The Western Cape Education Department has chosen Facing the Past as a core programme to deliver their anti-racism in schools intervention.

In March this year Shikaya hosted a Facing the Past seminar for teachers in the Hermanus area as part of Western Cape Education Department’s anti-racism in schools intervention. Eighteen teachers from five of the six schools in the Hermanus area participated in the four day seminar. A reporter from the local newspaper, The Hermanus Times, visited the teachers on the last day of the seminar. A few weeks after the seminar the following article appeared in the Hermanus Times.

Course eye-opening

by Tania Colyn

In a time when accusations of racist behaviour are still being made, it is encouraging to know that steps are being taken to improve the situation. Dylan Wray from the non-profit organisation Shikaya, in partnership with the Western Cape education department, recently ran a four-day course on anti-racism for teachers from schools in the area.

About 15 teachers from Mt Pleasant Primary, Qhayiya Secondary, Hawston Primary, Hawston Secondary, Hermanus High and Lukhanyo Primary attended this course. The aim was to inform teachers on dealing with racial incidents at their schools, but also to deal with their own prejudices first. One of the participants, George Edwards, said this was an eye-opening experience and he feels these kind of courses should be compulsory for teachers and learners in the future.

The course started with a look at a case study on segregation in America, which allowed the participants to make the connection to South Africa’s own history of racial injustice. According to Wray a lot of personal conversations took place, where participants had to talk about their own experiences of apartheid and the injustices they had to suffer. Xolile Nywebeni from Lukhanyo Primary said that this is a step forward in the process of nation-building and that it is very necessary. Dawid Coert from Hawston Secondary said that the course gave the participants the opportunity to discuss and understand the past and that it was a good step in the transformation process of schools in the community.

All the participants agreed that this kind of course should be presented to all teachers and learners in order to try and ensure smooth integration of learners in schools in the future.