美國研究發現,在少數族群學生比例較高的學校,家長普遍對孩子的教育期望不高,學生自我期望也偏低、學習風氣欠佳,因而導致這些學校的學生學習成就普遍落後於其他學校。在臺灣,少數族群學生(包含原住民與新住民子女)就讀於非都會或偏鄉地區學校的現象也很常見,而一旦學校聚集了較高比例的少數族群學生,是否也如美國少數族群學生居多的學校一樣,學習風氣較差,學生的學習成就普遍落後呢?或者,這些少數族群學生比例較高的學校,學生仍有心向學,主要是其他方面的缺失所致,未必是學校風氣較差。上述顯然是很重要的教育研究議題,不過,目前臺灣相關的研究證據仍不充分。基於此,本研究運用國民小學的學校資料,並進行相關統計分析以探討上述的問題。研究結果顯示:少數族群學生比例愈高的學校,學習風氣並未明顯較差,學生的教育期望也都不低。而學校若聚集較多的原住民或是母親為東南亞籍的學生,則會造成這些學校的學生之整體學習成就普遍較差,這主要是因為這些學校學生的家庭社經地位低,家庭提供之教育資源較為匱乏所致,並非是這些學校的學生無心向學,學習風氣差。
Studies in the U.S. show that in schools with higher ratio of minority students, the low expectations for students themselves due to the low educational expectations from parents, and the lack of learning atmosphere can lead to the lower achievements for their students. In Taiwan, it's common for minority students including aboriginals and new immigrant children to live in suburban or outer city areas, and for schools in those areas, will the learning atmosphere be less effective and the learning achievement be lower just like the schools mentioned in those studies? Or, could students in these kinds of schools be really willing to learn, and the poorer learning achievement be caused by other deficiencies, instead of a poorer learning atmosphere? Accordingly, this study employed relevant statistical analyses on the survey data from elementary schools to look for the answers. The research results indicated that firstly, schools with higher ratio of minority students, whose learning atmosphere and students' educational expectations are not significantly poorer and lower. Secondly, the learning achievement of students in schools with a high proportion of indigenous children or those whose mothers were new immigrants from Southeast Asia was generally poorer. This is because students' low family socioeconomic status and insufficient educational resources provided by their families, rather than the students' lack of interest in learning or poorer learning atmosphere in these schools.