Do black males need to be segregated in education?

Some believe that black males would do better academically if they were separated from other students:

Trevor Phillips, head of the Commission for Racial Equality, had questioned whether black boys would benefit from being taught in this way.

But the Department for Education and Skills says such separation would have "negative effects" and risked "stigmatising" black pupils.

Head teachers had questioned the legality of racially-divided lessons.

Mr Phillips has been examining a scheme in the United States in which some black pupils are taught separately for some lessons, in an attempt to raise their achievement.

In England, only 36% of Black Caribbean pupils got five or more good GCSEs last year, considerably below the national average of 52%. Black Caribbean pupils are also three times more likely than white pupils to be excluded.

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