Over the last two weeks, as part of the school’s celebration of Black History Month, boys have been focusing on the history, achievements, and contributions of black people in the UK and around the world.
In assemblies and in lessons across all subjects, boys have celebrated diversity and inclusion and, equally importantly, have been provided with opportunities to discuss and understand race and equality issues. For example, in art, boys have created artwork celebrating famous black individuals from history. Mathematics lessons have explored black women in mathematics, including the brilliant African American women working at NASA in the 1960s. In science, boys have learned about Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, the space scientist, science communicator and presenter of the BBC’s The Sky at Night. In Music, boys have studied the origins of Blues and Jazz And much, much more.
We joined our Y7 and Y8 boys as they explored identity in English, reading Noughts and Crosses by the much-loved black author and former Children’s Laureate, Mallorie Blackman. Her book, which provides an alternative history postulating a world in which the supercontinent Pangaea never broke up, leading to African nations gaining the evolutionary and geo-political advantage – and ultimately, control – over Europeans, offered the boys an opportunity to view the world through a non-white lens. The story, in which rules are reversed, opened up many thought-provoking conversations on identity and why we need greater representation, which the boys then developed in essays and word cloud designs.
In History, Y5 boys explored the ‘Lost’ ancient civilisation of Great Zimbabwe and the indigenous Shona people (*read more below). During their lessons, the boys learned about this incredible and much disputed ancient ruin – from the white people who tried to claim it to the proud place it holds today as a source of national pride for the African people of Zimbabwe. The boys explored the similarities and celebrated the differences between Great Zimbabwe and British medieval castles, before creating their own great civilisations based on Great Zimbabwe from Lego.
Black History Month has undoubtedly provided an important focus on diversity and inclusivity, sparked many conversations about the effects of racism and how to challenge negative stereotypes, and given boys the opportunity to share, celebrate and understand the impact of black heritage and culture. These are valued lessons and conversations, which, while they may come to the fore this month, carry on across the curriculum throughout the year as we look to redress the balance and make black history an integral part of every Bedford boy’s education.
*About Great Zimbabwe
The ruins of Great Zimbabwe, a medieval stone city of astounding wealth, are the second-largest settlement ruins in Africa. Still, Great Zimbabwe’s history is controversial, defined by decades of dispute about who built it and why. During the European colonisation of Africa, the colonial officials claimed that the ruins could not be of African origin. Even in later years, when archaeology provided clear evidence that indigenous peoples built great Zimbabwe, the country’s white minority colonial government sought to discredit the theory as it challenged the legitimacy of their rule. Instead, they encouraged historians to produce accounts that disputed the city’s African origins. In the end, mounting evidence identifying Great Zimbabwe as an African city built by Africans, the colonial government reached a stage where they could no longer deny its heritage. Today, the ruins of Great Zimbabwe are a source of national pride and cultural value and feature on the Zimbabwean flag.