ABSTRACT
Uyghur-Han Gaps in Academic Achievement:
A Case Study of Primary Schools in Xinjiang, China
Yajie Cao
Global Education Cooperation Program
The Graduate School Seoul National University

Since the promulgation of the ‘Compulsory Education Law’ in 1986, Chinese government made great importance in implementing ‘the universalization of compulsory education in rural, poor and minority areas’. Xinjiang, the least developed area, has made tremendous progress on the development of ethnic minority education. The enrollment of ethnic minority students grew dramatically.
However, as cultural anthropologist John U Ogbu (2003) remarked, “once in school, many children in developing counties, especially in rural areas, receive an extremely poor-quality education, for minority groups, this is widespread.” Previous studies have explored that ethnic minority students were lag behind compared to their majority Han-Chinese classmates in terms of ‘standardized test scores’, grade, dropout rates, college enrollment and completion rates. However, the studies on Uyghur and Han academic achievement gap are relatively few. In addition, pupilrelated, parent-related and school-related factors which affecting performance of the ethnic minority pupils in Han-Chinese primary schools have not been revealed.
As a very famous saying in China “中国的稳定看喀什，喀什的稳定看院校” ( China`s stability depends on Kashgar, Xinjiang and Kashgar`s stability relays on education), the research setting in this study is targeted on Kashgar, Xinjiang and both Han and Uyghur pupils in Han-Chinese primary school have been selected as research
objects and follows the working path of “pre-research interview” to “the questionnaire data collection”. The research combines the qualitative and quantitative research methods, depending on multiple perspectives questionnaires of pupils, parents and school teachers and data analysis. It is a multi-factor analysis method of a) To investigate if there is a Uyghur-Han achievement gap in Han-Chinese school by t-test of independent samples; b) To determine how student and parent variables affect academic performance and to determine whether or not the statistical analysis confirms or refutes the hypothesis by both one-way ANOVA and Multiple Factorial ANOVA analysis; c) Percentage distribution and qualitative analysis were utilized to explain the Han-Chinese school-related factors on Uyghur-Han achievement gap for the richness of findings. The analysis path is demonstrated as follows: interview, research assumption, data collection, statistical analysis and conclusion.
The main achievements of this study are shown as follows: Firstly, the study has proved that there is a significant Uyghur-Han academic achievement gap in Han-Chinese school in Kashgar, Xinjiang by t-test of independent samples. Secondly, for Uyghur pupils to attend in Han-Chinese schools, CLA has been proved affects Uyghur-Han achievement gap significantly, with respect to the age for Uyghur pupils to start their Chinese class by one-way ANOVA analysis and the related CLA problems of a) the lack of pre-school CLA courses; b) the lack of understanding on classroom Chinese; c) and home CLA environment disadvantages within pupil-related factors have been explained are responsible for Uyghur-Han achievement gap in Kashgar, Xinjiang. In addition, the study disclosed that the stereotype threat explain Uyghur- Han achievement gap in Kashgar, Xinjiang in two aspects the extra help from teachers and the unequal treatment by Han-Chinese classmates from the perspective of Uyghur pupils. Thirdly, the study testified that the lack of interactions between Uyghur parent and school teacher within parent-related factors are significantly affecting Uyghur-Han achievement gap in Kashgar, Xinjiang. Unexpectedly, SES of parent occupation, parent education background and family income have been proved are not significantly affecting Uyghur-Han achievement gap. As Ogbu, 2003 emphasized that ethnic minority in less-developed area relays more on school to achieve quality education; the effect of student and school factors on academic achievement in this study is comparatively greater and more important.
Fourthly, a) oversized classes; b) over-weighted PRT; c) inefficient preferential policies; d) the lack of understanding on Uyghur minority culture; e) the negative attitude of teachers towards Uyghur pupil`s potentially and f) the lack of interactions between Uyghur pupil and school teacher within school-related factors
have been proved to explain Uyghur-Han achievement gap in Kashgar, Xinjiang.
Finally, the research provides several recommends on the problem of Uyghur-Han achievement gap in Han-Chinese primary schools and concluded that in consider to the complexity of influence factors of student`s achievement, the student`s achievement cannot be simply determined by single factor showed in this study. In the meanwhile, the study of students` achievement is not only important in theoretical research but also have important value in practice. In order to have thoughtful understanding on ethnic minority education and take actions to help ethnic minority groups intensively, social behavior, social relationship and social development of Uyghur students should be revealed for further research.

Keywords: Uyghur-Han, Achievement gap, Kashgar of Xinjiang, Han-Chinese school.