As part of our South African heritage, The Ridge School recognises the importance of social justice. In our commitment to this vital cause, we are committed to implementing meaningful strategies to educate and values in both our young boys and staff members.
Teaching & Modelling Social Justice
At The Ridge School, we aim for the ideal of social justice to become a way of being, meaning these values need to be modelled and taught. Fairness and equality are embedded into our curriculum and expands to how daily activities occur and how our staff and boys conduct themselves and interact with each other. We empower our boys to be able to identify and solve problems related to discrimination. We aim to take meaningful steps towards the psychological safety required for each Ridge boy to have a sense of belonging and to prosper. In this way, every member of The Ridge School Community can experience social justice in practice.
Starting With Staff
As most parents will realise, schools are a microcosm of society, and you want your child to ultimately have healthy, positive integration into the world around him, starting at school. We work towards this at The Ridge School through language, thoughts and deeds. In one of our recent initiatives, the staff had a conversation about race, guided by the following questions:
- What aspects of self do we need to be mindful of?
- What should we be aware of in our interpersonal interactions?
- What shifts must happen structurally?
- What do we need to work on institutionally?
These are some of the insights shared on self:
- To develop our vocabulary so that we can be more comfortable talking about race and not hide from it.
- To be aware of the other person and take the time to listen to their lived experience.
- To be open about sharing our own stories.
- To challenge ourselves – to actively seek to know and not seek information that confirms our bias.
- To take a critical look at learned behaviour and challenge it within ourselves and others.
On interpersonal interactions:
- To embrace our differences and see them as a strength and a way of enrichment.
- To lead with empathy and respect and therefore create a sense of belonging.
- To self-direct and hold each other accountable.
- The language of greeting.
- Take the time to learn people’s names and call them accordingly.
On structure and institution:
- Regularly looking at the curriculum.
- Workshops for staff and boys.
- Reword policies and evaluate practices.
- Collaborate more with colleagues regarding lesson plans.
- More celebrations during the term around different significant events and embed them into the curriculum.
- A team of staff will be meeting to engage and learn more about how to create healthy dialogues around race and what we can do more as a school to bring people together.
Instilling Social Justice In Our Boys
Parents of Ridge boys are invited to discuss our school values with their sons, as these are crucial to being an effective member of The Ridge School community. Intentionally written as actionable verbs, we live by these values and encourage you all to join us in doing so.
Authenticity: I will express my truth, with maturity through vulnerability
Empathy: I will show compassion and kindness to myself and others
Respect: I will reflect before I act
Belonging: I will create a space where everyone feels that they belong
Resilience: I will do my best despite adversity
Get in touch with The Ridge School in Westcliff, Johannesburg at 011 481 5800.