A group of bright students at Drummond Community High School have spent a year creating a dramatic story and film about issues affecting young black and ethnic-minority people, writes teacher Michael Paley.
The Action Research on Violence Project (ARVP) – coordinated by Shakti Women’s Aid and NHS Health Promotion with support from the Scottish Government – has encouraged young people from these communities to put forward ideas and opinions about issues that affect them and their peers. It's important work since these groups' voices have often been lacking in past Scottish survey work and academic research on young people.
The pupils focused in particular on issues of violence and conflict, using creative tools such as forum theatre to increase a sense of security as they thought about different types of conflict and tested out how they might impact on young people.
The students involved worked with Lisa Rigby, an Information and Education worker with Shakti Women’s Aid, and Gavin Crichton from Active Inquiry to create Difficult Times for Saqib.
The film tracks a day in the life of a young boy dealing with different types of conflict in his life. It also features interviews with group members about the project's activities, their thoughts on the issues raised in Saqib’s story, and what they got personally from taking part in the scheme.
Local MSP Malcolm Chisholm (above right) recently attended a special screening, and said he was very impressed with all the young people who had taken part. The video and project report will be launched at a special Edinburgh event in early 2013.