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Changing Perspectives


Cultural Values, Diversity and Equality

in Ireland and the Wider World

A Resource for Civic, Social and Political Education

R5290 Perspectives Cover 17/11/04 11:00 AM Page 1


Cultural Values, Diversity and Equality

in Ireland and the Wider World

A Resource for Civic, Social and Political Education

R5290 Perspectives 17/11/04 10:55 AM Page 1

2

AcknowledgementsChanging Perspectives was written and edited by Mary Gannon

Supported by a teachers’ working group of:Ber Clarson, Douglas Community School, CorkEileen Coleman, Presentation Secondary School, Ballyphehane, Cork

(formerly CSPE Support Service)Colette Fannin, St Patrick’s Comprehensive School, ShannonMartin Fitzgerald (formerly CSPE Support Service)Mary Guerin, Presentation Secondary School, LimerickGer Halbert, Christ the King Secondary School, CorkIrene Keating, North Presentation Secondary School, CorkEdel O’Donovan, St Angela’s College, CorkCeline Smith, Coláiste Chríost Rí, Cork

Special thanks are due to:The members of the working group for their commitment, insight and openness, and to theirPrincipals for their support of the project

Carmel O’Sullivan for generously contributing the section on Drama in Education

Aidan Clifford, Eileen Gray, Sandra Gowran, Conor Harrison, Kensika Monshengwo, KarenO’Shea, Philip Watt and Máirín Wilson for their encouragement, support and helpfulcomments.

ISBN: 0-946791-20-1

© 2002 CDVEC Curriculum Development Unit, the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism, and authors.

Funded by Irish Aid through the National Committee for Development Education and by the In-career Development Unit of the Department of Education and Science.

Designed and printed by Genprint Ireland Ltd.


Contents

Introduction 5

Introductory Activity: Ireland – The Reality and the Vision 9

Section 1 Images of Ourselves and Others 12

Activity 1 Who in this Group – the Typical Irish Person? (1 class) 12

Activity 2 Stereotyping – Seeing People Differently (1class) 15

Activity 3 The Effects of Stereotyping on Others (1 class) 19

Section 2 Exploring Perceptions and World Views 21

Activity 1 Them And Us – Two Ways of Looking at Things Seeing the Whole Picture (1 –2 classes) 21

Activity 2 Worldview – How do We See the World? (1 class) 27

Activity 3 Images of Africa (2 classes) 34

Section 3 Prejudice and Language 37

Activity 1 Sticks and Stones – the Importance Of Names (1 class) 37

Activity 2 The Shadow – Prejudice in Practice (1-2 classes) 40

Activity 3 The Language We Use – Reinforcing Prejudice (1 class) 45

Section 4 Cultural Values And Equality – Who Does Our Society Value? 48

Activity 1 Giant Steps Towards Equality? (1 class) 48

Activity 2 The Equality Acts – Can they Guarantee Equality for All? 56

Section 5 Towards Inclusion and Equality 63

Activity 1 Diversity Enriches Ireland (2 classes) 63

Activity 2 Connected to Half the World – Diversity in Ireland Today (1 class) 66

Activity 3 Equality – A Look at the State’s Response to Diversity (1 class) 70

Activity 4 Case Studies on Inclusion and the State (Choice of 2 Options) 72

Option 1 Catering for Diversity in the Health Services (1 class) 72

Option 2 Diversity and Inclusion in Schools (2 classes) 75

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Section 6 Acting to Defend the Rights of Others 80Activity 1 Standing up Against Prejudice and Discrimination

– What Would You Do? (1 class) 80

Activity 2 Our Lifestyle Choices Make a Difference to Others (1-2 classes) 84

Section 7 Taking Action – Action Project Ideas 88

Section 8 Ideas for Evaluation 89

Appendices 90Glossary of Terms Used 90

Immigration in Ireland 91

Resources and Further Reading 92

Contact Organisations and Websites 93


Introduction

Civic, Social and Political Education aims toenable and empower students to becomeparticipative, aware and responsible citizens.As Ireland becomes more culturally diverse,it is clear that young people need to developthe understanding, skills and dispositionsnecessary to ensure that Irish societybecomes truly ‘intercultural’ – a societywhere diversity is valued and where thisvalue is reflected in the power structures andinstitutions of the state; a society whereinteraction between diverse groups takesplace and is underpinned by equality,human rights, mutual respect and under-standing.

In this increasingly diverse society, educatorsare presented both with opportunities andwith challenges. Preparing students foractive citizenship in a diverse society offersmany opportunities to broaden and expandstudents’ horizons and to support them increating a vision of the kind of Ireland theywant to live in. At the same time, it maypresent teachers and students with thechallenge of exploring their own perceptionsand confronting their prejudices.

A Resource for TeachersChanging Perspectives is a resource forteachers wishing to explore issues ofdiversity and equality with their students. Itincludes:

● Activities which use a variety of activelearning methodologies

● Student worksheets

● Teachers’ notes

The activities lead students through aprocess of reflection on the values andstructures of Irish society and Ireland’s

relationship with the wider world,particularly in relation to cultural diversityand equality. They are intended to explorediversity and equality in a holistic way.Rather than focusing on particular minoritygroups, the activities provide students withframeworks for examining relationshipsbetween all groups of people in Irish society.They show how these relationships areinfluenced both by personal perceptions,and by the cultural values reflected in socialstructures. For those wishing to exploreissues concerning a particular minoritygroup, a list of available resources is given onpage 92.

The materials are designed to cover therequirements of the Civic, Social andPolitical Education course. They provideteachers with activities to explore theconcepts of human dignity, human rightsand responsibilities, democracy, interdepen-dence and development. They haveparticular relevance to Units 3 and 4 of thecourse – the State, and Ireland and theWider World, but also relate to individualand community issues. Suggested pathwaysfor using them in either a concept based orunit based approach to CSPE are givenbelow.

Many of the activities are also suitable for useor adaptation in other programmes orsubjects, for example, contemporary issuesin Leaving Certificate Applied, TransitionYear, English, Social Geography or ReligiousEducation.

Using the Materials in a Concept-based ApproachThe concepts of human dignity and rightsand responsibilities are central to the

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6

Introduction

resource and are covered in almost all theactivities. The concepts of democracy anddevelopment are key to the activities whichlook at inequality and structures in Irishsociety, while interdependence is central toactivities which examine relationshipsbetween Ireland and the rest of the world.Key concepts are highlighted at thebeginning of each activity or group ofactivities.

Using the Materials in a Unit-based ApproachIf you are using the unit structure to coverthe course, this resource will provide youwith activities suitable for covering Unit 3The State - Ireland –and Unit 4 Ireland and theWorld. The table below indicates whichactivities fit into which units.

Using the Resource in ways that bestsuit your StudentsWhile the activities are generally describedin some detail, this does not mean they needto be followed exactly. It is expected thatteachers will choose and/or adapt activitiesand methodologies to suit their ownstudents’ abilities and interests. It is the aimof each activity and what the students learnfrom it, rather than the precise activemethodology chosen, which is the importantthing to keep in mind.

While many of the activities combine writtenand active components, almost half of themfocus mostly on the use of visual or oral/auralskills, while four deal with more complex orabstract ideas. If activities involving a lot ofreading or writing are less attractive to yourstudents, you could adapt them in a varietyof ways. For example, the IntroductoryActivity, Ireland – The Reality and the Vision,you could reduce the number of statementsand have a series of walking debates onthem. For Activity 1 in Section 5, Diversityenriches Ireland, instead of using theworksheet, you could organise a team quiz.If your students are particularlyuncomfortable with role-play, you could usediscussion to explore the issues instead. Thetable opposite alerts you to activities whichare mainly visual or oral/aural and identifiesthose which are more complex or abstract.The remaining activities are suitable forgeneral use.

Controversial Issues and Ground RulesThe activities in this pack ask students tolook at stereotypes and prejudice, thesituation of minority groups in Ireland andto see things from other people’sperspectives. As such some of the activitiesmay challenge both students and teachers toconfront their own prejudices and tobroaden their perspectives. It may alsoinvolve students and teachers indisagreement or conflict around issues onwhich they feel very strongly. Whileagreeing ground rules with students is a keyelement in all group discussion and activelearning methodologies, it is even moreimportant where sensitive or controversial

Choose from theUnit 3 following

IntroductoryActivity

Section 1 Whole Section

Section 2 Activity 1



Section 5 Activities 1,3-4


Action projects

Evaluation

Unit 4



Section 3 Activity 3 (Refugees worksheet)

Section 5 Activities 1-2


Action projects

Evaluation


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Introduction

issues which impact on people’s emotionsand values are being discussed. It isadvisable therefore that teachers spend sometime ensuring that students renew ordevelop ground rules which will enable themto feel safe in expressing their opinions in arespectful way. A sample set of ground rulesmight include:

● Everyone is shown respect

● Everyone is given a chance to speak inthe group

● Everyone is listened to - nointerruptions

● No put-downs

● Everyone’s right to their own opinionis respected

● Everyone is expected to back up theiropinion

● No generalisations e.g. all Travellersare … all refugees are…..

Reflection SheetsIt is intended that reflection be a core part ofthe activities. The Reflection Sheet givesstudents a structure for reflecting on whatthey have learned through an activity, howthey related to others during the activity andhow that felt, and thirdly challenges them torespond to the issues they have beendiscussing. It is recommended that youphotocopy and staple together a set ofreflection sheets for each student, so that atthe end of the module, students are able to

track changes in their attitudes,understanding, and the development ofskills, particularly active participation skills.

Concepts and LearningAt the beginning of each activity or group ofactivities, there is a list of the key conceptscovered, and of the attitudes, skills andunderstanding that the activity aims todevelop. These are included to assistteachers in preparing for classes but also canbe used with students for evaluationpurposes at the end of an activity or section.

Action ProjectsIdeas for action projects are given as ideasfor follow-up at the end of many of theactivities. It is preferable that the ActionProject should flow out of the students’interest in or concern about certain issues.However, for the times when this does nothappen, a summary list of action projectideas is given in Section 7.

EvaluationIt is strongly recommended that the studentsdo a self-evaluation when they have finishedexploring the issues covered in the resource.Evaluation provides both students andteachers with an opportunity to stand backfrom what they have done and to assess theirown learning. Suggestions for different waysof evaluating learning are given in Section 8.

Activities which are mainly More Complex/visual or aural Abstract Activities

Introductory Activity

Section 1 Whole section

Section 2 Activities 1-2 Activity 3

Section 3 Activities 1-2 Activity 3

Section 4 Activity 1 Activity 2

Section 5 Activity 1, 4 (Option 1 – Method 1) Activity 3



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Introduction

Reflection Sheet1. How I felt during class today

2. What I learned today

3. How well did I listen and was listened to by others?

4. What I felt strongly about

5. What I could do to change things (either by myself or with others)


PreparationPhotocopy pages 10 and 11 on to thin card,so that you have 7 sets of cards.

Suggestion: copy each set on to a differentcoloured card so that you can sort them easily afterthe class.

Activity✎ Working in small groups, give each

group a set of Vision Statement cards.Each group should choose and rank 3-4 cards for each of the followingcategories.

● Cards that describe the Ireland theywould like to see in the future

● Cards that describe the reality ofIreland today

● Cards that describe what might havebeen in the past, but has nowchanged.

FeedbackAsk each small group to show the class onecard from each of the three categories andexplain why they have chosen it. The otherstudents can question them on the reasonsfor their choice. Groups can change theirchoices as a result of the discussion, if theywish.

Briefly discuss the factors involved in the cardsthat reflect Ireland today and Ireland in thepast. Prompt the students to think about

● How people’s “vision” of Irish societyinfluences the political choices that aremade

● How life in Ireland has changed sincetheir parents were their age

● How change is a natural part of allcultures etc.

Finally, ask the students to record their threepriority wishes for the future so that they canreview them at the end of the module to seeif they have changed in any way.

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Introductory ActivityIreland – The Reality and

the Vision (1 class)

Aims❃ To enable students to creatively reflect on the kind of country they would want to live in

❃ To compare this with the reality

❃ To begin to make value judgements on the positive and negative aspects of Irish culture

Concepts Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities, Democracy

Understanding Awareness of the differences between the “traditional” view of Ireland and the reality of today’s Ireland, and of the relationship between cultural values and social/political structures

Attitudes Openness to social/cultural change

Skills Social and political analysis, questioning values


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Introductory Activity Ireland – The Reality and the Vision

Ireland will be aCatholic country.

The Irish language willbe spoken every day

by most people.

Irishness will includepeople of all colours

and religions.

Ireland will be an all-white country.

Schools will expectstudents from othercultures to “fit in”with the way the

school does things.

Politicians will alwaysbe able to ‘fix’ things

for their friends.

Most people withdisabilities will not be

able to find jobs.

There will be morehomeless people than

now.

People with disabilitieswill get enough

support from the stateto work as easily as

other people.

Everyone in NorthernIreland will feel that

their rights andidentity are respected

by the state.


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Ireland – The Reality and the Vision Introductory Activity

Schools will changetheir rules to help

people from allcultures and countries

feel welcome.

There will be haltingsites around thecountry to allow

Travellers to travelaround as they wish.

Sign language willbecome an official

language in the Irishstate.

Pubs and nightclubswill welcome all

people, no matterwhat their colour or

culture.

The GAA will be thebiggest sporting

organisation in thecountry.

Stronger laws to stopillegal immigrants andasylum seekers coming

to Ireland will bepassed.

The Travellingcommunity will all be

settled in houses.

Traditional Irish musicwill be the most

popular kind of musicin Ireland.

Everyone will have anequal chance of a

getting a job for whichthey are qualified.

We will have a unitedIreland and Unionistswho are not happywith this will havemoved to Britain.


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PreparationPhotocopy the worksheet Who in this Group?for each student.

Activity - Part 1✎ Distribute one worksheet to each

student in the class.

✎ Explain that their task is to find howmany people in the class can answeryes to the statements on the sheet e.g.how many eat potatoes every day?They should walk around theclassroom asking everyone to identifythe questions they can answer yes to,until they have collected the numbersfor each question. (If the class is verybig, this could be done in small groups,collating the results from each group)

✎ When they have finished, brieflydiscuss the results with the class.Include where possible the followingareas of discussion.

● The number of students whoanswered yes to various questions.

● The kind of person the questionsdescribed. Note: The questions have beendeliberately chosen to reflect commonstereotypes of Irish people. The lastquestion however, reflects the modernIreland, which is the biggest exporter ofsoftware in the world.

● Would their parents have answereddifferently to any of the questions?

● Would their grandparents haveanswered differently again?

Section 1Images of Ourselves and Others

Activities 1-3Concepts Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities

Understanding Nature of stereotypes and their effects on others

Attitudes Openness to take time before judging others, empathy with those who are often stereotyped

Skills Seeing things from a new perspective

Activity 1 Who in this group – the typical Irish person? (1 class)

Aims❃ To help students realise that there is no such thing as a typical Irish person

❃ To illustrate the limitations of stereotypes

❃ To help students stand outside and look at how others see Irish people

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Images of Ourselves and Others Section 1

● The possible difference in answersthat might be given by people wholive in the country and those wholive in cities and how that reflectsdiversity within Irish society.

● The difference between thestereotypes, which are often thosesold by the tourist industry, and themore complex reality of what itmeans to be Irish.

Activity - Part 2Explain the analogy of the iceberg as a way oflooking deeper than the stereotypes. Just asonly 10% of the iceberg is visible above waterand 90% is hidden below water, so too, whenwe look at other people or at other cultures, itis often only the superficial, stereotypicalaspects of that person or culture that we seeand make judgements on. Making an effortto see the other 90% means that we get a morecomplete picture of who people really are.

Version for a Class with Irish students only

✎ Draw an outline of an iceberg on theboard and ask the students to quicklyfill in both sections of the iceberg withthe superficial and real aspects ofIrishness including those they havealready discussed in Part 1 and in theactivity ‘Ireland – The Reality and theVision’.

✎ Discuss how it feels to be limited byother people to the stereotypical 10%description of a settled Irish person.

✎ Highlight the diversity among differentgeographical areas of Ireland, amongdifferent age or socio-economic groups,different religious groups, settled andTraveller etc.

Version for a Culturally Diverse class

✎ If there are students from differingcultural backgrounds in the class,divide the students into small groupsand ask them to do the exercise abovefrom their own particular culturalperspective.

✎ Use the discussion to highlight thediversity that exists in allcultures/nationalities. Be particularlycareful to avoid having Irish studentsdevelop a simplistic or exotic view ofother cultures represented in the class.

✎ If there is only one representative ofanother culture in the class, remindeveryone that one person doesn’treflect a whole cultural group andencourage that person to talk about thediversity within his/her culture orcountry.

HomeworkFor homework ask thestudents to monitorTV programmes,newspapers and anymagazines they comeacross and try to identify where people orcultures are being stereotyped.

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Section 1 Images of Ourselves and Others

Who in this group?✗ eats potatoes every day

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ owns an Aran jumper

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ plays or listens to Irish traditional music

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ is a Catholic who attends Mass every week

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ is one of a family of three or more children

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ lives in a thatched cottage

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ burns turf in an open fire

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ drinks 3 or more cups of tea every day

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ plays in or supports GAA

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

✗ has a computer at home

❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑

1Section 1 Images of Ourselves and Others


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15


Activity✎ Give each student a copy of the

Occupations Worksheet oralternatively, put a copy up on anoverhead projector. Give the studentsthe following information.● All of the people shown are Irish or

live in Ireland.● Their occupations are: painter/

decorator, financial services advisor,officer administrator, nurse, youthworker, student, electrician, teacher.

✎ Write the occupations on the board. Askthe students to individually look at eachperson’s photograph and to make ajudgement on what their nationality andoccupation are. They should then shareand discuss their choices in pairs and askeach other questions about otherpossibilities i.e. why do you think PersonX is the electrician and not Person Y?

✎ Then take feedback from the wholeclass. Write up the list of people on theboard and first ask about thenationality of each one. Then askabout the occupation of each person inturn – How many thought Bernardwas an electrician? A painter/decorator? etc. Write the number foreach choice beside the person’s name.

✎ At the end give the class the correctanswers and check how many peoplehad judged correctly. Explain to themthat their choices were made on thebasis of their unconscious stereotypes.Then ask them to discuss, either ingroups of four or as a whole class, thefactors which influenced their choices.

You can photocopy worksheet 2 andgive one to each student, or write thefactors on the board and conduct awhole class discussion.

Correct AnswersBernard is an office administratorP.J. is a children’s nurse.Chrissie is a community worker and an Irish TravellerDarina is a painter/decoratorAbdullah is a financial advisor, originally from SomaliaSiobhán is a teacher and a wheelchair userAoife is an electrician

Note: The photo of Abdullah first appeared in APart of Ireland Now, Andy Pollak/Derek Speirs,The Refugee Agency, 1997. The photo ofChrissie first appeared in the Pavee PointNewsletter, January 1999. All photos are usedwith permission.

HomeworkShow the class or giveout copies of theCitizen Travellerposter (reproducedwith permission from the Citizen Travellercampaign.) Ask them to choose at least 4people they know (including 2 from differentage groups to themselves) and to first describethem in stereotypical terms and then in termsof the complex reality of their whole identity.They could use the iceberg shape to do this,putting the stereotypical images above waterand the full reality below water.

To think about for the week: How do we avoidthe habit of negatively stereotyping people and tryto see the whole person instead?

Activity 2 Stereotyping – Seeing People Differently (1 class)

Aims❃ To help students become aware of how we make judgements based on stereotypes in

everyday life.

❃ To encourage them to start thinking about the positive and negative aspects ofstereotyping.


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Who Does What?1

Aoife

Abdullah

Siobhán

Chrissie

PJDarina

Bernard

Children’s Nurse ...................................

Electrician ...................................

Financial Advisor ...................................

Community Worker ...................................

Teacher ...................................

Office Administrator ...................................

Painter/Decorator ...................................


Why did you Choose?Your choices were based on stereotypes that you have learned without evenrealising it. Some of your stereotypes may be correct for some people, some ofthe time. However, in many cases they are inaccurate or don’t tell the wholestory. Everyone walks around with lots of stereotypes in their heads. Often,they may appear to be harmless, but they can also cause us to judge otherpeople negatively on totally unjustified grounds, so it is important to becomeaware of our stereotypes and to try to get beyond them to the real personunderneath.

Stereotypes are most often based on basic factors such as gender, age, dressetc. Look back at your choices for the Occupation worksheet and decide as agroup, what you based your choices on. Choose from the following list or addother factors, as you need to.

Factor Comments on your Choice

Gender

Style of dress

Cleanliness

Age

Skin colour

Ethnic background

Hair style

Accent

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Dirty

1

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PreparationMake seven copies of the Labels – What dothey Mean for Us and Others? Worksheetand fill in the names of seven differentminority groups on the top of the sheets.Categories could include Travellers,refugees, people with disabilities, olderpeople, Africans, Bosnians, Americans,English, Muslims, Nationalists, Unionists,Catholics, Protestants, or others, as appro-priate for your class and the local situation.

Activity✎ Ask the students to think of some of

the ways groups of people are labelledby others e.g. people from certain areas(Norries in Cork) etc.

✎ Ask them how do they think peoplefeel when they are labelled in anegative way by others. Then dividethem into small groups and give eachgroup a Labels worksheet and askthem to complete it.

✎ Alternatively, ask the whole class tobrainstorm on the labels that are givento each group of people and writethem up on the board. Continue withthe discussion as below.

✎ Take feedback from each group anddiscuss their ideas on what theconsequences of the labelling would be.

✎ Look for their ideas on how they couldstop themselves or others labellingpeople.

Follow-up OptionRole-play a situation in which stereotypinghas hurt or excluded someone. Each groupcould be given a different scenario to role-play and then use the role-play as a basis fordiscussing how the person who wasstereotyped felt. Suggestions for thescenarios could be made by the students.

Activity 3 The Effects of Stereotyping on Others (1 class)

ScroungersRich

DruggiesLoud

and Fat Skangers


20


Labelling ___________________what does that mean for

them and us?Labels Consequences

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2

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PreparationPart 1 Enlarge the Old/Young womanpicture and the other perception exercises toA3 or A2 size, so that all the students will beable to clearly see them from every part of

the classroom. Alternatively, copy them ontooverhead slides. If you want to use theadditional double perception pictures onpage 25 for homework, make copies foreach student.

Section 2Exploring Perceptions and Worldviews

Activity 1 Them and Us – Two Ways of Looking at Things – Seeing the Whole Picture (1-2 classes)

“Each of us has many, many maps of life in our head, which can be divided intotwo main categories: maps of the way things are, or realities, and maps of theway things should be, or values. We interpret everything we experiencethrough these mental maps. We seldom question their accuracy; we’re usuallyeven unaware that we have them. We simple assume that the way we seethings is the way they really are or the way they should be.”

Stephen Covey (1992) The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Simon and Schuster

Aims❃ To help students realise that

● The stereotype may not always tell the whole story

● There are always two sides to every story, but it takes some effort to find the other side

● Opposing perceptions can be equally valid or true

❃ To develop their openness to looking for the other side of the story and to empathise withothers who are different

❃ To develop their skills of critical analysis

Concepts Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities, Democracy, Law

Understanding The complexity of any situation, the existence of different perspectives on situations or groups

Attitudes Openness and empathy, willingness to look further than superficial impressions

Skills Critical analysis


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Section 2 Exploring Perceptions and Worldviews

Part 2 (Small group discussion) Enlarge theThem and Us circles to A3 and copy one setfor each group (they can be copied back toback on two sheets of paper). (Whole classdiscussion) Draw the circles on a sheet of flipchart paper.

Activity - Part 1✎ Show the picture of the Old/Young

woman to the whole class and ask themto write a brief description or thinkabout what they see. Then they shouldshare their description with the studentbeside them. You should find thatsome of them have seen the old womanand some the young woman.

✎ Ask a few students to describe whatthey have seen and then ask for a showof hands for those who agree with oneview or the other.

✎ Ask the students to look carefully againat the picture and tell them they are allcorrect in what they see. Somestudents will probably begin to see theother view, but it is likely that some willbe convinced that they are right andthe “other view” is wrong.

✎ Ask two of the most convincedopposing students to point out thewoman’s nose, neck, eye etc as they seethem, until all the students are able tosee the two views.

Discussion Pointers● What have they learned from this

exercise?● What real life situations can they

suggest which mirror this experience?● How did they feel when it was shown

that what they thought was wrong wasactually also correct?

● How hard was it to be open to theother point of view?

● What could they learn from this interms of judging people or meetingpeople with very different views of asituation to them?

● Will they change their behaviour in thiskind of a situation in future? If so, how?

● What skills would they need to get intoa habit of trying to understand otherviewpoints?

The other perception exercises can now beshown to the class or given to them to takehome.

Using the Perception ExercisesThese exercises are fun to do and illustratehow context, whether visual, physical,political or emotional, influences ourperceptions of people and events.

In the first perception exercise, the triangleshapes lead most people to read the phrasesas ‘Once in a lifetime’, A bird in the hand’etc. If you look carefully you will see theyactually read ‘Once in a a lifetime’, Bird inthe the hand’ etc.

In the second and third exercises, all thefigures and both the lines are the same size.It is the context in which they are shownwhich makes one look bigger than another.These are good exercises to remind studentsof, whenever they are absolutely sure thatthe way they see things is right and peoplewho disagree with them are wrong.

2

ONCEIN A

A LIFETIME

PARISIN THE

THE SPRING

BIRDIN THE

THE HAND


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Exploring Perceptions and Worldviews Section 2

Part 2 - Them and Us✎ Divide the class into groups of 4-5.

Give each group copies of the Themand Us worksheet. Ask them to writein the inner circle adjectives that theywould use to describe themselves andyoung people in general.

✎ In the outer circle they should thenwrite adjectives that they have heardadults use or they think would use todescribe young people.

✎ Take feedback from each group, twoadjectives from each group in turn, onhow they see young people and writethem up on the flip chart or overheadversion of the circle.

✎ Do the same for the outer circle ofadjectives used by adults to describeyoung people.

Discussion● Finish the class with a whole-class

discussion of the following points.● How do you feel about the way adults

often view young people?● How did the two sets of views of young

people differ from each other?

● Where they differed, was one viewtotally correct and one totally incorrect?

● To what extent could both views bejustified? Contradicted?

● Is there a more balanced way ofdescribing the actual reality?

HomeworkAsk the students to dothe Them and Usexercise, this timelooking at parents.They should write the adjectives they woulduse to describe parents in the outer circle andthen try to imagine what adjectives parentswould use to describe themselves, writingthese in the inner circle. If appropriate, theycould discuss these two views with their ownand/or their friends’ parents.

Class 2Take feedback on what the students havedone for homework, firstly on the adjectivesused and then on the discussions that theymay have had with parents.

Some questions to consider are:

● Were the views expressed by studentsand parents more balanced becausethey know each other well?

● If they had opposing views in somerespects, did the discussion allow bothto see each other’s point of view?

● When two groups of people have verylittle contact with each other, as is oftenthe case in relations between themajority and minority groups, howmight opportunities for dialoguebetween the two groups be created sothat both would see each other’s pointof view?

Depending on the time available you couldrepeat this exercise with other groups asappropriate –teachers, minority groups,political or religious groups etc – either aspart of class or for homework.

Note: This exercise could be used at any pointduring the module whenever students expressnegative views about any group of people.

2


24


What do You See?

2


What do You See?

Which is Bigger?

25


2ONCEIN A

A LIFETIME

PARISIN THE

THE SPRING

BIRDIN THE

THE HAND


26


Them and Us

2Them

Us


2

27


IntroductionHow we see our place in the world and ourperceptions of how the world should lookhave a strong influence on our attitudestowards and perceptions of other countriesand peoples. Traditionally, the Mercatorprojection of the world has been used inIrish schools and businesses and any placewhere a map of the world appears. Thisprojection was devised in the 16th century bya cartographer named Gerhard Mercator,who drew it for the European explorers whowere exploring the “New World” andneeded a map that was directionally correct.It is directionally accurate but greatlydistorts the relative sizes of countries, withthe Northern countries being shown as twicethe size of countries in the southernhemisphere. The position of Europe at thetop and centre of the map supports a Euro-centric view of the world. The fact that thesouthern countries, which are generally thepoorer countries of the world, are shown assmaller that their actual size, supports theperception that they are not as important asthe richer Northern countries.

Maps using various projections have beenused for centuries by various groups of

people for specific purposes, but it is onlyrecently that projections other than theMercator projection have been used andpromoted by international organisations. Inthe late 1970s, a German historian namedArno Peters produced an alternativeprojection whose main purpose was tocorrect the distortions of country size inMercator and, in showing the size ofcountries in a more accurate way relative toeach other, to be fairer to the poorercountries of the South. However, in doingthis, the shape of the countries is distorted.It is known as an equal area projection andis now used by most development agencies.

The Eckert IV map, introduced in the1980s, is another equal area projection thataimed to show the shape of countries moreaccurately. However, it makes countries atthe top and bottom slant and New Zealand iseither moved from its correct position inorder to fit it in or left out altogether. Thisprojection is used by some UN agencies,including UNICEF. Other equal areaprojections may be found in some schoolatlases.

Activity 2 Worldview – How do We See the World? (1 class)

Aims❃ To enable students to explore their images of the world (their worldview)

❃ To enable students to reflect on how our worldview influences our attitudes andbehaviour towards people from other countries

Concepts Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities, Development, Democracy

Understanding Different types of map projections and their influence on attitudes and worldview

Attitudes Openness towards seeing the world from different perspectives and willingness to consider other viewpoints

Skills Visual perception, ranking, critical analysis of the influence of given images and perceptions


28


PreparationPhotocopy the world maps on pages 29-38 sothat you have enough to give a set to eachgroup of four students. (You will need to cutthe pages so that you have 6 separate maps).

Enlarge the four maps of Ireland so that theyare each A3 size or at least A4 size. You willalso need some bluetack.

Activity - Part 1✎ Divide the class into groups of four.

First give a set of the world maps toeach group.

✎ Ask them to rank the maps in order ofpreference, using a diamond rankingmethod. Each group should thenexplain the reasons for their choices tothe rest of the class.

✎ Then ask them to discuss the followingquestions:

● Which of the world maps do youthink is the most correct?

● Which do you think is the leastcorrect? Why?

● Who do you think might prefer touse each of the world maps? Why?

● What impression does each of theworld maps give of Ireland and itsplace in the world?

✎ Explain to the students the reasonsbehind the different projections,relating them to their responses to thediscussion. Ask them how would theyfeel if the normal map used in theschool was one that showed Ireland atthe edge of the map (Map 3).

Activity - Part 2✎ Stick the four maps of Ireland on the

walls in different areas of the classroom.

✎ Ask the students to quietly look at themaps and then stand in front of theone that they like the most.

✎ Ask for a few comments from studentsas to why they chose a particular map,what they liked about it, how it madethem feel about Ireland etc.

✎ If there is time, finish with a whole-class discussion on the reasons whypeople might want to use one of theIrish maps more than another,particularly the political significance ofthe Northern Ireland and Republic ofIreland maps.

Description of MapsMap 1: Mercator projection

Map 2: Peters Projection

Map 3: Eckhart IV Projection

Map 4: Eckhart IV Projection centred onAustralasia – this would be used in countriesin the Far East

Map 5: Peters projection centred on theAmericas – this is used by countries in theAmericas

Map 6: “Upside Down Map of the World”centred on Australia

Map 7: Map of Ireland

Map 8: Map of Ireland – shown west to eastinstead of north to south

Map 9: Map of Northern Ireland. NorthernIreland is shown with only a small bit ofbordering Southern Ireland on the BBCregional weather forecast.

Map 10: Map of the Republic of Ireland.Unlike other countries which are part of abigger landmass, we rarely see maps of theRepublic of Ireland shown without the restof the island of Ireland.

HomeworkIf students have enjoyedthis activity, they coulduse their atlases totrace and producetheir own version of aworld map or map of Ireland. Alternatively,they could produce a collage of differentversions of either map.

(This activity is based on ideas in “Mapping OurWorld” published by Oxfam, 1993 and “TheSign of the Times” published by the Columbans,1989.)

2


2

29


Map 1

Map 2

SouthAmerica

NorthAmerica

Australia

Africa

Asia

Europe

SouthAmerica

North America

Australia

Africa

Asia

Europe


2

30


Map 3

Map 4

South America

North America

Australia

Africa

Asia

Europe

South America

North America

Australia

Africa

Asia

Europe


2

31


Map 5

Map 6

South America

North America

Australia

Africa

Asia

Europe

SouthAmerica

North America

Australia

Africa

AsiaAsia

Europe


2

32


● Dublin

● Belfast

● Galway

● Waterford

● Wexford

● Limerick

Sligo ●

● Athlone● Letterkenny

● Cork

Map 7

Map 8

Dub

lin ●

Bel

fast

●

●G

alw

ay

Cor

k ●

Wat

erfo

rd ●W

exfo

rd ●

●Li

mer

ick

●S

ligo ●

Ath

lone

●Le

tterk

enny


2

33


Map 9

Map 10

Belfast ●

● Coleraine

Enniskillen ●

● Derry

● Armagh

Dub

lin ●

●G

alw

ay

Cor

k ●

Wat

erfo

rd ●W

exfo

rd ●

●Li

mer

ick

●S

ligo ●

Ath

lone

●Le

tterk

enny


2Activity 3 Images of Africa (2 classes)Aims

❃ To enable students to explore their own images of Africa and attitudes towards Africans,both those in African countries and those who live in Ireland.

❃ To examine how media and development agency images of Africa influence theirattitudes.

Concepts Interdependence, Development, Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities

Understanding How images of Africa are used by development agencies and how they relate to the complexity of aid situations.

Attitudes Respect, recognising equality

Skills Visual literacy, critical analysis of the use of images in situations of need, social and political analysis, questioning assumptions and values

34

IntroductionResearch in recent years has shown thatmany young Irish people’s images of Africancountries are those of people who arestarving, poor, helpless, and need charityand aid. (See the findings from theDEFY/IMS survey Development and JusticeIssues: Irish Attitudes, 2000.) Obviouslydevelopment agencies find it much easier toraise money for their projects by appealingto people’s pity for people in direcircumstances of poverty or war. Mediacoverage, in particular television coverage,of Africa has concentrated on showing onlywars and disasters, generating compassionand pity, portraying Africans as victims andemphasising the role of Irish developmentworkers and agencies. (See DirkaGriesshaber (1997) Challenging Perspectives:The Majority World on Irish Television.Comhlámh Action Network). However,because Irish people in general are notpresented with more in-depth analysis of thestructural causes of poverty or the effortsAfrican countries are making to eliminatepoverty themselves, the effects of the black-baby syndrome are being perpetuated intoanother generation. One Irish developmentagency which would, in general, support a

more educative approach to fund-raising,ran a very successful TV ad campaign inSpring 2001 using images of childrensuffering in an emergency situation, hungry,and with flies crawling over their faces. 70%of the 12 –17 year olds participating in theDEFY/IMS survey stated that they got theirinformation about the Third World fromtelevision, while 63% said that their mainimages of the Third World were those ofstarvation, famine and hunger. In thissituation, it is clearly important to helpstudents develop their skills of criticalanalysis in relation to the images they seeand to try to broaden their perceptions.

Note: This activity is not intended to be criticalof the valuable and essential work thatdevelopment agencies do, merely to look at thelong-term negative impact of the use of images ofhelplessness and disaster, without presenting thecomplete and more complex picture.

Preparation for Class 1Note: This activity could be done without gettingphotos as described below, and basing thediscussion on the students’ memories of images theyhave seen, but it is more effective to use actualphotos, if at all possible.



35

Contact Irish development agencies torequest two or three sets of the fundraisingmaterials, leaflets or newsletters theyproduce. Agencies who work in Irelandinclude Concern, Trócaire, Goal, ChristianAid, Action Aid, Oxfam, Gorta, World Visionetc. It would be important to get materialsfrom at least the first three on the list, as theyare the biggest agencies. (Addresses on page94.) Cut out the photos used in the materialsto provide a representative selection of thetypes of photos used by the agencies. Theseshould include photos of developmentprojects in education and agriculture,emergency and war situations, street childrenetc. Divide the photos into six sets of fairlysimilar type photos, with at least four photosof different kinds in each set.

Class 1 Part 1✎ Ask the students to individually

brainstorm their images of Africa. Sharetheir images with a partner and discusswhich ones they are sure are accurateand which they think might be onlypartially true. They should agree onwhich images are accurate and make alist of questions they would need to askto check whether the other images areonly partially or completely accurate.

✎ Take feedback from each pair, askingthem to contribute an image that hasn’talready been mentioned, so that apicture of all the images is built up.

✎ Have the pairs then discuss and feedback to the whole class where they thinktheir images have come from. Try toestablish which was the most influentialsource of their images e.g. television,newspapers, development agency, storybooks, teachers in school etc.

Part 2✎ Divide the class into six groups. Give

each group a set of photos and askthem to look at them and to analysethem using the questions below.

● What feelings did you have whenyou looked at the photos?

● Why did you feel that way?

● Describe the people in the photos?● What kind of response are the

photos trying to provoke?● How would you feel about having

your photo taken if you were insome of the situations shown?

● Do you think all the photos respectthe dignity of the people shown?

✎ Get feedback from the students at thispoint to help identify the effects ofvarious kinds of photos e.g. generatingpity or shock, appealing to people’semotions about children etc.

✎ Then ask each group to look at thephotos a second time and to analyse howthe people in the photos or the situationare portrayed. Are they shown as:

● Helpless and dependent on charityor aid

● Working to solve their ownproblems but needing some support

● Being helped by Irish volunteers● Working as partners with Irish

volunteers● Working to gain their rights

✎ Take feedback from the groups on theeffects of the photos and ask them toconsider how the images presented bythe agencies influence Irish people’sattitudes towards Africans, includingthose who live in Ireland. Are theimages shown on Television different tothis or similar?

Homework Ask the students towatch TV ads (shownfrequently on TV3)made by develop-ment agencies to raise money for their work.

Note: Television stations can tell you when specificadvertisements are scheduled to be shown

Class 2(If the students have seen any coverage ofAfrica or other developing countries ontelevision ask them what they thought of it in

2



36


the light of the discussions during theprevious class.)

✎ Ask the class to identify an actual orpotential community developmentproject in their local area. You mayhave to suggest some to them.

✎ Divide them into groups. Ask them toimagine they are working for anIrish–American group which supportsdevelopment projects in Ireland.

✎ Ask half of the groups to design afundraising leaflet for the project thatemphasises the problems andhelplessness of the community groupand appeals to charity.

✎ Ask the other groups to design onethat emphasises partnership, solidarityand social justice. (They needn’t writeout the whole leaflet, just plan it withheadings, photos to include etc).

✎ Ask each group to make a shortpresentation of the arguments they havegiven in the leaflet. Follow this with adiscussion of which approach theywould prefer if they were thecommunity group concerned and relatethis to the kind of advertising they’veseen produced by the aid agencies.

Other Options

�Give the class a summary of the guide-lines for charity fundraising (see below)and ask them to examine a number ofadvertisements and fundraisingmaterials from development agencies,organisations such as the Vincent dePaul, disability groups and othervoluntary organisations in the light ofthe guidelines.

�Make them aware that if there is anyadvertisement that they find offensive,including those of charities, they cancomplain in writing to the AdvertisingStandards Authority for Ireland(Address on page 94).

�If they are unhappy with any of thefundraising materials they see, theycould write to the agency or organisationand express their concern.

�Carry out a wider survey among otherclasses in the school or centre to establish

what the students’ images of Africa are,where they came from and how theywould describe Africans living in Ireland.

�Write to the embassies of Africancountries and ask for information andtourist literature on the country. GetIrish tourist information from thenearest tourist office or regional touristboard. Contrast the tourist informationwith (a) the development agencies’images and (b) the Bórd Fáilte version ofIrish society. Discuss the limitations ofboth these views of the countriesinvolved and look for ways in which amore balanced picture could bepresented of the reality in each country.

Guidelines for Good Practice inCharity Advertising in IrelandThese guidelines were developed by theComplete Picture Campaign in 1995 afterdiscussion with over a hundred Irish charitiesand voluntary agencies as well as the IrishAdvertising Standards Association. TheCampaign aimed to ensure that charitieswould uphold the dignity of the people theywere helping, and that they would show thecomplete picture of situations where peoplewere in need or in crisis.

What the Guidelines said:

Overseas Aid – Ads should fully respect thedignity of people and not undermine theirabilities or independence.

Racism – Ads should respect the principle ofequality between different cultures andpeoples and the dignity of all people. Theyshould affirm cultural identity and people’sability to respond to their own situations.

Children – Where children are depicted, itshould be in a positive light, giving dignity totheir lives and culture.

Age – Ads should reflect older people’spositive role in society and should not showthem as unable to do things.

Disability – Ads should respect the dignity ofpeople with disabilities and not underminetheir abilities or independence.

Gender – Ads should promote equal rights forwomen and men and not stereotype women.

2


3

Preparation● Prepare blank cards of postcard size for

each student.● Photocopy the Language Matters

worksheet for each pair of students.

Activity - Part 1(The first part of this activity is based on an ideafrom Spanner in the Works – Education for RacialEquality and Social Justice in White Schools byBrown, Barnfield and Stone, Trentham Books(1990))

✎ Divide the class into pairs. (Becausethis is an activity about names, youmight want to divide them according to

name. To do this, ask them to line up,without speaking, in alphabetical orderof their first names. Then, startingwith the A’s, they should divide up intopairs.)

✎ Give each student a blank card. Askthem to write their full name on thecard. If they are usually known by ashortened version of their name or bya nickname, they should write thatdown as well. Then they shouldunderline the name by which theyprefer to be called.

✎ Now ask them to discuss with theirpartner:

37

Section 3Prejudice and Language

Activities 1-2Aims

❃ To help students to realise the relationship of peoples’ names to their identity and self-esteem and the harmful effects of name-calling.

❃ To encourage the students to act in the face of name-calling and to promote respect inschool and in their community.


Understanding The importance of people’s names, the harmful effects of name-calling and how it makes people feel, how exclusion and negative behaviour can be challenged

Attitudes Empathy, respect for others, willingness to act to protect themselves and others.

Skills Listening, developing empathy, ability to act collectively and individually in the face of name-calling and exclusion.

Activity 1 Sticks and Stones – the Importance of Names (1 class)


38

Section 3 Prejudice and Language

● Why they were given these names,who they were called after etc

● What they mean e.g. African namesoften indicate the day children areborn or their place in the family

● The origin of their surname if theyknow it e.g. names beginning withO’ or Mc are old Irish names, somemay have Norman, Viking, English,Scottish, European, African, Asiannames, some may have theirmothers’ names, some their fathers’names etc

● What it feels like to be called by aform of their name that they don’tlike.

✎ When they have finished, each pairshould join up with the pair besidethem. Each person should thenexplain to the group what theirpartner’s name means and what theylike and dislike being called.

FeedbackUse the following questions to initiate awhole class discussion on names.

● How did it feel to explain your nameto your partner?

● What did you learn about how otherpeople in your group felt?

● What did you learn about the

importance of a person’s name?

● How many different name originscould they identify in the class as awhole?

● How does it feel when someone callsyou by a name you don’t like?

Activity - Part 2✎ Give each group copies of the Language

Matters worksheet. Ask each group todiscuss the following questions:

● Which of the names are positive andwhich are negative?

● Which ones would they think thepeople being described would preferto be called? Why?

● Which are the most commonly usedones?

● Why do people use the less positiveversions of names?

✎ Ask the students to add some moreexamples in the empty bubbles.

✎ Take some feedback from the groupswhile the students take note of themain ideas that have come up. If thefollowing points do not come up in thediscussion, ask the students for theiropinions on them.

● “Names never hurt anybody – it’sonly slagging!”

● “It’s only a bit of fun, we don’t meanto hurt anyone”

● “Some people can’t take a joke”

HomeworkAsk the students todescribe an incident ofname-calling whichthey saw or whichhappened to them. Askthem to think about how each personinvolved felt and to think of positivealternatives to a tit-for-tat response.

3

Aloysius Pius McGillicuddy

Máire Bríd Nic Mathúna

Emmanuel Kwesi Annan

Kwesi means

a boy born on a

Saturday


Language Matters

39

Prejudice and Language Section 3

3Old person

Oul oneOlder peopleSenior citizens

Elderly

Non-nationalNon-Irish

Non-English speakingNon-male

Non-female

Disabled personHandicapped person

Person with a disability

RefugeeAsylum seeker

Irish citizen

News for the deafor

News in sign language

TravellersItinerantsKnackers

GirlWoman

Young woman

Boy, man,youth

ChildrenStudentsYoungpeople


3

Activity 2 The Shadow – Prejudice in Practice (1-2 classes)

40


PreparationPhotocopy the poem The Shadow on theopposite page for each student. This poemis reprinted with permission fromUnlearning Discrimination in the Early Yearsby Babette Brown, published by TrenthamBooks, 1998.

Note: Two Options for using this poem are givenbelow, the first based on discussion and thesecond, on pages 42-44, on drama activities.Although many teachers may not have useddrama before, the suggestions given here includemany simple ideas which can be done with theminimum of experience and preparation.

Activity – Using Discussion✎ Give each student a copy of the poem

The Shadow. Ask one of the students toread the poem aloud. Now ask thestudents to re-read it one verse at atime and write down their feelings asthey read each verse. Ask for someinstant reactions to the poem. Use thequestions below either in small groupsor a whole class group to encouragereactions and to lead the discussion ona bit further.

● Who is the boy in the poem?

● How does he feel?

● Why do you think the poem is titledThe Shadow?

● Why do you think the others weretreating him like that? Why arepeople who are different picked onand excluded?

✎ Take the lines “My father told me tostay clear of that lot” and “Go back towhere you came from”. Discuss withthe class whether they have heard thissaid, why parents would say that andwhat it feels like for the refugees and

other migrants who are told to go backto where they came from.

✎ Ask the students to divide into groupsand to discuss the following questionand come up with proposals that mighthelp prevent the kind of name-callingand exclusion that the boy in the poemsuffered.

● If you were in the schoolyard at thetime, what would you like to seehappen?

● How would you feel about standingup for the boy if all your friendswere jeering him?

● What would make it easier for youto stand up for him?

● Are students who are differentpicked on or excluded in your class,your school?

● What do you think could be done(a) by you on your own (b) bystudents as a group (b) by the schoolto prevent this happening?

✎ Ask each group to list their proposalson sheets of flip chart paper and whenthey have finished to put them up onthe walls around the room. Then,either ask one person from each groupto present the group’s proposals or askall the students to walk around theroom and read each group’s ideas.

✎ Ask the class to contribute what theythought were the best proposals fromthe group and summarise them on flipchart.

The flip chart sheets should be kept, as theycould be used as the basis for an actionproject, a proposal to the student council ora proposal to the school management.


The ShadowA lonely figure enters.He produces a ball.‘Anyone want to play?’They turn away,He is different.

‘My father told me to stay clear of them sort’.He moves towards the playground wallHe knows each red brick almost by nameThe wall is his friend.He scratches his curly black hair‘Go back to where you came from’The daily chant beginsHe closes his earsAnd moves on.

School finishesAt the back of the bus queue he standsdesolate and aloneHis expressionless facedisguises the day’s deep damagelike a veil.

He climbs the stairs to his humble flatthe lift is out of orderHe reaches for his key, entersHe greets his mother and his sistergoes quickly to his room.He covers his black facewith his black handsand cries softly into the pillowwhich knows his tears so well.

(Poem written by a 14 year old)

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3


42


Activity - Using Drama in Education inthe Exploration of Poetry(by Carmel O’Sullivan, education lecturer inTrinity College Dublin)

Notes on Using Drama in Education

Poetry is a rich and varied art form but in themidst of our busy lives at school we can often missits deeper meaning and significance. It can touchus during fleeting moments while it is being reador recited but then it’s gone, and we carry on muchas before without taking time to pause and reflecton the messages conveyed.Drama in Education is an invaluable andeffective way of introducing active teaching andlearning approaches to classrooms. Its focus is onachieving deeper meaning, gaining widerperspectives on an issue, making connections,empathising with the situation and increasing ourunderstanding, even if we don’t have directexperience of that situation. It can serve as arehearsal or preparation for when one mightencounter a similar situation in real life,equipping students with the skills required toconfidently handle such experiences.The use of Drama in Education as an activeteaching and learning approach in poetry allowsus to actively engage with the poem, slow down theexploration and peel back the layers, allowing thevarious resonances and meanings to penetrate.Such a participatory mode of learning facilitatesthe transference of skills, knowledge and newlyacquired attitudes to material learned in anothersubject and to situations beyond the formal schoolsetting, thereby helping students to connect theirlearning with life beyond the classroom. Itdevelops students’ creative, critical thinking skillsby encouraging them to find connections betweenthings and to look for subtle patterns in allinformation encountered. (The Division of In-Service Education at Trinity College offers post-graduate courses in Drama in Education whereteachers study and explore similar approaches tothose outlined below.)

Suggested activitiesSome or all of the following ideas can betried out, depending on the time thatteachers and students wish to spend on thisissue. The activities broadly follow thesequence of the poem.

It is recommended that students read thepoem to themselves first, and then it can beread aloud, paying particular attention tothe pace (or speed) of recitation, the use ofpause to allow for moments of reflection andabsorption of the visual and aural images,and appropriate but sensitive emphasis onkey words and phrases.

A. Sculpted Picture

Re-read the first verse andinvite the class to create asculpted picture (still image)of this boy holding a ball, ashe asks if anyone wants toplay. This can be done as awhole class activity where astudent volunteer (or theteacher - to initially takethe pressure off the rest ofthe class) is shaped orsculpted by thesuggestions of the others,i.e. how do they see this‘lonely figure’ (handshanging by his side or foldedacross his chest; headdrooped to one side orlooking up eagerly inhopeful anticipation, etc.).Several positions can be triedout, and students can accept orreject these ‘images’ inaccordance to how they seethe boy in the poem. Thisactivity can also be done in pairs, where onestudent adopts the position of the boy in thepoem. It is always interesting to see thevariations of this ‘lonely figure’ that studentswill offer. Students should be encouraged todiscuss these and say why they think they arerealistic representations of the boy or not.

B. Thought-tracking

Students can be encouraged to suggest theinner thoughts of the boy in the poem as hestands in the yard with a ball in his hand,asking if anyone wants to play with him. Forexample, what might he be thinking/sayingin his own mind at this moment? What doesit tell us about how he is feeling?

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C. Me and Them

Individually or in small groups, draw how hesees himself and how the other students inhis school see him. An additional variationcan be included here: draw how he thinks theothers see him. Are these images the sameor different? Display them and discuss.Always start by referring to the concretefeatures contained in the picture, forexample, in this picture his hair is huge anddominates the image but in this picture … .It will result in a more focused and richerlevel of debate, and when dealing withpotentially sensitive and controversial issues,it helps to ground the discussion and avoidgeneralised, stereotypical comments.

D. The Wall

�“He moves towards the playgroundwall.” What does the wall symbolise inthis and other poems/stories that thestudents have encountered? Why dowe tend to gravitate towards a wall onoccasions like this?

�In groups of 8-10, create a human wallusing your bodies. Focus on theangles, shapes and body posture. Arethey inviting and friendly, strong orweak, threatening and intimidating?Remind the students to bear in mindwhat this wall symbolises for them, andto emphasise their facial expressionaccordingly when creating their wall.

�Bring the wall to life (Thought Tracking),where each person in the wall speaks itsthoughts. Who has leant against thiswall in the past and why? Create a wall

collage of voices by slowly building upthe various voices to a crescendo effect(all speaking together). This could beunderplayed with appropriate music(chosen by the students) to create ashort performance piece if desired.

� ‘If the wall could speak, what storieswould it tell?’ Write a story or poem orshort drama (a monologue perhaps)around the things that the wall hasseen in its lifetime, the people whohave leaned against it and why?

� ‘Dear Wall …. ’. The wall has served asa sort of agony aunt for many years.Based on its past experience, whatadvice would the wall offer the boy inthe poem if he asked for its help?

E. The Wall – His Friend

�“He knows each red brick almost bename. The wall is his friend”. Usingappropriate lyrical music, invite eachstudent to stand with his/her backagainst the wall in the classroom (orhall), and to place one of their hands(fingers spread out) on the wall. It ishelpful if the lights can be dimmed toallow students to experiment incomfort and safety with this handtracing activity. As the music plays,students allow their hand to trace thelines, creases and bumps of the wall inresponse to the rhythm of the music.If space allows, students can slowlymove along the wall following theirhand. Afterwards, discuss theexperience as a whole group activity.

�Write the diary entry that the boy inthis poem might write to his friend –the wall.

F. Forum Theatre

The poem tells us that “He closes hisears and moves on” in relation to thetaunting he receives at school.Discuss this as a survival tactic – isclosing your ears the most effectivestrategy or not? (Is the same strategybeing applied in verse 3 where hisexpressionless face hides the pain he

3


44


is feeling?). Is there any point in fightingback, and how? Invite the students torecreate the scene when the chanting begins.Encourage the class to suggest the differentoptions, if any, available to the boy in thissituation These can be tried out non-verballyat first, so the boy might show his reaction tothe chanting by bouncing a ball or byignoring the comments and attempting toengage himself in playing with somethingthat might attract some of the otherstudents’ interest in a positive manner.After each suggestion is tried out, studentsconsider the merits and demerits ofadopting each approach: has it improved thesituation or made it worse? Why and how?The aim of this activity is to see whether byadopting a different attitude or approach, achanged response on the part of the otherstudents in the poem could be generated.

This approach can also be used to explorethe scene in verse 3 where he is standingalone at the back of the bus queue.

G. Behind the Face

“His expressionless face disguises the day’sdeep damage like a veil”. Is he trying toprotect himself? Would it make anydifference if the others knew how he felt?Should he show his feelings to them? Invitethe students to draw a face on a large pieceof paper. Encourage them to label or drawthe expressions that lie behind this veil (forexample, behind his eyes is pain and fear;behind his closed lips are clenched teethrevealing the anger he feels, etc.). Ask themto consider each facial feature (such as chin,jaw bone, cheeks, eye brows, lines on theforehead, etc.) and reveal what lies beneath.

H. Wishes for the Future

�“He covers his black face with his blackhands and cries softly into the pillowwhich knows his tears so well”. Ingroups, students create a short scenearound the theme of: ‘if each tear thathe cries was a wish, what would itrepresent?’ After sharing these scenes,consider whether these wishes areidealistic or realistic? Can they beachieved on his own?

�Create two short scenes of his life, fiveyears from now. In one, things havechanged and he is happy. In the other,things have not really changed at all.After sharing some of these scenes,discuss and reflect upon what practical,concrete changes would be necessary inorder for the first scene (where he ishappy) to become a reality (both interms of himself and his own actions,and of those around him).

3


3

45


PreparationPhotocopy one of the What They SaidWorksheets for each student. (Half the classwill work on each worksheet).

Activity✎ Give each student a copy of one of the

What They Said Worksheets, andexplain that these are quotes fromnewspapers, residents and politiciansreferring to either refugees orTravellers. Ask them to read it quietlyand think about it for a moment.Then in pairs, they should discuss theirimmediate reactions to the statements.Take some immediate feedback from afew students on this before continuing.

✎ Ask each pair of students to discuss thequestions below and then to join up withanother pair who had discussed theother worksheet and to share andexplain their answers to each other.● What effect did the language used by

the journalists, politicians andresidents have on you?

● What effect do you think they haveon most people reading them?

● Why did people make comments or

write headlines like that? What werethey trying to achieve?

● Some of the statements make generalcomments about a whole group ofpeople. Can you think of ways tochallenge those statements?

● What do you think should be donewhen public representatives makecomments like the ones on the sheets?

● Do you think there is anything youcould do if one of your TDs orCouncillors made similar kinds ofremarks?

✎ Finally take some general feedbackfrom the whole class on their findingsand reactions to what they havediscussed. Make a note on a flip chartof the main points, issues and insightsthat have come up and keep these touse in a possible action project.

HomeworkAsk the students to readthe local and nationalnewspapers for thefollowing week,cutting out any reportsthat relate to minority groups.

Activity 3 The Language We Use – ReinforcingPrejudice and Racism (1 class)

Aims❃ To help students analyse the use of racist language both overt and covert and its effects❃ To enable students to reflect on the role of public representatives in promoting or

combating racism❃ To encourage the students to explore what action could be taken in the face of racism


Understanding The significance and negative influence of the use of racist and discriminatory language by the media and politicians, how this can be challenged.

Attitudes Respect for others, willingness to act in the face of prejudice and racism.

Skills Identifying prejudice and racism in public speeches and statements


46


What they said about Refugees

3“Floodgates open asnew army of poorswamp the country”

(Newspaper Headline)

“The town’s imagewould suffer”

(Town Commissioner)

“Crackdown on2,000 spongerrefugees”


“Illegalimmigrantsentering the country”


“The vast majorityof asylum-seekersare freeloaders,blackguards andhoodlums. Anyperson who wantsto call me a racist... they’re nottalking sense”

(TD)

“The Department ofJustice is naïve if itbelieves it can imposelarge numbers of asylum-seekers on the area”

(Protest Committee)

“Holiday-makersdon’t want to behassled by 15people on theprom selling ‘The Big Issues’”

(Town Commissioner)


What they said about Travellers

47


3

“The sooner the shotguns are

at the ready and these

travelling people are put out

of our county the better” (County Councillor)

“Killarney is literallyinfested by thesepeople”

(County Councillor)

“They arenot ourpeople”

(County Councillor)

“They aredirty andunclean”

(County Councillor)

“The news comesas a severe blowfor the residentswho had beendevastated by theplan from theoutset and hadformed acommittee tofight it”

(On proposed halting site)

“A 10-bay site couldprovide temporaryhousing for up to100 people, which istoo much for anyone area”

(Protest Committee)

“Everyone must take theirfair share. It’s not fair thatin this area, 2% of thecounty’s population arebeing asked to take 10%of the county’s Travellingpopulation.”

(Protest Committee)


48

IntroductionSee note on institutional discrimination inglossary in Appendix A page 89.

Class 1: Giant Steps Towards Equality(Adapted from Giant Steps in The Rights Stuff,DEFY/Amnesty/Trócaire, 1998)

PreparationIf at all possible, arrange to take this class inthe hall or other large space so that the wholeclass can be actively involved in it. If doing itin a classroom with desks arranged in rows,follow the alternative instructions below.

Before cutting out the cards, enlarge pages 51-54 so that each identity has one A4 page.Photocopy the cards on to coloured card,using a different colour for each identity. (Thismakes it much easier to facilitate the discussion asyou can easily see which students have been giveneach identity.)

Activity - Part 1✎ Ask the students to stand in a line at one

end of the hall. Give each student oneof the identity cards. Ask them to thinkabout who they are and what their life islike. Explain that you are going to readout a set of statements about how peoplelive. They should listen carefully to eachstatement and then act as follows:

● If they can easily do what thestatement says, then they should takea giant step forward.

● If they can only do it with difficulty,they should take a small step forward.

● If they cannot do it at all, they shouldstay exactly where they are, withoutmoving.

✎ Slowly read out the list of statements,allowing time in between each one forthe students to think about it and tomove accordingly. When you have

Section 4Cultural Values and Equality

– Who Does Our Society Value?

Activity 1 Giant Steps Towards Equality? (2 classes)Aim

❃ To enable students to experience and reflect on how cultural values are expressed insociety by the way some groups are more favourably treated or provided for than others

Concepts Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities, Democracy, Development, Interdependence.

Understanding Awareness of inequality in Irish society, understanding how political choices are based on cultural values.

Attitudes Empathy, motivation to investigate causes of inequality.

Skills Analysis, judgement.

4


49

Cultural Values and Equality Section 4

4

finished, the students should be indifferent parts of the room, with somenot having moved at all or very little andsome who have moved very far.

Instructions for a small classroom

✎ Give out all the identity cards. Ask foreight volunteers from the students, onefor each colour of card. They shouldthen carry out the activity as above whilethe rest of the class watch. Ask thewatchers to also listen carefully to eachinstruction and decide whether theywould move or not if they were the onesin the line.

Activity - Part 2: Debriefing✎ Ask the students to remain standing

exactly where they finished and then usethe questions below to debrief them. Asstudents make comments or answerquestions, they should begin by sayingwhat identity they had, so the classbegins to get a feel for which identityenabled people to move and whichprevented them from moving. As someof them may have strong feelings aboutnot being able to move, remind themthat they must listen to each other’sfeelings and opinions.

Questions for the Debriefing● Who were able to take the most giant

steps?● Who could only take small steps?● Who could not move at all?● How did it feel to be able to

move/unable to move/only able to movea few times?

● How did you feel when others weremoving at a faster/slower pace than you?

● What were the main obstacles faced bythose who could move very little?

● Why do you think there was such a dif-ference between how far people couldgo?

● What does this tell you about equality orthe lack of it in Ireland?

Note: Remember that Siobhán could not havemoved at all as she could not hear the instructions.

HomeworkAsk the students to writeout briefly how they feltduring the exerciseand what it helpedthem learn about thesituation of the person whose identity theyhad. The students may not have knownenough about the situation of some of thepeople or situations to fully discuss them.Help them identify where they can get theinformation they need before the next class.

Class 2: Why? What If things wereDifferent?Reflection on the situation of the 8Identities

✎ Ask them to form groups with those whohad the same identity in the giant stepsactivity. Give them all a copy of thestatements sheet. Ask them to sharetheir reasons for moving/not moving ateach statement and their understandingof the situation of their identity group.There will be different understandingamong the students of the situation, sothey need to be open to listening todifferent perspectives. NB: The “John”group should think about theirrelationship with some of the othergroups who were unable to move ormoved only a little.

✎ Remind the students that the situationsthey have been discussing haven’t justhappened by accident. They are a resultof the social and economic policiesfollowed by politicians or of the generalattitudes held by society. This meansthat these situations could be changed, ifthere was a willingness or desire toimprove things. Give the students theGiant Steps Worksheet and ask them tocomplete the worksheet as a group.

FeedbackTake feedback from each group of one oftheir answers. Highlight the main issues thatcome up and look for common links thatmight lead the students to develop an ActionProject in one area of concern.


50

Section 4 Cultural Values and Equality

List of Identities● My name is John. I am 40 years old and am an accountant.● My name is Niamh. I am 25 years old and a receptionist. I am a

wheelchair user.● My name is Catherine. I am 82 years old and live alone.● My name is Najia. I am 30 years old and a Muslim refugee from

Afghanistan.● My name is Declan. I am 50 years old and am unemployed. I live

in Darndale.● My name is Siobhán. I am 21 and a student. I am profoundly

deaf and use sign language.● My name is Michael. I am 19 years old. I am a Traveller and am

self-employed.● My name is Brendan. I am 23 years old and am Black Irish. I am

a mechanic.

Statements1 I have a great social life, doing lots of different things.2 It’s no problem for me to visit friends and relations whenever I

want to.3 I love shopping and it’s easy for me to visit a good selection of

shops.4 My culture is respected by national bodies and structures.5 I/or my children can easily attend a school which meets our

needs.6 I reckon I have as good a chance as anyone else of getting a

job or promotion for which I am qualified7 I don’t think the guards would stop me on the street and

question me for no obvious reason.8 I can live an independent lifestyle.9 I don’t worry about getting ill. I know I can easily get

whatever treatment I need.10 I feel comfortable going into public places.11 I am able, within reasonable financial limits, to live in the kind

of home I would prefer.

4


51


4

My name is John. I am 40 years old and

an accountant.


an accountant.


an accountant.


an accountant.

My name is Niamh. I am 25 years old and a

receptionist. I am awheelchair user.








4

52


My name is Catherine. I am 82 years old and

live alone.


live alone.


live alone.


live alone.

My name is Najia. I am 30 years old and aMuslim refugee from

Afghanistan.


Afghanistan.


Afghanistan.


Afghanistan.


4

53


My name is Declan. I am 50 years old and

am unemployed. I live in Darndale.







My name is Siobhán. I am 21 and a student.I am profoundly deaf

and use sign language.








4

54


My name is Michael. I am 19 years old.

I am a Traveller andam self-employed.







My name is Brendan. I am 23 years old and

Black Irish. I am a mechanic.








4

55


Giant Steps WorksheetThink about the discussion you have just had and then, with your group,complete the following table. You have been given one example to start youoff.

How could society change What Could I not do? Why? to enable me to do this?

Catherine: I cannot The loca l bus service The government couldeasily visit a good is very ba d an d I decide to put moreselection of shops do not ha ve a car money into public

transport.


4

56


PreparationBefore doing this activity it would be helpfulto you to request summaries of the EqualEmployment and Equal Status Acts from theEquality Authority (address on page 93). Ithas produced booklets and short videos onthe two Acts and provides information ontheir complaints process. It also issues aregular newsletter with information anddiscussion of various equality issues.

Make enough copies of the case studies sheetand the discussion questions to be able togive one case study to each student.

Procedure✎ Divide the students into groups of four

and give each group copies of one ofthe case studies. Ask them to readtheir case study and to discuss thequestions.

✎ Take feedback from the groups andallow some time for whole classdiscussion of the issues that have comeup. The first two case studies could beacted out by some of the students ifpreferred.

Case StudiesThe three case studies look at discriminationon the grounds of disability, skin colour andsexual orientation. You could also use casestudies based on any of the other of the ninegrounds - age, gender, marital status, familystatus, religion or membership of theTraveller community.

Note on Case Study 1 – Ciara’s Story.Discrimination on Disability Grounds

● An employer employing a person who isblind can access State financial supportfor whatever equipment or assistivetechnologies are required. These mayinclude computer software andhardware, for example, voice synthesiser,screen-reading software and an opticalscanner, Braille output software, voiceactivated computer etc., or adaptationsto the premises e.g. speaking lifts.

● The National Council for the Blind ofIreland can offer assistance and adviceto employers and provide mobilitytrainers to familiarise blind people withoffice layout.

Activity 2 The Equality Acts – Can they Guarantee Equality for All?

Aims❃ To make students aware of the Employment Equality and Equal Status Acts

❃ To inform them of the structures that can be accessed by people who feel they are beingtreated unequally

❃ To make them aware that legislation has an important role to play in promoting equalityand inclusion, but that people’s attitudes must change if it is to be successful

Concepts Law, Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities, Democracy.

Understanding The importance of having equality legislation, procedures for making a complaint to the Equality Authority, how legislation may not change people’s negative attitudes

Attitudes Positive attitude towards people with disabilities, respect for others, accepting people as they are, empathy, openness.

Skills Critical thinking, ability to use legal complaints process


57


● In respect of driving students home asdescribed in the case study, Michaelcould be flexible, as this was only aminor part of job and otherarrangements could be made.

● His concern about safety wasunfounded as research has found thatpeople with disabilities have bettersafety records than their able-bodiedcolleagues. In any case, all employersare obliged, under the Safety, Healthand Welfare at Work Act, to provide asafe environment for all theiremployees and visitors which shouldautomatically include people withdisabilities.

Note on Case Study 2 – Welcome Inn.Making a Complaint to the EqualityAuthority

If anyone feels that they have beendiscriminated against on any of the ninegrounds covered by the Employment EqualityAct or the Equal Status Legislation, they canget a complaints form from the EqualityAuthority, fill it in and then the EqualityAuthority will investigate the case. If the caseis substantiated, then the Authority will ask thecompany, organisation or institution to complywith their legal obligations or to compensatethe person discriminated against. Full detailsof the complaints procedure are availablefrom the Equality Authority (Contact detailson page 93). 4


58


Ciara’s Story

Ciara: Hello! My name is Ciara. I’m interested in thejob you advertised for a secretary and receptionist.

Michael: Yes, we’re looking for someone with goodcomputer skills who is friendly and outgoing.

C: I’ve just finished an advanced computer courseand I love working with people. I also speak goodFrench and Spanish.

M: (Thinks) She sounds great – very friendly andbubbly. She has the computer skills

and languages too.

M: That sounds just what we arelooking for. Could you come for an interview

next Tuesday?

C: Of course! That would be great.

M: I’m delighted. We’re on the corner near thebus stop.

C: (Thinks) Should I tell him now or on Tuesday?

C: By the way, there’s something you ought to know before wemeet – I’m blind.

M: (Long pause) Oh! I see. ….. Well, I’ll be in touchabout the time of the interview in the next few days.

C: Fine. I look forward to the interview and I’ll tellyou then about the special technology I use for thecomputer.

4


C: (Thinks) I don’t think he’seven interested in asking aboutthe technology or seeing whatI can do. He’s not going togive me an interview now.

M: (Thinks) Well, there’s nopoint in interviewing here if

she’s blind. How could she dothe job properly - all those

students, invoices, applications,driving sick students home, would she be

safe in a small office on the secondfloor………. Too bad I can’t even write

to her to tell her.

Discussion Points● Was Michael right to decide not to invite Ciara to an interview? Why do you think this?

● Do you think Ciara believed she was able to do the job?

● Michael could have checked out the facts a lot more. Why did he think Ciara could notdo the job even though she had great qualifications? Do you know what supports areprovided by the state to help employers hire people with disabilities? How could you findout?

● If Michael had known what supports were provided, do you think his attitude wouldhave been different?

● What could Ciara do to ensure that she at least got an interview for the job?

59


4


60


Welcome Inn (as long as you’re white)

4

“ ... I’m sorrybut we’refull up”

Bouncer: Excuse me are youmembers?

Vicky & Brendan: No

B: I’m sorry but we’re full up.

V & B: But you can’t be. It’s really early.

B: I’m sorry but we’re full up.

Vicky & Brendan: I heard the newnightclub near here is great. Doyou want to try it?

Clare & Michael: OK, but we justwant to talk to some friends overthere first. You go on and we’llfollow you.


Discussion Points● How do you feel about the way Brendan and Vicki were treated in the nightclub?

● What law was the club breaking by refusing admission to black people?

● The bouncer gave the impression that if he had known Brendan and Vicki were Irishthat he would have let them in. Does this change your opinion of his actions?

● Do you think Brendan and Vicki should make a formal complaint or should they just finda friendlier nightclub in future?

● Other people are, and have been refused admission to clubs, pubs, hotels, restaurants etc.Do you know of any?

● Do you know how would they make a complaint to the Equality Authority? What can theEquality Authority do in this kind of case?

61


4Was itbecausewe areblack?

V & B: Was it because we’re black?

Bouncer: No, no, I must havemade a mistake.

Clare & Michael: That’sdiscrimination and we’ll report you.

B: I was only following orders tokeep out the refugees.

V & B: But that’s against the lawand anyway we’re Irish.

B: How am I expected to know thatwhen you’re black? You can comein now if you like.

V & B: No thanks, we’ll be makinga complaint to the EqualityAuthority tomorrow. Goodbye.

Vicky & Brendan: Can you believe that?I think he only said that because we’re

black.

Clare & Michael: Why don’t we try toget in and then we’ll know.

C & M: You were right. We got in withno bother and the place is half empty.

V & B: Let’s go back and challengethem.


62


Case Study 3I can’t tell them who I am

Linda is 25, bright, lively and very good at her job as an accountant. She worksfor a large company where she trained as an accountant, coming top of thegroup in her exams. Her manager has told her lots of times that she has a greatcareer ahead of her and that she is set for promotion to junior manager in thenear future. Linda loves her work and wants to do well in it. However, Lindais lesbian and knows that if she tells anyone at work, her promotion chanceswill fade away. Last year someone had discovered that Dave, one of the juniormanagers in the company was gay. He had suffered from people making nastyremarks and some making it clear that he would never get promoted anyfurther. Eventually he was so unhappy that he left the company. Linda knowsthat she is now protected by the Employment Equality laws but doesn’t seehow that can protect her from the prejudice of some of the people she workswith. She also finds it a great strain that she cannot talk about her personallife with the people she enjoys working with.

Discussion Points● How do you feel about the way Dave was treated?

● Does the fact that he is gay make a difference to his work as a manager?

● Is Linda right not to tell anyone that she is lesbian?

● What would you want to do if you were Linda or Dave?

● What would you do if you were Dave or Linda’s close friend and knew howthey felt?

● Do you think the equality laws will help change people’s attitudes towardspeople who are gay or lesbian?

● What would you do if some of your friends started slagging off people whowere gay or lesbian?

4


5

PreparationIf using the worksheet What would you miss?photocopy one for each student.

Activity✎ Begin with a walking debate on culture

and change. Use two or threestatements which start the studentsthinking about the nature of changeand its positive/negative aspects e.g.“We must preserve Irish culture theway it is”; “All change is good”; “Oldways are best”; “A change is as good asa rest” etc

✎ If the questions below haven’t come upduring the debate, have a briefdiscussion on:

● How do they think Irish culture haschanged since the 60s?

● Which changes do they think weregood and which do they think werenot so good?

● Why do they think the changeshappened?

● What changes are taking place now?

✎ If they haven’t discussed changes in thekinds of food we eat, ask them why thekinds of foods we eat today aredifferent to those eaten 30 or fortyyears ago. Prompt them to think aboutfactors such as:

● Technology – frozen food is nowtaken for granted but was not thenorm in 1960.

63

Section 5Towards Inclusion and Equality

Introduction

This section includes two activities which ask students to think about the waydiversity enriches Ireland, an activity on equality and diversity and two optionswhich examine the way the State promotes equality and inclusion through itsinstitutions. The options examine the health services and education asexperienced in the school.

Activity 1 Diversity Enriches IrelandAim

❃ To help students realise that diversity enriches every culture.

Concepts Development, Interdependence

Understanding To understand that all aspects of cultures can and do change over time

Attitudes A positive attitude towards change as being healthy and enriching

Skills Research skills.


64

Section 5 Working Towards Inclusion and Equality

● We now eatfoods fromothercountriesmuch morethanwedidthen.

● The European Union free marketmeans that food from otherEuropean countries is readilyavailable here.

● The increasedmovement ofpeople to live andwork or holidayin othercountries meansthat people’s tastesin food havedeveloped andchanged.

Then give each student acopy of the WorksheetWhat would you miss? andask them to complete it

individually. When they have finished theycould compare what they would miss in pairsor threes and check how many countries oforigin they have each identified. Theyshould then discuss how they would feel ifthey now could only eat what was available in1960. What would we have missed out on ifwe hadn’t allowed these new and diversefoods into the country? If there is time, takesome feedback from the groups on theirfeelings.

Alternative Methodology

Organise a quiz, using the same questions asare on the worksheet. Continue withdiscussion as above

HomeworkAsk the students to thinkabout and write aparagraph on otherways in whichaspects of other cultureshave enriched their lives here in Ireland.Some areas to think about might be music,foreign holidays, clothes, languages, books,films, inventions, ideas etc.

5

Prodotto inItalia

Fabriquéen

FranceMade

in

Thailand

Produce of

Malaysia

Cuisine deFrance

GenuineAmerican

Style TheAuthenticTasteof theSouth

Made inHong Hong


What would you miss?So what’s new? Look at the shopping list below. Which of them would nothave been in Irish shops in 1960? What would you miss if they were notavailable today? Do you know what countries they originally come or camefrom?

65

Working Towards Inclusion and Equality Section 5

5

Red

Peppers

Frozenpizza Olive Oil

CourgettesChickenKiev

Yoghurt

Frenchsticks

Pastasauces Kiwi fruit

Broccoli

Iceberglettuce

Chillies

Freshherbs

Soy sauce

Low-lowBurgers

Bottledwater

AvocadosFish

fingers

Chicken

nuggets

Muesli LasagneSweetCorn

Salami

Cherrytomatoes

Springrolls

Salmon

Waffles

Chicken tikkamasala

Limes

Spicy

chicken

wings

Pittabread

Coco Cola Popcorn

Garlicbread

Black bean

sauce


66


PreparationMake a copy from an atlas of a map of theworld which shows country names. Cut it upinto areas of the world so that each sectionincludes the countries given in the tablesbelow –EU and EEA countries, EasternEurope, the Middle East and Central Asia,Africa, the Americas, and Asia/Australasia.Enlarge each section to three times itsoriginal size. Photocopy and cut up the 6lists on pages 68-69. You will also need somebluetack.

Note: The EEA or European Economic Areaconsists of the EU plus Norway, Iceland andLiechtenstein. The Eastern European list consistsof the Council of Europe member states which arenot also members of the EEA.

See notes in Appendix B on page 92 forfurther information on immigrants, refugeesand asylum seekers.

NB Ask the students to bring in their atlasesfor this class.

Activity✎ Begin by asking the students to think

of all the migrants living and workingin Ireland today and to name as manyas possible of their countries of origin

and where they work.List them on theboard. Encouragethem to talk aboutpeople they know orhave met fromdifferentcountries andcultures and tosay whatthey

enjoyed aboutmeeting them.

✎ Divide them into groups and give eachgroup a map and one of the lists ofcountries on pages 68-69. Ask them tomark in each country on their maps,using their own atlases to help themfind smaller countries if necessary.When they have finished they shoulddiscuss their reactions to the list - thenumber of countries, where they are,what they know about them etc.

✎ Then ask each group to present theirmap to the rest of the class, describingthe number of countries they havemarked in and giving their reactions.As each map is presented it should be

Activity 2 Connected to Half the World – Diversity in Ireland Today

Aims❃ To make students aware of the range of diversity present in Ireland today.

❃ To help them realise the potential enrichment this diversity can bring to the country

Concepts Interdependence, Development

Understanding The number and range of different countries from which migrant workers have come to Ireland, the enrichment they can bring to the country

Attitudes Positive attitude towards immigrants, realisation of their power to enrich Irish culture

Skills Map-reading skills, presentation skills, critical analysis5


67


stuck on a wall, so that you end upwith a complete map of the worldagain, with all the countries ofimmigration marked in on it.

✎ Pick a number of countries familiar tothe students. Give each group one ortwo countries to think about. Ask themto brainstorm on what their images ofthose countries are and how the peopleand culture of those countries have

contributed to Irish life and Irishpeople. Examples would includevisible things like food, music, clothes,jewellery etc., as well as less obviousthings like providing holidaydestinations, work for Irish emigrants,numbers (Arabic countries), plants,trees, house designs, literature, films,television programmes, technology etc.

✎ Ask them to think of the positive effectsof migrants in Irish life e.g. betterhealth services because Filipino nurseshave increased the nursing staff inhospitals, farmers able to producemore because they have farm-workersfrom the Baltic states, Ireland hasbecome the call centre of Europe, wenow have a wider variety of foods andrestaurants etc.

✎ Finish by asking the students tosummarise the benefits to Irish life andpeople of contact with people fromother countries.

Note: The list of countries of origin for 2001was supplied by The Department of Enterprise,Trade and Employment.

5

Report sayshospitals havevacancies for1,315 nurses Hospital Watch: A total of

1,315 nursing posts were

vacant in Health Boards and

Voluntary Hospitals at the end

of January

200,000WorkersNeededIt is estimated thatsome 200,000workers are needed tomeet the demands ofthe economy in thenext five years.


68


List of Countries of Originof Migrant Workers

From the EU or EEA (17 countries)

Austria France Liechtenstein Spain

Belgium Germany Luxembourg Sweden

Britain Greece Netherlands

Denmark Iceland Norway

Finland Italy Portugal

European countries outside the EU/EEA (27 countries)

Albania Croatia Lithuania Slovakia

Andorra Cyprus Macedonia Slovenia

Armenia Czech Republic Malta Switzerland

Azerbaijan Estonia Moldova Turkey

Belarus Georgia Poland Ukraine

Bosnia Hungary Romania YugoslaviaHerzegovina

Bulgaria Latvia Russian Federation

From the Middle East & Central Asia (16 countries)

Bahrain Jordan Lebanon Syria

Iran Kazakhstan Oman Turkmenistan

Iraq Kuwait Palestine United Arab Emirates

Israel Kyrgyzstan Saudi Arabia Uzbekistan

5


From African countries (34 countries)

Algeria Ethiopia Mauritania Sudan

Benin Ghana Mauritius Swaziland

Botswana Guinea Republic Morocco Tanzania

Brunei Ivory Coast Mozambique Tunisia

Burkina Faso Kenya Namibia Uganda

Cameroon Lesotho Niger Zambia

Congo Libya Nigeria Zimbabwe

Egypt Madagascar Senegal

Eritrea Malawi South Africa

From North & South America (22 countries)

Argentina Colombia Guatemala Trinidad & Tobago

Barbados Costa Rica Jamaica USA

Bolivia Cuba Mexico Venezuela

Brazil Dominican Paraguay West IndiesRepublic

Canada Ecuador Peru

Chile El Salvador Surinam

From Asia and Australasia (22 countries)

Australia Indonesia Myanmar (Burma) Sri Lanka

Bangladesh Japan Nepal Taiwan

Cambodia Korea (North) New Zealand Thailand

China Korea (South) Pakistan Vietnam

Hong Kong Malaysia Philippines

India Mongolia Singapore

69


5


70


PreparationMake 6 copies of the Equal or Not? worksheet

Activity – Part 1: What is Equality?✎ Ask the students to brainstorm on their

ideas of what equality means. Ask oneof the students to write up all the ideason the board.

✎ When they have finished, ask thestudents to divide into pairs or smallgroups of not more than four. Ask thegroups to discuss the ideas that havebeen suggested and to prioritise them,choosing the four aspects that theythink are most important.

✎ Then ask them to try to come up witha description of what equality meansfor them.

✎ If they find this difficult or too abstract,try using walking debates on topicssuch as:

● “Everybody should be treated thesame”

● “Sometimes equality means givingsome people a bigger slice of thecake”

● “Essential service workers such asthe fire brigade and doctors shouldreceive the same pay”

● “Everybody should pay the samerate of tax, regardless of how muchthey earn.” etc

Activity – Part 2✎ Divide the students into small groups

and give each group a copy of theEqual or Not? Worksheet. Ask them todiscuss each of the three options underthe headings of:

● Is this option right/wrong, better orworse than the others?

● Why do you think this?

● What option would you as a groupchoose if you were in government?

● How are people being treated in thecases described below?

✎ When the groups have finished thediscussion, either ask one person fromeach group to move to another groupand to explain their group’s reasonsfor choosing the option they did or askeach group to present their reasons tothe whole class.

Activity 3 Equality – A Look at the State’s Responseto Diversity (1 class)

Aims❃ To encourage students to think about the meaning of equality

❃ To encourage students to think about the ways in which state bodies and services affectminority groups in terms of inclusion and meeting their needs.

Concepts Democracy, Rights and responsibilities, Human dignity

Understanding Equality doesn’t mean treating everyone the same, possible responses a state can make in services provision, awareness of the needs of different people

Attitudes A positive attitude to social inclusion, empathy with people whose needs are not met

Skills Critical analysis, debating skills5


Equal or not?Equal or not?

Look at the three options in the box below and try to decide which way oftreating people is the most equal. Can you think of examples to show whatyou mean?

✗ Treat everyone the same

✗ Treat some groups of people differently, either better orworse

✗ Treat each individual in a way that meets his or her needs asfar as possible.

Below are some examples of how people in Ireland are treated in one of theways described in the box. Discuss each example and decide which option isbeing practised in each case.

✗ People over 80 get a higher social welfare pension than thosebetween 66 and 80.

✗ All mothers get child benefit for their children, no matter whattheir other income is.

✗ There are shorter hospital waiting lists for those who can pay forprivate treatment.

✗ All students are entitled to free third level education for their firstdegree.

✗ All people over 70 can get a medical card.

✗ Unless they have a medical card, parents of children withdisabilities must pay for a lot of the special equipment thechildren need.

✗ Parents who are not Catholic or Protestant can find it impossibleto send their children to a primary school which reflects theirbeliefs.

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PreparationMake enough copies of the case studies sothat each pair of students has one of thestudies.

Activity✎ Ask the students to pair off. Give each

pair a copy of one of the case studiesand ask them to discuss it using thediscussion questions below. Theyshould be able to come up with tworeasons for their answer to question 1and two suggestions in answer toquestion 2.

✎ When they have finished, ask them tojoin up with another pair who havediscussed the same case study andcompare their ideas. The four couldthen present their ideas briefly.

1. Do you think this person wastreated equally as well as otherpeople using the health service?Were their needs met?

2. If you think the health service didnot meet the needs of the people inthe case studies, what do you thinkmight be done to change thesituation and meet everyone’s needsequally?

Follow-upStudents could be nominated to contact thelocal health board, clinic or other healthservice to get further information on anyissues that have arisen during the discussion.

Notes on Case Studies

Case Study 1

The health boards have a panel ofinterpreters who can translate for patientswho do not speak English. However, oftenthe hospital staff are not aware of thisprovision or do not see it necessary to use itif, as in this case, the patient’s daughter cantranslate. Where freelance translators areused by the health boards, they have notbeen trained specifically to translate in asensitive situation such as this and there arestill issues around privacy and the patient’sneed to have a translator they can trust.Health and social welfare providers need tobe conscious of the client’s or patient’s rightto privacy and to consider theappropriateness of the translator they use.Ideally translators should be speciallytrained for this work and available at alltimes.

Activity 4 Option 1: Catering for Diversity in the Health Services

Aim❃ To encourage students to think about the ways in which state services affect minority

groups in terms of inclusion and meeting their needs.

Concepts Democracy, Rights and responsibilities, Human dignity

Understanding Equality doesn’t mean treating everyone the same, possible responses a state can make in services provision, awareness of the needs of different people

Attitudes A positive attitude to social inclusion, empathy with people whose needs are not met

Skills Critical analysis

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Note on Case Study 2

For strictly practising Muslim women, it is areligious requirement that they keep theirbodies covered from all men except theirhusband. Thus it is essential that they beseen by female staff for medicalexaminations in situations such aspregnancy. Irish hospitals generally try tofacilitate this where possible i.e. wherefemale medical staff are available, but thereare occasions where this is not possible.Strict Muslims may opt not to attend anti-natal clinics where female practitionerscannot be guaranteed. While it must beremembered that not all Muslim womenpractice to the same degree of orthodoxyand many do not have a problem with malestaff attending them, this is a seriousproblem for those who practise strictly andan on-going issue of religious rights as thenumber of Muslim women, both Irish andimmigrant, increases.

Note on Case Study 3

The scenario described here is one of themost common medical problems forTravellers. According to the Pavee PointHealth Project, many GPs are reluctant toaccept Travellers as patients and use theexcuse that the practice is full. (OneTraveller woman had to try 27 doctorsbefore she could get three refusals inwriting.) Any medical cardholder who hasbeen unable to get a place in a doctor’spractice can use the procedure describedhere to secure a place. However, on enquiryto one of the health boards as to how oftendoctors’ practices become full, the healthboard information office said that they hadnever heard of this happening. This wouldimply that some GPs use the excuse of their‘practice being full’ in order to refuseTravellers as patients. This case studyillustrates how institutions (the healthboards) can protect people fromdiscrimination by individuals (some GPs).For further information on health issues andTravellers, contact Pavee Point (contactdetails page 93).

5Traveller Facts: Health

Traveller health is significantly worse than the health of those in thesettled community.

As Travellers are a distinct cultural group with different perceptions of health,disease and healthcare needs they require special consideration in the healthservice.

The most recent data, a 1987 Health Research Board Study shows:

● Traveller infant mortality is 3 times greater than the national average.

● Settled men have a life expectancy of 75 years – Traveller men have a lifeexpectancy of 65 years. (HRB 1987)

● Settled women have a life expectancy of 78 years – Traveller women have alife expectancy of 65 years. (HRB 1987)

● Travellers have higher death rates for all causes of death among the settledcommunity. (HRB 1987)

● In a 5 year period, for every settled child that died of a cot death, 10Traveller children died of a cot death. (Irish Sudden Infant DeathAssociation)


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Case Study 1Mohammed is a Somali man who is a refugee in Ireland. He has been ill andwas sent by his GP to the hospital. Because he did not speak very much English,he brought his 13 year old daughter as interpreter with him. Although thedoctors and nurses wanted to look after him as well as possible, it was verydifficult because he was embarrassed to talk about his medical problems infront of his young daughter. This meant that he did not tell them everythingabout his condition and they were worried that they might not be caring forhim as well as they could.

Case Study 2Nadia is a strictly-practising Muslim woman and is pregnant. She went once tothe hospital for an anti-natal visit, but she was not able to see a female doctorand so she left. The hospital told her they could not guarantee that she wouldsee a female doctor on any future visits. This is a huge problem for her. As astrictly practising Muslim woman, she needs to be seen by a female doctor. Shehas decided not to return to the hospital until she goes into labour.

Case Study 3Nancy is a Traveller woman who moved to a new area two months ago. Shehas a Medical Card and in order to bring her young child to a doctor, sheneeded to register with a local GP. She went to the nearest doctor, who toldher that her practice was full. She then tried another doctor in the area whosaid the same thing. She tried a third doctor and then a fourth and then a fifth.Meantime her child who had asthma needed more medicine. Nancy was veryworried, and rang the Health Board, who told her that if she had letters fromthree doctors saying they were full up then they would insist that one of thethree took her on. When she went back to the five doctors, three of themrefused to give her a letter. She had to try two more doctors before she gother third letter. Then she brought the letters to the Health Board who choseone of the three doctors and insisted that she take Nancy on. She was veryrelieved, but also very upset that for two months her child had not been ableto go to a doctor. She was also worried that the doctor would not feel verypositive towards her, if she did not want to take her on in the first place.

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Two different approaches or methods areincluded for this section. Either can bechosen or parts of both can be amalgamatedto suit your particular group of students.

Note: It is important that if you choose to do thissection that it leads to some concrete action, nomatter how small, in order to show the studentsthat if they have a vision it is possible to act insome way to make it happen and that they canmake a difference to what happens in the schoolor centre. In this context, it is also important thatyou help them distinguish the things that areoutside their control and influence e.g.Department of Education requirements, and thosewhich they can influence themselves e.g.relationships with each other and between themand their teachers, or influence through theStudents’ Council.

Method 1

Class 1: Seeing our School as It Is

Visualisation Exercise

Visualisation and Guided Imagery (VGI) hasbeen shown to increase students’ andemotional involvement with tasks as diverse asEnglish essay writing and understandingspatial concepts in Maths. It can releasecreative energy and increase motivation tobecome involved with a task. It is a

methodology that can work well with studentsof any age or any academic ability. However, ifyou are working in an area of the school wherethere is a lot of outside noise or distractions, orif you are taking a class last period on a Fridayafternoon, it would be better to plan to changethe place and/or time of this class.

Preparation

Read through the visualisation text anddecide what extra points you want toinclude.

Prepare cards (one for each pair of studentsin the class) naming categories of studentswho would be in the minority in the schooland whose situation and needs would bedifferent to the majority of students.Categories could include students whose firstlanguage is a language other than English,whose culture is a minority culture inIreland, who use sign language, are visuallyimpaired, belong to a minority religion,native Irish speakers etc. (Each card shouldhave two different categories.)

Activity – Part 1Before starting the visualisation ask thestudents to leave a copy or sheet of paper anda pen on their tables. (They will need these

Activity 2 Option 2: Diversity and Inclusion in Schools (2 classes)

Aim❃ To help students reflect on how inclusive their school is and how schools in general might

become more inclusive.

Concepts Rights and responsibilities, Human dignity, Democracy

Understanding Understanding the needs of others, how the school as an institution works, knowing that they can make a difference to how things are done

Attitudes Openness, inclusiveness, willingness to protect their rights and the rights of others

Skills Visualisation, critical analysis, prioritising, reaching consensus, planning, action skills 5


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immediately the visualisation is over.) Thenexplain to them that you are going to do avisualisation exercise with them and that it is apleasant, relaxing experience. Ask thestudents to sit comfortably in their chairs andto close their eyes. Then, read out yourprepared text slowly and quietly, making sureyou give them enough time to visualise eachsituation before continuing. (Sometimes, astudent may giggle, or someone may sneeze orcough. Ignore these, as usually students get soinvolved with their visualisation that they arenot disturbed with small distractions and willsettle back very quickly into the exercise).

Suggested Points for the guided visualisation

● Make sure you are sitting comfortablyin your chairs and your eyes are closed.

● Now become aware of your breathing…..Be aware of the sounds around youand outside the classroom. Becomeaware of them and then let them fadeaway…… etc.

● If school could be the way you wouldlike it to be, how would it feel? ………Imagine that you are coming intoschool at the start of a new school yearand school would be exactly as youwanted it to be.

● When you walk in the front door, whatdo you see? Who is there with you?What kind of welcome do you receivefrom the teachers and office staff? Etc.

● What is your classroom like?(Questions about every aspect of theclassroom?)

● How do the teachers relate to thestudents when they are teaching? Etc.

● How well do you feel encouraged tolearn? Etc.

● How do all the students in the classrelate to each other? Etc.

● What activities happen after class time?Etc.

● Are the opinions of students aboutschool issues listened to? How are theyable to give their opinions?

Add in other areas as appropriate to the classand school or centre.

● Now gently come back to the present.Become aware of your breathing…..orthe sounds around you in theclassroom and in the school….. Now,in your own time, and when you areready, open your eyes, return to theclassroom, but remain quiet and do nottalk to anyone else for a moment.

● Now, without speaking, write down anywords or phrases or draw shapes orsymbols that express your feelingsduring the visualisation.

Activity Part 2✎ When the students have had sufficient

time to express their feelings on paper,ask for brief reactions to theexperience – what were their feelingsas they did the visualisation? Now, askthem to write down the main thingsthat they visualised during the exerciseand share them with the person besidethem. The pair should discuss and

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agree what would be the top threeaspects of their ideal school. (Thesemay include aspects that already existin the school, as well as aspects thatthey would like to see changed orimproved). Take feedback from someof the pairs on what they have chosen.

✎ Then ask them to think about whetherthe kind of school they want wouldmeet the needs of all kinds of students.Have they thought about includingfeatures which would meet the needsof students from other cultures orstudents with disabilities?

✎ Give each pair one of the preparedcards. Ask them to think about anddiscuss how well the school currentlymeets these students’ needs, and whatwould need to improve or change inorder to meet them. They shouldthink especially about the attitudes ofall the people in the school, not justabout physical facilities.

Homework (for both Methods 1 and 2)Ask the students tothink about thediscussion duringclass and to proposeways in which the school could change inorder to make it a better place for everyone,and to meet the needs of the two groups ontheir card. Ask them to consider

● Who would benefit from the change

● Who else would be affected by it

● The steps needed to effect this change– e.g. survey student/staff opinion,lobby the management, involve theparents, find the money etc.

Class 2 (For both Methods 1 and 2)✎ In the same pairs or groups as the

previous class, students should sharethe proposals they had come up withfor homework and then rank them inorder of importance.

✎ Each group should present their threehighest priority proposals to the rest of

the class. They should also describeany questions or issues that aroseduring their discussion.

✎ Write the list of proposals on theboard. Group together those that areclosely related.

✎ If there are a few ideas which havebeen chosen by large numbers ofstudents, you could then organise animpromptu debate on the merits ofeach idea. Ask each student whosupports an idea to give one reasonwhy they think it is so important. (Itmay be helpful or appropriate at thisstage to introduce the school’s missionstatement to the students and to havethem compare the mission statementwith their perception of the reality.) Ifpossible try to come to a consensus onwhich proposals should receivepriority.

At this point, there are several options.Some of the options to consider are:

● If the students are very enthusiasticabout an idea, they could decide totake this on as an Action Project.

● If it is a very simple change that theywant, it may be possible to take somesmall immediate action to see if thechange could be make e.g. write aletter or send a delegation to theStudent Council, the principal or theBoard of Management.

● They may not be able to effect achange within the school in general,but there may be something that theyas a class group may wish to do inrelation to themselves and their classteachers.

● They may want to set up some taskgroups to investigate some of the ideasmore fully, consult with other groupsin the school or centre and find outwhich ones could be possible.

● They may be interested in finding outmore about the situation of a group ofstudents by doing some research,inviting in a guest speaker etc.

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Method 2This approach starts by looking at ways inwhich schools could subtly or unconsciouslydiscriminate against certain groups ofstudents and then looking at ways in whichthey could meet these students’ needs. Itconcludes with the prioritising and actionoptions as outlined in Method 1.

Class 1: PreparationMake enough copies of the worksheets belowto give one to each group of four students inthe class. Insert the names of two groups oneach sheet, choosing from groups such as

● Girls, boys,

● Students whose first language is alanguage other than English

● Students whose culture is a minorityculture in Ireland e.g. Travellers,Nigerian, western European, easternEuropean etc

● Wheelchair users

● Visually impaired students

● Students who use sign language astheir only language

● Students who belong to a differentreligious group to the majority ofstudents in the school e.g. Muslim,Jewish, Buddhist, Baha’i, Jehovah’sWitnesses etc.

● Students who have special learningneeds

● Students whose first language is Irish

● Students who are gifted, intellectually,artistically, sports wise etc.

Activity✎ Divide the class into groups of four and

give each group one of the worksheets.Give them ten minutes to work outways of discriminating against thegroups they have been given.

✎ Take feedback from each group; askingthem to describe the ways they havechosen and show how each way couldbe justified. Allow time for discussionof the issues raised after each group’spresentation.

✎ Encourage the students to think aboutthe points below.

● Discrimination can be intentional orunintentional

● People can mean well and stilldiscriminate

● Discrimination often occurs throughomission rather than somethingactively done to people

● Discrimination does not relate tojust physical facilities – it is oftenexpressed through exclusion ordismissive attitudes of teachers orother students.

● Discrimination in an institution isoften justified on grounds such as:“We must treat everybody the same.It’s the fairest way to do things”.“Our hands are tied, we have tofollow regulations.” “They chose tocome here” etc.

✎ Continue with the Homework andClass 2 as for Method 1, page 77.

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How to Discriminatewithout Appearing to do soThink about the needs and rights of the two groups of people below and findat least two ways in which your school could discriminate against them, eitherby how it does things or by not providing things that these students need. Youmust find ways of discriminating which you can present as being fair orjustified. Remember that people could be students, parents, teachers or otherstaff.

Do you think your school does discriminate against these groups? If yes, howwould it need to change to meet these groups’ needs?


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PreparationNB As this activity involves role-play, you willneed enough space for groups of four to role-playsimultaneously. As in all role-plays orsimulations, it is essential that you:

(a) give the participants time to express howthey felt during the role-play and

(b) bring them out of character beforediscussing the issues that arise from the role-play. Otherwise the experience could beemotionally upsetting for some students.

Photocopy enough copies of the scenariosbelow so that you have one scenario perperson for each set of four students in theclass. Make one copy per student of theextracts on page 81. Decide on anappropriate incident for Scenario 4 or deviseother scenarios as relevant to your students.Alternatively, you could ask the groups to

devise their own scenarios or give eachgroup a starter phrase to help them getstarted e.g.:

● “Sure what could you expect of……….

● “Sure everyone knows that all of themare good-for nothings OR spongers ORcriminals OR druggies OR drunksOR…………

● “Who do they think they are?

● “They should be grateful for whatthey’re given

● “Why can’t they be like the rest of us?

● “Of course you know who did it, it hasto have been those ………. up the road

● “There’s no way I’d have THEMliving/sitting beside me

Section 6Acting to Defend the Rights of Others

Activity 1 Standing up Against Prejudice and Discrimination – What Would You Do? (1 class)

Aim❃ To help students develop the confidence and skills to stand up against prejudice and

racism

Concepts Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities

Understanding What it feels like to confront someone expressing prejudice, how best to do it and the effect of confronting prejudice.

Attitudes Willingness and confidence to confront prejudice

Skills Communication skills, ability to confront prejudice

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Activity✎ Divide the class up into groups of four

and give each person in each groupone of the scenarios below.

✎ Ask the students to first thinkindividually about the scenario andabout what s/he would do if s/he wereone of the two young people in thesituation listening to others beingprejudiced or racist. Then the groupof four should discuss their ideas anddecide

● What they would actually do in thesituation

● What they think they could do tostand up to the person or peoplebeing critical or racist

● What would stop them from doingwhat they thought was best or right.

✎ Ask them to do a quick role-play of thescenario. They should respond in theway that, being honest, they thoughtthey would respond in that situation.They should then discuss how they feltduring the role-play.

✎ Then ask them to role-play thescenario again, this time standing up tothe people being prejudiced or racist.The “negative” people should react asthey think people would in the

situation. Again, ask them to sharewithin their group how both pairs feltand what effect the changed responsehad on the situation.

✎ As you have no way of knowing inadvance what will happen during therole-plays, you could continue the classfrom this point in a number of ways. Ifany of the groups have not beensuccessful during the second role-playin counteracting the prejudiceexpressed, you could ask a group torepeat the role-play for the class andthen ask the other students to suggestalternative strategies which might bemore effective. The group could thentry these out and see how well theywork – it may happen that, as in reallife, they may not be able to changesomeone’s opinion in a few minutes.

✎ When the role-plays have been triedout sufficiently, ask the whole class todiscuss what they have learned fromthe experience about

● Their feelings in situations like these

● What stops them from standing upfor themselves or others

● What would help them stand up forthemselves or others

● What effect speaking out has on thepeople being negative or racist

● What they as individuals or as agroup could do to show people thatit is not acceptable to expressprejudice against individuals orgroups of people.

HomeworkGive the students copiesof Thoughts on TakingAction. Ask them toread the extractsand quotes and to reflecton them in the light of what they have donein class. Ask them to write out theirreflections on one of the extracts i.e. whatthis means to me in my situation.

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Scenario 1Conor and Aoife’s mothers have told them not to play with the kids from theother side of town. “They’re all drug dealers over there. You don’t want toget mixed up with them” is what they tell them regularly. Now one of them,a boy called Derek, has come to their school and has just been put in their class.Some of their friends have said they are going to ignore him and said Conorand Aoife should do the same. Conor and Aoife meet two of these friends andstart discussing the matter.

Scenario 2Michelle and Kevin, who live in St John’s Park where everyone their age hangsround together, met two older students, Paul and Tanya, on their way homefrom school. “Hi” said Paul. “Did you hear that Keith Murphy has beensuspended for two weeks?” “Well”, said Tanya, “what else would you expect?Isn’t he one of the Murphy’s from St Johns’ Park. They’re all bad news that lot”.

Scenario 3As Dave and Fiona went into the shop they heard the man coming out saygoodbye to the shopkeeper in an accent that sounded eastern European. Theshopkeeper was very chatty as he served them. “Have you noticed how manyLatvians you see around here now? They’re working on the farms and peoplesay they are getting on very well. Things are really changing in Ireland thesedays. Still, I wouldn’t like us to become like Britain. The Blacks there - of coursenone of them want to work at all, and the Indians are just very good at usingthe system.”

Scenario 4Lisa and Ciara were in a group with some of their friends from school. Gavinwas showing off as usual, trying to impress the girls. “Hey, did you hear thelatest one

about those________________________ . They’re ____________________________

because they _______________________________________________.” “Yea”, said

Eoin, “I heard __________________________________________________________.”

Section 6 Acting to defend the Rights of Others

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Thoughts on taking Action“All that it takes for evil to triumph is for good men

to do nothing.” (Attributed to Edmund Burke)

“He has a right to criticise who has a heart to help.”(Abraham Lincoln)

First they Came for the JewsFirst they came for the Jews and I did not speak out– because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the communists and I did not speak out- because I was not a communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out- because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for me- and there was no one left to speak out for me.

Pastor Martin Niemoeller

The Weight of a Snowflake“Tell me the weight of a snowflake,” a sparrow asked a wild dove.

“Nothing more than nothing,” was the answer.

“In that case, I must tell you a marvellous story,” the sparrow said.

“I sat on the branch of a fir, close to its trunk, when it began to snow –not heavily, not in a raging blizzard: no, just like in a dream, without asound and without any violence. Since I did not have anything betterto do, I counted the snowflakes settling on the twigs and needles of mybranch. Their number was exactly 3,741,952. When the 3,741,953rddropped onto the branch – nothing more than nothing as you say – thebranch broke off.”

Having said that, the sparrow flew away.

The dove, since Noah’s time an authority on the matter, thought aboutthe story for a while, and finally said to herself: “Perhaps there is onlyone person’s voice lacking for peace to come to the world.”

From New Fables, Thus Spoke the Marabou by Kurt Kauter


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IntroductionThis activity is concerned with interdepen-dence and fair trade. Young people are veryoften concerned with having the ‘right’ labelclothes or footwear and do not think aboutwhere they are made. Much of our currentand affluent lifestyle is based on a system ofworld trade which favours the richer countriesof the world and exploits workers in thepoorer countries, which often supply rawmaterials to the west but are subject to unfairterms of trade. This is a very broad area toexplore with students and there are manyvery good materials available to deal withmany of the issues involved. This section givesone example of exploitation by multi-nationalcompanies in the area of sports trainers, whichhas been the subject of concern andcampaigns for several years.

PreparationPhotocopy the Trainers Information Sheetso that each student will have a copy. Youmay also like to look up some of the websitesgiven below to find out more information foryourself before taking the class with thestudents.

Activity✎ Begin with a brainstorm on what items

which we use or eat every day connectus to other parts of the world.

✎ Then break the students up into smallgroups and ask them first to discuss thefollowing or similar questions:

● Would you buy products if youknew that the people making themwere being exploited by themanufacturer? Why/why not?

● Would you buy products made by amanufacturer who was harming thehealth of its workers or otherpeople? Why/why not?

● Would you be prepared to pay morefor something e.g. clothes, food,snacks, in order for the people whomade them to be paid a fair wage?For example how much more wouldyou pay for a pair of trainers or abar of chocolate? Why/why not?

● Would you be prepared to boycottsomething you really liked if it helpedto achieve human rights for workersin other countries? Why/why not?

Activity 2 Our Lifestyle Choices Make a Difference toOthers (1 class)

Aims❃ To help students realise the extent to which our lifestyle in Ireland is often bought at the

cost of injustice towards people in less wealthy countries.

❃ To encourage them to consider their power as consumers to affect the well-being of otherpeople

❃ To help them make informed choices as consumers

Concepts Interdependence, Development, Human dignity, Rights and responsibilities

Understanding The links between us as Irish consumers and the rest of the world, inequality in the world trade system, the power of multinationals

Attitudes Willingness to change buying patterns to avoid exploiting others

Skills Analysis, communication skills


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✎ Take feedback from the groups ontheir general attitude to the issue andask the students to highlight the mostimportant reasons that have beengiven.

✎ Then give out copies of theinformation sheet on Trainers. Askthem to read through the informationand to take note of any questions thatthey have about it. Explain that manypeople concerned about human rightsare campaigning against companieswhich treat workers like this. Then askthem to discuss:

● How much they paid for their lastpair of trainers and how much theperson making them got incomparison to the company and theretailer.

● Their immediate reaction to theinformation

● Their opinion of the companiesconcerned

● Do they think the companies aredenying or abusing people’s rights?Why and how?

● What can they, as consumers, do?

✎ Ask for feedback on the discussions andmake note of the main points broughtup. Focus the discussion on what theycould do. There are several ways ofshowing multinationals that consumerscare about the rights of workersproducing the goods they buy.

Find out More

Use the Internet to find out more aboutconditions of workers and campaigns beingrun. A list of websites is given below. Ifaccess to the internet is limited in the school,contact Trócaire for their CampaignsUpdate, which comes out several times ayear. This gives information about cam-paigns on several Trade issues includingSportswear, Bananas and Fair Trade, andalso on its Abolish Slavery campaign.

Ask Before you BuyRetailers want to sell goods to make a profit.If enough people ask whether the workersmaking trainers, for example, are paid a fairwage, then retailers will start to pay attentionto this issue.

Make your Feelings KnownIn some cases, workers in poorer countriesdon’t want consumers to boycott a companybecause they may lose their jobs. Insteadpeople are encouraged to buy whicheverbrand they prefer, but also to write to thecompany saying that as a customer they wantto be assured that conditions in theirfactories are decent, that workers are paid aliving wage and that factory conditions areindependently monitored. Companies can’ttell why people don’t buy goods, but lettersfrom people who do buy them send apowerful message that consumers care aboutthis issue.

BoycottYou could boycott products of companieswhom you want to influence. Examples ofthe power of boycotting are given in some ofthe websites below. Does boycotting work?Yes, particularly if you let the company knowthat you are boycotting their products andwhy. One manager of a large multinationalsaid, “Every time a customer goes into astore and makes a conscious decision not tobuy one of our products, it hurts.”

Buy Fair Trade ProductsBuying fairly traded products means thatyou are guaranteed that workers have beenpaid a fair price for their labour or goodsand that their working conditions are good.Fair trade coffee and tea are now widelyavailable in Irish supermarket chains. Fairtrade chocolate, sugar and other foods andcrafts are available from Oxfam and fairtrade shops around the country.

HomeworkAsk the students tothink about what theywould like to do in


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response to what they have learned and towrite a short paragraph or make a poster orsign reflecting their concerns.

Follow –onIf there is access to computers for all thestudents in the class, you could assign groupsof students to search for further informationon the websites given below. This could leadon to one of several possible Action Projectsaround the issue of work, human rights, fairtrade etc.

WebsitesThere are many groups working andcampaigning for the rights of workers andproducers, or to protect the environment.They often have dedicated or relevantwebsites where you or the students can gaina huge amount of information about issuesthey find interesting. Sites to look at

include:

www.trocaire.org

Trainers

www.cleanclothes.org

www.caa.org.au

www.compugraph.com/clr

www.saigon.com

Babymilk Action Campaign

www.lionraonline.org (Irish site)

www.babymilkaction.org

Bananas

www.bananalink.org.uk

Fair Trade

www.fairtrade.net

www.christian-aid.org.uk

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What is the real Cost of aPair of Trainers?

Price Make-up of a €100 Sport Shoe made in Indonesia

How much did your last pair of trainers cost? Looking at the percentages in thepicture above work out how much the workers who made them were paid?

Facts about Workers making Trainers in Indonesia✗ Workers in contract factories in Indonesia earn around €42 a month.

✗ Workers cannot afford to have their children with them and must leavethem with relatives in their home villages, only seeing them once a monthor less.

✗ Workers have been poisoned by toxic glues and solvents used in themanufacture of shoes.

✗ They often work 60 –70 hours a week and are punished if they do notreach impossibly high quotas. Accidents are very common.

✗ Verbal, physical and sexual abuse is common.

✗ Workers are not allowed to form a trade union and are threatened if theytry to do so.

✗ Companies make a huge profit and could easily afford decent pay andconditions in their factories.

What would you like to see the companies do?

You buy trainers - What Can You Do to put pressure on companies?

TRANSPORT AND TAX: 5%PAID TO THE FACTORY: 12%

Production Costs: 2%(Wage: 0.4%)Factory Profit: 2%Material: 8%

BRAND NAME: 33%

Profit: 13.5%Research: 11%Publicity: 8.5%

STORE: 50%


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Stereotyping and PrejudiceStudents could undertake a long-termmonitoring of the media and recordincidents of stereotyping, and prejudice.They could complain to the relevant peoplewhere they found prejudiced reporting etc.

Images of AfricaStudents could survey images of Africaamong other classes, monitor images on theTV or in fund-raising materials etc.

Prejudice and LanguageStudents could develop an agreed code ofbehaviour for their class in relation to name-calling and exclusion. This could bepresented to the rest of the school throughthe Student Council.

Students could survey their local politiciansabout their attitudes to refugees andTravellers.

Cultural Values and EqualityStudents could choose one of the equalityissues that emerged from the Giant Stepsactivity and lobby politicians or the relevantauthority to improve things.

Diversity in Ireland TodayStudents could develop links throughmeetings or guest speakers with people fromethnic minority communities e.g. nursesworking at the local hospital.

Inclusion and the SchoolStudents could choose one issue that hascome out of the activity and work or lobby toimprove the situation.

Our Lifestyle Makes a Difference toOthersStudents could find out more about one ofthe issues, publicise it in the school, supporta campaign etc.

Section 7Taking Action – Action Project Ideas

Action projects should preferably arise out of students’ interest in a particularissue or topic. Several ideas for follow-on work which could be developed intoaction projects have been given at the end of many activities. The list belowgives a summary of action project ideas.

It is strongly recommended that teachers carefully read the guidelines foraction projects issued by the Department of Education before starting anaction project. If your students have not shown a strong interest in oneparticular area, or are unsure what they would like to develop into an actionproject, you may find it helpful to use the activity What Are my StudentsInterested in? This is in A Human Rights Action Project – A Module for 2nd yearCivic, Social and Political Education, also published by the CDVEC CurriculumDevelopment Unit. (Address on page 93.)

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✎ In preparation for the evaluation class,ask the students to read through thereflection sheets which they completedduring the activities, and to identify theexperiences and the learning pointswhich struck them most. Then in classask them to work in small groups andshare and discuss these and to identifywhat the most significant commonlearning points or change of ways ofthinking and acting were for the group.Feedback to the rest of the class andconclude with a discussion of how theexploration of intercultural issues willaffect how they think and act in thefuture.

✎ Instead of getting verbal feedback fromeach group, ask the groups to design aposter, do a freeze-frame or a shortrole-play to communicate to the rest ofthe class what the most importantlearning etc was.

✎ Ask each student to individually readthrough their reflection sheets and

design a poster or slogan or bring aphotograph into class to symbolisewhat they have learned or how theyhave changed or how they will act infuture. They should share these firstin small groups and then put them uparound the classroom so that they canbe looked at by all the students. Theclass may then want to discuss some ofthe issues highlighted, and/or put someof the posters on display for the rest ofthe school.

✎ If you did the activity on Ireland – TheReality and the Vision, you could askthe students to look back at their threepriority wishes for Ireland in the futureand decide whether they want tochange any of them (alternatively, youcould do the whole activity again). Thegroup should discuss their reasons forany of the changes they make andrelate their reasons to what they havedone and learned from the other.

Section 8Ideas for Evaluation

If you have done a reasonable amount of work on intercultural issues, it issuggested that you spend one class allowing the students to evaluate theirlearning in this area. Depending on your students, a number of methods couldbe chosen. Some of the possible methods are described below.


Culture – Culture can be described simply asthe total, socially transmitted lifestyle of asociety or group of people. It includes everyaspect of people’s way of life, from obviousaspects such as food, clothes, housing or sportto beliefs, values, attitudes, symbols andmeanings, ideas of time and beauty, economic,educational, legal and political systems andconcepts of the universe. Culture is a fluidprocess that is subject to on-going change andwith which each individual in a group has adifferent relationship.

Stereotypes – Judgement on another madesolely on the basis of group membership e.g.gender, ethnicity, religion, occupation, place ofresidence, age, sexual orientation etc.

Prejudice – Irrational suspicion or hatred of aparticular group e.g. gender, ethnicity,religion, occupation, place of residence, age,sexual orientation etc.

Discrimination – (as defined in Irish Equalitylegislation) Discrimination is defined as lessfavourable treatment. A person is said to bediscriminated against if she/he is treated lessfavourably than another is, has been, or wouldbe treated on the grounds of gender, maritalstatus, family status, sexual orientation,religion, age, disability, race (including colour,nationality and ethnic or national origin) andmembers of the Traveller community.(Equality Authority)

Indirect discrimination – occurs whenpractices or policies which do not appear todiscriminate against one group more thananother actually have a discriminatory impact.It can also happen where a requirement,which may appear non-discriminatory,adversely affects a particular group or class ofpersons (Equality Authority)

Race – Originally race was defined in abiological sense to mean different subspeciesof humans, with the implication that someraces were superior to others, and that racialdifferences were the cause of differencesbetween peoples. (Harris, 1997; Jandt, 2001)However, genetic research has proved thatthere is no single race-defining gene andtherefore no biological basis for dividing thehuman population into different races. Thereis only one human race. However, the termstill exists in legislation and is still used bymany people in a socio-political sense, often tojustify racist attitudes. (See racism below)

Racism – Racism is a specific form ofdiscrimination usually associated with skincolour and ethnicity. The fundamental basisof racism is a belief of superiority that justifiesthe oppression of groups of people. The UNdefines racism as “Any distinction, exclusion,restriction or preference based on race, colour,descent, or national or ethnic origin which hasthe purpose or effect of nullifying orimpairing the recognition, enjoyment orexercise, on an equal footing, of human rightsand fundamental freedoms in the political,economic, social, cultural or any other field ofpublic life”.

Institutional Racism – The collective failure ofan organisation to provide an appropriate andprofessional service to people because of theircolour, culture or ethnic origin. It can be seenor detected in processes, attitudes andbehaviour which amount to discriminationthrough unwitting prejudice, ignorance,thoughtlessness and racist stereotyping whichdisadvantage minority ethnic people.(Stephen Lawrence Inquiry 2000)

Appendix AGlossary of Terms Used

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WorkersWorkers form the majority of the migrantpopulation in Ireland. They fall into threecategories:

● Workers from other EU and EEA stateswho are free to come and work here.There are no reliable statistics on thenumber of EU nationals living andworking in Ireland at present.

● People from outside the EEA area whoare granted 2 year work visas to workin areas of special need i.e. nurses, ITspecialists, architects, constructionworkers, quantity and buildingsurveyors, town planners. Thesemigrants can bring family memberswith them. 1,387 working visas weregranted in 2000.

● People from outside the EEA whoapply for a work permit which appliesonly to a specific job and is valid for 1year, but can be renewed. Workpermit holders cannot bring theirfamilies with them. 18,006 workpermits were granted or renewed in2000 and 35,000 in 2001.

Refugees/Asylum SeekersThe terms refugees and asylum seekers areoften used interchangeably by Irish people,but they actually include three differentcategories of refugees as well as asylum seekers.

Convention refugees

People who satisfy the requirements of thedefinition of a refugee under the UNConvention of 1951. This classifies a refugeeas a person who “owing to a well-foundedfear of being persecuted for reasons of race,

religion, nationality, membership of a socialgroup or political opinion, is outside thecountry of his nationality and is unable or,owing to such fear, unwilling to avail himselfof the protection of that country”.

Programme Refugees

People who are invited by the Irishgovernment to come and live here as part ofa response to a war or crisis situation. Thisusually only happens when the UN requestthe government to do so. Groups whichhave been accepted in this way includeHungarians (1956), Chileans (1973),Vietnamese (1979), Iranian Baha’is (1985),Bosnians (1992) and Kosovars (1999).

Leave to Remain

This is a special permission to stay inIreland, if the Minister for Justice considersthere are sufficient humanitarian grounds,even though the person may not satisfy theconditions of the UN Convention.

Irish Born Child

Any child born in Ireland is an Irish citizen.Any non-Irish national with an Irish-bornchild has the right to a Residence Permit inorder to meet the child’s right to family life.

Asylum Seekers

People who come to Ireland seeking to berecognised as refugees under the UNconvention.

Note: Once they have applied for asylum, theyare legally present in the state and are not illegalimmigrants.

For further information see the Irish Centrefor Migration Studies website athttp://migration.ucc.ie/immigration

Appendix BImmigration in Ireland


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Exploring Cultural Values in the Community. AModule on Community and Culture for Civic,Social and Political Education. IntercultureIreland, 1999. (Available free from the CSPESupport Service)

Raising Awareness. Diversity and Racism. Anactivity Pack for Schools and Youth Workers.NCCRI & The Equality Commission forNorthern Ireland, 2001. (Available onwww.nccri.ie or on request from NCCRI,address below)

Ireland All Different all Equal. An Anti-racismand Equality Education Pack. National YouthCouncil of Ireland, 1997.

What Me a Racist? European Commission,1998. Cartoon pack on prejudice andracism. Available free from the EuropeanCommission, European House, Dawson St,Dublin 2.

The Pavee Pack. A Handbook for Teachers for usein Conjunction with Unit 2 C.S.P.E. Pavee PointPublications, 2000.

A Part of Ireland Now. Stories of Refugeesliving in Ireland. A Part of IrelandNow,1997.

Refugees: We Left Because We Had To. TheRefugee Council UK, 1996.

Metro Eireann. A monthly newspapercovering issues related to diversity. Availablefree from many Dunnes Stores or Tescobranches or directly from Metro Eireann,Spiritan House, 213 North Circular Rd,Dublin 7. Also available on their website:www.metroeireann.com

Responding to Racism in Ireland Edited byFintan Farrell and Philip Watt, published byVeritas, 2001

Resources and further reading


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CDVEC Curriculum Development UnitSundrive Rd, Dublin 12. Tel: 01 453 5487Fax: 01 453 7659 Web: www.curriculum.ie

National Consultative Committee onRacism and Interculturalism26 Harcourt St Dublin 2. Tel: 01 478 5777Fax: 01 478 5778 Web: www.ncccri.ie

Equality AuthorityClonmel House, Dublin 2. Tel: 1890 24 55 45 / 01 417 3333 Fax: 01 417 3366Web: www.equality.ie

Amnesty International Irish SectionSean MacBride House, 48 Fleet St, Dublin 2. Tel: 01 677 6361Fax: 01 677 6392Web: www.amnesty.ie

The Irish Traveller Movement4/5 Eustace St, Dublin 2. Tel: 01 679 6577 Fax: 01 679 6579Web: www.itmtrav.com

Pavee Point Traveller Centre46 North Great Charles St,Dublin 1. Tel: 01 878 0255Fax: 01 878 2626Web: www.paveepoint.ie

Citizen Traveller6 New Cabra Rd, Dublin 7. Tel: 01 868 7462 Fax: 01 868 1611 Email: citizentraveller @iol.ie

A Part of Ireland NowSpiritan House, 213 North Circular Rd, Dublin 7. Tel/Fax: 01 868 4059 (Provides information and speakers from therefugee community)

Integrating Ireland (Network of local refugee and migrant supportgroups)c/o Comhlámh, 10 Upr Camden St, Dublin 2. Tel: 01 478 3490 Fax: 01 478 3738 Web: www.comhlamh.ie

The Irish Refugee Council 40 Lr Dominic St, Dublin 1. Tel: 01 873 0042 Fax: 01 873 0088 Web: www.irishrefugeecouncil.ie

Contact Organisations and Websites


Contact Organisations and Websites

NASC (Irish Immigrant Support Centre)St Marie’s of the Isle, Sharman Crawford St, Cork. Tel: 021 431 7411 Fax: 021 431 7402Web: http://homepage.eircom.net/~iisc

Islamic Centre19 Roebuck Road,Clonskeagh,Dublin 14.Tel: (01) 260 3740

Irish Council for People withDisabilitiesCon Colbert House, Inchicore Rd, Dublin 8. Tel: 01 473 2254 Fax: 01 473 2262 Web: www.iol.ie/~icpd

National Disability Authority(Dep.of Justice, Equality and Law Reform)Web: www.nda.ie

TrócaireBooterstown Ave, Blackrock, Co Dublin. Tel: 01 288 5385 Fax: 01 288 3577.

12 Cathedral St, Dublin 2. Tel: 01 874 3875

9 Cook St, Cork. Tel: 021 427 5622 Web: www.trocaire.ie

Concern Camden St,Dublin 2.Tel: 01 475 4162 Fax: 01 475 7362Web: www.concern.ie

Goal 9 Northumberland Ave, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin. Tel: 01 280 9779 Fax: 01 280 9215 Web: www.goal.ie

Christian Aid Christ Church, Rathgar Rd, Dublin 6. Tel: 01 496 6184 Fax: 01 497 3880 Web. www.christian-aid.org.uk

National Committee for DevelopmentEducation Bishop’s Square, Redmond Hill,Dublin 2. Tel: 01 478 9456 Web: www.ncde.ie (Produces an annual catalogue of educationalresources for teaching justice issues, includinginterculturalism and racism – available in printform or on their website)

Babymilk Action Campaign c/o 10 Upr Camden St, Dublin 2. Tel/Fax: 01 462 2026 Web: www.lionraonline.org

Advertising Standards Authority forIreland IPC House, Shelbourne Rd, Dublin 4. Tel: 01 660 8766 Fax: 01 660 8113 Web: www.asai.ie

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Notes


Notes


CDVEC Curriculum Development UnitSundrive Road, Dublin 12.

National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism26 Harcourt Street, Dublin 2.

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