Here at Happy-Centred Schools, we like to think of diversity and inclusion (D&I) as your favourite restaurant. It’s a short walk from your home and has lovely staff, but they decide only to serve one type of food, like potatoes. And as much as you like chips and mashed potatoes, you crave variety because potatoes alone cannot nourish you. You hear about other restaurants serving fish, meat and vegetables, but they’re too far away for you to travel. 

This analogy reflects the experience of people who never see themselves or someone from their family reflected in stories or work at school. Subsequently, they can become disinterested or feel alone in their experiences - something I can relate to as a young Black girl growing up in Wimbledon Park, an area lacking diversity. 

So what can you do about this in your classroom? 

Encouraging diversity and inclusion in your classroom

Diversity and inclusion can affect several different areas in your classroom, so here are several ways to tackle this to make it more inclusive and a happier place for all. 

Gender 

Society has higher expectations of women. With the third appointed British female Prime Minister resigning after 50 days, some could argue she made the same number of mistakes as her male counterparts but with less acceptance.

To help alleviate this, how can your school ensure any educational material and tasks given to students are free from gender stereotypes? For example, I recently learned Mary Knight, a name I’ve seen embossed on manufacturing equipment for years, wasn’t just the name of a company. It actually originated from Margaret E. Knight, a prominent inventor who designed machinery that made flat paper shopping bags and rotary engines. 

Ethnicity 

According to the gov.uk website, more than 85% of teachers in the UK class themselves as White British, with the figure increasing to 92% for those in leadership positions, specifically those in a headteacher role. 

Unfortunately, these figures do not represent the diversity of students within schools, especially in London. Are there plaques or historical monuments near your school showing how a person has contributed to your community? If these people are not Black, Indigenous, or People of Colour (BIPOC), can you do a little research to find someone who is? For example, Princess Sophia Duleep Singh was an Asian suffragette who lived in Hampton Court. Can you incorporate stories or books from authors from a particular background? If you want to explore a specific cultural background, like Judaism, exclusively choose Jewish authors to reflect their history correctly, such as Sydney Taylor or Adele Geras. 

Class 

For anyone who’s ever seen the programme “Keeping up Appearances”, pronunciation is essential - and sometimes it’s the deciding factor for a person’s class. 

Class can affect a student’s opportunities, whether it’s negative or positive. Can you encourage your students to explore whose voice they’re hearing when analysing new literature? What were their experiences, and how would they differ from their experiences today to challenge unconscious bias? 

Alternatively, many charities and organisations provide opportunities for people from lower socio-economic backgrounds. One such charity is The Brokerage, a social mobility charity working with students and employers to drive positive change in the workforce. 

Sexual orientation 

Can you integrate LGBTQ+ topics into your classroom through authors and people in society who share their lived experiences? Prominent societal figures demonstrate LGBTQ+, such as Nicola Adams, who won an Olympic gold medal for boxing. Penguin books also feature a list of LGBTQ+ authors and their stories to encourage discussion and representation within the classroom. 

Religion 

Schools can reflect their holidays based on the students’ demographics, with more schools celebrating other holidays like Eid and Diwali. One way to encourage inclusivity at your school could be to ask your student’s parents to share their favourite experiences of their religion with your students to challenge biases. 

Another way to promote interfaith within schools is to ask your students what they would like to explore. Encouraging open discussions can help you and your students identify any presumptions. 

Disability 

As a non-disabled woman, I don’t need to consider things like accessibility when there are no stairs. To encourage inclusivity, can you explore a specific disability, like sight or hearing, to increase students’ understanding of how people can be affected and how each person is different? 

To nurture relationships with all students, encourage them to choose their work based on what they think they can achieve rather than assigning them specific tasks based on their abilities. It may take practice and creative thinking on how best to do this, but it could be an avenue to explore.

However you choose to explore D&I in your school, please have fun with it because laughter and humour are great tools for learning - there really is no other way. 

If you or your school would like to explore this further, please get in touch with us to see how we can help. 

Selina Brown