My name is Sumaiya and I am a Global Ethics and Justice MSc student. I was a CRI intern this year at Birmingham, specifically for the project, ‘Relatable Reads: Using Genre Fiction by Muslim Women Authors to Improve Literacy and Engagement’. I found the project really enjoyable and also eye-opening.
Working with Washwood Heath Academy as part of this project was a really rewarding experience. It was amazing seeing the way dedicated staff, such as the Resource Manager/School Librarian Roger, could impact the experiences of children and young people so positively. I enjoyed taking part in the reading groups and asking the students what they thought about Huda F Are You? (the book we focussed on). The project emphasised how being able to see yourself in what you’re reading is a significant aspect in how you engage with literacy and reading outside of school, and it was really eye-opening to watch reluctant readers become more engaged with reading for pleasure over the course of the project. Roger introduced us to his ongoing work in diversifying the school library’s books and promoting books that the incredibly diverse student population could see themselves in, and I couldn’t help but think that I wished there were similar efforts and also resources available when I was in secondary school.
I also helped to transcribe some interviews for the Empathy, Narrative and Cultural Values project. I transcribed one interview with a student and one with an A-Level English teacher and found both very insightful, and they helped me to reflect on my own experiences in education and academia. The interview with the teacher also led me to start seriously considering a career in education, or even teaching as part of an academic/research career, as it was interesting to hear how teachers can create a safe space for students, in addition to helping them to thrive in the subjects that they have chosen, as well as the amount of work that goes into creating engaging and impactful classes.
One aspect I really enjoyed about the project was updating the Muslim Women’s Popular Fiction database. The database had so many books written by and about Muslim women like myself, many of which I had not encountered before, and as a Muslim writer myself, it made me feel less lonely as a writer, as well as more hopeful for my future career. I also did a lot of research around other works by Muslim women writers, filmmakers, and creators to add to the database and found a great number of Muslim women writers in translation from places like Oman and Tunisia, and I look forward to engaging with the material I found and added to the database beyond the project.
Overall, the project was really rewarding, both for my personal growth and also for helping me to create skills and experiences that will be of great value in whichever career I end up pursuing. It was amazing working with people so passionate about literature like Dr Amy Burge, and I learned a lot. I am still choosing between publishing, teaching, and academia, but I know that whichever one I choose will be the correct one, and that is because of the confidence I developed through this project.
