I have just returned from an inspiring conference organised by Andy Lawrence of Hampton School. Bringing together over 100 students from 7 local schools, Andy and his team organised a great day of learning with speakers including two SURF trustees, Jean Louis Mazimpaka of Hope Survivors Foundation (HSF), and Sam Hunt of Sandhurst Comprehensive. As well, we were fortunate to hear the remarkable story of Lesley Bilinda, whose husband was killed in the genocide, and the authoritative research of Linda Melvern, author of A People Betrayed.
Though it was a crammed day, the students were brilliant – engaging with what is a particularly difficult and intense issue. They remained focus through the talks, and created some great exhibitions on the genocide using historical sources as part of a breakout workshop. At the end, they completed forms as to Why We Should Remember the genocide, as part of the Hampton School project.
The Guardian published an article on SURF’s education programme, Teaching the Rwandan genocide in schools, featuring the work of both Andy and Sam. So if you want to learn more , then I can recommend that. Thank you to Ellie Levenson for writing it.
