of Black Caribbean youth. However, he argues that while culture is significant, it cannot fully explain the complexities of Caribbean youth and culture. Wallace critiques Paul Willis and Mary C. Waters’ work on Black Caribbean youth for overemphasising cultural influence while neglecting other critical factors such as school structures and historical context. In Wallace’s view, such emphasis perpetuates racial inequalities, portraying American Black Caribbean students as high achievers due to their “good culture” and British Black Caribbean students as underachievers due to their “bad culture”. Yet, as Wallace discusses, achievement or underachievement are influenced by various factors like opportunities, immigration laws, colonisation and structural elements in schools, such as tracking systems, exclusion policies, gendered patterns of praise and punishment and social class dynamics. Wallace briefly discusses the role of “academic ability” grouping in shaping ethnic expectations. He argues that ability grouping reproduces and reinforces these expectations.
Achievement or underachievement are influenced by various factors like opportunities, immigration laws, colonisation and structural elements in schools, such as tracking systems, exclusion policies, gendered patterns of praise and punishment and social class dynamics.
In London , ability grouping is referred to as “sets” (81), with three sets available: top, middle, and bottom. Most Black Caribbean youth are placed in the bottom sets. In New York, the ability grouping system is known as “tracking”(82), consisting of four tracks: Advanced Placement, Honours, College Preparatory and Special Education. The majority of young Black Caribbean students are placed in the advanced track. Wallace argues that placement in ability grouping is not solely based on prior academic performance but also takes into account students’ behaviour and disciplinary records. This, in turn, suggests that teachers’ ethnic expectations influence the grouping of Black Caribbean students in both countries. As he states, “Sets are basically static … it is like they get stuck in their tracks,” and “setting in school cause setting in life” (86).
Wallace explores how Black Caribbean students navigate ethnic expectations and the culture trap through various strategies like distinctiveness, deference, and defiance.
In the book’s second part, Wallace explores how Black Caribbean students navigate ethnic expectations and the culture trap through various strategies like distinctiveness, deference, and defiance. These responses, shaped by social structures and historical contexts, reflect Stuart Hall’s concept of “framework of intelligibility” (133). In New York, some students leverage collective distinctiveness for symbolic power, while in London, individual distinctiveness serves as a mitigating strategy against cultural stigma. Social class influences this dynamic, with middle-class students like Tory and Akilah being rewarded for their access to resources beyond public schools. However, this distinction perpetuates inequalities, leaving low-income students trapped in stereotypes and stigmas; in London, young low-income Black students are stigmatised as “bad behaving yardies” (125).
Deference, second-generation Black Caribbean students’ response to school structures and ethnic expectations, counters stigmatisation. It involves a “public practice of ‘good behaviour’, ‘having manners’ and ‘respecting elders and teachers’” (137). Gender plays a role, with boys being rewarded and praised for showing complimentary deference while girls face compulsory deference to avoid punishment. In London, deference mitigates negative ethnic perceptions, while in New York, it reinforces positive ones. Despite challenging the cultural trap, these strategies perpetuate gendered racism due to stereotyped beliefs about Black boys’ and girls’ behaviour in schools.
If deference fails to yield rewards, another major strategy is defiance. In London’s public schools, students reject ethnic expectations, challenging school structures collectively. In contrast, in New York, defiance is more personal, targeting individuals rather than institutions. For example, Akilah’s decision to move to a private school by leaving her present public school challenges the institutional status quo, resisting structural and cultural racism in British schools. However, this option is limited to the privileged class; low-income black Caribbean students lack the economic capital for private education. Another defiance strategy involves alternative learning and attending Black supplementary Saturday schools which are often seen as ‘real school’ by Black students, some of whom engage in silent defiance to combat cultural racism in British schools. In New York, interpersonal defiance is used by Black students to challenge racism and stigma. In New York schools, defiance is personal, particularly on an individual level rather than institutional. As Odain, a year 10 student in London puts it: “When you are Black and Caribbean in this country, you have to fight the system and help yourself.”(175).
Based on his research, Wallace proposes three key suggestions to combat cultural racism and dismantle the “culture trap”: first, the necessity of political will to reform the curriculum and promote inclusivity for diverse ethnic groups in London; second, transforming the tracking and setting system to flexible “Mixed Ability” grouping in both countries; and third, enhancing teacher training with a more inclusive curriculum in New York and London. Such systemic changes could help to break out of the limiting expectations within which Black Caribbean students now operate.
Wallace’s study could be valuably extended and applied in other cultural contexts, for example to comprehend the impact of the Indian caste system on Dalit and tribal students’ educational experiences.
Wallace’s study could be valuably extended and applied in other cultural contexts, for example to comprehend the impact of the Indian caste system on Dalit and tribal students’ educational experiences. Sayings like “you don’t look like Dalit or tribal” or “you speak very good English” stem from specific caste expectations, contributing to a culture trap that these youths are forced to live within. This book is a valuable resource for anthropologists, sociologists, educators, school leaders and students from marginalised communities.
- This review first appeared at LSE Review of Books.
- Image credit: @alyssasieb on Nappy.co.
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- Note: This article gives the views of the reviewer, and not the position of USAPP – American Politics and Policy, nor of the London School of Economics.
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