In our earliest literatures, cultural transmission was a key aspect of the passing down of stories. The oral tradition functioned as a means to pass along cultural beliefs and to preserve identities, knowledge, and heritage.
To maintain community identity, shared values and beliefs, myths and stories allowed people to codify what was important to them, while also serving as entertainment and as education.
In some cases, stories allowed people in societies to communicate survival in the form of practical representations of farming, medicine, and other aspects of life. In essence, stories became a way of maintaining social cohesion, becoming a form of social glue that maintained collective memory.
Literature remains important as a gateway to social cohesion to this day. In our modern world, literature is all of the above and more. We recognise now that literature can affect our sense of empathy, too. In order to ensure that our young people recognise its value, we ought to do the following…
1, Develop empathy
It is clear that inaccurate beliefs about marginalised groups abound. Where marginalised groups are homogenised into broad categories, such as “the homeless” or as “gay people”, we are much less likely to empathise with them.
Empathy is a key ingredient in bringing people together. When we can place ourselves in someone else’s shoes, we are much more able to develop an understanding of their experiences – we are enabled to feel compassion and to offer support.
Empathy is a driver for conflict resolution: we read about someone’s difference and as a result we reshape our ideas about them. Alongside this, we are becoming increasingly aware of the role literature plays in social justice.
To advocate for someone, we must be first exposed to their thoughts, values and beliefs and engage our empathy. Where social justice is highlighted in our teaching of literature, we are more likely to be compelled to take action in support of marginalised groups.
Research shows (Zak, 2015) that there is a link between hearing someone’s story – with rich detail and sensory input – and deciding to help people, as it triggers oxytocin and cortisol, key ingredients in fostering support for others.
2, Seek tried and tested advice
To embed a new diverse text, consideration needs to be given to how long it takes to develop expertise in teaching new ideas or themes.
This is where staff could seek support from a variety of sources. One recent development is the willingness of exam boards to provide teaching guides and ready-made resources for diverse exam texts. It is no longer the case that exam boards are only offering the same old texts. There is a movement towards real and supported diversity and inclusion in the major exam boards’ work.
Look at connecting with other educators too via platforms such as X (Twitter) or Threads. There is a strong chance that if you are teaching a diverse text that someone, somewhere else will be teaching it, or will have done so in the past.
Making use of platforms on which teachers share ideas and resources means that there is a greater chance of increased confidence in delivery of tricky themes, characters, plot-lines, and ideas.
Put simply, we are not alone as educators, but we need to reach out to those who have started the journey and are willing to share their expertise.
3, Create a safe environment
We must remember that teaching literature is fundamental to our young people developing shared consciousness and, as stated previously, the skill of empathy. In order for them to engage fully, teachers who deliver diverse content need to carefully curate a safe classroom environment before they are able to successfully discuss the themes and topics that might come up within.
If we have classrooms in which students do not feel safe to share their identities or to discuss complex ideas without fear of mocking or unhelpful criticism, the teaching process starts to fall apart. Discomfort breeds lack of engagement, so safe spaces are a pre-requisite for diverse literature.
4, Get your leadership team on board
Where there is a lack of confidence in staff to teach diverse literature, or to recommend subject-related diverse texts, leadership teams can and should ensure that there is adequate time and funding for staff to develop their subject knowledge in this area.
A big concern held by teaching staff and librarians is whether there will be enough money available to keep library/book stocks updated, or to create resources for diverse texts if they have not been taught previously.
It is important to foster “horizon-scanning” in our middle leaders, those responsible for literacy and those running the library, so that there is forward planning in the budget conversations each year.
5, Engage in CPD
The impact of carefully curated and diverse literature in schools cannot be overestimated. For teachers, there is a need for training and support when it comes to ensuring that literature is not solely the preserve of one cultural group.
The trouble with only engaging with canonical texts is the risk that we reflect only our past and the social values of a particular time and context, when we know that our modern society has shifted to be more inclusive.
Also, in the classroom, there may be a lack of confidence in teaching literature that opens a dialogue about race, gender, disability, and sexuality. It is not uncommon for teachers to remove that potential for discomfort by simply not having this literature in the curriculum.
Central to the teacher’s role is the responsibility to keep subject knowledge updated, and this means engaging in CPD, where possible, that supports confidence in presenting diverse literature.
If you do not share the characteristics of the protagonist or author, be that in terms or race, gender, sexuality or religion, there is still the possibility of doing the material justice.
If we spend our time anxiously concerned that we will not be able to talk about the issues presented, I would point out that we have to start with a text somewhere – in the same way we started with Dickens or Priestley.
6, Diversity is every department’s responsibility
I must stress that literature and reading cannot be the sole responsibility of the English department. Teachers as readers across subjects allow young people to see that the reading of literature exists in all subject disciplines.
To that end, our maths and science teachers et al also have opportunities to introduce students to a diverse range of people and places.
If recommendations of diverse texts are left to one department, or to chance, then we can be sure of one thing: we are paying lip-service to reading as a fundamental part of being human.
This is where schools can make a real difference in ensuring that diverse literature is available and promoted to young people. Curriculum policy ought to reference the imperative to engage with diverse literature across subjects, as appropriate to subject areas. In practice, there is a need to ensure that diverse content stays on the department agenda and that staff are equipped to enhance their curriculum or adapt as necessary.
Final thoughts
In all of this, we need to remember why we are putting diverse literature in front of our young people. Cultural connection, shared understanding and social cohesion might not be immediately evident when we first encounter these texts, but maybe, just maybe, long term we still see a huge shift towards a more equitable society.
- Bennie Kara is the co-founder of the #DiverseEd network and author of A Little Guide for Teachers: Diversity in schools. She is a former deputy headteacher, speaker, trainer, and writer. You can listen to Bennie speak further on this topic as part of Pearson’s Let’s Talk English video series. Visit https://tinyurl.com/5bzpmx59
Further information & resources
- Zak: Why inspiring stories make us react: the neuroscience of narrative, Cerebrum, 2015.