a system of equal opportunities concerned with personal fulfilment - the pupil is seen as an undifferentiated asset to the economy; or if not an asset, then the child is to be virtually excluded from the system in order not to damage the cogs of the educational machine.In an ideal situation, a young person will learn many and varied things through school, which will aid his/her development so that his/her full potential may be achieved. By the time a young person leaves school, at whatever stage suits his/her abilities and aspirations, he/she should be self-confident, satisfied and fulfilled. The child should have a store of knowledge, life-skills, the motivation for further development, and exam success which truly reflects his/her capabilities. Whilst at school, the pupil should have had the opportunity to form friendships with peers, and relationships with staff which provide a positive image of the world and the people in it, as well as being introduced to new ideas and activities. However, this is very much an ideal; for a great many young people, this description of school life would be totally alien to their experience, due to the prejudice inherent in the institution.These negative experiences of school tend to be suffered by pupils from minority groups. Particularly hard hit are pupils from West Indian and other black backgrounds, for whom the evidence of under-achievement is prolific; see the UEA studies of 1966 and 1968 (Eggleston, Dunn and Aryali, 1986). Black children tend to be perceived by teachers not as individuals with differing abilities, but as an homogeneous group of automatically low ability, and as undisciplined troublemakers. Unfortunately, this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, as pupils live up to the expectations of the teachers. The Rampton Report (1981) found significant underachievement in West Indians; similar figures were found by the Swann Report (1985), which testified to the existence of racism and ...
