Ethnic Minority Students in Initial Teacher Training: Issues in support

Jane Devereux

Paper presented to the British Educational Research Association Annual Conference, University of Leeds, 13-15 September 2001

Abstract

This paper reports on a study of the experiences of ethnic minority students on the Open University’s Postgraduate Certificate in Education course. It reports on the students’ needs for support and the extent to which these were met, and discusses issues in support that may be specific to the contexts of mature trainees and part-time, distance education. Ways of improving student support are discussed, both in the context of the HEI and that of the school placement.

Published research into the experiences of ethnic minority trainee teachers has tended to concentrate (for good reasons) on difficulties in support. While this research continues to address these issues, it also looks at good practice in the successful support of ethnic minority students, and reports on ethnic minority students who felt that they did not experience difficulties, or who dealt successfully with the problems they encountered. The possible implications of the findings for training institutions, for school-based mentors and for mentor training are discussed.

“If I think of myself, how could it have worked better for me? A healthy respect of differences. I think it has to begin there. These collective terms, they might be helpful for gathering data and grouping people, but they are unhelpful when it comes to the individual.”

Introduction

The context in which this research was initiated was one in which the issue of ethnic minority recruitment to initial teacher training had become a prominent national issue. The government’s Green Paper on education,‘Teachers Meeting the Challenge of Change’ (DfEE 1998), states (PG 46) that,

“Teaching must attract high quality candidates from every section of society, bringing strengths and qualities which ensure that teaching is a vibrant and diverse profession. The Teacher Training Agency is asking all training providers to set targets for the numbers of ethnic minority and male trainees to whom they offer places.”

The Teacher Training Agency (TTA) wishes (Spencer 2000) to:

“increase current [ethnic minority] trainee numbers from 5 per cent at primary level and 7 per cent at secondary level to 9% overall by 2005”. (pg 21)

The figures of 5 and 7% for primary and secondary, respectively, correspond to the figures in the 1997/8 TTA Profiles for Initial Teacher Training (ITT), (TTA 1999). The Office for National Statistics (2000) states that about one person in fifteen in Britain is from an ethnic minority group. This corresponds to about six and a half percent so that the percentage of ethnic minority students in teacher training would appear to be in line with the population as a whole. However, a higher proportion of ethnic minority groups are members of younger age groups, and the 9% target set by the TTA reflects the percentage of ethnic minority pupils in schools.

In this context, the provision of alternative routes to qualified teacher status (QTS) has been seen as one possible way of increasing ethnic minority (and other) recruitment to ITT. The Open University PGCE course represented one alternative form of provision, making part-time, distance-learning teacher training available nation-wide.

At last year’s conference we presented our initial research (Bird and Eyres, 2000) examining the success of the Open University’s PGCE course in attracting and retaining ethnic minority students. We reported on three questions: Who are the Open University’s ethnic minority students and why do they choose this course? How do these students fare in training and in entry to teaching employment? How do the experiences of these students in schools compare with their expectations, and what support do they need and receive? The primary aim of the study was to arrive at some recommendations for possible ways in which such recruitment can be increased, and in which the success of these students can be maximised by providing appropriate support. This was seen as especially important at a time at which the Open University, in discussion with the TTA, is developing a new, flexible route to qualified teacher status: such recommendations could inform this development.

Last’s year’s paper reported on analyses of student progress data and of questionnaire responses. The students involved were from the 97 and 98 cohorts of students (who completed their course in 1998 and 99, respectively), shown in the table below. The “other” group includes any students who failed, withdrew, deferred, or were de-registered from the course.

Table 1 Sample of students for the Questionnaire study
cohort / E m students / Undeclared students / Total
total / Pass / other / total / pass / other
97 / 53 / 39 / 14 / 9 / 5 / 4 / 62
98 / 34 / 23 / 11 / 9 / 5 / 4 / 43
total / 88 / 62 / 25 / 18 / 10 / 8 / 105

The 99 cohort of students (whose course ended in July 200) were not included in the initial questionnaire mailing as this took place at a time at which they were completing their PGCE course and applying for jobs. The second phase of the research included a questionnaire mailing to this 99 cohort. Questionnaires were distributed to all of the 17 students from the cohort who had successfully gained QTS and who had identified themselves as being of ethnic minority origin.

At the time at which these questionnaires were distributed, students were also invited to attend a workshop / focus group discussion around issues of ethnic minority support. Only a secondary PGCE course was run in 1999, so it was decided, in addition to these 99 students, to invite the 10 ethnic minority primary students from the 98 cohort. Questionnaires were also sent with these invitations in the hope of attracting responses from those students who had not returned the initial questionnaire. Overall, 27 invitations and questionnaires were distributed.Unfortunately only two students were able /willing to attend the workshop on the proposed date, and this idea had to be abandoned. Instead of the proposed workshop, on which we had hoped to report here, individual interviews with questionnaire respondents were carried out.

The questionnaire sent to these students was a slightly revised and considerably reduced version of the original questionnaire. It was hoped that the use of a shortened questionnaire might encourage a better rate of response. In fact, 10 responses were received, 5 from the 98 cohort (primary) and 5 from the 99 cohort (secondary). This was a 37% response rate, as compared to the 19% achieved last year.

The questionnaire responses were jointly scrutinised by the three researchers, and this highlighted areas to be examined in more detail. These areas formed the basis for a semi-structured interview schedule. It was decided to carry out two pilot interviews with respondents from the original questionnaire (from the 97 secondary cohort). Each of these would be attended by two of the researchers, to try to ensure a common understanding of the use of the interview schedule. In the event, only one of these pilot interviews was completed, as a result of illness in one interviewee’s family.

In order to try to achieve consistent use of the interview schedule across the three researchers, two researchers attended the pilot interview. One took a lead role as interviewer, while the other mainly took an observer’s role. The recorded tape from this interview was then made available to the third researcher, so that all three members of the team had some common understanding and agreement as to the use of the schedule. All three researchers shared transcripts of all interviews as the research progressed.

Table 2 Questionnaire respondents and interviewees
student / cohort / gender / line / interview / ethnicity
A / 99 / M / Maths / yes / West Indian
B / 99 / F / Maths / Not willing / Asian-British
C / 99 / M / French / Not willing / Black
D / 99 / F / Science / yes / Black-African
E / 99 / F / Science / yes / Black British
F / 97 / F / Maths / Yes / Asian-Indian
G / 98 / F / Primary / no / Mixed [white]
H / 98 / F / Primary / yes / Anglo-Indian
I / 98 / F / Primary / yes / E African Asian
J / 98 / F / Primary / yes / Black-Carribean
K / 98 / F / Primary / Not willing / Black British

The main second phase study reported on here consists of interviews with questionnaire respondents. It was agreed that all of those students had expressed willingness to be interviewed should be contacted. In all, 7 students agreed to be interviewed. From these 7, six interviews were successfully completed. The student who was not interviewed was shown from their questionnaire response to be white and British. Details of the questionnaire respondents and interviewees are shown above. The 97B secondary student interviewed as a pilot is also included.

The 99 cohort of ethnic minority students

An analysis of results data for the 99 cohort was carried out in August of last year, and reported in our BERA paper. This analysis indicated that, at that point, less than 50% had successfully completed the course (as opposed to 63% of white British and 62% of other white students). Nearly 30% had had to request an extended period in which to complete the course, while 12.5% had been required to complete and extra period of school experience (as compared to only 1% of White-British students).

Table 3. Results of OU 99 cohort as at beginning of August 2000 (percentages)

ethnic group
Result / Ethnic Minority / White-British
Pass / 42% / 63%
Withdrawn / 12.5% / 24%
Fail / 4% / 0%
De-registered / 0% / 1%
ESE / 12.5% / 1%
Extended / 29% / 8%
Pending/resubmit / 0% / 3%

The ethnic minority group is small (n = 24) so that each student represents 4% of the sample, and so the figures should be treated with caution. However, this data suggested that a higher percentage of our ethnic minority students experienced particular difficulties in successfully completing the course[1]. The results data for the 99 cohort was re-examined in April 2001. The final results were as shown below:

Table 4 Final results for OU 99 cohort
result / Ethnic minority / White-British
Pass / 71% / 72%
Withdrawn / 25% / 27%
fail / 4% / 1%

The final results are strikingly similar to those for the White-British students (the higher fail rate corresponds to only one ethnic minority student who failed the course).

Table 5, below, shows students interviewed in this study, including an indication of those who extended or undertook extra school experience in order to complete the course. Interviewees included all three students who undertook additional school experience. ESE indicates extra school experience, Ext denotes an extension.

Table 5 Questionnaire respondents and interviewees
student / cohort / gender / line / result / Aug result / interview / ethnicity
A / 99 / M / Maths / Pass / ESE / yes / West Indian
D / 99 / F / Science / Pass / ESE / yes / Black-African
E / 99 / F / Science / Pass / Ext / yes / Black British
F / 97 / F / Maths / Pass / pass / Yes / Asian Indian
H / 98 / F / Primary / Pass / Pass / yes / Anglo-Indian
I / 98 / F / Primary / Pass / pass / yes / E African Asian
J / 98 / F / Primary / Pass / ESE / yes / Black-Carribean

We would stress that it is of course impossible to use these interviews as the basis for any kind of generalisation. Rather, we feel, the interview transcripts highlighted a number of areas that we felt were worthy of examination. The interviews conducted also shed interesting light on some of the subjects raised by the first phase questionnaires which were discussed in our paper last year. Some of these are discussed below.

Interviewer perspective

It is important in undertaking research of this kind to acknowledge the background and perspective of the researchers, as this will inevitably affect the interpretation we put on the interview discussions. All three researchers are White-British. One of the interviewees stated “somehow because the whole issue of race is very emotive and people don’t want to talk about it they get very ... they support their side”. We recognise this tendency within ourselves, an inclination to support the OU and to deny racism where it may indeed have existed. While we have tried to be “objective”, our own experience of whiteness will necessarily have coloured our interpretations. Partly in response to this, in writing this paper we have focussed on relating what the students had to say, rather than attempting to interpret and explain some of the situations they recount. We appreciate that in some cases that leaves us open to the charge that we have omitted to tell ‘the other side of the story’.

More than anything else, this research highlights the danger of stereotypes. The complete diversity of the individuals interviewed points out, in many ways, the error of researching ethnic minority students as if they were some sort of homogenous group. We believe that it is only in treating every student as an individual that we will be able to go some way to offering them the support they need. However, the comment of one student does, for us, justify what we are trying to do:

“Give an extra ear to them’ they have different problems. All the PGCE students have problems with mentors etc. It’s not easy for black students. For some of us it becomes double trouble.”

REASONS FOR CHOOSING TO TEACH

Ethnic minority trainees have characteristically cited reasons which have been described as ‘altruistic’ for choosing to teach (Jones, Maguire and Watson 1996b, Garewal 1999, Carrington and Tomlin, 2000). These often include reasons related to the achievement of ethnic minority pupils, such as the opportunity to provide a role model within school. The questionnaire asked students in general terms why they chose to teach and asks specifically if their own schooling influenced them. Among the responses to the questionnaire in the first phase of the study only three respondents included ‘altruistic’ motives, expressed in terms of children’s learning but none of these made any reference to the needs of ethnic minority students. The lack of reference on the part of OU students to a wish to act as role models, or indeed to further the interests of ethnic minority children in particular at all, was rather surprising, given the literature in this area (see, for example, Carrington and Tomlin 2000). We also noted that it was surprising, in the light of the research evidence, that no student had referred to experiences of racism in their own schooling, although one had stated that they “wanted to help children have a better experience of schooling than mine”. Half of the respondents did report that their own experiences of schooling had influenced their decision to teach, but most of these cited good experiences or role models in their own education.