Schools’ Positive Role in Promoting Racial Equality促進種族平等，學校積極作為

萊拉·莫蘭

From curricula to leadership， we need to transform the experience of education.從課程安排到管理層面，我們需要變革教育體驗。

The Black Lives Matter campaign has thrown a long-overdue， and much needed， spotlight on the racial inequalities in our school system.

As a former teacher， I firmly believe in the transformative power of education. At its best， it enhances the lives of individuals and improves our wider society. So， the changes I want to see to our curriculum are not just important because they will broaden students understanding of history or help them appreciate more varied literature， although these benefits are， in themselves， incredibly important. I also believe that starting in our schools is crucial if we are going to unpick the systemic racism and other inequalities which are still all too pervasive in our country.

Research published by the Guardian earlier this summer showed that only 11 per cent of GCSE students were studying a module which referred to black peoples contribution to Britain， and fewer than one in ten were learning about the empire. The English curriculum offered by exam board AQA includes only five texts by Black， Asian and other Ethnic Minority authors， out of a total of 54， despite calls to increase diversity in recent years.

The Impact of Omission campaign， which has done research into the impact of leaving out elements of our nations history from what young people are taught at school， has published powerful testimonies. It quotes one survey respondent who said： “I hated history in school…[which] entirely skirt[ed] around everything which would have been important for me to know in my adult life… I deeply resent the quality of my history education.”

This is a young person who has been unforgivably let down by our education system and there will be millions of others who have felt the same. I cannot imagine how the government can fail to recognise how urgent and how vital this change is. It is incredibly disappointing that the schools minister has turned down calls for a review. I for one will not stop fighting for this change， and I know that determined activists who are driving the campaign will not give up this fight either.

Making these reforms to the curriculum and exams could be relatively straight forward， if only the government would agree. What would come next， in terms of embedding changes into the ethos and day-to-day running of schools， is perhaps the bigger challenge.

The Diversity Reform Initiative， an organisation that campaigns on racial inequality， miseducation and disadvantages within the education system， makes a number of practical recommendations for what should be done， alongside changes to the curriculum.

Among the important steps it has called for is “more racially inclusive teacher training which will allow for teachers to be better educated and sensitive to racial differences between students and trained on how to manage these differences.”

Teacher training is currently insufficiently diverse and does not prepare teachers for subjects that are at present unfamiliar. Making initial teacher training more racially inclusive by helping teachers to be sensitive to cultural differences， to avoid instigating microaggressions and to be confident to call out racism， is an important first step.

The Diversity Reform Initiative also recommends making “sociology， pol-itics and psychology accessible from a younger age to educate children on the society， communities， and institutional oppression.” Giving children the skills and resilience to identify， confront and overcome prejudice， discrimination and institutional racism is such an important role that schools can play. We need to weave positive messages of equality， inclusivity， and empowerment into everything we teach young people.

We must also do much more to increase the diversity of the teaching workforce， particularly in senior leadership roles. Currently more than nine in ten school headteachers are white and this needs to change.

By discussing a wider range of historical perspectives， we can give the next generation more chance of understanding the issues around racial inequality which still impact us today. As another participant in the Impact of Omission research noted： “Its vital to further educate children in primary and secondary school about the impacts of what black people face due to our barbaric ancestors. How its now deeply embedded in our society to view black people differently and how to this day is having fatal repercussions.”

With greater knowledge we can begin to understand areas of our recent history too. Both our failings as a society， such as the disgraceful treatment of the Windrush generation1， but also the overwhelmingly positive contribution black people and people of all ethnicities have made to our society in all aspects of life.

None of what I have described here is a new problem， and I am far from the first person to call for these changes. But I sincerely hope that the powerful protests and the phenomenal surge of activism in recent months will be the real wake-up call our society so desperately needs. Sadly， our education system—from Whitehall down to individual schools—is no exception. Tough questions need to be asked and real action needs to be taken.

But， if done right， our schools can be a driving force for genuine， positive change for generations to come.

“黑人的命也是命”運動已使人們開始關注我們學校體系中存在的種族不平等問題，這種關注是迫切所需，早該到來。

曾經身為教師的我，堅信教育有能力帶來變革。若充分發揮其作用，它能夠改變個人生活，并帶來更廣泛的社會進步。我期待的課程改革之所以重要，不僅是因為它們將拓展學生對歷史的理解，或幫助他們學會欣賞更多元的文學作品，盡管這些方面本身也極為重要。我還相信，如果要消除我們國家仍然普遍存在的系統性種族主義及其他不平等現象，從學校開始至關重要。

《衛報》今年夏天早些時候發表的一項研究顯示，只有11%的英國初中畢業生學到過關于黑人對英國的貢獻的知識模塊，而只有不到十分之一的學生學到過有關大英帝國的歷史。盡管近年來人們呼吁增加多樣性，但是在英國資格評估與認證聯合會提供的共由54篇課文構成的英語課程中，只有5篇的作者為黑人、亞裔和其他少數民族。

在年輕人的在校教育中，忽略了我們國家某些方面的歷史，對于由此造成的影響，“不作為的影響”運動進行了研究，并發表了有力的證據。它引述了一位受訪者的話：“我討厭學校的歷史課……（它）完全繞開了對我成年后的生活起重要作用的一切內容……我對自己所受歷史教育的質量深感不滿。”

我們的教育體系不可饒恕地辜負了這個年輕人，還有數以百萬計的人也會有同樣的感受。我無法想象，政府怎么會認識不到這一改革的緊迫性和重要性？令人極度失望的是，教育部長拒絕了對現有課程進行審查的呼吁。拿我來說，我不會停止為這一改革而斗爭，我知道，那些下定決心推動這場運動的積極分子們也不會放棄斗爭。

只要政府同意，對課程和考試進行上述改革就會相對簡單。接下來要做的，是將變革融入學校的風氣和日常運營中，這或許是更大的挑戰。

“多元化改革倡議”是一個針對教育體系內種族不平等、不當教育和不利因素開展活動的組織。除了改革課程外，該組織還就需要采取的其他措施提出一些切實可行的建議。

它呼吁采取的重要步驟包括“更具種族包容性的教師培訓，這將使教師受到更好的教育，使他們對學生之間的種族差異感覺靈敏，教會他們如何管理這些差異。”

教師培訓目前不夠多元化，沒有讓教師做好準備來應對當前還不熟悉的主題。通過幫助教師對文化差異保持敏感、避免引起微歧視，并自信地指出種族主義的問題，讓初期教師培訓更具種族包容性是重要的第一步，具體方式可以包括幫助教師保持對文化差異的敏感、避免挑起微攻擊，以及理直氣壯地呼吁人們警惕種族主義問題。。

“多元化改革倡議”還建議“讓兒童從小有機會接受社會學、政治學和心理學教育，了解社會、社區和體制性壓迫”。給予兒童一定的技能和適應能力，讓他們在面對偏見、歧視和體制性種族主義時能加以識別、對抗及克服，學校在這方面能發揮重要作用。我們需要將有關平等、包容和賦權的正面信息，融入我們教給年輕人的每一件事中。

我們必須采取更多行動來促進教師隊伍的多元化，特別是高級領導崗位的多元化。目前，超過百分之九十的校長是白人，這需要改變。

通過討論更廣泛的歷史觀點，我們可以讓下一代有更多的機會了解與種族不平等相關的問題，這些問題至今仍然影響著我們。正如另一位參與“不作為的影響”研究的人所指出的：“要進一步讓中小學的孩子們了解，由于我們祖先的野蠻行為，黑人所面臨的種種影響，這一點至關重要。要讓他們了解，對黑人的歧視現在是如何深深地植根于我們的社會并且時至今日仍在產生致命惡果的。”

有了更多的知識，我們就可以開始了解我們近代史的某些方面。既有我們作為一個社會的缺陷，例如“疾風一代”遭遇的恥辱待遇，也有黑人和其他各族人民在生活的各個方面對我們社會做出的大量積極貢獻。

我在這里描述的問題都不是剛剛出現的，我也絕非第一個呼吁進行改革的人。但我真誠地希望，近幾個月來有力的抗議活動和驚人的激進主義浪潮，將真正敲響我們社會迫切需要的警鐘。可悲的是，我們的整個教育體系——上至白廳下至各個學校——都需要改革。我們需要對此提出尖銳的問題并采取真正的行動。

但是，如果措施得當，我們的學校可以成為推動未來幾代人真正積極變革的力量。