When
Robert grows up, he wants to be a doctor. He's only
12, but the odds are already stacked against him.
This is because he's a boy - and because he's from
an African Caribbean background.
Black and mixed race boys of African Caribbean origin
are among the very lowest achieving groups in our school
system.
The gap starts to widen around Robert's age, and by
GCSE level this group has among the lowest results in
the country.
In 2005, for example, just 33.3% of these boys achieved
the equivalent of five A*-C grades at GCSE, compared
with 57% of the school population as a whole.
Most will never catch up. In many areas there are more
black men in prison than in higher education. But Robert
could be one of the lucky ones. Last year he took part
in a pioneering new project, boldly named Generating
Genius.
The privately-sponsored scheme is the brainchild of
Dr Tony Sewell, a high profile black academic who has
spent years studying academic performance in boys.
Advanced science
"My philosophy is: brighter, younger, longer,"
he said.
This means targeting the top pupils rather than those
who are struggling, catching them before the age when
achievement traditionally falls off and sticking with
them.
"With Generating Genius we're going to grow a
group of boys. Not for one year but for five years.
"That way we can begin to break the cycle of underachievement."
All this takes place in the University of the West
Indies (UWI) in Jamaica, where the British boys are
joined by 10 Jamaican boys of the same age for a month
over the summer.
Together they are taught advanced level science and
medicine while surrounded by what Tony calls "a
critical mass of positive black role models".
When the British group return, the hope is that their
sense of their own potential and their cultural identity
will be stronger, and that they will act as ambassadors,
catalysts for change within their communities.
Pushed hard
The idea is a grand one, but the reality is predictably
messier.
Dr Sewell has packed a lot into the month. Lectures,
lab work, cultural excursions. Inevitably, recreation
time sometimes get squeezed.
The boys all seem to be coping well, but they are being
pushed hard and there are grumbles.
"I don't think they're thinking about us emotionally,"
said Troy, who is from Hackney, East London.
"It's like they've never been kids!" agreed
Temar, who lives in Clarendon, on the south side of
Jamaica.
The classes present more teething troubles. The boys
watch a live heart surgery by video link-up, something
unlikely to be allowed in most British schools.
"Well, in Jamaica things are a bit different,"
said Dr Sewell, "and nothing has gone wrong so
far. But then, we've only done it once."
Antonio, from Kingston, finds it difficult.
"I have a weak stomach. I went outside and put
some water on my face and then I went back," he
said.
"I had to bear it, it's something I had to do.
But I wish I hadn't seen it."
Within half an hour, though, he is back to normal,
joking around with his 19 new friends.
'Unsustainable'
The scheme has attracted criticism. Some feel the policy
of targeting the best is elitist, some that the whole
approach is tantamount to segregation.
Toyin Agbetu is from Ligali, an organisation that challenges
the misrepresentation in the media of black or, as he
prefers to say, African people.
"It's unsustainable. We can't take thousands of
African children every year to Ghana, Trinidad, Jamaica,"
he said.
"And when these boys come home, all the issues
that they were facing are still here. So all that excellence
starts to unravel.
"We can't outsource our education system."
Gloria, whose son Ashley is part of the project, disagrees.
"You can't help but feel sorry for all the other
boys who can't go," she said.
"But Tony is trying to do something to help our
boys, so all praise to him."
She believes Ashley is benefiting enormously from the
project as he is now ahead in his studies and his teachers
are setting him extra projects to keep him challenged.
For the boys themselves, the experience has been hugely
rewarding.
Amanda Wladysiuk, a British teacher who has been helping
to looking after the boys in Jamaica, says Aaron is
a good example.
"He's very quiet, someone who'll just sit in the
corner and hope no one notices him.
"But over this month he's really come out of his
shell, it's been great to watch his confidence grow."
Tony Sewell agrees.
"Boys need to learn to stand up for themselves,
and that's what this experience has done for a lot of
them."
Robert has mixed feelings about leaving.
"It's been really good. I'll miss the Jamaican
boys because we've all got on really well. But I'm looking
forward to seeing my family at the airport."
As the boys pack up their belongings, scribble down
each other's e-mail addresses and say goodbye, Dr Sewell
is already looking to the future.
"I think we're giving them an experience they'll
treasure for the rest of their lives," he said.
"
"Twenty boys this year, but there's no reason
why it shouldn't be two hundred."
Robert and his friends should be able to return each
summer for the next four years, as long as the funding
is available.
Generating Genius was broadcast on Radio 4 at 1100BST
on Monday 10 July.
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