i am not sure if i have missed the boat for this thread but thought i would raise it as a topic of interest, as my son who is 8 is more aware of black history through my teachings then he is from what he learns at school. (Despite, it being a part of my role as a Black women raising a black man)

He is a very level headed aquarian boy who is as inqusistive as they come, i allowed him to watch roots when he tried to tell me that white people were slaves, teachmgs he had been taught from school.

after putting the school in their place i thought it best to give him a little black history, now i know the author was exposed as being a bit of a fraud in terms of his interpretations/copyrights etc, but i wanted him to see and know the roots of slavery.

But my curiosity still remains as to why it is not taught in schools, are white education policy makers to ashamed to include it, is it irrelevant to them now? Yet the history they teach is engolfed in lies e.g the basic everyday things we use i.e brushes, telephones, light bulds were invented by black people, the reaarch & creation into open heart surgery was performed by a black person. i will upload a poem on poerty & spoken word forum that is so educational i would recommend it for all teachings.


all comments welcome.

Quote:

But my curiosity still remains as to why it is not taught in schools, are white education policy makers to ashamed to include it, is it irrelevant to them now?

Partly they need to maintian their self righteous delusions so they don't want to hear about it and partly they want us psychologically conditioned to be loyal to them.

Sure they call it loyal to the country but the Rocky Mountains don't give a damn about our loyalty. The Grand Canyon doesn't care. Being loyal to AMERICA means being loyal to THEM.

The Jihad is about the dominance of European cultre on the planet. They want to screw it up THEIR WAY.

I say the majority of White Americans have been buying their way into slavery for the last 50 years. It is funny how accounting is 700 years old and we don't hear them saying it should be mandatory for White kids. Corporations were doing it on their computers in the 60s. How powerful are home cumputers today compared to the junk corporations had in the 60s?

umbra

Greetings Graduate

In September 2007 the subject of 'slavery' entered the national curriculum for key stage 8/9. In September 2008 it goes 'live' for key stages 3/4. The teaching of this subject is something that parents should keep a very close eye on. Last year the community raised some concerns and some concessions were made to the wording of the government's criteria, i.e. the inclusiveness of all pupils - ourStory can be told for it is a part of WORLD history, its up to parents to see that it is ...

Slave Trade - Year 9 - SchoolHistory.co.uk


"Pupils in the school will also bring a range of cultural experiences and perspectives, which can be reflected in the curriculum and used to further pupils' understanding of the importance of the issues of diversity.

An inclusive curriculum is one where:

* different groups of pupils are all able to see the relevance of the curriculum to their own experiences and aspirations

* all pupils, regardless of ability, have sufficient opportunities to succeed in their learning at the highest standard."

Inclusion in history

History is to be taught from a 'world view'

"There are a number of key concepts that underpin the study of history. Pupils need to understand these concepts in order to deepen and broaden their knowledge, skills and understanding.

1.1 Chronological understanding

1. Understanding and using appropriately dates, vocabulary and conventions that describe historical periods and the passing of time.
2. Developing a sense of period through describing and analysing the relationships between the characteristic features of periods and societies.
3. Building a chronological framework of periods and using this to place new knowledge in its historical context.

1.2 Cultural, ethnic and religious diversity

1. Understanding the diverse experiences and ideas, beliefs and attitudes of men, women and children in past societies and how these have shaped the world".

History

This link is specifically for key stage 3/4 and recommended for teachers.

National Curriculum links | Understanding Slavery

As a parent here is a wonderful tool which you could give your child.
Timeline: Get 8000 Years of African and European History... On One Scroll!


Peace

I don't think you were wrong at all. Roots is a part of our history. I saw it over a decade ago when I was younger than ten.

i was not aware of the inclusion of slavery in the cirriculum , this is definatley an achievement: it is about time as the growing diverseness within towns and cities cannot be ignored.

There has over the past 5 years in the UK alone been an increasining number of African born (families) children entering into the public school system, (local knowledge) and was heartbreaking to see how different the children including black british boys/girls responded to them.

So it is definalty promisiing to hear as from learning our history, they will learn the country of our birth are not the true lands of our origins. We are AFRICANS and should not be ashamed to admit that.

your words are informing, thank u.

As a point of comparison I started a habit 30 years ago. Every time I hear about the holocaust of the Jews or 6 million Jews I ask myself how many Indians were killed in the conquest of North America and when do I ever hear that. My brother in-law has a book that says the estimates range for 2,000,000 to 18,000,000. It is curious that they don't have more accurate estimates than that.

But when do you hear that on television or radio but how often do you hear about Jews and the NAZIs.

Objectivity is not on the agenda and we hear about the Jews because it is on somebody's agenda.

umbra

Greetings Graduate,

And speaking of words ... the goverment has issued 'guidelines' to schools and teachers, if they use it is another story. Many teachers have no comprehesion of the issues and legacies of Afrikan enslavement, and the psychological damage that can be done with erroneous teaching. I would encourage all parents to join whatever governing body their schools possess as it will be up to parents to 'police' the teaching of this subject. There are many Afrikan organisations up and down the country that are competent and willing to aide in this teaching but the invitations to these organisations are rare.

USE OF LANGUAGE
Why language matters
Knowing how best to use the language associated with the history and legacies of the transatlantic slave trade can be complex. Many words are considered offensive and dismissive because they served to objectify the people who were enslaved and disregard the African perspectives of the history. Terms used when teaching slavery are very important, but, when used with careful consideration, historical and contemporary words within the subject can be discussed and analysed as part of the learning experience. Review the terms in this section as an introduction to good practice in when teaching this subject. Also see the Glossary for full definitions of terms and their meanings

African countries rather than Africa
Africa is often described as if it is a single homogeneous country rather than a continent of great contrasts. There was also a very different Islamic slave trade operating from East Africa. Being specific in discussing West Africa when referring to the transatlantic slave trade and, where possible specifying countries and states such as Benin, Ghana etc. will help clarify the aspects of the history being addressed.

Chattel slavery rather than slavery
The term chattel slave rather than slave makes it clear that African people trafficked during the transatlantic slave trade were treated as property, with no possessions and no rights as a means to differentiate the transatlantic slave trade from other forms of slavery and serfdom, both historical and contemporaneous.

Enslaved rather than slave
Using the terms - African people, men, women, children, captives, and enslaved rather than slave throughout teaching helps to reiterate the fact that people were being treated like property. These words avoid the objectification of African people and the tendancy to make the history and the inhumanity abstract and insignificant.

Freedom fighter rather than rebel
The term rebel can have negative overtones whereas freedom fighter is a more positive, respectful phrase. Language and words that give dignity to the people oppressed are important. Using resistance and rebellion also illustrate the fact that the enslaved were active and capable, in contrast to the way they have been described within the history as subhuman and therefore lacking intelligence.

History rather than story
The word story tends to trivialize the importance of this history and raises questions about the reliability of the evidence used in lessons; using history helps to reinforce the facts. However, using the word story can be useful when discussing personal narrative accounts.

Maafa rather than Holocaust
The term holocaust is often used when discussing the transatlantic slave trade to draw comparisons between the the extermination of the Jews in the Second World War and underline the extreme brutality and mass annihilation of both peoples. Maafa is the contemporary term used to describe the enslavement of African people in the 1700s and 1800s, and makes the distinction between the two historical periods.

Racial terms
The words negro, negress and ****** will appear in many historical documents and need to be understood as specific to the historical period. The term black has been used to define people of African descent in Emancipation and Legacy on this website and white to decribe Europeans.

Transatlantic slave trade rather than the slave trade
There have been slave trades throughout the course of human history and they still exist today. When referring to the forced deportation of African people across the Atlantic being specific in describing it as the transatlantic slave trade will reinforce the distinctions between this and other periods in history.


Use of language | Understanding Slavery


Peace

white slavery is completely different to african slave trade. a whole different kettle of fish

i am not against them teaching that some white people were slaves as long as they do not teach it in a way to belittle and disregard the impact of slavery that permeates today

Given the complexity of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and system, I am not sure the Roots films are a useful educational tool for children.

I think it is important to make clear that Roots is but one experience(dispute aside) one aspect. When my children viewed them I highlighted the role of the films on TV history and the impact on my generation.

my point exactly LADYDAY as my sons schools teachings were damn near trying to take away the complexity, impact and consequences that slavery has brought about for our fellow black brothers and sistas.

but alongside that i also informed him of what the JEWiSH community endured in terms of the HOLLICOST, GERMANS/NAZIS/HITLER etc as they to suffered in my view worse than or atleast equal to what our ancestors did simply for what they believed in, and their faces not fitting.

Someone said to me to me the other day that we will never be free as we are ruled by a white goverment, who constantly makes attempts to control our lives (nanny state) through legislation, policies etc. IS THIS TRUE?

Guns that have been supplied not leaked onto our streets, stigmatising abortion so our babies have babies and then blame us as aprents for it, why is the blue eyed and bloned haired dipiction of GOD more popular than the rasta roots and cultural dipictions i have seen. is it bcuz that to has been stigmatised by this or similar images.?

@graduate, do be aware that the Jews were heavily involved in the transatlantic slave trade. that is the european jews