the themes of the novel 

To
Sir, with Love by E. R.
The main themes of To Sir, with Love are education and racial
prejudice. While Braithwaite overcomes the obstacles in his path, a
critical reader might view his approach as somewhat egocentric,
considering social problems as solved if he is able to stop them from
affecting him personally.
One of the themes of the novel is the power of education. At the
run-down East End school where Braithwaite finds a job as a
teacher, the dead-end kids have effectively been written off by
society. They are required to attend school simply in order to keep
them off the streets for a few hours each day. The thought of their
actually learning anything and going on to do something with their
lives simply doesn't spring to mind for those in charge of their
education.