ABSTRACT
School exclusion has been much examined in recent years by researchers and policy-makers and has been the subject of numerous policy initiatives. This is not surprising: with over 12,000 pupils permanently excluded from schools in England during each of the last two academic years, compared to just 3,000 in 1990-91 (see Chapter 1), explanations have been sought for the propensity of head teachers to use with considerably greater frequency than in the past the most severe disciplinary sanction open to the teaching profession as a whole. Moreover, as the costs of exclusion have become better understood, so means of reversing the trend have been sought. Renewed impetus has resulted from the present government’s preoccupation with raising school standards and all pupils’ levels of achievement, especially in the case of those from disadvantaged backgrounds who have traditionally under-achieved in educational terms and who are more at risk of exclusion than others. These groups include black (especially African-Caribbean) children, those with unstable and economically disadvantaged backgrounds and children with special educational needs.
