"Poor White Children's Parents Are To Blame For Their Poor Academic Performance"
10 October 2017, 11:55
Responding to a government report identifying poor white children as the worst performing demographic in primary school, a teacher for nearly 40 years says their parents must accept some of the blame.
The Prime Minister has vowed to challenge how public services treat people of different ethnicities.
The government's racial disparity audit, published today, reveals deeply ingrained differences between races.
One of its findings is that among the poorest adolescents in the country, white children perform the worst at school.
Among that demographic, just 32 per cent reach the expected standard of reading, writing and maths at age 11.
Liz, a former teacher for nearly 40 years, made it clear she believed the difference was in the children's home life.
She said: "Some parents think it begins and ends at the school gate, so the kids go home with a reading book but it's not read at home.
"If you're poor and white indigenous in this country, for generations your family hasn't really made headway, has it?
"Because there have been lots of opportunities for your family to progress and they haven't, so the failure is a long one maybe.
"And it might be to do with attitude, quite often those families are disordered. It may be because of drink or drugs and the child is getting themselves to school and doing the best they can.
"Don't forget that exam results are a very partial picture of the progress a child may or may not be making in school."
Watch the full clip above.
