Emy Onuora

Aimhigher Greater Merseyside/National BME HE Strategy Group

BME Progression to HE – The need for a more strategic approach to widening

participation for BME learners

BME Progression to HE – The need for a more strategic approach to widening participation for BME learners

• BME Attainment• BME Progression to HE• Characteristics of BME participation to HE• Policy Overview• Policy Features• What needs to be done?• Action Planning• Challenges

PATTERNS OF BME ATTAINMENT IN GREATER MERSEYSIDE

Attainment Levels (KS4 5 A-C’s 2003) on Greater Merseyside

Bangladeshi 42% Black Caribbean 33%Black African 34% Chinese 75%Indian 62% Pakistani 46%Roma Gypsy 35% Somali 22%White British 51%

(Source: Ethnicity and Education DfES Jan 2005)

BME PROGRESSION TO HE (LIVERPOOL)

• 75,056 pupils in Liverpool, 6,137 are non white (8.2%)• Of 6,137 non white pupils 84 are in Year 13• Of 84 Year 13’s, only 16 were intending to go to university

Greater Merseyside Connexions/Liverpool LEA (May 2004)

CHARACTERISTICS OF BME PARTICIPATION IN HE

- BME females participate more than males in both FT/PT- Bangladeshi, Black Caribbean, Somali have low participation rates- Black groups are older on entry to HE- UCAS data (2005) shows White applicants acceptances (83%) is higher than Black groups (70%)- More likely to enter HE via a vocational/Access route- Unemployment rates are higher for BME graduates than for white graduates

POLICY OVERVIEW

“There is clearly no shortage of good intentions in high level policy and strategy relating to the creation of an inclusive culture based on equality of opportunity for all sections of society”A Review of Black and Minority Ethnic Participation in HE (2006).

DfES Education for All, (Swann Report, 1985) highlighted the need for urgent action to address chronic levels of underachievement and low HE participation of Black Caribbean and Bangladeshi young people.

SCHOOLS SECTOR

‘SIPs will be able to identify patterns in performance and challenge schools on progress of different groups of children, for example the lowest or highest achieving 20%, or children from particular ethnic minorities, on the basis of high quality benchmarked information’

14-19 Education and Skills White Paper, DfES, 2005

FE SECTOR

“FE attracts higher proportion of BME learners (14%) than in general population (8%)”

“Demographic changes and an increase in local diversity will mean that the number of learners from under-represented groups is set to increase and colleges will need to adapt to their changing requirements.”

Foster Report (2005)

WORK BASED LEARNING

“Among young people from ethnic minorities, participation in many apprenticeships frameworks also remains very low. Stereotyping helps to exacerbate sector skills shortages. Care must be taken not to perpetuate these perverse outcomes within the new framework”

14-19 Reform (Tomlinson Report) 2004

HE SECTOR

“Monitoring and evaluation of the new Foundation Degree qualification should include racial equality”

Why the Difference? A Closer Look at Higher Education Minority Ethnic Students and Graduates, DfES, 2004

“It is for an institution to decide, dependent on its access needs and priorities, what proportion of additional fee income it assigns to bursaries and/or outreach”

Office for Fair Access (OFFA)

14-19 DEVELOPMENTS

‘….particular care will be needed to ensure that we raise the disproportionately low participation and attainment of some minority ethnic groups’

14-19 Reform (Tomlinson Report) 2004

• Need for greater conviction and belief amongst all sectors and partners that progress can be made.• Most strategies doomed to failure - short term, lack of dedicated resources, no co-ordination, low expectations• Need to translate strategies and policies into co-ordinated action and practical solutions• Lack of detailed action planning and clear monitoring and evaluation frameworks with rigorous impact measures• However, review of policies recognises barriers and problems and gives ‘green light’ to make real progress in respect of BME participation in HE. Start not end point.

POLICY FEATURES

• Policy development by checklist and by fashion

WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE?

• Need for strategic drivers and co-ordinators• Need to develop WP race equality partnerships.• Utilise resources and expertise that exists within partnerships• Critical role of each sector – fragmentation of policies, need to co-ordinate funds and plans • Effective targeting of under-represented BME young people• Develop clearer monitoring and evaluation frameworks with SMART targets and rigorous impact measures.• Develop action plans / revised action plans in respect of each organisation/partner• What else?

ACTION PLANNING

• Need for drivers and co-ordinators (individual/committee)• Need good local information and evidence• Develop flexible strategies/interventions that address local/institutional circumstances• Need to develop strategies that raise aspirations and expectations (teachers, parents, employers, practitioners)• More effective targeting of BME young people based on local circumstances• Co-ordinated strategies that involve schools, FE, WBL, HE, employers and post graduate opportunities (seamless)• Utilise expertise from within BME communities (young people, parents, communities groups etc.)

CHALLENGES

• Agreement from partners/start out where you can• Agree co-ordination and action plan responsibility• Identifying funding opportunities• Clear strategy for community / young persons involvement – don’t be scared (honesty/transparency)• Agreement on appropriate impact measures• Low expectations significant barrier to attainment / employment• WP more closely linked to higher level skills agenda - WP not end in itself- linked to professional and workforce development

KEY ISSUES

• Race Equality to be consistent feature of public policy• BME/Muslim groups are not homogenous • WP more closely linked to higher level skills agenda• HE participation mirrors educational underachievement • Educational underachievement for BME groups has been a feature of post-war UK education.• ‘It’s official – rap music not to blame!’• Development of equality partnerships intra/inter sectoral• More engagement with and from young people via forums etc. over-reliance on official/community leaders• Agreement on appropriate and challenging impact measures

…… AND FINALLY?

Bold commitments to race equality appear in all policies and strategies. How can we turn good intentions into real action and progress?