Why We Are Failing White Working Class Kids

It should not have come as any great surprise to see the headline news this week, that white working class children are falling behind in the educational achievement stakes.

As everyone jumps on the bandwagon to show how concerned they are, and to lay the blame at someone else’s door, one of those interviewed suggested that the reasoning behind this is because working class families live in deprived areas, where the local schools are failing. I would argue that this is a very simplistic view of the situation.

Yes, those who are deemed to be from a higher demographic profile often have access to resources denied to their poorer neighbours. This enables them, depending on their personal priorities, to provide all the lovely extras that many families aspire to – the latest technology, educational trips abroad, music and sports lessons etc. More importantly perhaps, there is also likely to be the opportunity for more time spent supporting and supervising their children’s homework activities and other school projects.   

In many working class families, with those fortunate to be in gainful employment, both parents are often working all the hours that God sends, often in low paid jobs, to try to make ends meet, pay the bills and put food on the table. This can leave little time for the extras that can play such a large part in the continuing educational and emotional development of their children. Whilst I have respect for Michael Wilshaw, (head of OFSTED), the notion that parents who do not read to their children should be fined is outrageous. Perhaps coming from a cosy middle class background, he and others like him, have not considered that maybe the parents of these children are not able to read very well themselves.

It is curious also, that the headlines refer only to ‘white’ working class children. I lay the blame firmly the door of a long succession of meddling governments, keen to ensure that time, effort and money is spent on a raft of politically correct initiatives. Many of these fail, and take up precious resources, all in order to ensure that we pander to our ‘multi-cultural’ society. What we have been left with is a generation of children who have largely been ‘forgotten’. With a continued focus on targets and intervention, rather than a pro-active approach towards prevention, combined with a distinct lack of joined-up thinking, it is little wonder that these youngsters, many of whom are from deprived areas, are short changed; written off as failures before they’ve reached puberty. Fortunately there has been a move towards a more focused approach in pupil premium allocation to provide the extra support needed.

In the meantime, members of organisations like Rotary are keen to engage with local schools to take up the slack, particularly with reading support.

Another solution that has been put forward is to extend school hours, and provide breakfast clubs, which would gain widespread support, if we see the government taking on the role of ‘corporate parent’; but, who is going to fund it?

If we cannot seem to get the issue of having adequate funding to provide ‘free school meals’ right, what hope is there?

There are no easy answers but we must, at all costs, continue to strive to resolve the issue, urgently, as the repercussions of not doing so for our future generations hardly bears thinking about.