Robin Whitburn - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Robin Whitburn
The achievement of African-Caribbean boys in UK schools has been a cause for concern for decades,... more The achievement of African-Caribbean boys in UK schools has been a cause for concern for decades, and there is still considerable evidence that they are not achieving as well as their contemporaries. This study seeks to listen to the voices of students themselves in order to fathom pedagogical approaches that engender educational success for Black male students. The study has been inspired by American literature that focused on successful pedagogy with African-American students. Recent trends within the UK have moved schools closer towards proscribed practices within classrooms, and the 'behavioural objectives' approach has assumed hegemonic authority. This study uses a philosophical typology from Hannah Arendt to critically examine the nature of pedagogy in secondary schools, and suggests an approach in `action' pedagogy that would bring greater success to Black male students. My students' discussions produced three key factors for such success: caring teacher-student relationships, going beyond the curriculum; feedback and 'push': and teacher expectations; they also produced characteristics of a prototype of a successful teacher for such young men. These ideas were combined with Arendt's to produce two types of pedagogy: labour and action. The latter is suggested as most helpful to Black male students, with its emphasis on agency for students and teachers; dialogue and coconstruction of knowledge; and creativity and diversity in the curriculum that values students' cultures, by both ethnicity and age. The conformity and accommodation demanded by a labour pedagogy, typified by the current technicist agenda, is unlikely to see many Black male students thrive. The importance placed on student-teacher relationships, at the heart of action pedagogy, will need teachers to pay as much attention to the values and attitudes that they convey towards young Black males as they might to the competences of their lesson plans and behaviour management strategies. Professional dialogue will be needed to help teachers handle the ambiguities of 'cool' adolescent behaviour and the call for care and encouragement in learning, but teachers and young Black male students can find creative paths to academic success and personal development through action pedagogy in UK secondary schools, where they have so often stumbled and failed along the way. Contents Abstract p. 2 Chapter 1: Introduction to issues of Pedagogy and Race P. 5 Chapter 2: Literature on Pedagogy and Black Students, and a Philosophical perspective p. Chapter 3: Methodology and Epistemology: The Action Research approach in this study p. 28 Chapter 4: The Research Group data-Presentation and Analysis p. 46 Chapter 5: 'Action Pedagogy' and Black Male Students p. Chapter 6: Conclusions p. Appendix: Transcript of one of the Research Group dialogues p. 102 References p. 108 An Educational Journey through the Doctorate in Education p. 114 Thanks and statement of authorship p. 120 9 and anguish. This was decried as unfair and even unprofessional, with some justification at times, yet there remained the likelihood that for the privileged professionals in a society that had systematically oppressed particular social groups, in this case identified by ethnicity, remedying injustice might have to cause some distress. I hope that professional educators can learn about improving the lives and learning of African-Caribbean male students without much pain, but change most certainly has to occur, and that is likely to be, at best, uncomfortable for many involved.
Teaching African History in Schools, 2020
London Review of Education, 2019
Educational discourses are inextricably tied into political debates, since education is such a un... more Educational discourses are inextricably tied into political debates, since education is such a universally prized and costly public merit good. The editors of this book of papers from the 2015 Third International Social Realism Symposium at the University of Cambridge present 13 eclectic pieces under the trinity of 'knowledge, curriculum and equity', a title charged with powerful tension in the UK context of 'knowledgerich' claims in Whitehall and attendant schools. The familiar trio of the New Labour Party leader and Prime Minister Tony Blair from 1996 onwards was, by contrast, a simplistic repetition of the one word 'education', tied to the achievement of all children rather than the 'few', but leaving nobody clear as to how the elusive equity was to be achieved in the complex school systems of the United Kingdom. The educational reforms of New Labour's 13 years of government did bring in a range of new structures, curriculum changes and injections of funding that did indeed see better outcomes in many schools for an increasing range of young people, but a strong backlash
Doing Justice to History challenges everyday racism in society and offers counter-stories to the ... more Doing Justice to History challenges everyday racism in society and offers counter-stories to the singular narratives that still prevail among national historians and in school curricula. It will be a key resource for the annual Black History Month in both the UK and the US. But the book's key purpose is to argue for deeper and long-lasting changes in historical studies and curricula so that history is taught in schools from an inclusive and global perspective. The contributors provide new insights into Black history at local, national and international levels. They discuss grassroots heroes, community activism, the Civil Rights movement in the US, British Somali history, and apartheid in South Africa. Their accounts of excellent practice offer teachers inspiration and guidance in presenting a broad view of history to history teachers across the world, and to students and teacher trainers committed to an inclusive view of history.
The achievement of African-Caribbean boys in UK schools has been a cause for concern for decades,... more The achievement of African-Caribbean boys in UK schools has been a cause for concern for decades, and there is still considerable evidence that they are not achieving as well as their contemporaries. This study seeks to listen to the voices of students themselves in order to fathom pedagogical approaches that engender educational success for Black male students. The study has been inspired by American literature that focused on successful pedagogy with African-American students. Recent trends within the UK have moved schools closer towards proscribed practices within classrooms, and the 'behavioural objectives' approach has assumed hegemonic authority. This study uses a philosophical typology from Hannah Arendt to critically examine the nature of pedagogy in secondary schools, and suggests an approach in `action' pedagogy that would bring greater success to Black male students. My students' discussions produced three key factors for such success: caring teacher-student relationships, going beyond the curriculum; feedback and 'push': and teacher expectations; they also produced characteristics of a prototype of a successful teacher for such young men. These ideas were combined with Arendt's to produce two types of pedagogy: labour and action. The latter is suggested as most helpful to Black male students, with its emphasis on agency for students and teachers; dialogue and coconstruction of knowledge; and creativity and diversity in the curriculum that values students' cultures, by both ethnicity and age. The conformity and accommodation demanded by a labour pedagogy, typified by the current technicist agenda, is unlikely to see many Black male students thrive. The importance placed on student-teacher relationships, at the heart of action pedagogy, will need teachers to pay as much attention to the values and attitudes that they convey towards young Black males as they might to the competences of their lesson plans and behaviour management strategies. Professional dialogue will be needed to help teachers handle the ambiguities of 'cool' adolescent behaviour and the call for care and encouragement in learning, but teachers and young Black male students can find creative paths to academic success and personal development through action pedagogy in UK secondary schools, where they have so often stumbled and failed along the way. Contents Abstract p. 2 Chapter 1: Introduction to issues of Pedagogy and Race P. 5 Chapter 2: Literature on Pedagogy and Black Students, and a Philosophical perspective p. Chapter 3: Methodology and Epistemology: The Action Research approach in this study p. 28 Chapter 4: The Research Group data-Presentation and Analysis p. 46 Chapter 5: 'Action Pedagogy' and Black Male Students p. Chapter 6: Conclusions p. Appendix: Transcript of one of the Research Group dialogues p. 102 References p. 108 An Educational Journey through the Doctorate in Education p. 114 Thanks and statement of authorship p. 120 9 and anguish. This was decried as unfair and even unprofessional, with some justification at times, yet there remained the likelihood that for the privileged professionals in a society that had systematically oppressed particular social groups, in this case identified by ethnicity, remedying injustice might have to cause some distress. I hope that professional educators can learn about improving the lives and learning of African-Caribbean male students without much pain, but change most certainly has to occur, and that is likely to be, at best, uncomfortable for many involved.
Teaching African History in Schools, 2020
London Review of Education, 2019
Educational discourses are inextricably tied into political debates, since education is such a un... more Educational discourses are inextricably tied into political debates, since education is such a universally prized and costly public merit good. The editors of this book of papers from the 2015 Third International Social Realism Symposium at the University of Cambridge present 13 eclectic pieces under the trinity of 'knowledge, curriculum and equity', a title charged with powerful tension in the UK context of 'knowledgerich' claims in Whitehall and attendant schools. The familiar trio of the New Labour Party leader and Prime Minister Tony Blair from 1996 onwards was, by contrast, a simplistic repetition of the one word 'education', tied to the achievement of all children rather than the 'few', but leaving nobody clear as to how the elusive equity was to be achieved in the complex school systems of the United Kingdom. The educational reforms of New Labour's 13 years of government did bring in a range of new structures, curriculum changes and injections of funding that did indeed see better outcomes in many schools for an increasing range of young people, but a strong backlash
Doing Justice to History challenges everyday racism in society and offers counter-stories to the ... more Doing Justice to History challenges everyday racism in society and offers counter-stories to the singular narratives that still prevail among national historians and in school curricula. It will be a key resource for the annual Black History Month in both the UK and the US. But the book's key purpose is to argue for deeper and long-lasting changes in historical studies and curricula so that history is taught in schools from an inclusive and global perspective. The contributors provide new insights into Black history at local, national and international levels. They discuss grassroots heroes, community activism, the Civil Rights movement in the US, British Somali history, and apartheid in South Africa. Their accounts of excellent practice offer teachers inspiration and guidance in presenting a broad view of history to history teachers across the world, and to students and teacher trainers committed to an inclusive view of history.