Goal: Develop a deeper understanding of approaches to addressing racism in your context.
My Positionality
These are my notes, and observation of Workshop 5+6 on ‘Racism’ that I attended at Chelsea College- Group 1 (I am from Group 4) on 3rd June 2024.
I must state my positionality on this subject as I initially was reserved in my engagement and oral contribution to this workshop session as I was not familiar with this group of fellow students and I was conscious of the sensitivity of the subject which may provoke reactions of a personal nature on colleagues, depending on how the workshop was delivered and the direction of the themes discussed (please refer to workshop 5&6 anti-racism in HE hand out) to encourage us to explore the social and political issues that race, colour, culture, politics and social structures interweave within our lives; how we face it within the context of education and how we challenge it when it manifests its self within a class lesson or to a student body.
I will also say that a 500-word limit is extremely restrictive to explore and discuss such a complex, sensitive subject within the confines of a blog. I will briefly summarize reading materials and how it affects my practice.
Racism in education
The reading material on racism was provocative, it created a starting point for deep discussions within my class group and serious reflection in how I must review my teaching skills and subject delivery to my students.
Wong B article (2020) ‘is race still relevant- strongly identifies major issues that people of colour face, especially in STEM higher education courses. His conclusion states that ‘we face racism in three positions. -Naive. Victim. Bystander’. The workshop questioned that we recognise these positions and caused me to reflect; Question: ‘do we have systems in place to confront racism’? Do I recognise the three positions that a student/s take within a class; do I recognise and address the issue when raised?
Bradbury A (2020) questions Critical Race Theories and tries to develop a structure to analysing education policy through the CRT lens. This questioned relationships between educational policies and racial disadvantages with racial minority groups. Question: How do I address and support students whose first language is not English? Are my assessment criteria fair and inclusive to all?
Garrett R (11 Feb 2024) Racism Shapes Careers-investigates how racial minorities doing a PhD in the UK (higher education) assesses how their future career paths will progress (similar intersections with Wong B (2020) article) and the experiences they will encounter within predominantly white organisations and institutes. How the lack of diversity may impact on their career decisions. The paper challenges us for diversification and encourages cultural prioritisation and recognition of their contribution to academia. Question: Do I offer mentoring to my students at Central Saint Martins as a supportive educational tool to aspire students for greater achievements in their chosen careers?
My Conclusion
Central Saint Martins do have policies and procedures in place to tackle racism through Anti-racism development workshop, Anti-racism e learning module. This is enforced with a UAL Anti-racism action plan with 10 main objectives and under pinned with Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team.
I have raised questions on my teaching practice within this blog that I will review. I will also look at teaching methods, quality of curriculum, teaching material and the content of subject and decolonizing the subject. Student inclusivity is extremely important and must be where possible maintained. I may apply ‘object learning’ as a teaching tool to face and tackle any racism or racist issues.
References
Wong B (2020): Is race still relevant? student perceptions and experiences of racism in higher education-Reham Elmorally, Maggie Copsey-Blake, Ellie Highwood, and Joy Singarayer.
Alice Bradbury (2020) A critical race theory framework for education policy analysis: the case of bilingual learners and assessment policy in England, Race Ethnicity and Education, 23:2, 241-260, DOI: 10.1080/13613324.2019.1599338 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2019.1599338
Rhianna Garrett (11 Feb 2024): Racism shapes careers: career trajectories and imagined futures of racialised minority PhDs in UK higher education, Globalisation, Societies and Education, DOI: 10.1080/14767724.2024.2307886 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2024.2307886
YouTube viewing material: ‘Heartbreaking Moment When Kids Learn About White Privilege | The School That Tried to End Racism’
YouTube viewing material: ‘Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. Learning how to get it right | Asif Sadiq | TEDxCroydon’
List of Authors on Racism in education and Critical Race Theories that was discussed during the workshop which I used for additional reference and understanding of the subject
This is supplementary information that I was not able add to my blog but wanted it noted that I did read and watch all the material offered about racism.
YouTube viewing material: ‘Heartbreaking Moment When Kids Learn About White Privilege | The School That Tried to End Racism’
Demonstrated an activity, using young secondary students to explore how society favours certain people. Which is often confused with white privilege and wealth. The main issue is the impact of having to live with the consequences of racism. This visual material was powerful to watch- clearly showing the disadvantages that racism causes. Leaving me with two haunting statements from one of the young students, I quote: ‘Henry, how you feeling being right at the very front? Feels quite weird because if you think about it, I think all of us should be at the same point, but sadly the questions, the ways that they were put didn’t favour some people which I think is quite unfair?
YouTube viewing material: ‘Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. Learning how to get it right | Asif Sadiq | TEDxCroydon’
Discussed at great depth, the awareness training of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in society and in the workplace environment. It challenges that we are not seeing progressive results or concrete positive changes when diversity training is delivered to the work force. Asif Sadiq challenges some the approaches that the diversity training offers; pointing out the inbuilt biases, stereotypes and assumptions in how people learn, and the learning material offered which can be narrow in scope and from a one-sided perspective i.e. the British Empire.
Hi Michael, thanks for sharing your summary, images and comments. I agree it is a challenge to respond to all the resources (4-5), the UAL data and our own teaching practice in 500 words. I find the tone in being concise becomes rather pragmatic instead of reflective, which seems to defeat the point of the exercise. 700 words would be more reasonable. I agree I found Henry’s comments in the Channel4 video clip haunting. I also comment on this in my blog as I found it perplexing how it highlighted the nature and quality of racism, how systemic and entangled it is. It was as if Henry did not recognise his own response in suggesting the questions are responsible for the outcome and changing them to relieve him of his discomfort and erase the visibility of what is so apparent that is hurting his friends. This seems like a very earnest answer yet also seems to resonate with the deep problem of how the privilege stay privileged – by changing questions to erase inequality. Yasi has also been sharing a good alternative to the critical race game called step inside the circle. I think you will find it very moving, as did I. I’m also interested in what you might think of a comment I made on Dayna’s race blog as I think it relates to Henry’s comment that is more complex than it initially appears.
Hi Michael,
Thank you for your blog post, it was really interesting to read and respond to.
I agree that race is a really sensitive subject and that 500 words is a short word count for responding to such an important theme.
In response to Wong’s (2020) article, it was interesting that you asked: ‘do we have systems in place to confront racism? Do I recognise the three positions that a student/s take within a class; do I recognise and address the issue when raised?’ It feels as if there are, institutionally-speaking, inadequate systems in place to confront racism but the PGCert by asking us to engage with intersectionality, discrimination and racism directly, wants each of us to challenge these things directly in our teaching on an individual basis, which is valuable. The more lecturers who take this perspective, the greater the potential for systemic change. The three positions raised by Wong highlighted the different perspectives of students on racism which pointed starkly to the need for education on structural racism in schools.
When thinking of Bradbury’s points (2020) when Michael asks, ‘how do I address and support students whose first language is not English? Are my assessment criteria fair and inclusive to all?’ he is reflecting critically on his own teaching in a way that relates to my own work with international students. I have asked myself similar questions – how can my teaching of international students with English as a second language be as accessible as possible? Are the most critical forms of teaching, such as discursive, reflective, critical pedagogy, likely to exclude students for whom speaking English might be more challenging?
When reflecting on Garrett R’s points (11 Feb 2024), especially ‘how the lack of diversity may impact on their [PhD students’] career decisions.’ Michael states how, ‘the paper challenges us for diversification and encourages cultural prioritisation and recognition of their contribution to academia’. Thinking of PhD students and the small numbers of Professors of colour in the UK, for instance, the potential for PhD students of colour to feel excluded or marginalised is really high. Changes should be made to the environment, culture and approach to teaching PhD’s to make them properly inclusive rather than institutionally white-dominated as they currently are.
Michael is right to point out the Anti-racism training at CSM and other training and anti-racist objectives. What more can be done? Student anti-racism training seems a key aim and a larger endeavour to question and meaningfully change the structural racism inherent to Universities would be valuable. For me, the UAL anti-racism action plan lacks a set of larger aims that are aimed at structural and institutional change.
Best wishes,
Sid
Dear Sidney,
Thank you for your comments on my racism blog. I do pose a lot of questions in how we engage with racism at CSM and what systems we have in place to support students.
But I believe you have pin pointed the core issue that is a major flaw when it comes to anti-racism training; that the target should be at the structural and institutional systems that maintain these harmful practices.
You are right to end your comments on my blog with that last paragraph-because if we can resolve the structural and institutional racist attitudes in education; most of the above statements in my blog in some way will be resolved.
Many thanks for highlighting that point
Regards
Michael