Celebrate October with the Oxplore Book Club: it’s Black History Month!

Photo by Kayle Kaupanger on Unsplash

October is Black History Month, a celebration of the achievements and contributions made by Black people across history.

Black History Month began in the United States in 1970, and in the UK in 1987, when Akyaaba Addai-Sebo, a special projects officer at the Greater London Council, put forward the concept. He was inspired by a conversation with a colleague whose seven-year old son had asked “Mum, why can’t I be white?” This made Addai-Sebo think more about identity, pride and heritage. He chose October for Britain’s Black History Month because it was a period “when the weather was not cold and children were fresh after the long summer vacation and had less to worry about with exams and tests” (source).

Now, Black History Month exists to recognise that the history and voices of Black people have often been ignored or silenced throughout history and into the present day. It is a time for celebrating people and movements that have unfairly been forgotten and for ensuring that they are remembered, not just in October but all year round. You can find out more about Black History Month and this year’s theme, ‘Proud to Be’, right here.

The Oxplore Book Club has lots of resources to help you and your students celebrate Black History Month by discovering some amazing literature by Black authors. Check out this resource, which delves into Malorie Blackman’s Noughts and Crosses series. These novels are set in a dystopian world where one race rules over another, Black people (Crosses) dominating White people (Noughts). They therefore offer a stark reversal of the long history of racial prejudice against people of colour.

The Book Club can also introduce your students to literature by other writers of colour, such as this collection from poetry month, which focuses on the themes of identity and family relationships. Moniza Alvi, Caleb Femi, and Mary Jean Chan share their experiences of growing up in Britain through their poetry, drawing from their different cultural heritages—Pakistani, Nigerian, and Chinese respectively.

Your students can explore what race really means and learn about the history of racial discrimination in our Big Question ‘Does race matter?’ This Question also includes recommendations of more literature by Black authors like Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

And, if they’ve been inspired by finding out about these incredible writers, you can introduce them to even more Black and Asian British writing through the Postcolonial Writers Make Worlds resource hub, created by Oxford’s Faculty of English Language and Literature and TORCH, The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities.

It isn’t just writers, either—Oxford owes a lot to the Black people who have helped to build its worldwide reputation for excellence, and you can find out about some of them in the Oxford BHM 100.

Happy Black History Month from everyone at Oxplore, and happy reading!

Celebrate October with the Oxplore Book Club: it’s Halloween!

The Oxplore Book Club is back! Our online Book Club aimed at 11-14 year olds is returning for an autumn series, running between 7th October and 31^st December 2021.

The October book is sure to get you and your students in the Halloween spirit— it’s Scythe by Neal Schusterman! This book is the first in Schusterman’s Arc of a Scythe series, and describes a world in which there is no war, hunger or disease, and therefore no death. To keep the population under control, the ‘scythes’ are commanded to take lives—even if they don’t want to.

Scythe certainly asks some Big Questions which students might like to explore further on our website, questions like ‘Would you want to live forever?’ and ‘Is there life after death?’ Check out this animation to get them started:

We’ll also be publishing free resources to help Book Club members get stuck into our monthly book recommendations, including articles, quizzes and videos on the writer, wider contexts and themes. This can be found as part of our ‘Are you ready for Book Club?‘ Big Question.

On Wednesday 20^th October at 4-4.40pm, there’ll be a live Book Club discussion led by bioethicist Tess Johnson, where students can send in their questions. Register for a free ticket here!

When spooky season is over, there will be lots more to look forward to! The Book Club continues into November and December with Northern Lights by Philip Pullman and Who Framed Klaris Cliff? by Nikki Sheehan, and we’re very excited that both of these authors will be joining us LIVE to talk about their books! The November event with Philip Pullman will take place on Wednesday 24^th November at 4-4.40pm (register here), and the December event with Nikki Sheehan will take place on Wednesday 15^th December at 4-4.40pm (register here).

Keep an eye on our social media channels at @letsoxplore (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) for the latest updates, but as you can see, there’s plenty to celebrate as you move into October with Oxplore!

And, if you’re looking for another spooky book to get your students reading this October, why not check out our intern Ndidi’s review of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein below?

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley tells the story of a scientist, Victor Frankenstein who, in his singular pursuit of knowledge, creates a frightful monster that begins to torment him and those he loves. Victor is driven by the pursuit of knowledge and eventually discovers a way to impart life to inanimate objects. After years of intense study, to the detriment of his own health, he finally imparts life into the being he has assembled in a very disturbing way: he visited slaughterhouses, robbed dead people’s graves for their body parts, killed, and tortured innocent animals. When the monster comes to life, Victor is struck by a strong sense of horror at the monster’s appearance, but also at what he has done. Although the monster becomes a terror, it only does so after being rejected by human society. Before that, it delighted in nature, and loved to read books like John Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’. By the book’s end, Victor loses so much and is forced to confront the ways he was selfish/proud in his quest for knowledge.

Shelley’s book encourages us to ask big questions about knowledge, science, morality, and our relationship with the natural world. How far should we take the pursuit of knowledge? Should we care about the natural world as we continue to discover more advanced technology? What do we make of the fact that the monster only becomes terrible after being rejected by society? Do we play a part in making inventions bad?  What do you think?

A few fun facts:

-Shelley wrote this story when she was just 18!

-In the book, Victor Frankenstein (the protagonist) travels from London to Oxford and then to Edinburgh. I just happened to make the same trip as I was reading the novel! If you happen to be reading the novel when you are in any of those cities, look out for his description of them and see if you think he describes those cities well (I think he does!)

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Oxplore Live is back—join us for our ‘Do Aliens Exist?’ event!

With Halloween around the corner, forget ghosts, witches and vampires, and join us in November to explore the existence of a different kind of creature—one which might be closer than you think.

Oxplore Live is back and is aimed at 11-18 year olds! Tune in on Wednesday 3^rd November 2021 from 2-2.45pm to listen to a panel of Oxford academics from a range of different disciplines offer their insights on the Big Question ‘Do aliens exist?’

Dr Tom Crawford (Maths), Dr Becky Smethurst (Astrophysics), Hubert Au (Oxford Internet Institute) and Simona Bartolotta (English) will be debating the question, but your students will be just as much a part of the conversation. They will be able to take part in polls throughout the event, as well as having the chance to pose tricky questions for the academics to tackle.

If you’re interested in getting involved, sign up for FREE via this Eventbrite page.

And why not make this Big Question part of your lessons? It could of course make for an interesting science lesson, but you can also find resources relevant to maths, film studies, IT and more over on our Big Question page for ‘Do aliens exist?’

Want to get your students excited for the event without taking up a whole lesson? You can listen to these short podcast episodes about the existence of aliens and the laws of space exploration right here:

‘Aliens yes, but here on earth…? No.’ (1 min)

‘The laws of space exploration: could we take over another planet?’ (9 mins)

‘Wild space: the laws of space travel’ (1 min)

You can also encourage your students to find out more about two of our panel members and their fascinating subjects through their educational YouTube channels. Dr Tom Crawford’s channel is TomRocksMaths, described by him as ‘maths, but not as you know it’! Dr Becky Smethurst’s channel is Dr Becky, and is packed with videos about space which ‘focus on how we know things, not just what we know. And especially, the things we still don’t know’…

Finally, the polls aren’t just for your students —you can also have your say right here! Do you think aliens exist? Let us know which answer you chose and why in the comments!

Looking for personal statement help? Oxplore has you covered!

Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash

With the summer break over and the 15^th October deadline for Oxford applications fast approaching, many final year secondary school students—and their teachers—will have one thing on their minds: perfecting their personal statement.

One very important question you and your students might be asking is, ‘what exactly are Oxford tutors looking for?’ Luckily, the Oxford undergraduate guide for applicants has answers, and Oxplore does too. Here’s three ways that Oxplore can help your students to make the best possible applications, supported by guidance directly from the tutors who are going to read them.

1. Subject exploration

Tutors say…

“[Applicants need] a deep, irresistible interest in the subject they want to study.”

English tutor, guide for applicants

Oxplore answers…

It’s sometimes difficult for students to decide what subject they’re most interested in pursuing at university, especially since many subjects taught at university do not have an equivalent at school. Choosing a course they’re genuinely excited about is a vital first step for applicants, and it might be that you want to encourage your younger students, as well as those about to apply to university who are still undecided, to use Oxplore to help them. Students can choose a Big Question which is particularly thought-provoking to them and then head to the ‘Take this further…’ section, which suggests courses at Oxford that could be relevant to that question as well as providing links to more information about that course.

Here’s a couple of examples:

• Find out more about Mathematics and Computer Science, Computer Science and Philosophy, Engineering Science and Law at Oxford whilst exploring the Big Question ‘Is the Internet bad?’
• Find out more about Archaeology and Anthropology, Classics, English Language and Literature, and Modern Languages at Oxford whilst exploring the Big Question ‘Is school the best place to learn?’

2. Reading lists

Tutors say…

“It’s not enough just to say that you have a passion for something: you need to show tutors how you have engaged with your subject, above and beyond whatever you have studied at school or college.”

‘What are tutors looking for?’, guide for applicants

Oxplore answers…

Once students know the subject that they want to study, they need to engage with it further. But with so much material out there, from books to articles, podcasts and more, it can sometimes be difficult for students to find something to engage with that truly suits their individual interests. Some of our Big Questions have a section at the bottom called ‘Delve deeper with…’, which includes three or four suggestions for super-curricular exploration curated by a current Oxford student. Why not encourage your students to choose a Big Question that really intrigues them and try out one of the suggestions, or to find a reading list recommended by a student who studies the course they want to pursue at university?

Here’s a couple of our reading lists to give you an idea of what they have to offer:

• Ellie, a Geography student, recommends books, articles and videos covering a range of subjects which connect to the question ‘Could we end disease?’
• Aura, a Human Sciences student, recommends interdisciplinary books and podcasts relating to the question ‘Could we end poverty?’

3. Critical thinking and discussion skills

Tutors say…

“A promising applicant is one who is flexible, responsive and thoughtful in their approach.”

Italian tutor, guide for applicants

“[Applicants should show] clarity of expression and thought, precision of analysis, flexibility of argument, and sheer enthusiasm for the subject – a raw intellectual curiosity which encourages the student to think and question.”

History tutor, guide for applicants

Oxplore answers…

When writing a personal statement for an Oxford application, it’s important for students to remember that any part of that statement could form the basis of an interview conversation. So once students have found interesting books, articles, videos or podcasts, they need to form opinions and ideas about them which they can include in their personal statement and practice discussing those ideas and opinions in a thoughtful way. It isn’t always about defending their opinions—indeed, both tutors quoted above express an interest in students who can think ‘flexibly’. They’re looking for students who, when faced with an entirely new angle on a complicated question, are willing—and even keen—to reconsider their views carefully. Oxplore’s Big Questions offer a chance to practice this key critical thinking skill. At the beginning of each Big Question, students are asked to click ‘yes’ or no’ in response to it. Then, after they have learnt new information drawn from a range of different subjects, they are encouraged to give a more nuanced answer to the question which takes into account its complexity.

              Here’s an example:

• Before they can access the information and resources, students are encouraged to make an initial judgement on the question ‘Should you believe the history books?’

• Then, once they’ve considered the question from different perspectives by reading, watching and listening, they are given a chance to reconsider their position and vote again, this time with a more nuanced set of options.

We hope at least one of these features will be useful to you and your students during this busy time in the academic year. The very best of luck from everyone at Oxplore to those applying to Oxford- you’ll be brilliant!