At Archbishop Tenison's at the Oval, three out of four African-Caribbean boys got five good GCSEs last year.

The average in England for children of African-Caribbean origin was that just 30% got five good GCSEs.

For white students, the average was 51%.

Brian Jones, the head teacher at Archbishop Tenison's says it is all down to school ethos and aspiration.

"We've got high expectations of them and expect them to work to the best of their ability and the vast majority of them do," he said.

The school, which has Beacon status, aims to make the curriculum relevant to its pupils, with teachers discussing the involvement of black people in different subjects.

There are also extra classes for children who fall behind.

Girls at St. Martins-in-the-Fields do well

At St. Martin-in-the-Fields, a girls' school in south London, teachers also have high expectations of pupils.

They say this, together with good discipline and support from parents helps pupils succeed.

Head teacher Lesley Morrison is part of a national strategy group looking at under-achievement.

She says there are many sides to the long-standing problem.

"It is perhaps that the community and the schools have not worked together enough and we have not embraced the fact that there is some institutional racism," she said.

"We need to look at our practices to see whether we can put things right."

The schools' pupils seem motivated to achieve.

We want our pupils to fly and they do fly Lesley Morrison, head teacher

Danielle, 16, said: "Everybody gets the same amount of support, as long as you are willing to accept it, then you should do well".

Helina, 16, said many girls had a lot of encouragement from their families.

"A lot of Asian families come over to England from backgrounds where they have not had education themselves so they just want their children to do well," she said.

Community support

Head teacher Lesley Morrison thinks expectation is crucial.

"We have an ethos which values all our individuals. It places emphasis on high expectation and the fact that if our pupils believe they can do it, they can.

"We want our pupils to fly and they do fly."

In areas where children of black Caribbean origin are not doing so well, there are calls for a wide-ranging, community based approach.

Educational consultant Dr Tony Sewell agrees aspirations are important and says both schools and the black community need to do more.

"There is an issue around the expectation of some schools and teachers, particularly the leadership, and understanding the needs of those students," he said.

"But I also think there are factors around the aspiration of students, around the parental contribution, community support and peer pressure."