Local4Global

APPROACH

To investigate how the global dimension can be promoted in work with museums and archives, especially within the growing emphasis of framing the development of children’s individual and community identity as part of history and citizenship. Reviewing what is available in museums and linking with planned exhibitions that allow children to explore the history of the predominant diaspora groups in East London. Work was done with the British Museum and their Voices of Bengal season, acting as advisers at meetings of the museum’s South Asia Department. Joining-up the museum’s aim of extending its outreach work and visitors’ profiles, along with the EMA needs within the Borough, meant the creation of a successful partnership, resulting in funding from the Borough. The project aimed to support the teaching of history and citizenship with a global dimension in all Tower Hamlets schools using resources that explore the links between Bengal, the British Empire and Tower Hamlets. These will allow students to explore their shared history and thus learn and understand more about the complexities of contemporary life and their place in the world today. For primary schools HEC worked with 5 schools to create 2 Bengal Storytents, one for KS1 and one for KS2.

A Bengal Storytent

These have become a part of the growing collection of Storytents, on a number of GD themes offered to schools through the Boroughs School Library Service. The Bengal tents are on loan from SLS with a box of books, an edited copy of the beautiful Gazi story scroll, which was exhibited at the Voices of Bengal season, and a teacher’s pack. The 2 Bengal tents were decorated by pupils from 5 different primary schools - from nursery to Y6 - who used the Gazi scroll to inspire their artwork.  

 
 An illustration from the Gazi scroll

For secondary schools HEC is creating a Bengal museum-in-a-box – an exhibition in a box which includes pictures, facsimiles of documents, 2 leaflets on fairtrade and labour conditions, examples of goods traded and other artefacts (eg an extract from the Gazi scroll, cloth printing blocks, fabrics, spices) The tents and boxes will provide a stimulus for young people to ask questions about what they encounter and to discover that the world has been changed by a range of factors and people that contributes to our present communities and identities, and that they can all play an active role in the changes that happen to make the present and the future the way they are.

Gillean Paterson, HEC, May 2007

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