Through our collection, gain an insight into how the education movement led to the ideas of a Black archive, today known as Black Cultural Archives (BCA). This exhibit tells the backstory of BCA through material collected by our late founder Len Kwesi Garrison.
How the West Indian child is made educationally subnormal in the British school system: The scandal of the Black child in schools in Britain (1971)Black Cultural Archives
‘How the West Indian Child is Made Educationally Sub-Normal’
Between 1968 and the late 1980s community
activists, parents and teachers were involved in educational campaigns to provide
better provision for African and Caribbean pupils in schools. From Black
Parents movements, to community organisations and supplementary schools, many
groups played a crucial role in exerting pressure at local and national level
to highlight institutional racism and barriers for Black students in
education.
Many activists and parents were galvanised
into action by the publication of ‘How the West Indian Child is Made
Educationally Subnormal in the British School System: The Scandal of the Black
Child in Schools in Britain’ in 1971, written by Bernard Coard.
Many activists and parents were galvanised into action by the publication of ‘How the West Indian Child is Made Educationally Subnormal in the British School System: The Scandal of the Black Child in Schools in Britain’ in 1971, written by Bernard Coard.
Images and Reflections Journal: At School TodayBlack Cultural Archives
One of the main findings of Coard’s research was that schools were creating psychological problems for Black children as a result of the racism they were experiencing that created low self-image and consequently low expectations. Coard’s suggestions to remedy this injustice included directly discussing the issue with Local Authorities and the creation of Black supplementary schools to instill pride and self-confidence through the positive teaching of Black culture and history.
Images and Reflections Journal: At School TodayBlack Cultural Archives
As part of research for his PhD thesis at the University of Sussex, Coard looked at the high numbers of Black children who were being placed in schools for ‘the educationally sub-normal’ or ESN. ESN schools were originally created to deal with children who had low intelligence, (based on an IQ of less than 90 points), and who could not be educated within mainstream schools, either because of their IQ or other behavioural issues.
Many Black children during the late 1960s and 1970s were migrating from the Caribbean and Coard highlighted the trauma that children may have faced in coming to Britain to be reunited with parents who they may not have seen for a large part of their life, and to a country in which they did not feel welcome. For some, this may have caused them to become withdrawn and insular or to become aggressive and lash out.
Omissions and distortions
One of the issues highlighted by Coard, and that emerged as campaigners, teachers and lobbyists wanted to implement an ‘anti-racist education’ in schools was the current state in which Black History was presented. Coard argued that society highlights what it deems to be important through what it teaches and the school curriculum, by omitting the culture and history of Black people, denies them their identity and re-enforces the idea that White history and culture is superior. Coard argued that this led to children feeling self-contempt and de-motivates them from a desire to learn. These problems and the subsequent de-motivation made it more likely for Caribbean children to be put into lower educational streams, further de-motivating them and limiting their desire and ability to succeed.
Ahfiwe school (1973) by Ansel WongBlack Cultural Archives
This situation led to the rise in parental involvement and the growth of the supplementary school movement. Supplementary schools (or Saturday schools) were set up by parents and others concerned with education to raise the educational attainment of Black children. They would teach formal curriculum subjects alongside Black history, to raise the self-esteem of children, to help them gain qualifications and prepare them for the workforce.
The Ahfiwe School is an example of a 'Saturday School' set up in the 1970s, from the collection of Ansel Wong held at the BCA.
Drawing of Len Garrison (1991) by Gordon de la MotheBlack Cultural Archives
Like many of the children identified in Coard’s book, community activist and academic Lenford Kwesi Garrison (1943-2003) was born in St Thomas, Jamaica and followed his parents to London in the early 1950s to complete his secondary education.
Garrison was heavily involved in voluntary work and was passionate about the importance of community. He undertook diploma at Ruskin College in Development Studies in 1971, a degree in African and Caribbean history at the University of Sussex, in 1976 and an MA in Local History at Leicester University. Garrison published articles, papers and books exploring the importance role that education and public history plays in recognising the contribution of the African diaspora in the making of British society.
African Peoples Historical Monument Foundation (APHMF) members and Friends of the Archives (1984)Black Cultural Archives
Garrison was the founder and Director of the African Caribbean Education Research project (also known as ACER), an independent educational charity, which researched, developed and produced learning materials drawing on the Black experience that he established, with others, in 1976.
Garrison maintained a lifelong interest in the education of Black children.
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BCA is the only national repository of Black history and culture in the UK. Our unparalleled and growing archive collection offers insight into the history of people of African and Caribbean descent in Britain. Our work recognises the importance of untold stories and providing a platform to encourage enquiry and dialogue.
