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Boris: We need more black men in teaching
Pippa Crerar5 Feb 2009
More black men should be encouraged to pursue a teaching career to tackle London's high exclusion rates, Boris Johnson said today.
The Mayor said they would provide “Barack Obama-style inspiration” for tens of thousands of children in the capital suffering from a lack of drive and ambition.
He warned that without support and encouragement in the classroom, many would fall into a pattern of poor academic results, playing truant and ultimately getting kicked out of school. Every year 1,420 pupils in London are permanently excluded and nearly 53,780 are suspended for a fixed period. Black boys make up about 80 per cent of that and many end up getting sucked into a life of gang culture and crime.
Mr Johnson will tell the London Schools and the Black Child conference in London at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre on Saturday that school exclusion should only ever be a last resort.
He criticised education authorities for failing to give all pupils the basic literacy and numeracy skills needed to equip them for a more fruitful life, saying he “despaired” that some schools struggled to produce pupils with five decent GCSEs.
Mr Johnson said: “Too many children in schools in London are lacking drive and ambition, which in turn leads to poor academic results, high truancy rates and ultimately, exclusion.
“Exclusions are a fast track to a life of criminal activity, low aspiration and unemployment. We need to reach out to pupils long before they reach the stage of exclusion.
“With the glorious victory of Barack Obama providing inspiration for millions of young people across the world, we need to take a closer look at the opportunities we are offering young people in our education institutions.
“We also need to encourage more black teachers in our schools, particularly black male teachers. Many of us look to our teachers as role models and it makes sense to have a teaching workforce that reflects the pupils in our schools.”
Hackney MP Diane Abbott, who is organising the free conference, said: “There is a clear relationship between pupils being excluded and the same pupils being sucked into gang culture and crime.
“In London 80 per cent of excluded boys are black. The Government has identified the disproportionate level of black exclusions with its own research on the subject in 2006.”
A number of black celebrities welcomed what Mr Johnson had to say, among them boxer David Haye and singer Jamelia.
Haye, 28 and originally from Bermondsey, said: “Messing up at school and getting excluded is not the way to succeed in life. I think we need to target children from nursery age who have behavioural problems, so that by the time they reach primary school every effort is made to help them settle into school and flourish.”
Jamelia, also 28, said: “We must begin by investing in our children as a community. I strongly agree with the African saying It takes a whole village to raise a child'.
“If we as a society personally contribute, through leading by example, reassurance, being positive role models, we can at least begin to create a society of tomorrow to be proud of.”
Reader views (21)
I total agree this is the first thing ever that has attracted my attention from Brios Johnson. The thing is we need positive, successful, role models but what is that, is it a black man with a flash car and loads of money. No, I feel its a black Man that provides for themselves their families and importantly are able to interact with society.
- Lawrence Yiga, United Kingdom, 04/05/2010 21:42
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Sensible suggestions - I went to the conference as well and felt very encouraged to get more involved in my sons school. Thumbs up from this mum!
- Cheryl, London, 17/02/2009 11:27
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If black youngsters only respond to black teachers, what happens when they grow up and have to engange in a mixed society? It all seems terribly expensive, unsuccessful, and going on for ever.
- Helen, norwich, 09/02/2009 15:17
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Wake up Soho Charlie, there's nearlly 140 comments on this site about Boris' support for Carol Thatcher.
- Peter Thurgood, London UK, 09/02/2009 10:42
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Boris,
This is Positive Discrimination. Something the Conservatives have been condemning for years as a Labour PC policy.
Good to see that you are seeing the sense of this at last.
- Andrew W1, London, 08/02/2009 01:29
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Funny how this site isn't reporting the Mayor's support for Carol Thatcher's use of racist language.
- Charlie, Soho, 06/02/2009 14:35
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Why do we need more "black" teachers? Why not more Asian teachers, or Irish teachers, or Greek, or Polish? Why ask specifically for black teachers?
The teachers which I am sure we would all agree on, that we need, is more "experienced" teachers, no matter what their race or colour is.
- Peter Thurgood, London UK, 06/02/2009 11:41
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the problem with education or schools here is the media- it's made the govt ecome extra politically correct. and now there's complete chaos and loss of freedom of speech, there is a lot of immorality displayed and the govt has no respect of the majority's will
- Beljamine, uk, 06/02/2009 01:18
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I think that Boris is pointing out that young black males, in particular, do not have role models from their
own culture to look up to. Like it or not, they are more
likely to respect a teacher with a similar background.
This may not be right, but it is life!!
- Carver, newark,, 06/02/2009 01:02
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What wrong with making an effort where you have identified failure.
Perhaps black male teachers will engage these failing pupils, no harm in trying the alternative is the status quo - failure and problems
- Harry, London, 05/02/2009 22:46
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Black men are not currently excluded from teaching, are they?
- Ted, London, 05/02/2009 17:33
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What planet is Boris on now its not the colour of the teacher that will change the attitude of the pupil its good discipline and well paid expert teachers that can do that.
His statement seems to infer lets take on an ethnic minority teacher if they are good or bad and it will change things well i know for sure it certainly wont
- Ex Pat Martin, Moscow Russia, 05/02/2009 15:35
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That didn't take long then, pandering to the minorities?
By making this call is the mayor of London saying that black children do not like/respect white teachers and so because of this drop out of education and get into gangs/crime?
- Frank, Home Counteies, England., 05/02/2009 15:32
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Thats true, a dire shortage of male teachers where it really matters, in primary schools where many kids don't have a male role model around the house. This is certainly true of many black single parent families as well.
- Dhanraj, Basildon Essex, 05/02/2009 15:30
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Thats true, a dire shortage of male teachers where it really matters, in primary schools where many kids don't have a male role model around the house. This is certainly true of many black single parent families as well.
- Dhanraj, Basildon Essex, 05/02/2009 15:30
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Samuel L Jackson, for instance
- David, Guildford, 05/02/2009 14:40
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We should be recruiting not just good teachers but the best available teachers. Enough of pandering to Marxist political correctness and ethnic quotas.
- David Moon, Seaford, UK, 05/02/2009 14:36
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This desperate plea from our mayor is a pathetic cover for the real fact that behaviour standards in the capital's schools have fallen so low that even trained teachers are not applying forteaching jobs
- Keith Price, Luton, England, 05/02/2009 12:50
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Yes. As importantly we need to be allowed to participate in more senior and leadership roles
- Ed, London, 05/02/2009 11:53
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You need the best people teaching the colour of their skin should not be a issue, what qualifications they have is.The statement made by Boris will lead to positive discrimination against non coloured teachers.
Just wait and see.
- Barbus, Liverpool, 05/02/2009 11:21
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So much for one wonderful diverse community.
- Helen, norwich, 05/02/2009 11:02
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