Traveller culture and lifestyle as factors influencing children's integration into mainstream secondary schools in West Belfast

Fight, flight and playing white: An examination of coping strategies adopted by Gypsy Traveller Adolescents in English secondary schools

“…A similar argument was proposed by Nicholls, Crowley, and Watt (1996) in relation to high drop-out rates and levels of disaffection amongst aboriginal students in Australian high schools. Contrary to popular perceptions, but in keeping with findings by Reynolds et al (2003) this study found that young Gypsy Travellers and their parents (at the outset of the project at least) viewed secondary education positively. Interviews conducted a few weeks prior to transfer and again after the first year of secondary school revealed a true sense of optimism and enthusiasm in the majority of cases, although as previously mentioned, the child's perceived emotional and psychosocial state of health took precedence over educational aspirations or attainment.…”

“…Culturally located expectations and influences, traditional values and belief systems and clearly defined gender roles are often used to explain why so many Gypsy Travellers leave school well before the statutory leaving age (Clay, 1999;Kiddle, 1999;O'Hanlon & Holmes, 2004;Reynolds, McCartan, & Knipe, 2003). Cultural pull factors were identified in the present study and were also associated with early drop-out.…”

“…Allied to this, priorities associated with the maintenance of family-based learning and traditional patterns of practical self-employment are weighed against a perceived irrelevance of a Gauje secondary education, with its emphasis on gaining academic qualifications as a prerequisite for further or higher education and professional employment (Bhopal, 2004;Reynolds et al, 2003). Although a number of the parents articulated high aspirations for their sons and daughters, vocational skills were given a greater priority by most and the achievement of a functional level of literacy was, in their view, the determining factor of a 'good' education.…”

Improving the Outcomes for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Pupils: Final Report

“…Data from the same study indicated Year 8 to be a particularly vulnerable time in terms of retention and suggested that boys were proportionately more likely than girls to drop out of school early. Whilst several commentators have identified cultural influences that might encourage young Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people to leave school early (Reynolds et al, 2003;Padfield, 2005;Levinson and Sparkes, 2006;Lloyd and McCluskey, 2008), Derrington and Kendall (ibid) concluded that psycho-social factors (affecting the pupils' emotional well-being) could be more important than cultural 'pull' factors in ensuring continued engagement.…”

“…Day-to-day attendance is regarded as problematic throughout the literature and as Lloyd et al (1999) and Derrington and Kendall (2004) point out, this applies to housed or otherwise settled Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils, as well as those that maintain a mobile lifestyle. Persistent absenteeism has been found to lead to incremental discontinuity in terms of academic attainment which, in turn, can lead to further absence and disaffection (Reynolds et al, 2003).…”