Annemarie Roche, Learn Together Advisor, Stapolin ETNS
On 30th November last I was fortunate enough to attend the Educate Together Conference ‘Educating Together for a Better Future’. The theme was ‘Embracing Cultural Diversity’ and featured an expert panel discussion about the history and future direction of the Educate Together ethos from the point of view of Educate Together Principals, past and present.
There was also an incredible display of teachers’ passion and inspiring work showcased during a series of TeachMeet and workshops. Topics explored included Brave Spaces, and Schools of Sanctuary, encouraging teacher collaboration and bravery, openness and honesty in tackling racism and controversial issues in our schools.
The keynote address by Dr. Niamh McGuirk and author and anti-racism advocate Briana Fitzsimons was on ‘Racial and Ethnic Diversity’. It managed to be both inspiring and practical, balancing theory and best practice with tangible actions, resources and supports for teachers tackling everyday racism in the classroom. The presentation seemed both timely and prescient, and as a primary school teacher facing these kinds of issues in the classroom and the yard, it was both helpful and supportive. Some of the key learnings that have stayed with me include;
- We need to explicitly teach Anti-Racism
- We can and should lead Anti-Racism teaching with our Educate Together values
- Some questions we need to ask: Do all our pupils feel like they ‘belong’ in school? Ask parents – do they feel like their kids feel like they ‘belong’ in school?
- A book that was recommended for embedding anti-racist approaches was ‘Global Citizenship Education – Curious Teachers, Critical Classrooms’ – a must have for every classroom.
- Finally, another excellent support to keep an eye out for is a new initiative by Briana Fitzsimons and Emer O’Neill called ‘Keep Kindness at your Core’- a whole-school approach for anti-racism, anti-bias and diversity and inclusion work.
