October 2021 marks 34years since Black History Month was first celebrated in the UK. It also marks the first anniversary of Newham Sixth Form College’s African Studies Centre.

Hailed as the ‘first of its kind’ by contemporaries, the centre set out to equip teachers with the skills and knowledge to teach students about the history of Africa, without doing so through the lens of European colonialism.

Newham Voices spoke with the two founders of the centre Alan Kunna and Carina Ancell, both History lecturers at the college, about the progress the centre has made and its achievements.

“By collaborating with leading academics and their work, we have been able to broaden the interest in African history, as well as bring it to a wider audience,” Alan Kunna said. “Their expertise, coupled with the fact that all our lectures are recorded and put online, meant we have seen the popularity of the content, proving our point that there is a desire among the public to find out more about histories that do not appear on the school syllabus or in traditional textbooks.”

One of the latest lectures, now available on YouTube, saw Newham resident Asif Shakoor talk about his search for more information about his grandfather, after learning that he had been but one of the many black and Asian seamen in World War Two.

Joined with Dr Georgie Wemyss, a Senior Lecturer in Social Sciences at the University of East London, the two revealed the hidden story of the seamen whose stories, like Asif’s grandfather, were neglected by the standard histories of the period. The lecture has been viewed almost 600 times.

“Initiatives like the African Studies Centre are very important”, Dr Wemyss says. “Black History and the many complex histories of the Global South, including histories of European colonisation and exploitation, need to be central to the teaching and learning of history in Britain for everyone.

“NewVic is a key educational and community institution in Newham and therefore having the centre there is important. The use of online lectures and seminars is a great way of ensuring that histories get shared and discussed widely.”

In May, the college was shortlisted for the Sixth Form Colleges’ Association Annual Awards for curriculum innovation being selected as one of the top 3 providers in the category, and co-founder Carina Ancell was one of the 102 Pearson National Teaching Silver awardees across the country in June 2021, winning the award for ‘Further Education Lecturer of the Year’.

The success of the centre further reinforces the need for its existence, Carina believes.

“We have already accomplished so much of what we set out to do in the first year, however, we have so much more we want to do,” stated Carina.

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