ANTI-RACISM

TOOLKIT

Teaching resource for difficult discussions

Created by The Cork Migrant Centre

Introduction

Ireland has long had an experience of ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious diversity. This can be seen, for example, in the way in which bilingualism in Gaeilge and English has played an important part in Irish life as well as in the long-standing presence of the Traveller community and of minority religious groups. In recent years this diversity has been added to through immigration.

Education not only reflects society but is also an influence in shaping its development. As such, schools are one of the institutions that have a role to play in the development of an intercultural society. While education cannot bear the sole responsibility for challenging racism and promoting intercultural competence, it has an important contribution to make in facilitating the development of intercultural skills, attitudes, values and knowledge. An intercultural education is valuable to all students in equipping them to participate in an increasingly diverse Ireland, Europe and global society.

Frequency of bullying and attacks against Black and Brown children in Ireland is the highest in the EU (Fundamental Right Agency, 2022), and 70% of young Irish Travellers are not in employment, education or training (Fundamental Rights Agency, 2019). This indicates the necessity of ongoing anti-racism work within the education sphere.

It is important, educators recognize the intersections of race and poverty and how these underlying factors can contribute to challenges such as school absenteeism, incomplete homework, untidy uniforms, or falling asleep in class all of which may often be misinterpreted as "bad behaviour".

Teachers should critically reflect on how they respond to "misbehaving" or "difficult" students and consider whether they unconsciously or consciously empathize more readily with white, settled students while harbouring biases against ethnic minority or Black and Brown students. Such biases can lead to disproportionately harsh treatment of these students, including accidental adultification and a reduced likelihood of identifying neurodivergence or learning disabilities in these groups compared to their white peers

Introduction

Before you begin
Icebreakers

Identity & Intersectionality

Identity: Activities
White privilege
White fragility/ defensiveness
Intersectionality

Racial Stereotyping & Bias

Racial Bullying & Micro-aggressions

Systems of oppression

Power dynamics
Colonialism

Racism on social media

Challenging Racism

Allyship

Extra Resources

Content

Black and Brown and ethnic minority students may experience anger and loss of control at being constantly subjected to racism, inequality and exclusion which may cause acting out, shutting down or extreme perfectionism.

There is an important distinction between equality and equity. While treating all students equally may seem fair, it overlooks the fact that some children face multiple layers of challenges and require additional support. Simply claiming to treat all students the same cannot justify a lack of understanding for those who are struggling more.

Conversely, students who often face lower expectations from others may internalise this, leading to reduced confidence in their abilities.

Racism is not just an act performed overtly by 'bad people' but also a systemic framework from within which all of us operate, even though we may believe otherwise.

Racial discrimination in schools, including bullying can also originate from teachers. This is particularly damaging because of the power imbalance and the harmful precedent it sets for acceptable behaviour both in and outside the classroom.

With over 95% of teachers being white Irish, educators must confront their own biases, challenge those of their colleagues, and stand against discriminatory policies. By fostering compassion and equitable support, they can help Black and Brown and ethnic minority students overcome challenges and achieve their full potential.

Racial bullying in schools has a profound impact on children, often harming their well-being and mental health. Addressing this requires urgent action from structural and organizational reforms to fostering inclusive and supportive classroom environments. It also demands a commitment to nurturing respectful interactions between teachers, students, and peers.

Language support needs are often misconstrued as indicators of low academic capabilities (Ni Dhuinn & Keane, 'But you don't look Irish', 2021) Resilience literature has identified schools as settings that offer children opportunities to form social ties, model prosocial behaviour, and nurture a sense of security, belonging and identification with a larger group (Ward, Martin, Theron & Distiller, 2007)

Education professionals have a huge role to play in creating an enabling environment to set up resilient building processes for all children in their classes.

Cognizant of all these facts there is a lack of structural infrastructure and support systems in place to address racism in schools and introduce a system of zero tolerance.

In comparison, there has been a lot of work done in schools on bullying with systems in place to raise awareness and counter bullying. Similar work needs to be done on racism in schools, including de-escalation procedures. Education professionals have a huge role to play in creating an enabling environment to set up resilient building processes for all children in their classes. This Anti-racist toolkit is a resource to equip teachers to undertake this task.

Using real life experiences within Irish society, the anti-racist toolkit activities provide13 to 16-year-old students a challenging avenue to explore their world and its diversity and the role they play within it. The resources examine themes of identity and intersectionality, white privilege, stereotyping and unconscious bias, racial bullying and microggressions, exposure to social media platforms and ways of challenging racism.

Students, as well as educators, are encouraged not to leave the learning in the classroom but to continually reflect and use their learning as an opportunity to explore their understanding and new-found awareness within their relationships.

"You can't go back and change the beginning but you can start where you are and change the ending".

2024 Report on Bullying from the Children's Ombudsman

These activities can be used as an introduction to the concept of being anti-racist, alluding to the concepts of race, colourism, privilege, identity and allyship. By highlighting personal stories, we hope to highlight the passive and aggressive nature of racism and discrimination.

This toolkit aims to empower students to become vocal and active allies for equality, to learn to question, be proactive and learn to use their voice to effect positive change in their world.

Before You Begin

The activities in this toolkit do not only facilitate learning and reflection on the roots and symptoms of racism in our society, but they also encourage ways of challenging hidden racism and underlying discrimination. Equally important is that activities have been included that aim at empowering those who are confronted with racist attitudes and actions.

As a brave space, the classroom should also be a courageous space, which means students opening themselves to vulnerability. To make that process easier for them, students should discuss and decide on ground rules to follow, as for example:

Honour confidentiality + Be respectful + Note your surprise and check your bias + Be comfortable with silence + Assume positive intent + Speak from the "I" perspective + Listen and then respond + Be fully present + Lean into discomfort + Be patient with the process of others + Do not interrupt + Be succinct + Stay on topic + Do not use names when telling stories + Do not judge others.

Racism is the belief that the distinct physical features we see amongst people, such as skin colour, facial features, hair, as well as place of origin are indicators of different abilities, qualities and/or worth.

This is a deliberately prejudiced belief system based on the idea that those with white skin are superior to those with darker skin and that being white is the "norm".

This belief system is still in existence today and is not simply about "bad" individual intentions and/or actions. it is part of our societal norms. It is the status quo.

Wish I Knew What to Say! - Anti Racist Cumbria

Here are the different types of racism that students should be introduced to, discussed in pairs, and their understanding shared with the class. Encourage them to provide examples of how these forms of racism might manifest in their community or society:

Historical Racism

Structural Racism

Institutional Racism

Individual Racism

Provide students with the definitions from INAR (the Irish Network Against Racism) and facilitate a comparison of these definitions. This activity will help students understand these concepts in a broader context and encourage them to critically reflect on how they appear in their daily lives and surroundings.

Dimensions of Racism

INAR

Tips for Teachers

Dos

Set the expectation that everyone's personal identity will be respected in the classroom. It may be necessary to emphasise that racism will not be tolerated.
Ensure all voices in the class are listened to and heard, this may be supported by providing alternative ways for students to comment and share.
Make the classroom a diverse and inclusive space, feature a variety of historical events and figures in lessons that might not always be featured in the textbook.
Learn the correct pronunciations of student names.
Know the difference: Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging