Equitable Education, Closing the gaps with you.
Find us on
  • HOME
  • ABOUT US
    • CURRENT EDUCATIONAL CONTEXT
    • OUR VALUES
    • WHO WE ARE
  • WHO WE WORK WITH
    • CLOSING THE GAP GROUPS
  • SERVICES
    • SOLUTIONS FOR SCHOOLS
    • SOLUTIONS FOR EDUCATIONAL ORGANISATIONS
  • CPD
    • TRAINING COURSES >
      • LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT
      • TEACHING & LEARNING
    • BLENDED E-LEARNING
  • BLOG
  • TESTIMONIALS
  • CONTACT US
    • WORKING WITH US

THE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES AND NEEDS OF ROMA PUPILS IN THE UK

14/7/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
For many centuries Roma community members have been and continue to be subjected to unfair treatment and vilified in many countries in Europe.  This often means that community members are forced to live on the margins of society and are treated like second class citizens event though their families have been settled there for many centuries.   One of the saddest aspects of this that many Roma children have been forced to attend separate schools from the host communities.  Even more disturbing is the fact that a high percentage of Roma pupils are routinely placed in special schools in Eastern Europe when they should be going to ordinary schools.

Many international organisations and countries including the Court of Human Rights have criticised the abhorrent practice but despite these challenges to the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Roma pupils are more than 27 more times likely to be placed in special schools [i]

As a result of the harsh discrimination which members of the Roma communities suffer in Europe some have migrated to the United Kingdom over the last few years.   It is known at Local Authority level that many Roma pupils currently underachieve.  When looking at national disaggregated performance data Roma pupils are categorised along with Gypsy and Traveller pupils and it can be difficult to see the performance of Roam pupils as a separate group.  However, the overaraching groups of GRT is the lowest performing group in England at all key stages and although many of the wider issues affecting Gypsy and Traveller pupils are the same for Roma pupils there are also distinct differences too, such as the fact that 90% of Roma pupils also have English as an additional language needs.  

However, very little research has been conducted into the educational experiences and attainment of Roma pupils in England which remains a key area which needs to be explored further.  There is however one excellent research report that was conducted in November 2011 called ‘From Segregation to Inclusion: Roma Pupils in the United Kingdom, A pilot research project.   This excellent report provides a wealth of useful information and hopefully is the first of its kind to provide much needed information to inform practice and pedagogy to meet the needs of Roma pupils in schools so that they can achieve on a par with their peers.  

Colleagues working for Equality UK, the organisation conducting the research above interviewed 61 Czech or Slovak Roma students, along with 28 Roma parents and 25 school staff across eight locations - Leicester, Chatham, Rotherham, Wolverhampton, Southend on Sea, Peterborough, London, and Derby.

The key findings of the field work and research are quite stark:

  • 85% (51) of the Roma pupils had previously been sent to special schools or Roma only schools prior to arriving in the UK, with 12 out of 17 of these pupils reported they had been sent there after undergoing a psychological test in their Year 1 & 2 classes when they were 7 and 8 years old.
  • More positively since coming to England, in contrast only 2-4 % of the same Roma children were deemed to be having special educational needs because of learning difficulties or disabilities and for those that required additional support this was provided within the mainstream schools Of these pupils requiring additional support none had a statement.
  • Most of the staff in schools were aware that Roma pupils were  segregated from other pupils and taught separately from their peers or labelled as SEN and put into Special Schools in other European countries and were shocked at this practice.
  • The Roma pupils surveyed also reported high levels of racist bullying or verbal abuse from non-Roma children in their countries of origin, with many also stating that their teachers were also discriminatory towards them.   In some cases the pupils alleged that they had been subject to physical punishment at the hands of their teachers.
  • In contrast in 7 out of the 8 locations Roma pupils reported that they were not suffering any  racist bullying here in UK schools and they found teachers to be very supportive and helpful.
  • This understandably led the vast majority of pupils to state that they preferred schools in the UK because of the absence of racism and discrimination and the emphasis on equal opportunities.
  • All the parents were very positive about the education their children were receiving in the UK and notably mentioned the absence of discrimination and the focus on equal opportunities in the UK which led to their children being treated equal to their peers.  They also valued the positive ethos of the schools and the feeling of welcome they received.  Overwhelmingly, all the parents cited the prospects of their children receiving a good education and employment as being a deciding factor in their decision to come to the UK.   Sadly,  this optimism wasn’t shared for the education Roma children were receiving in their countries of origin as they felt that it would take many years to get rid of the discrimination if indeed at all. 

The report highlights a number of recommendations for both the international community to improve the educational systems for Roma pupils in Europe, as well as within the UK including the sharing of best practice which exists in LA and schools.  Although the  research sample is still relatively small it is the first of its kind and it provides detailed information gained as a result of the case studies undertaken with Roma pupils, their parents and staff.  This insight into the views, experiences and future aspirations of Roma pupils with prove beneficial for teachers and staff working with schools and who wish to enhance their understanding of the educational needs of Roma pupils.

For those interested in finding out more about how to respond to the educational needs of Roma pupils and develop best practice in their own schools or LA’s we shall be sharing the best practice in schools we know where they are leading the way in making a difference for Roma pupils.  Future blogs will highlight what it is these successful schools are doing to achieve high educational outcomes for Roma pupils and ensuring an inclusive ethos which makes them feel safe, settled, secure and part of the whole school community.

[i] Source Council of Europe, Report by Thomas Hammarberg,Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe,following his visit to theCzech Republic from 17 to 19 November 2010; CommDH (2011)3, 3 March 2011, availableonline:https://wcd.coe.int/wcd/ViewDoc.jsp?id=1754217,para 60 cited in From Segregation to Inclusion: Roma Pupils in the United Kingdom, A pilot research project.


3 Comments

EQUALITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITY- THE PUPIL PREMIUM              

5/7/2013

2 Comments

 
Bill Bolloten, Sameena Choudry and Robin Richardson 


This article has been republished from LeftCentral. It is also available to read on IPP

The pupil premium grant (PPG) is a flagship government scheme for schools. Next week it will be praised and celebrated at the 2013 pupil premium awards ceremony organised in partnership with the Department for Education (DfE).

An independent panel of experts has judged which schools have best used the PPG to make a real difference to the attainment of disadvantaged pupils.

However, almost two-thirds of the 48 schools that have been named as regional winners or commended for the awards ceremony have so far failed to comply fully with regulations relating to accountability. Also, about four-fifths of them appear to have ignored or misunderstood the regulations concerning accountability in the Equality Act 2010.

‘Take it and use it as you think fit. But …’

‘Take it, said Nick Clegg in 2011 when introducing the new grant to headteachers, ‘and use it as you see fit.’ He added a stern warning: ‘But know that you will be held accountable for what you achieve.’  The basic principle he was expressing – local freedom combined with public accountability – is central in the coalition government’s public discourse across a wide range of public policy.

In the case of the PPG, there are three main ways in which school leaders are held accountable for the decisions they make: a) through the performance tables which show the performance of disadvantaged pupils compared with their peers; b) through the Ofsted inspection framework, under which inspectors focus on the attainment of various pupil groups, including in particular those which attract the pupil premium; and c) the requirement to publish online information about the pupil premium for parents and others.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has noted with approval that the UK government requires schools to report to parents on how they have used additional money to close gaps in attainment connected with poverty and economic disadvantage.

How schools present the information in their online statement for parents is a matter for each school to decide for itself.  There is certain minimum key information, however, which must by law be included on a school’s website. The amended school information regulations relating to this came into force in September 2012. Yet, as of June 2013, it appears that only a third of schools in receipt of the grant are fully complying with it.

Background

Monies previously allocated to other priorities have been redirected since 2010 towards children from low-income households, defined for the purposes of allocating the grant as those who are eligible for free school meals, or who have been eligible at any time in the last six years, and whose parents or carers have registered for free meals (though they may not have actually claimed them). Schools also receive funding for children who have been looked after continuously for more than six months, and for children of service personnel.

In the last financial year the grant was £623 per pupil. Since April 2013 it has been £900 per pupil.  For children of service personnel it is £300. The grant does not have to be spent only on pupils who are eligible for free school meals. Its use must, however, be directed towards reducing or closing gaps in attainment connected with poverty and economic disadvantage. The total annual funding will be £2.5 billion by 2015. In his spending review announcement on 26 June 2013 Chancellor George Osborne pledged that the grant will continue in real terms – ‘so every poor child will have more cash spent on their future than ever before’.

In order that schools can be accountable to parents and others, they are required to publish on their website 1) their PPG allocation in respect of the current academic year, 2) details of how it is intended the allocation will be spent, 3) details of how the previous academic year’s allocation was spent, and 4) the impact of this expenditure on the educational attainment of pupils at the school in respect of whom the grant funding was allocated.

Study of 48 shortlisted schools

In June 2013 a study was made of the websites of the 48 schools –16 secondary, 25 primary, 7 special – that are regional winners or commended in the pupil premium awards scheme. Schools were judged in this study to be fully compliant with the statutory school information regulations if they had published all four of the required pieces of information; partially compliant if they had published at least three; and non-compliant of they had published no more than two, or had published nothing at all. Schools applied for the award on the basis of criteria that did not mention the requirement to publish information for parents.

The picture relating to the 48 schools shortlisted in the PPG awards is shown in Table 1 below.

Picture
The Equality Act 2010

Principles of transparency and accountability determine not only how the pupil premium grant operates but also how public bodies are required to show due regard for the aims of the Equality Act. Under the Act’s specific duties, schools must a) publish information that demonstrates adequately an awareness of the diversity of the school population and how have had due regard for the aims of the Act, and b) prepare and publish at least one specific and measurable equality objective. To count as specific, an objective should state the outcome that the school aims to achieve. To count as measurable, the desired outcome must be quantifiable so that parents and the community can assess whether the school has been successful.

 In order to determine their compliance with the accountability rules in the Equality Act, a study was made in June 2013 of the websites of the 48 schools featured in the pupil premium awards scheme.  A school was judged to be fully compliant if it had published relevant information and at least one specific and measurable equality objective. It was judged to be partially compliant if it had published either equality information or measurable equality objectives, but not both, or if it was clearly aware of the duties even if it did not appear to have understood them. It was found that almost three-quarters of the schools shortlisted for the pupil premium awards (35 out of 48) failed to comply at all with the requirement to publish equality information and objectives. Less than one in six of them complied fully. 


The overall picture is shown in Table 2.
Picture
Concluding notes

The 48 schools whose websites were studied for this article are probably all making good use of the pupil premium grant, and the judges who selected them for special praise have made good decisions. It is surely surprising, however, that so many have not complied with regulations relating to accountability.

The principal reasons for non-compliance appear to lie in the failure of the government to provide adequate advice, guidance, challenge and support.  Most of the schools which are non-compliant are probably unaware of the regulations and requirements, for the government has been generally light-touch in its publicity about them. Prior to 2010 schools would have received advice and support in relation to a project such as the pupil premium grant from their local authority. There would have been training and professional development opportunities, exchange of information about relevant research findings, and – crucially – much collaboration and joint reflection within local clusters and families of schools. Local networking along such lines is now much more problematic. It continues, however, to be an urgent necessity, and is a matter which requires the government’s attention.

Guidance, research and commentaries on the pupil premium grant have recently been published by, amongst others, the Sutton Trust, the Institute for Public Policy Research, the Department for Education and the Young Foundation. These reviews are much more substantial than the small-scale survey reported in this article. Their recurring conclusion, however, is that schools need more advice, training and challenge than they have so far received. Understandably and rightly the government does not wish to micro-manage what happens in schools. It nevertheless has a responsibility to ensure that good practice is widely shared. With the declining capacity and influence of local authorities, this responsibility is of urgent importance.

At the same time, the government needs to lead consideration of the links, connections and similarities between economic inequality and other forms of inequality, particularly those which are highlighted in the Equality Act. Each pupil stands at the intersection of several different strands of equality and inequality. For example, every child from a low-income household not only has a socio-economic location affected by poverty but also is a boy or a girl and has an identity in terms of ethnicity; many have special educational needs amounting to a disability; many have a religious identity which is important to them; all have a sexual identity.  Some of a child’s educational needs cannot be appropriately met without reference to distinctive aspects of their experience, identity and reality – they are not ‘all the same’. One universal size does not fit them all.

Schools should therefore be encouraged both to explore intersectionality in their use of the premium grant and to pay due regard to economic disadvantage in their responses to the Equality Act.  This is especially crucial in view of the fact that low income frequently intersects with the issues named in the Equality Act, particularly in relation to ethnicity, religion and disability.  Overall, about 18 per cent of all young people are eligible for free school meals and therefore for the pupil premium grant. But for white pupils the proportion is slightly smaller, 16 per cent, whilst for certain others it is considerably higher. For children with special educational needs it is twice as high as for other children.

‘It is unacceptable,’ said the coalition government when it came to power in 2010, ‘for educational attainment to be affected by gender, disability, race, social class, sexual orientation or any other factor unrelated to ability. Every child deserves a good education and every child should achieve high standards. It is a unique sadness of our times that we have one of the most stratified and segregated school systems in the world …’ Such ideals and concerns sound like empty rhetoric if schools do not comply with rules of accountability.

Bill Bolloten tweets at @SchoolEquality and Robin Richardson at @Instedconsult. 

There is further information at www.insted.co.uk (Robin Richardson).
2 Comments

NEW PRESS RELEASE!

3/7/2013

0 Comments

 
Insted Consultancy
14 High Street, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 8DD
Press release, 3 July 2013 


THE PUPIL PREMIUM –
GREATER ACCOUNTABILITY NEEDED


http://www.insted.co.uk/pupil-premium.pdf


0 Comments

    Equitable Education 

    Equitable Education's blog keeps you updated with the latest news and developments in closing the gaps in education.  We regularly share best practice materials and case studies of proven strategies to close the education gaps, along with the latest research from the UK and internationally.

    The blog is written by Sameena Choudry and the views are entirely her own or of her co-authors when written with colleagues.

    Archives

    July 2015
    October 2014
    March 2014
    November 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012

    Categories

    All
    Bilingualism
    Changing Education Paradigms
    Closing The Gaps
    DfE Research Report
    Education Endowment Foundation
    Edutopia
    Evidence Based Research
    Gender Gaps
    Minority Ethnic Pupils
    National College
    Ofsted
    Pupil Premium
    Teaching Agency
    Teaching And Learning
    Thefuntheory.com
    The National Literacy Trust
    What Works
    Writing

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photo from USAG-Humphreys