A Positive Prevent Strategy – Why Tackling Radicalisation In Schools Calls For A Creative Approach
Identifying potential terrorists is a tough call even for the experts, says Alison Jamieson – but positive education could promote cohesion and help young people make better choices The statutory duties introduced by the Prevent strategy have compelled teaching professionals to take on a frontline role in terrorism prevention and have placed them under unprecedented […]
Identifying potential terrorists is a tough call even for the experts, says Alison Jamieson – but positive education could promote cohesion and help young people make better choices
The statutory duties introduced by the Prevent strategy have compelled teaching professionals to take on a frontline role in terrorism prevention and have placed them under unprecedented scrutiny. Schools must have mechanisms for staff to understand the risks of radicalisation, to recognise and respond appropriately and to be aware of how and where to find support. Schools are urged to ‘Play a role in enabling young people to explore issues like terrorism and the wider use of violence in a considered and informed way’. To meet these challenges, new competencies are required.
In some respects the new safeguarding responsibilities resemble those for protecting children from other harms, in that they involve a partnership between schools, Local Safeguarding Children Boards, police, parents and local agencies or authorities. However, once vulnerable individuals have been identified, the provision of support to children and adults to prevent them from being drawn into terrorism is administered in England and Wales by the government’s Channel deradicalisation programme [PDF] (Prevent does not apply in Northern Ireland, while Scotland runs a separate deradicalisation programme).
Channel referrals reached a total of 796 in the three months from June to August 2015, more than for the whole of 2012-2013. Of those referred, 312 were under 18. The figures suggest a high level of sensitivity on the part of teachers and social workers to the risks of radicalisation, perhaps due as much to high profile press coverage as to awareness-raising on the part of government.
Risk assessment
Channel referral guidance is based on a vulnerability assessment framework of 22 factors across three categories: engagement with an extremist group, cause or ideology; intention to use violence or other illegal means; and capacity to contribute directly or indirectly to an act of terrorism.
For the first two categories, indicators rely heavily on perceived changes in personality, habits of speech, dress or social behaviour. These may be dramatic, and also indicative of a move towards supporting or participating in violence, as seems to have been the case with ‘Boy S’, the 15-year-old from Blackburn sentenced to life imprisonment for inciting terrorist acts in Australia. However in the majority of cases, especially in adolescents and young adults, changes in appearance, behaviour and opinions may be a temporary stage in the maturing process and have little or no bearing on the likelihood of an individual’s engaging in terrorism.
The emphasis on prioritising visible changes as markers for supposed vulnerability – more evident among young Muslims – has aroused suspicion that they are the principal, if not sole focus of Britain’s anti-terrorism efforts. The risk of racial profiling is a real one, as is the potential for overreaction or misinterpretation by over-zealous teaching staff and SLTs, fearful of the possible consequences of not acting pre-emptively.
Push and pull factors
Predicting who is likely to be drawn into terrorism is a hazardous task. Research into terrorist behaviour conducted over many years by pyschologist John Horgan shows that while there is evidence of terrorists being exposed to certain predisposing or facilitating factors that could have influenced their choice, the vast majority of individuals with the same risk factors do not become terrorists.
Religious ideology, often cited as a principal driver of terrorism, is considered by many researchers to function more as a cohesive force binding individuals together once they have joined a terrorist group, rather than as a primary motivation. Before their involvement, would-be recruits often have scant religious knowledge, while those who are better informed may be less vulnerable to indoctrination.
In Horgan’s experience, ‘The overwhelming majority of people who hold radical beliefs do not engage in violence,‘ while ‘There is increasing evidence that people who engage in terrorism do not necessarily hold radical beliefs.’
Although a wide range of ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors seem to influence the choice of violence, it is virtually impossible to construct a terrorist ‘profile’. The Prevent strategy acknowledges this, and accepts that there is no automatic ‘conveyor belt’ or linear route leading from extremism to terrorism.
Given the complexities of how and why individuals choose to engage in violence, how can school leaders and staff best negotiate this minefield?
Shared values
The new measures are a challenge, but can also be viewed as a stimulus to encourage critical thinking and intellectual development. Terrorism should be studied geographically and through the lens of history as a tactic of warfare with specific characteristics. Different forms of terrorism should be explained as objectively as possible, with the observation that its consequences are invariably destructive of communities on both sides of a divide, using the examples of the Middle East and Northern Ireland.
A controversial element of the Prevent legislation is the government’s definition of extremism as ‘Vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs’. Some may question whether these values are unique to Britain, but there should be no difficulty in appreciating them as cherished and desirable elements of British national life.
One approach may be to consider the diverse elements and multiple identities that comprise ‘Britishness’. Just as South Africa is known as the ‘rainbow nation’ and India has a multitude of diverse religions, languages and cultures, Britain is a kaleidoscope of ethnicities, faiths and colours, all of which contribute to British values and must be respected.
Discussions should focus more on shared aspects of citizenship, such as community or school projects and ambitions, or activities like sport and music, rather than on discriminating factors which isolate people in religious or racial enclaves. Pupils should learn about the main religions and what they have in common, such as buildings for worship, rules of behaviour and rituals for birth, marriage and death.
Certain values transcend religion, culture and ethnic boundaries, and these should be emphasised. Citizenship classes are already expected to study the mechanisms of democracy, of which civic engagement and non-violent protest are a vital part. Freedom of expression can be introduced as a debate topic to differentiate the legitimate expression of opinions with which many will disagree, from expressions which cause fear or incite hatred or violence. A discussion of the Charlie Hebdo attacks can be used to illustrate the important distinction between support for the motives of the attackers – which some may have shared – and support for their actions, deplored by almost all.
Challenging the narrative
An important strand of Prevent consists of protecting pupils from being influenced by pro-violence messages on social media. In part, these can be tackled through the ICT curriculum and existing safeguarding policies, but they also need to be challenged with robust counter narratives by competent teachers, with outside support as necessary.
In cases of religious-inspired violence, faith leaders can be invited to refute distorted messages. To counter right-wing narratives based on prejudice and hatred, the suffering and other destructive consequences of violence may best be tackled through the history curriculum, with first-hand accounts provided where possible.
There is ample scope for implementing the new Prevent requirements within a whole school strategy across citizenship, PSHE, history, ICT and RE, centred on democratic discussion and debate in the classroom. Looking at terrorism through this wider perspective will encourage pupils to explore grievances, to analyse and put forward moral arguments and consider the nature of identity and citizenship. They could also examine the notion of protest and its relationship to violence, and engage in wide-ranging discussions of major issues affecting their own and the global community.
Alison Jamieson is co-author with Jane Flint of Radicalisation and Terrorism: A Teacher’s Handbook for Addressing Extremism, available now from Brilliant Publications priced at £19.99
