Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

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HappyRobot
Posts: 227
Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2012 12:02 am

Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by HappyRobot »

Hi there,
Still not decided what to put first out of CHB, KES Stratford and FW.
One thing I read on the Ofsted report is that at CHB over half the boys are from ethnic minorities.
Now does anyone know if the boys start to form cliques, eg the Chinese boys all hang out together, the Muslims, the Hindus etc or do they have all sorts of friends that they bring home and just muck in?
Sorry if this sounds like a stupid question, but it's on my mind.
Ta
um
Posts: 2378
Joined: Sat May 30, 2009 1:06 pm
Location: Birmingham

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by um »

You know the thing that continues to amaze me with CHB (I work with schools and I know that sadly in Birmingham, 'ethnic' cliques and racism are pretty widespread) is that they are incredibly inclusive and cohesive as a school.

I have two boys there, and we're a 'mixed' family so to be fair, some of my children look white and some look Asian. But all have Muslim names. I would have presumed my boys would gravitate toward fellow Muslims who use the prayer room perhaps, or even that they would be looked down on by some Asians for not knowing the language or culture. In fact my older son has, in other settings and at one Primary school, been told he isn't Muslim because he's white (duh!).

This is absolutely not the case at CHB . Remember. boys at CH are bright boys, and happily from my experience they seem to be bright enough to see beyond skin colour and background and really enjoy genuine friendships across all these boundaries.

I think that's a brilliant way to fully prepare boys for going out into the multi-cultural city and world that we live in. My boys are very fortunate to have good schoolfriends from Indian, Pakistani, English, American, Australian, Iranian and Chinese backgrounds. Probably some others too :D and certainly many children from mixed backgrounds.

I find the boys at CH to be respectful of each other's religions and cultures, and they certainly don't define each other by them.
UmSusu
Posts: 1015
Joined: Mon Feb 14, 2011 2:42 pm
Location: Birmingham

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by UmSusu »

Why would you assume that just because there are a significant number from ethnic minorities that there would be cliques? :?

Actually I think people from particular groups are more likely to stick together when they are much fewer number in numbers as for some children it gives them a sense of security to feel they can be themselves and talk about families, lifestyles etc without feeling self-conscious about being perceived as different. Logically, it also makes sense as they are much more likely to find things in common as they will understand things about each other better.

However, even so, it is not that clear-cut as it depends on each child and they rarely discount someone as a possible friend if they have lots in common just because of the colour of someone's skin UNLESS they have been brought up very badly (that goes for children from any racial / religious background) : DS1's ultimate criteria for friends has always been how much they like Dr Who or how likely he is to convert them to Dr Who :roll: . He has always
had a small but mainly White group of friends yet held proudly to his own background and confidently informs them about his ways - they all think he is eccentric anyway.

DS2 likes to fit in and be part of a group and I have noticed that even though asians only make up about a quarter of the children at his school the majority of his friends are Asian too - however it is a Catholic school so there are other dynamics too. Although if someone is very good at football that overrides anything else in terms of friendships.

I am not aware that there are such closed groups but even if you observe groups of friends all of the same colour that really is not a sign of anything that hints at segregation.

UmSusu
UmSusu
HappyRobot
Posts: 227
Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2012 12:02 am

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by HappyRobot »

thanks um and umsusu....informative and measured responses.

going on a trial run for the bus pick up tonight....but don't feel any closer to a decision.......gawd!
play
Posts: 42
Joined: Sat Oct 13, 2012 2:00 pm

Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by play »

UmSusu wrote:Why would you assume that just because there are a significant number from ethnic minorities that there would be cliques? :?
UmSusu
My son's primary school is now over 50% Asian. They form small cliques at school, but the cliques intermingle. After school friends are definately cliques. People may not like to post the truth, but the cliques are common in every tier of education.
I bet it does happen in CHB and it is the "ethnic" children who decide to form the groups. It is nothing to do with direct racism.
Racism would not be a problem in CHB. They are two different things.

Eg Muslims do not drink (in theory) so they don't often go on pub crawls. The pub is part of British culture. So you can see how they form. It is about common interests and way of life. That is not to say they do not integrate and mingle when they need to.
At University Asians formed cliques and swore and used racist comment at the others in their own languages. It annoyed me.

Please do not assume my race! All I will say I was not born in the UK!
reeyah
Posts: 530
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2011 1:14 am

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by reeyah »

Interesting post!

I tend to worry about these things too and am extremely glad that KEAS has a wonderful mix of children of all races and backgrounds. The majority are Asian ( approx 60%?) but the boys mix well. My DS is most fond of an Afro Caribbean boy at school. Ironically his last best friend was also of this ethnicity! He certainly doesn't care about colour or religion as long as the friend shares his sense of humour :lol:

Saying that I'm very glad they have prayer facilities for Muslims there and great food options. Hurrah for diversity!
UmSusu
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Joined: Mon Feb 14, 2011 2:42 pm
Location: Birmingham

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by UmSusu »

Oh okay, thank you for clearing that up play.

So if you have a school with a 50:50 mix where although they might intermingle at school, children of the same race tend to form friendship groups, then it is all the fault of the Asian half that they form groups? :? Yes that is a perfectly logical conclusion :shock:

Oh and at university it was only the Asians who were ever racist? Outrageous and offensive behaviour can come from any race and no one has suggested otherwise.

It is not that people don't like to post the truth, um and I have both made comments that suggest groups can be formed but the reasons are not always strictly about race per se as you point out.

And no, I will not presume your race because I don't care - a stupid point is a stupid point no matter which colour mouth it comes from!
UmSusu
reeyah
Posts: 530
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2011 1:14 am

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by reeyah »

Play your post is very confusing. You say your school is 50% Asian and the 'cliques intermingle' so where on earth are the cliques at school?! They are mingling so there isn't any.

Then you are assuming things about CHB. You mention 'after school' cliques. Are you sure they are not 'cousins' lolll :lol: ?

Edited only to add an apostrophe :wink:
Paramjeet
Posts: 228
Joined: Sun Mar 18, 2012 6:30 pm

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by Paramjeet »

there are no cliques at CHB as far as I know. If there are, so what, this may have happened through natural selection/coincidence rather than deliberately..remember they are 11-12 years old. An all boys school is less prone to 'issues' than a mixed school, lets face it, boys are not as complicated as girls.
DenDe
Posts: 390
Joined: Wed Jul 07, 2010 1:45 pm

Re: Do the boys form cliques at CHB?

Post by DenDe »

No cliques.
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