Ethnic Minorities in Teaching

The Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge has launched a new recruitment drive to encourage more ethnic minority undergraduates and graduates to consider a career in teaching.  I joined the University in October 2005 as Minority Ethnic Recruitment Officer for the Post Graduate Certificate in Education courses (PGCE) and have been visiting schools, colleges and universities, as well as community leaders, women’s groups, information centres, community associations in the Eastern Region to find out why graduates from ethnic minorities are less likely than their white peers to go into teaching and to try and change their perceptions.

Amongst some communities, people seem to have misconceptions about the profession of teaching as well as the financial rewards of it, often resulting in graduates overlooking the merits of the profession. In fact teaching is one of the great ways to promote communities and to work for the welfare and future of societies. Teaching is now a well-paid and rewarding job, with salaries comparing well with other professions, and offering great career prospects to motivated and ambitious individuals.

It is essential for people from all backgrounds to be represented in the teaching profession as we are living in a multicultural society so we obviously need proportional representation in the education system. What better way is there to promote communities? Regardless of one’s background, a major reward of teaching is simply making a difference. Moreover teachers from a range of ethnicities would improve the achievement and morale of pupils which in turn is likely to make an impact on future generations of ethnic communities. 

We are definitely very keen to hear from all those bright undergraduates and graduates who have a flair and passion for teaching and who want to make a difference in people’s lives. Investing in young minds is going to bring about a revolutionary change in perceptions of different communities as regards to education, particularly higher education. The facts reveal that pupils from certain ethnic groups have consistently been under achieving at schools. We want great role models in our schools who could be emulated by the children of our different communities.

Statistics show that 17.1% of pupils in maintained schools are from minority ethnic groups compared to 8.7% of new entrants to Initial Teacher Training. It is believed that the experiences minority group teachers bring will help them to be empathetic toward and skilled in crossing cultural and linguistic boundaries in school contexts. It is their shared social and cultural experiences as well as the cultural mediation skills they have developed for connecting between school and home that strengthen their potential for effectiveness in teaching.

For a well-functioning society based on respect of human rights, it is crucial that children learn about the diversity within it. Teachers play a key role as educators and role models. An important element of teacher training includes components on the diversity of society, on methodologies to ensure that this diversity is recognised and that pupils from different cultures are respected. This is another reason for the recruitment drive for ethnic minorities by the Faculty of Education.

Another of last year’s trainees, Muriel Obasa, says 'For anyone thinking about doing the PGCE course, I would say that it is definitely worth taking the opportunity to do it in Cambridge! Of course the demands and requirements are high, but you receive a huge amount of support from subject lecturers/tutors in the Faculty, PGCE Mentors in professional placement schools and also from fellow trainees.'

Anyone interested in finding out more about my work or about PGCE opportunities for members of minority ethnic communities can contact me on 01223 767736 or email: st406@cam.ac.uk or go to the Faculty website at www.educ.cam.ac.uk.

Sabina Tahir
Minority Ethnic Recruitment
Officer