{"id":13,"date":"2020-10-16T16:28:42","date_gmt":"2020-10-16T15:28:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/diversitymarktoolkit\/?page_id=13"},"modified":"2021-08-26T12:06:53","modified_gmt":"2021-08-26T11:06:53","slug":"decolonising-literature","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/diversitymarktoolkit\/decolonising-literature\/","title":{"rendered":"Why diversify my reading list?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Research, both nationally and at the University of Kent, shows that reading lists that consider the diversity of the student body improve engagement and help to develop key graduate attributes. A minor change to your course materials could make a major change to the way a students, or a group of students, responds to the course.<\/p>\n

Our own work at University of Kent on the Diversity Mark project<\/a> has highlighted the importance of diversifying reading lists to help create a sense of belonging and increase cultural competencies. Academics and students involved in the project from SECL and SSPSR elaborate on specific outcomes of the project in the vidoes below:<\/p>\n

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Recommended resources:<\/h4>\n

We have also compiled some resources that makes the case for diversify reading lists to increase a sense of belonging and improve cultural competencies in students.<\/p>\n

Arday, J. and Mirza, H. S. (2018) Dismantling race in higher education : racism, whiteness and decolonising the academy.<\/em> Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan.<\/p>\n

*Podcast series<\/a> elaborating on this book and issues discussed within.<\/p>\n

Bhambra, G. K., Nis\u0327anc\u0131og\u0306lu, K. and Gebrial, D. (2018) Decolonising the university.<\/em> London: Pluto Press.<\/p>\n

Christa Craven (2021) \u00a0<\/span><\/span>Teaching Antiracist Citational Politics as a Project of Transformation: Lessons from the Cite Black Women Movement for White Feminist Anthropologists. <\/em>Feminist Anthropology <\/span>Volume<\/span>2<\/span>,\u00a0Issue<\/span>1<\/span>\u00a0 pages 120 – 129. Retrieved from <\/span>https:\/\/doi-org.chain.kent.ac.uk\/10.1002\/fea2.12036<\/a><\/p>\n

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Office for Students (2020)\u00a0 Official Statistic: key performance measurement 4.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>Retrieved from\u00a0https:\/\/www.officeforstudents.org.uk\/about\/measures-of-our-success\/participation-performance-measures\/gap-in-degree-outcomes-1sts-or-21s-between-white-students-and-black-students\/<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Schucan Bird, K. and Pitman, L. (2020) How diverse is your reading list? Exploring issues of representation and decolonisation in the UK.<\/em> Higher Education\u00a0volume<\/span>\u00a079,\u00a0pages<\/span>903\u2013920. Retrieved from\u00a0 https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1007\/s10734-019-00446-9<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Thomas, Dave S.P., and Suhraiya Jivraj, eds.\u00a0Towards Decolonising the University: A Kaleidosope for Empowered Action<\/em>.<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(Oxford: Counterpress, 2020).<\/p>\n

Universities UK and National Union of Students (2019)\u00a0Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Student Attainment and UK Universities #Closingthegap.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>Retrieved from\u00a0https:\/\/www.universitiesuk.ac.uk\/policy-and-analysis\/reports\/Pages\/bame-student-attainment-uk-universities-closing-the-gap.aspx<\/a><\/p>\n