S03 E02: Combating the legacy of educational subnormality: African Informed Pedagogy

Britain’s education system, a system based on oppression and subjugation, has done little to nothing to positively impact upon the British Caribbean community. From the categorisation of Caribbean children as ‘educationally sub-normal’ to the cycle of exclusions, Pupil Referral Units (PRUs) and ultimately prison, the educational outcomes of British Caribbean children is the lowest of any ethnic group in Britain aside from Roma Gypsy children. The pedagogical practices currently being employed, epistemologically Eurocentric, do not reflect or represent the British Caribbean children in the classroom. An African-informed pedagogy can help African diasporic children access education in a more culturally informed and meaningful way. An appreciation of multiple epistemologies and centring other cultures can create an environment of criticality and growth.