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22 Educators providing Politics courses in St Albans

Decolonise The Curriculum

decolonise the curriculum

London

Decolonizing the Curriculum Project (DCP) at UoK (funded by Teaching Enhancement Award and led by Dr Suhraiya Jivraj, Senior Lecturer in Law) Students are increasingly demanding a ‘liberated curriculum’ that represents their diversity as we see from #liberatemydegree, ‘Why is My Curriculum White?’ and other movements mentioned above as well as Kent Student Union campaign ‘Diversify My Curriculum’. Also at UoK law and politics students on the Race, Religion and Law module (convened by Dr Suhraiya Jivraj) have relished the opportunity both in workshops and through their assessment to explore both historical and contemporary issues that enable them to acquire ‘consciousness of their own position and struggle’ in society and education. The UoK EDI Project phase II strategy acknowledges this need in affirming that the ‘white curriculum acts as a barrier to inclusivity’ including because ‘it fails to legitimise contributions to knowledge from people of colour’. Phase II therefore seeks to ensure that ‘our curriculum reflects and addresses a range of perspectives’ and asks how this can be operationalised specifically at UoK. Modules like RRL and others in KLS are already operationalising a more inclusive curriculum requiring students to engage with key works from critical race/religion and decolonial studies which offer alternative perspectives to those heteronormative and euro-centric perspectives of white, able-bodied men dominating the western canon. This project will go one significant step further by placing students of colour as well as knowledge produced by people of colour at the centre. Being a student led project is crucial as it empowers them to become change actors and co-producers of knowledge, shaping the agenda and curriculum that seeks to include them. Moreover, it enables them to be ‘assets’ rather than see themselves represented as quantitative data in University diversity reports which does not capture the nuance and complexity of their lived realities. Empowerment for self-determination at the grassroots level is key as is apparent from student led movements that have already effected change in the curriculum. The desire for self and culturally intelligible knowledge is now well documented including in the University of Kent, Student Success (EDI) Project, Phase I:Report 2 ‘Theory and research on race and attainment in UK higher education’ by Hensby and Mitton (2017). This project seeks to operationalise this further and more broadly through the following three interlinked activities: 1) Focus groups: · Up to five stage 3 students will lead focus groups of five to ten BAME students from across the KLS UG programme. · The focus group leaders will form a research team and design the format and questions collaboratively, under the supervision of Dr Jivraj, using naturalistic methods and going through the KLS ethics approval process. 2) Publication of findings: · The data from the focus groups will be collated by the research team and will produce an accessible output such as a ‘manifesto of suggestions’ on making the curriculum more inclusive and a co-authored e-book. · The research team will also be supported in publishing findings via a blog and social media. 3) Student led conference · The workshop committee will organise a half day student led conference to discuss the findings and invite speakers from campaigns such as the NUS #liberatemydegree campaign; Why is My Curriculum White? (based at UCL); Decolonising our Minds SOAS; and the #Rhodesmustfall student movements and at least one academic speaker. Watch this space for further details.

Islamic College for Advanced Studies

islamic college for advanced studies

London

A Centre of Excellence and the No.1 Choice for Islamic Studies (in the UK, Europe and Worldwide) The Islamic College is a registered charity founded in 1997 in London, The Islamic College has consistently and successfully continued to fulfil its vision of creating a high-quality research and teaching environment for all academically affiliated and independent researchers who wish to acquire and/or further develop solid and in-depth knowledge of various aspects of the diverse field of Islamic Studies. The Islamic College, as a higher education Institute based in the UK, is an academic partner with Middlesex University (MDX). It is not affiliated with or partner with any other university or institutes of higher education. Its main academic programmes are validated by MDX, and this same university acts as The Islamic College’s awarding body; provides services related to oversight of academic quality and standards of the College, in line with standards in force in all major universities and higher education institutes in the UK. Through its publication of scholarly titles in both modern and traditional approaches to Islamic Studies, producing a well-established peer-reviewed journal, providing first-class academic programmes and short courses in Islamic Studies –from philosophy and kalam to the exegesis of the Quran, and the study of fiqh, usul-al-fiqh, and hadith studies, and from Islam and modernity, Islam and modern politics, methods and perspectives in Islamic studies, to advanced Arabic and Persian classes– the Islamic College has succeeded to create a genuine thriving knowledge community in both its in-house and online platforms. Those who join this community are guaranteed to experience a critical and rational approach to the study of religion. In the past twenty-five years, hundreds of young or mature enthusiastic students, from different religious denominations, have successfully completed the academic programmes at The Islamic College. Many of these happy graduates have successfully continued their career paths as professionals in various fields, as businessmen, lawyers, teachers, community leaders and so on, while others have opted for academically oriented activities and pursued further postgraduate and doctoral degrees and post-doctoral opportunities in internationally renowned universities and academic institutions. According to the records kept at the Alumni Office of The Islamic College, the majority, if not all, of our graduates have distinguished themselves amongst their peers, whether in various fields of business or art or at universities and higher education institutes. Looking back at more than two decades of the activities of The Islamic College in the UK, we can proudly state that The Islamic College has been a force for good in British society, and the positive fruits of its hard work and dedicated efforts of its staff have benefitted many academic and professional bodies all around the globe. Disclaimer: The Islamic College’s official policies are presented on its official website. Comments and statements made by those affiliated with The Islamic College, in any shape or form, are their own personal opinions for which The Islamic College takes no responsibility.

Oasis Academy Enfield

oasis academy enfield

Enfield

Everything within Oasis Community Learning is framed by our ethos. Our ethos is rooted in what we believe and who we are. Grounded in our story, it is an expression of our character; a set of values that inform and provide the lens on everything we do. A passion to include A desire to treat people equally respecting differences A commitment to healthy, open relationships A deep sense of hope that things can change and be transformed A sense of perseverance to keep going for the long haul It is these ethos values that we want to be known for and to live by. We are committed to a model of inclusion, equality, healthy relationships, hope, and perseverance throughout all the aspects of the life and culture of every Oasis Hub and academy community. We encourage every member of our family, be that staff or student, to align themselves to these ethos values. The values themselves are inspired by the life, message and example of Jesus but we make it clear that we will not impose on anyone, the beliefs that underpin our ethos values. We recognise and celebrate the richness that spiritual and cultural diversity brings to our community, respecting the beliefs and practices of other faiths in the hope that we will provide a welcoming environment for all. The Oasis 9 Habits The Oasis Ethos is aspirational, inspirational and something that we have to constantly work at. It is important to remember that every organisation is made up of its people, and people don’t always get things right. This means that there can sometimes be a dissonance between what we say we are, as stated in our ethos values, and what we actually do and experience. Recognising this is helpful because it reminds us that we each have things to work on; we have space to grow, develop and change to become the best version of ourselves. To help us in this process of personal growth and development we have the Oasis 9 Habits. It is our bespoke and unique approach to character development. We know that by living the way of the Habits, the Oasis Ethos will become second nature to us. We also believe that this process of continually developing our character and being transformed to become the best version of ourselves is really important for every student and staff member alike. Therefore, we actively promote and practice the Oasis 9 Habits which are an invitation to a way of life characterised by being compassionate, patient, humble, joyful, honest, hopeful, considerate, forgiving and self-controlled. We believe that by becoming people who live this way, by becoming the best version of ourselves, whether we are a staff member or students, we are transformed, and we are also able to play our part in bringing transformation locally, nationally and globally.