February 15th, 2019

The audience listened intently as African, Caribbean and Black identifying (ACBi) students and staff described their lived experiences in a video presented to Education Centre staff during an event to mark Black History Month on February 11 in the St. Jacobs Learning Hub. Organized by the WRDSB Equity Working Team to help mark Black History Month, the event showcased a 13-minute video that premiered at the Black Brilliance Conference in fall of 2018. It offered Ed Centre staff a chance to hear directly from a number of ACBi students and staff and was followed by a guided discussion to help attendees dig deeper into the learning opportunity.

Deepa Ahluwalia, equity and inclusion officer, explained their goal was to listen to the voices of our community members in an effort to create a better learning environment for all.

“We decided as a board that we really needed to engage African, Caribbean and Black identifying students,” Ahluwalia said.

Student-led focus groups conducted in spring of 2018 to plan the Black Brilliance Conference, focused on gauging interest in hosting the event. However, they soon realized ACBi students had a valuable perspective that needed to be captured on video and shared beyond the confines of their event so that others could reflect upon their stories and experiences.

The Black Brilliance conference in November was the perfect space to launch the digital story, as it tied together with the workshops and mentorship opportunities that were offered to students in attendance.

Ahluwalia explained we are often socialized to avoid talking about race, which makes it difficult to discuss and address racism. The video format offered a safe space for students and staff to contribute their thoughts and experiences on these subjects and to subsequently share them with a wider audience.

Attendees watched the video closely and took notes as ACBi students described their everyday experiences in school, including their feeling that they often don’t see themselves represented in teaching and administration staff. This led to a fruitful discussion following the video, as Ed Centre staff dug into the issues and thoughts raised by students.

To help get people thinking abstractly about these concepts, the Equity Working Team, comprised of Deepa Ahluwalia, Leanne Hughes and Denise O’Toole, came prepared with three thought-provoking quotes regarding racism, representation and young people and invited attendees to discuss in groups the quote they were most drawn to.

This allowed the attendees to dive into discussions about the significance of representation and students seeing themselves in the teachers and staff in front of them every day. The wider repercussions of students not feeling represented, including the impact on the mental health and well-being of students, were also raised.

Lila Read, coordinating superintendent, explained that this, in particular, highlights “why equity is so foundational to all of our work.”

As the event came to a close, each participant took their worksheet and newly acquired ideas and perspectives with them, planning to apply these to the work they do for our students every day.

Watch “Our Digital Story”

In spring 2018, student-led focus groups took place to give students an opportunity to share their feelings at school in a safe environment. However, students and staff soon realized African, Caribbean, and Black identifying (ACBi) students had a valuable perspective that needed to be captured on video and shared so that others could reflect upon their stories and experiences. This led to the creation of Our Digital Story that highlights the experiences of Black identifying students and staff within our district.

Tags: Black Brilliance · Black History Month · equity and inclusion