Ms Terra Glowach, Terra.Glowach@uwe.ac.uk.
On Friday 23 June, the South-West Anti Racist Education Forum (SWAREF) 2023 was hosted with the shared aim of addressing racial inequalities in schools through a powerful collaboration between the University of Bristol and UWE, including academics, educators, and civil society organisations. This one-day, in-person event aimed at primary and secondary schools included a mix of presentations and workshops, with contributions from school leaders, education researchers, and organisations representing underserved communities in the city. There were over 70 participants at this event, including teachers, school leaders, DEI leads, PGCE students, academics, and representatives from civil society organisations and Bristol Council, as well as a group of headteachers from Redbridge in London. The event was made possible through support from Research England through the Enhancing Research Culture Fund.
This collaborative reflection of the SWAREF is from the perspectives of a family support manager, a Maths PGCE student and an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion lead, all working in secondary schools across Bristol. These reflections have been inspired by the voices of the forum, which included a panel on anti-racist school leadership, presentations from a Gypsy, Roma and Traveller family support team and Somali students, workshops on anti-racist projects across primary and secondary phases, and a playback theatre performance by Breathing Fire, which explored the attendees’ stories of racism in schools. Central to the reflections from the SWAREF 2023 is the importance of collaboration and how this could achieve greater recruitment of teachers of colour into the profession and cultivate safe and representative learning environments for staff and students in education.
Azmina Mitha (Family Support Manager)
I felt empowered and inspired to be in a room surrounded by passionate educators that actively challenge racism within the city I live in. The compelling panellists’ discussions gave me the confidence and encouragement to strive to challenge the ongoing racism that students and families face. One key aspect of change that I want to introduce to my school is a simple but effective tool for genuine impact within a secondary education setting: student and parent voice. Utilised appropriately, student/parent voice could identify specific areas for improvement and act as a springboard for educators and school leaders to commit to transformation. There is a need for schools to be proactive in consulting students and families to implement meaningful change, especially for the EAL families who struggle to speak English. Schools need to ensure that they have bilingual staff that the families can identify with, coupled with translated accessible materials. Only once there is correct representation, can it impact school policies successfully.
Additionally, there is a need to introduce solution tailored CPD training in our schools which can be done successfully by reaching out to our local community organisations for support. Working in partnership with community experts and by inviting local role models of colour for students throughout the year is key for student confidence and successful community cohesion.
Joram Wamagui (PGCE Maths student)
Before attending the forum, my expectations were centred on promoting inclusivity in schools and addressing the impact of colonisation on learning. I anticipated discussions that would identify and challenge these issues. I gained new perspectives on addressing racism, stereotypes, and systematic discrimination from the torrent of discussions I engaged with during the forum. I learned the importance of understanding historical events like The Bristol Bus Boycott of 1963 to confront racism effectively in schools and society. I also recognised the need for more training to identify and combat discrimination, especially for novice teachers like me. While looking forward to future CPD sessions on this topic, I will use diverse success stories on dealing with racism from educators as a starting point. The most surprising aspect was the power of having an open and safe environment to discuss uncomfortable issues on racism. Creating such an atmosphere in the classroom makes educators more approachable, simplifying the process of dealing with racism-related matters. The forum taught me that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to tackling racism. Instead, there are various approaches we could try. In conclusion, the well-organised forum exceeded my expectations, broadening my understanding and motivating me to foster an inclusive and anti-racist culture in education.
Helena Lacey (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead)
With collaboration front and centre, the Southwest Anti-Racist Education Forum stimulated a wealth of ideas and discussion for EDI leads to disseminate within their schools. As an EDI lead, I recognise the boundless potential for collaboration within school settings, with students and across the community. However, there is a greater space for collaboration between primary and secondary schools. During discussions, questions were raised around the missed opportunities within the transition from primary to secondary education. With a view of increasing the recruitment of teachers of colour into the profession, it is key that safe, anti-racist learning environments are cultivated from an early year’s education. This could look like a representative early years curriculum, with an onus on enabling young people to understand the cultural experiences of their peers. More work could be done by EDI leads to share and support the exchange of knowledge, resources and align anti-racist practices and priorities. This could be particularly effective if facilitated through existing networks such as local areas, feeder schools or in trust settings. Educators are responsible for growing the teachers of tomorrow. Undoubtedly these changes are long term. In order to begin working towards these aims, I feel inspired to begin discussions with the primary schools within my schools trust and explore how we could align our EDI approaches.
Conclusion
Opening channels of communication across communities, phases and institutions for the purpose of collaboration has been a central focus of SWAREF 2022 and 2023. The reflections presented here begin to illustrate the impact of the forum on a wide range of education professionals in Bristol and the SW, as well as their own commitment to extend and strengthen anti-racist practice in their settings and communities. We look forward to showcasing this work and more best practice from diverse vantage points across the South West in SWAREF 2024.
Ms Terra Glowach
Senior Lecturer in Secondary English Education
Terra.Glowach@uwe.ac.uk.
