“It has been long known for years that the British Education system is failing Black children.”
Ken Livingstone Mayor of London.

These words resonated in my mind as I returned from the “Reaching for the Stars” the third conference for [url=http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/education/lsbc/index.jsp]London Schools and the Blackchild[/url] held at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference in London on Saturday, September 11, 2004.

These facts are nothing new to us here on BlackMag! White teachers’ perceptions have to dramatically change and more Black teachers are needed for it to change in any way. Education should be a right regardless of race.

The reality is that the system is failing all Black children but we are seeing a concerning trait in the statistics: African Caribbean children are underachieving in the system and more importantly Black boys. Three years on from the first conference and what have we seen? A pilot scheme targeting specifically Black children in eighteen schools in the UK. We already know our children can achieve under the right circumstances!

Diane Abbot (MP), Trevor Philips (CRE), Ken Livingstone (Mayor of London), all backed up their research figures with good practice ideals at the conference. Even [url=http://www.100bmol.org.uk" class="style1]100 Black Men of London[/url] supported self esteem and self identity. Stephen Twigg (MP) agreed it was a growing concern.

It is not just one factor that effects our children it is an accumulation of barriers and there is not one simply answer to change this.

Lee Jasper (Policy Advisor) and Kwame Kwei Armah (Playwright and Actor) fired up the audience with words and quotes form past activists. But, lip service isn’t the answer and action from the government and others in the education sector is what is needed.

The most inspirational part of the day for me was seeing two young achievers being recognised for the high academic achievements in their recent GCSE results.

It is going to be interesting to see what developments will be seized and followed up on in the coming months. One thing I do know: we owe it to our children not to let them down.