Alfie, Harlow Socialist Students
The percentage of pupils being placed in ‘internal exclusions’ has almost trebled from 5% to 13%, according to Arbor, the profit-making school management information system used by school staff to track student attendance, performance and sanctions. Internal exclusions are similar in practice to traditional suspensions, however students remain at school in separate isolation rooms, away from their peers. Students spend hours on their own doing work in solitary confinement, with no one to talk to, no teaching and bare walls to look at.
Over double the amount of students being placed in exclusion come from poorer backgrounds (22% compared to 10%); this demonstrates the social effect that poverty, and by extension the capitalist race to the bottom has on students and young people. Social services, youth clubs and other services are all facing further cuts by the Labour government, already decimated by over a decade of austerity. These cuts put young people in a situation where their needs are not being met, causing them to act out and be placed in exclusion.
The solution to this rise would be to increase the funding to both schools and youth services. With this funding, schools will be able to hire more teachers and teaching assistants to provide students with the support they need to learn and develop; decrease class sizes so more time can be spent on individual students; and raise existing teachers’ salaries to increase retention rates. Youth services will be able to support young people with their personal lives if necessary, and provide them with clubs and social groups to spend their spare time in and use their energy for something productive.
On 20 November Socialist Students is part of an international youth walkout to “Fight for our futures, not their wars”. When all the bosses’ politicians can offer us are education cuts, climate change, and a drive towards war and destruction, we are fighting back. If you want to get organised in your school, college or university, go to www.socialiststudents.org.uk
