Much is made of the different educational attainment gaps that exist based on gender, race, socioeconomic status or special educational needs and disabilities.

One of the most striking is the fact just 41 per cent of Black Caribbean girls achieve a grade 5 or above in GCSE English and maths, compared to 86.2 per cent of Chinese girls - a 45.2 per cent difference.

It was during my role as a secondary school teacher when I was asked to mentor a cohort of Black girls in each year group that I recognised the remarkable differences in their educational experiences.

As such, I decided to focus a doctoral research study on the lived experiences of Black Caribbean girls in secondary schools in England.

The study

My qualitative study drew on semi-structured interviews conducted in 2021 with 16 Black Caribbean girls aged 13-16 in schools in the West Midlands, West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Greater London.

School types included faith schools, single-sex, grammar, mixed schools and academies.

Their insights revealed a raft of negative experiences - from racism and gendered views to sexualisation - that suggest why school can often be a harder environment for this student cohort than many others, which is reflected in the attainment gap.

What it revealed

For instance, several of the girls reported racism, with many saying they felt schools rarely tackled racist incidents.

Comments included teachers targeting groups of Black children during breaktimes and lunchtimes, being singled out in disputes when children from different ethnicities were involved, and receiving harsher punishments than White peers.

One participant said, “I feel like [teachers] jump to punishment a lot more when it comes to me. I just don’t understand why it’s different, because we’re all the same really.”

Also, in the awarding of sanctions, a Year 11 girl stated: “If [Black students] are rude to the teacher, the teacher would put a call to get a member of the senior leadership team and they would take us out of the lesson, but if it was a White [student], they would give them no negatives, no code, they would just say, ‘OK, just chill out’.”

One participant who attended a grammar school recalled an incident where her teacher “said the N-word” while reprimanding two Black girls during a lesson. Despite the circumstances, the teacher was back teaching a few weeks later.

Other narratives highlighted the procedures for handling racist incidents in most schools were discouraging.

A Year 10 girl recounted that, in her school, “people would be saying [racist] words that they’re not supposed to say” but “the teachers didn’t know how to handle the situation and they didn’t really do anything about it”.

Other comments suggested some schools react to racism by silencing the matter quickly so as not to damage the school’s reputation.

Furthermore, participants also said they were often stereotyped by teachers who ascribed negative labels to them, such as “aggressive”, “angry”, “loud” or “bad”. Research has shown the impact of labelling Black Caribbean girls with the “angry Black woman” stereotype can hold them back from realising their potential, in school and the workplace.

How schools can improve the situation

While this makes for dispiriting reading, the research found there are actions that could improve the situation.

Specifically, policymakers must recognise the educational needs of Black Caribbean girls in policies that aim to close attainment gaps, as well as adapt the national curriculum to one that is more inclusive and allows Black Caribbean girls to see positive role models and to develop their identity.

Schools should also deliver mandatory equality, diversity and inclusion training for teachers, which should include antiracist and inclusive practices, and establish systems of reporting, challenging and recording incidents of racism.

Drawing on my findings, I developed a Leading Black Girls to Lead (LBGL) programme that encourages schools to develop antiracist strategies, commit to staff CPD on antiracism, review current policies and practices, and create an inclusive environment where Black girls feel a sense of belonging.

In October 2022, I collaborated with CORE Academy Trust, which consists of four secondary schools in Birmingham, to pilot its implementation.

This work involved initial meetings with school leaders and three twilight sessions with a working group of teachers. It led to the creation of a list of tasks with the biggest wins, which the trust would take forward to create their antiracist policy.

Staff reactions were positive and there has already been meaningful change, like one head of science who stated she “assigned leadership tasks to Black girls in lessons” and “is already seeing a difference”.

Getting this right for Black Caribbean girls in secondary schools in England will improve their experience of school and, as a result, we could start to close the sort of educational gaps outlined in the data above.

That is something everyone should want to support.

Dr Julie Blake has worked as a secondary school teacher, pastoral leader and education consultant in the West Midlands. She gained a Doctorate in Education at the University of Birmingham, specialising in race, gender inequality, social justice and equity in education.

Further information on the LBGL programme can be found here and Dr Blake can be contacted via email.