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“Black” students account for around 5.6% of the 8,669,085 primary and secondary pupils that will be returning to or starting school in England . (1) A range of emotions are likely to be expressed from awe, wonder and excitement to fear, trepidation and outright panic. Some of the children may be experiencing these too.
Anything with a budget of £87 billion, representing 5% of GDP is necessarily a big deal. (2) Yet Afrikan families continue to be dissatisfied with the end product. A major new report, Closing The Gap? Trends In Educational Attainment And Disadvantage by Jon Andrews, David Robinson and Jo Hutchinson of the Education Policy Institute reveals that “it will take 50 years to close the attainment gap between England’s most disadvantaged pupils and their wealthier peers.” (3) Given the higher proportion of poverty rates among the Afrikan community this research has a direct relevance. (4)
Even when they negotiate the school system and emerge out the other end striving for Higher Education, another recent study, On course for success? Student retention at university, commissioned by the UPP Foundation and produced by the Social Market Foundation suggests that “emerged black students are more than 50 per cent more likely to drop out of university than their white and Asian counterparts.” This is assuming that even get offered a place. (5) Some of the reported contributory factors include “include lack of cultural connection to the curriculum, difficulties making friends with students from other ethnicities and difficulties forming relationships with academic staff due to the differences in background and customs,” as well as the institution’s inability to respond effectively from a “structural, organisational, attitudinal, cultural and financial” perspective to issues related to ethnicity. (6). It remains to be how the new Black Studies undergraduate degree will, in time, impact on some of these factors. (7)
One factor often regarded as an effective way to engage Afrikan students at school is the recruitment of Afrikan teachers. There is certainly more work to be done here as Department for Education (DfE) figures indicate that “Black and ethnic minority teachers are still significantly under-represented across staff rooms in England.. just 7.6% of teachers in state schools in England are people of colour compared with almost 25% of pupils… When it comes to school leadership the gap widens even further – 97% of English state school headteachers are white.” (8)
Reports of representational shortfalls are now being compounded by accounts that “Black Teachers Are Leaving The Profession Due To Racism.” (9) Some of the reasons cited include there being not so much glass but “concrete ceiling” hindering career progression. (10) Elsewhere teachers bemoan being “beaten down by the everyday ‘microaggressions’ in the staff room and the low expectations and support by senior staff in their schools.” (11)
Amidst the doom and gloom there does appear to be burgeoning success, ironically, in the post compulsory education sector. Research by University of Nottingham academics Prof Cecile Wright, Prof Uvanney Maylor and Sophie Becker into education outcomes for young Afrikan males revales that “low attainment at 16 is not the disaster which is often portrayed to be, as it can be a platform for making a fresh start in a new learning environment on a journey to improve longer-term career prospects… Indeed it is evident that African-Caribbean males are more likely to continue their studies in further education than white males.” (12)
Wright, Maylor and Becker argue that this success is rooted in families actually having to “traverse and transcend the educational terrain to ensure a positive outcome.” This includes the use of “Localised community programmes such as those offered by black community organisations, black churches and black supplementary schools.” They proceed to outline the two-fold focus of these services:
“Firstly, navigational capital in the form of practical and emotional support such as advice, career advice, tutoring services, self-affirming classes, access to educational opportunities which were critical to black males pathway to educational and personal success. Secondly, engaging in political activism concerning obstacles to black young people accessing educational opportunities.” (13)
The apparent effectiveness of this network of community resources may lead one to speculate what the outcome would be were these resources available full-time from the pre-school age. This is important because many discussions around education do not challenge the basic assumptions about what the British education system is designed to produce and how we can equip our children to negotiate the value system inherent within it.
One area of note is the introduction of LBGT themes and policies. Recent reports that “at least 120 schools adopt gender-neutral uniforms [which] could involve allowing both boys and girls to wear either skirts or trousers, or may be based around a unisex uniform for all,” (14) were somewhat offset by the government voting against plans for compulsory LGBT-inclusive sex and relationship education in schools. The vote that took place in January was split among party lines with the all the conservative MPs voting against and all the Labour MPs voting for, perhaps giving an indication of the kind of policies that may transpire under a Jeremy Corbyn led Labour government. (15)
(1) Department for Education (29/06/17) Schools, pupils and their characteristics: January 2017. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/623124/SFR28_2017_Main_Text.pdf.
(2) Christopher Chantrill (2017) UK Budget Analyst. http://www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/education_budget_2017_2.html and The World Bank (02/08/17) World Development Indicators: Government expenditure on education, total (% of GDP). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS?locations=GB
(3) Ashley Cowburn (02/08/17) Schools need 50 years to close attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their richer peers, finds study. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/england-disadvantaged-pupils-richer-poorer-education-attainment-gap-equality-schools-study-a7873651.html
(4) Samuel Osborne (18/08/2016) 6 charts that show what its really like to be black or an ethnic minority in Britain. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/uk-police-racism-racial-inequality-bme-black-stop-and-search-prisons-graphs-statistics-revealed-a7197066.html.
(5) Richard Adams (26/01/17) Black students still struggle to win places at UK universities. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/jan/26/black-students-struggle-uk-university-places-ucas
(6) May Bulman (19/07/17) Black students 50% more likely to drop out of university, new figures reveal. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/black-students-drop-out-university-figures-a7847731.html.
(7) Kehinde Andrews (26/06/17) At last, the UK has a black studies university course. It’s long overdue. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/may/20/black-studies-university-course-long-overdue and William Ackah (14/05/14) British universities need Black Studies. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/14/british-universities-need-black-studies
(8) Josh Robbins, Melanie Newman (05/09/16) Shortage of black teachers, data reveals. https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2016-09-05/shortage-of-black-teachers-data-reveals
(9) Hannah Al-Othman (14/04/17) Black Teachers Are Leaving The Profession Due To Racism. https://www.buzzfeed.com/hannahalothman/black-teachers-say-they-are-quitting-their-jobs-because-of?utm_term=.vdqEZX7Bn#.emkqMLPpB
(10) Ibid
(11) Richard Adams (14/04/17)BME teachers often given stereotypical roles in schools, survey finds. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/14/bme-teachers-stereotypical-roles-in-schools
(12) Lester Holloway (28/01/16) How black young men are overcoming the label of educational ‘failure’ to achieve success. http://www.runnymedetrust.org/blog/how-black-young-men-are-overcoming-the-label-of-educations-failure-to-achieve-success
(13) Ibid.
(14) Alice Ross (15/05/17) At least 120 schools adopt gender-neutral uniforms, charity says. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/may/15/120-schools-adopt-gender-neutral-uniforms-charity-says
(15) Nick Duffy (11/01/17) Tories vote to block compulsory LGBT-inclusive sex education, but promise reform. http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2017/01/11/tories-vote-to-block-compulsory-lgbt-inclusive-sex-education-but-promise-reform/
we ask the question:
How can we help our children survive the UK education system?
1) What strategies can families and children use to improve educational attainment?
2) Would More Afrikan teachers improve outcomes for our children?
3) Are Afrikan teachers empowered to challenge the status quo in schools?
4) Is “traversing and transcending the educational terrain” a viable solution?
5) If this approach is effective should it not employed throughout a child’s education career?
6) Can the UK education system be reconciled with Afrikan values?
Our very special guests:
Bro. Ldr. Mbandaka: Resident guest who is Spiritual Leader of the Alkebu-Lan Revivalist Movement and UNIA-ACL Ambassador for the UK and national co-Chair of the interim National Afrikan People’s Parliament. Bro. Ldr is a veteran activist of over 30 years standing, a featured columnist in The Whirlwind newspaper and author of Mosiah Daily Affirmations and Education: An African-Centred Guide To Excellence.
Bro. David Simon: is an award winning author, educationalist and originator of the Simon Education Method, and founder of the Ebony Saturday Schools. He is author of How to Unlock Your Child’s Genius(and seven workbooks in the series), How to Unlock Your Family’s Genius, How To Homeschool Your Child and the novels Garvey’s Last Soldier and Railton Blues.
Bro. Moyo Sankofa: is a London school teacher and Tutor who teaches mathematics and economics. He is currently developing a community tutoring service. Bro. Moyo is a former student of Afruika Bantu Saturday School.