Louise Johns-Shepherd
The Reflecting Realties survey has been funded by Arts Council England for three years, allowing CLPE to create a benchmark set of figures for the publishing industry. PEN&INC.
Research was led by Farrah with input from a steering committee of leading experts in publishing and education made up of Darren Chetty – Teaching Fellow, UCL Institute of Education; Dr Fen Coles - Co-director, Letterbox Library; Louise Johns-Shepherd – Chief Executive, CLPE; Professor Vini Lander – Professor of Race and Teacher Education, School of Education, University of Roehampton; Nicky Parker – Publisher, Amnesty UK Publishing; Dr Melanie Ramdarshan Bold - Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor, Department of Information Studies at University College London; and Professor Karen Sands O’Connor - British Academy Global Professor for Children’s Literature, SUNY Buffalo State and Newcastle University.
have a role to play in giving children from all backgrounds better access to titles that reflect their lives. Farrah said: “The value of reflecting realities, individuals, identities, cultures and communities is rooted in the importance of elevating all lived experiences and recognising them as worthy of note and exploration. To understand and be understood is at the heart of the human experience. The space between what is written and what is read is often a safe space in which we can make sense of our lives and the world around us.” The report concludes with a number of recommendations aimed at improving the presence of BAME characters in children’s literature. It says authors should be able and willing to do thorough research, and also calls on publishers to invest in authors and illustrators from a range of backgrounds. It says there is a need to move away from “tick-box” representation, instead focusing on interpretations that reflect society; content needs to steer clear of stereotypes; characters should be better developed and portrayed in ways that are accurate; there should be a move away from BAME characters being defined by their struggles, suffering or otherness; and BAME characters should take more central roles enabling them to move out of the margins. Louise Johns-Shepherd, CLPE Chief Executive, explains that the report was born out of its work to build a culture of literacy through reading in primary schools. She said: “CLPE works to ensure all children can become literate and so we are heartened that more children will be able to see themselves reflected in their reading material but we are also aware that this is just the beginning of a journey. The call for more inclusive books is as much about quality as it is about volume. Better representation means just that, better in all regards, because all young readers deserve the best that the literary world has to offer.”
Autumn-Winter 2019 PEN&INC. 19
Reflecting Realities
pp.17-19.indd 4
09/10/2019 15:25
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