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Black History Month: Perpetuating or celebrating difference?

Posted: 10th October 2024

Lilian Bader RAF – sketch by Y6

 

October is here and, like many schools across the country, we at Elmhurst – a South London independent prep school with a diverse community – are celebrating Black History through assemblies, stories, poetry and displays.

Every year, we reflect and engage with parents and pupils about how to get the balance right and ensure all our families feel seen, celebrated and respected. Every year, the same question is mooted: Why Black History month? Why October?

It could be due to the fact that it was first organised and celebrated by Ghanaian analyst Akyaaba Addai-Sebo in October 1987. The USA and Canada host their celebrations in February, whilst Australia celebrates in July.

However, the questions posed are not about disrespect but rather genuine reflections on the potentially limiting consequences of such a focus. For example, increasing numbers of schools have moved to a two-week half-term in October – so it is actually only a fortnight rather than a month of in-school celebration.

At Elmhurst, several years ago, we took significant steps to ensure our curriculum – including core texts and topics – was informative, empowering and reflective of our diverse community. However, is putting the focus on Black History into a two-week block in a school year negatively impacting those efforts to improve the diversity of our overall curriculum?

There is also the question of perpetuating and delineating differences. As one of our Elmhurst parents, and co-author of this piece, recently keenly pointed out, “Black history month should be scrapped (as we don’t have Indian, Chinese or Jewish months) … in favour of a more normal place in the curriculum.”

The positive force for change that Black History month represents to challenge any inadequacies of the National Curriculum must be a good thing. As educators, we are taught to be constantly reflective and I, for one, welcome the challenge and debate that is being promoted through this time of year. 

We will continue to listen and respond to ensure every single member of our community feels valued: each child needs to know their worth and value to reach their full potential. One-sided history lessons tend to have the opposite effect. 

As an independent school, we are fortunate not to be constrained by the limitations of the National Curriculum. How interesting would it be if children’s learning across the country was enriched with broader perspectives? Children could discover richer cultural influences – for example from the Moors, who were rulers, kings, queens, educators, travellers for many centuries. 

In more modern history, children often learn about the contributions to our society by Jamaican-born British nurse and business woman Marie Seacole. Could they also discover the outstanding impacts of Joseph Bologne – the celebrated French composer? How about Garrett Morgan, inventor of the traffic light; Federick Mckinley Jones and the refrigerated truck; Alexander Miles for automatic elevator doors; Lewis Latimer for the carbon light bulb filament; Dame Elizabeth Anionwu for her groundbreaking contributions in sickle cell for the NHS; or present day Dr. Nira Chamberlain, a mathematical modeller for defence, aerospace and energy sectors in the UK? 

Mrs Sara Marriott, Head, and Mr Everton Stuart, current Elmhurst parent  

Categories: News
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