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Black and Ethnic Teachers face 'Endemic Racism' |
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Written by Emmeline Saunders
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Friday, 06 November 2009 18:29 |
 Teachers who are black or minority ethnic (BME) face "endemic racism" within
the education system, a study shows today.
Over half (54 per cent) of BME teachers questioned said they have faced
discrimination in their careers, research carried out by Manchester University
and Education Data Surveys found.
The study asked 550 BME teachers working in English state schools about how
discrimination had affected their career opportunities, and concluded the
majority did not believe the teaching system is inclusive.
Chris Keates, the general secretary of teachers' union NASUWT, said: "This
report reveals the true extent of the problem of racism and discrimination that,
regrettably, is still all too pervasive in our schools.
"Systematic ethnic monitoring at local authority and national levels must be
undertaken to enable BME teachers' career paths to be tracked and the barriers
to their progress on the leadership scale to be identified and removed."
She added: "Institutional discrimination must not be allowed to flourish. It is
robbing the schools of too many talented and dedicated teachers and potential
leaders."
Seven in ten teachers surveyed said they thought it was harder for BME teachers
to secure leadership posts than other teachers, and 44 per cent said they had
been discriminated against on the grounds of their ethnicity.
Nearly two thirds (65 per cent) of African teachers believed they had been
discriminated against, compared to 40 per cent of Pakistani respondents and a
third (34 per cent) of Indian and Caribbean teachers.
A spokesman at the Department for Children, Schools and Families said more had
to be done to stop discrimination within schools.
"It is absolutely unacceptable for any teacher to be discriminated against
because of their race, age, gender or religion. There's no place for it in any
workplace," he said.
"We know there is more to do to break down the barriers stopping black and
minority ethnic teachers from achieving their full potential."
The survey found male BME teachers cite discrimination as the greatest barrier
to their career advancement. The biggest obstacle to promotion for both genders
was a heavy workload, followed by confidence.
Source: Politics
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