KES Response to Open Letter

On the 12th June, King Edward’s released a Statement on Anti-Racism in the light of recent events, protests and discussion in the USA, UK and around the world. Although not a response to that statement, we have since then, on the 16th June, received an open letter, signed by over 400 past and current members of our community, who have come together to ask that KES, along with other schools, plays its part in helping to tackle systemic racism and prejudice within society whilst also actively promoting equality and diversity.

As we hope our statement made clear, this is something to which we remain passionately committed. We are pleased that this was acknowledged in the open letter and are also grateful for the suggestions included as to how we can continue to do this and to do it better in the future. Ensuring that our curriculum is balanced, diverse and challenging and that it supports the goals outlined above is essential. Promoting inclusion, fairness and mutual respect must remain at the heart of our ethos. Reflecting on how we operate as a school and reviewing policies, structures and processes to ensure that all members of our community feel equally welcome and valued is integral to achieving these aims. A careful focus on training, consultation and wider discussion will be a central principle in guiding our next steps, and listening to those voices who feel, or who have felt, unheard is vital in order to learn and progress. We agree that there can be no room for complacency in our collective approach.

The KES Equality and Diversity Committee announced last week will help to support and achieve the aims described above and to take forward the suggestions in the open letter. Many of our academic departments are already reviewing their curriculum offering and considering changes where appropriate, in addition to changes already made in recent years, and this will extend to all areas of the School in the coming weeks and months. As noted in the open letter, the curriculum at GCSE and A Level can be prescriptive in certain elements, however there is often a degree of flexibility and choice within some of the topics that can be studied, as well as a more fluid approach at Key Stage 3. With this in mind, and with reference to the points in the open letter regarding curriculum balance, breadth and perspective, we thought that it would be helpful to set out our current approach and coverage in some of the main subject areas mentioned. This is, of course, only a starting point; we know that we can and must do more to reflect diversity within our curriculum and in many more subjects than those listed below.

In our Year 8 and 9 History curriculum, pupils study and analyse how and why the British Empire grew, how slavery started and its role in that expansion, as well as in industrialisation at home, the slave experience, the triangular trade, the British abolition movement and the African American Civil Rights movement. Pupils learn about the colonisation of Africa, India and the Americas, as well as the colonisation of the British Isles by others. A historiographical study of Christopher Columbus leads on to a consideration of the evils of empire and how history can be written to cover up or glorify tragic misdeeds. This in turn leads on to a lesson looking at whether or not modern societies still view themselves as superior and practise imperialism. Much of the context of the Year 8 and 9 programme is to link historical roots to the current day and to question how far the modern values to which we aspire today were present in the past. A Year 9 focus on the Holocaust ties in with study of this vitally important topic in RS, PSHE and through assemblies and asks the fundamental question ‘how was it possible for this to happen?’ The GCSE course currently offers less scope to develop most of the topics above, however at A Level pupils again study the role of the slave trade in the growth of the British Empire and the impact of colonisation in India, Egypt, Sudan and Australia. The Holocaust is currently the coursework option that our pupils study. 

Our English department is currently reviewing the Year 8 and 9 poetry options, with ‘Poetry From Around The World’ under consideration as a new anthology. The themes of anti-Semitism and racial discrimination are central to the pupils’ study and understanding of ‘The Merchant of Venice’ (Year 8) and ‘Of Mice and Men’ (Year 9), whilst in our IGCSE curriculum pupils study the poetry of Maya Angelou, Mervyn Morris, Sujata Bhatt, Robert Hayden and Dennis Scott. Recent lessons in our pre A-Level course have focused on works by Terrance Hayes and Rupi Kaur.

The RS curriculum in Year 7 looks at the historical roots of anti-Semitism and the persecution of Jewish groups during both medieval and modern times, whilst as part of their study of the Holocaust in Year 9 pupils are taken off timetable for a day, during which they meet and listen to a Holocaust survivor and learn more about discrimination and the nature of prejudice. These lessons lead into wider discussion and analysis, including through the Ethics focus of the non-GCSE course, of racial discrimination and segregation through a study of the oppression of the Aboriginal peoples in Australia and the impact and legacies of, amongst others, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Steve Biko and Malcolm X. 

We are fortunate to be able to provide specialist Art teaching across all three sections of the School, and our aim throughout is to prompt discussion and debate and to encourage pupils to explore their own ideas within a wide range of cultural and historical contexts, referencing past and contemporary practitioners as appropriate and encompassing, amongst other topics, identity, relationships, graffiti and urban art, climate, protest, fashion, sport and different world cultures. The annual 6th Form Art and Photography trip aims to explore and develop this cultural and contextual approach and to broaden horizons.

Our PSHE programme offers a wide range of opportunities to study, discuss and understand a range of important topics, including British values, diversity, equality, prejudice, discrimination and stereotyping. Lessons look at protected characteristics, individual liberties, rights and responsibilities and the role of democracy and law within our society. In recent weeks, PSHE lessons and assemblies have focused on the death of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter campaign, the Bristol Bus Boycott, the Windrush scandal, the importance of challenging racist language, attitudes and actions and how groups and individuals can make a positive difference in society. This week’s Socrates Club debate addressed the challenge of how a modern society should face up to its history of slavery. 

It is, of course, vital that pupils are encouraged to reflect on questions of inclusion and diversity from an early age. Our Pre-Prep pupils are introduced to Art, Music and Dance from around the world and to different cultures through RS, Geography and History. Our staff learn about each child’s cultural and family background through home visits when a pupil first joins the School, and parents often lead assemblies to reflect these varied backgrounds, including in recent years celebrating Diwali, Holi, the Chinese Moon Festival, Chinese New Year, Kuwaiti Day and Japanese Children’s Day. The ‘Sporting Heroes’ topic focuses on Usain Bolt, Mo Farah, Denise Lewis and Serena Williams, whilst there are plans in Science and Humanities next year to study the environmental campaigner, Wangari Maathai and the explorer, Barbara Hillary.

In the Junior School, the emphasis on respect and appreciation of others and challenging stereotypes and prejudice is central to PSHE, but also runs through the whole curriculum. Through RS, children are taught respect for different beliefs and cultures through in-depth study of all the main World religions. A regular programme of visits from speakers of different faiths and cultural backgrounds is crucial to building a community which respects and appreciates diversity in our society. The History curriculum aims to build on this, with topics focusing on the contributions of Islamic and other cultures to World history. Study of the Caribbean leads to an investigation of the racist ideology behind the African slave trade and the ways that it has impacted on our society today. Throughout the creative curriculum, children are challenged to explore cultures and approaches without prejudice, learning to play steel pans and the gamelan and exploring music from the African tradition. 
These are just some of the topics covered in some of our curriculum areas. As previously stated, we know that there is more to be done to ensure that our curriculum reflects and embraces diversity in all its forms and takes into account different experiences and different perspectives, including those of our guest speakers and presenters, and we are keen to take this forward positively with the support and expertise of those within and outside our School community. As one Head of Department recently commented following discussion with their colleagues:

“We are committed to providing an environment where diverse perspectives and world views are represented and explored, and members of the department see it is an important part of our roles to call into question dominant ideologies and assumptions. While we know we still have more work to do, we will continue to look at ways of updating our curriculum so that all of our students feel that they are studying works by writers with whom they can identify as well as hearing voices diverse enough that their eyes are opened to viewpoints other than their own.”

We are grateful to those former and current pupils and parents who have written to us and for their suggestions – and offers of help – to ensure that, in our curriculum offering, in our messages, processes and working practices, we continue to educate our pupils – and to do so ever better – to recognise and stand up to racism and prejudice in its varied forms and to provide a thriving, diverse environment in which all members of our School community feel equally valued, respected and supported.