Decolonising English Reflection

My context: building a curriculum that meets the needs of my students

My primary motivation for enrolling on the Decolonising English CPD Programme was a fundamental desire to refine my practice to suit the diverse needs of a modern-day school environment. While great strides have been made in pastoral capacities to recognise and address the specific demands of individuals of different ethnicities, genders and religions, it has long been my opinion that the current curriculum does not resonate with a sizeable proportion of contemporary cohorts. As such, I was keen to expand my knowledge of marginalised and ethnic-minority writers to become secure in my ability to communicate these alternate views and concerns to my classes.

Challenging narratives

I have enjoyed success in my teaching of two modules that I have adapted for a Year 7 cohort. These modules are titled ‘Innocence and Ignorance’–in which high-ability groups study John Boyne’s The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and mid-to-lower ability groups study Michael Morpurgo’s Private Peaceful–and ‘Dystopian Worlds’. The Schemes of Work from the former have been redesigned to explore the titular character of Boyne’s novel, who is only introduced towards the end of the text, while analysing non-fiction texts to debunk the harmful ‘Good Nazi’ trope. The teaching of Private Peaceful has sought to make the text’s themes of class oppression and outcomes of imperialism more explicit, in addition to reiterating the sacrifices of those from former British colonies during the First World War. This in itself directly challenges notions that the conflict was an exclusively white, European war. Students have engaged with these changes positively and it has been pleasing to note that discussions surrounding such issues have been both perceptive and insightful.

Decolonising Dystopia

It is my belief, though, that the changes made to the ‘Dystopian Worlds’ scheme represent the programme’s greatest impact. This formed the basis of my presentation at the Co-op Schools INSET in November 2025. The module examines extracts from a range of dystopian works rather than focusing on a single text. I recognised that this module represented an opportunity for several amendments, especially after my research indicated a paucity of studied texts featuring non-white and/or female protagonists. Further, The Hunger Games was the only text from the module that was written by a female author. I have since addressed this imbalance by sourcing suitable extracts from more diverse texts, including Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower, Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. I was able to discuss the process of SoW redesign with colleagues at the INSET day while additionally explaining the aims of the CPD programme in detail. I then distributed resources based on Parable of the Sower that I had used in previous lessons, which received fulsome praise from those in attendance.

Engaging students: empathy and critical thinking

I have observed numerous positive changes in my classes since enacting these changes. There has been an overall receptiveness to the new texts featured in the ‘Dystopian Worlds’ module with students commenting on parallels with the constructed dystopias and contemporary real-world issues. This has helped students appreciate authorial intent, traditionally a difficult concept for mid-to-lower-ability KS4 groups to grasp. My colleagues and I are optimistic that embedding this notion into students’ analytical skill set will have a positive effect when they come to engage with GCSE texts.

Furthermore, students of differing abilities are all demonstrating some form of critical thinking through a taught emphasis on the ‘other’ as a social construction. KS3 students comprehend that the presence of marginalised figures in a text is inherently a political statement. Above all else, these changes are fostering a much greater sense of empathy in our cohort.

Looking ahead

I am eager to continue redesigning current SoWs to reflect the needs and perspectives of my school’s diverse cohort. There are several KS3 schemes including ‘World Poetry’ and ‘Victorian Fiction’ that I feel would benefit from being redesigned. Changes to these schemes would include an additional focus on those typically excluded from these patriarchal society (‘Victorian Fiction’) and challenges to stereotypical depictions of non-European nations and people of colour (‘World Poetry’). My suggestions have thus far been well-received by my line manager and other colleagues I have liaised with. I also feel it would be beneficial to establish a specialist student group that provide feedback on teaching and offer suggestions concerning potential areas of study. Encouraging students to take a proactive approach to their learning in this area would be a source of immense personal pride.

It was a pleasure to participate in the Decolonising English CPD Programme. It has improved my practice as a teacher and inspired me to reflect on the needs of my school’s cohort. I am pleased with what I have achieved so far and hope to continue the programme’s work in other areas.