Poor white boys score are doing worse at school than deprived black, Chinese and Asian classmates in England according to a new report on boys’ education.
Three-quarters of white boys from the poorest families fail to achieve five good GCSEs – a significantly worse performance than poor children from other ethnic groups – according to the latest analysis.
The news echoes a 2010 report on the underachievement of five year olds by the BBC revealing 75% of poorest white boys in England are not achieving a good level of development in our schools.
Coalition MPs claim that they will take action.
Andrew Griffiths, Conservative MP for Burton and Uttoxeter, said the results represented “a shocking indictment of Labour’s record on education”.
“Labour neglected children from deprived backgrounds,” he claimed. “The Coalition Government’s pupil premium will help address the problem directly, with additional funds following children from deprived backgrounds.”
Though it is worth noting that while the Coalition Government’s new equalities strategy highlights action for black boys in education there is no action for white boys in particular – the worse performing groups – or boys in general, who perform worse that girls at every stage of education.
This is not surprising when you learn that the countries leading gender equality experts paid by the taxpayer are opposed to targeting boys in education
In 2007 the Equal Opportunities Commission – which is now part of the EHRC called on educationalists to “stop helping boys in education“.
The Men’s Network will be focussing on how we can help all boys of all background do better in school in 2011.
Glen Poole is UK co-ordinator for International Men's Day, Director at the consultancy Helping Men and news editor of insideMAN magazine. Follow him on twitter @HelpingMen or find out more about his work at www.helpingmen.co.uk.
Men's News From Brighton & Hove, England 
[…] Interestingly, while boys make up 80% of excluded pupil the UK Government only highlights the higher rate of exclusions of African Caribbean boys ignoring the plight of poor white boys failing in schools. […]
[…] Interestingly, while boys make up 80% of excluded pupil the Coalition Government only highlights the higher rate of exclusions of African Caribbean boys ignoring the plight of poor white boys failing in schools. […]