Commenting on research by the National Foundation for Education
Research revealing that the most significant ethnic disparities
in teacher career progression occur during early career stages,
Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and
College Leaders, said:
“It makes uncomfortable reading to learn that, despite a very
clear and obvious interest in becoming teachers from people from
Asian, black or other ethnic backgrounds, there is a significant
drop in acceptance rates when they apply for postgraduate Initial
Teacher Training courses.
“There is obviously something wrong when figures show that
acceptance rates for black candidates onto ITT courses are 21 per
cent lower than for their white counterparts. There is still
clearly more work to be done in making acceptance into teaching a
level playing field for all applicants.
“It is also of great concern that there are substantial
disparities in the progression of teachers from ethnic minority
groups throughout the teacher career pipeline, resulting in
significant under-representation at senior leadership level. It
is crucial that we work together as a profession to address these
disparities both in the interests of fairness and equality, and
in terms of the message we send to children and young people.
“What’s more, we can ill afford to lose anyone from the teaching
and leadership workforce at the moment. At a time when we are
hearing growing anecdotal evidence about teachers and leaders
becoming disenchanted with education to the point where many are
considering leaving the profession early it is crucial that we do
not place unnecessary and unfair barriers in the way of talented
people wishing to begin or progress their careers.”
