Racial Literacy

The Racial Literacy project aims to investigate the impact of targeted interventions to improve racial literacy and to actively promote anti-racist learning and teaching within the Rambert School community.

The aim overall is to advocate the importance and urgency of active anti-racist work within the School, contributing to the dismantling of discriminatory ideologies. As an educational institution we are keen to explore within our community the extent of racial literacy and how we can improve it, by framing the research to both identify the existing understanding of racial justice issues within the school (as well as the levels of confidence that exist amongst our peers to openly discuss and address issues of social justice), and evaluate the impact of potential interventions on the overall racial literacy of our students and staff.

Project Aims

• The project aims to question and interrogate how by bringing in specific interventions, we can develop and enhance racial literacy, learning and confidence in addressing social issues of race and racial justice. In turn, the project also aims to explore how these interventions may positively affect the day-to-day experience of Black and Minority Ethnic members of the school.
• This research is timely and relevant and it comes as a result of staff and student reflections on not just our immediate community but the wider dance industry. Student feedback has manifested keen interest in racial education including wider appreciation of cross-cultural understanding.
• As a result of discussions with students, alumni, industry colleagues and external partners, we have committed actively to engaging in anti-racist work and this research project can form a first step in collecting meaningful impact data that can be shared across the CDD school, but also assist in shaping future policy and strategic priorities.

Project breakdown:

– Initial reflective (survey based) exploration on current racial literacy levels – Interventions with specific foci:

1. Racial Literacy (terminology, historical/cultural context resources)

2. Decolonisation of the technique class

3. Decolonisation of dance history and academic lectures

4. Active anti-racist ethos

5. Active anti-racist daily practice

6. Active anti-racist strategy and outward messaging

Focus groups and interviews with participants at the end of the initial interventions to evaluate impact and plan forward.