Hands on: Supporting teachers to address race in English literature through Object-Based Learning using a Black Dramatist/Drama ‘PlayBox’ of archive resources in the UoB Theatre Collection

Bristol: a city divided? (CDE, 2017) highlighted stark inequalities between the educational outcomes of Black and White students: Bristol ranked 345/348 of districts in England and Wales for educational equality. The Report identifies ‘the unrepresentativeness of the curriculum’ (p.3) as a key factor. This unrepresentative curriculum is particularly apparent in subject English: the national curriculum’s insistence that GCSE English Literature texts are by ‘British’ authors has manifested in a largely pale, stale, male offering at secondary level (11-16) (Smith, 2020). While some schools have revised their offer in response to #BlackLivesMatter, the lack of representation in Drama remains particularly acute (Smith, 2020). 

Many English teachers wish to rebalance their curriculums, yet some do not know how, or lack the confidence to address issues of race and ethnicity for fear of inadvertently causing offence (Glowach et al, 2023; Salah, 2023). This multi-disciplinary project aims to begin to empower them, through exploring a play by a Black British playwright featuring Black and White characters, A Bitter Herb (Kwei-Armah, 1998), and Shakespeare’s Othello.

Although some well-reviewed online resources are now available to promote a decolonised curriculum, teachers are vulnerable to ‘online learning fatigue’ (Pandey, 2021). Countering this, Object-Based Learning (Barlow, 2017) will provide teachers with tactile contact with a ‘PlayBox’ of physical artefacts. The research asks whether and how the immediacy of haptic ‘hands-on’ approaches using props, photos, programmes, etc. from the Theatre Collection might develop English teachers’ confidence and racial literacy.

Data will be collected through questionnaires and focus groups during spring 2024. We hope ‘playing with the Playboxes’ stimulates discussion about race and identity, normalising and celebrating Black literature in the curriculum.