The Association for the Teaching of Caribbean, African, Asian and Associated Literatures, or ATCAL, was founded with the aim of familiarizing British teachers with the range of "Black" writing that was available for school use. In the 1980s ATCAL was a pressure group that played a key part in "the gradual process of expanding syllabuses in British schools, to include subjects such as contemporary black writing into the National Curriculum."The Africa Centre History Timeline, The 1970s. ATCAL held annual conferences, compiled booklists for schools, and held meetings and workshops in order "to increase awareness of the importance of cultural diversity in British society in education at all levels".
History
ATCAL (the acronym originally stood for the Association for the Teaching of African and Caribbean Literature, but was soon extended to include Asian material) was founded by past members of the
Caribbean Artists Movement The Caribbean Artists Movement (CAM) was an influential cultural initiative, begun in London, England, in 1966 and active until about 1972,University of Kent
, motto_lang =
, mottoeng = Literal translation: 'Whom to serve is to reign'(Book of Common Prayer translation: 'whose service is perfect freedom')Graham Martin, ''From Vision to Reality: the Making of the University of Kent at Canterbury'' ...
in 1978,
Bill Schwarz
Bill Schwarz (born 1951) is an English historian, who is a Professor in the School of English and Drama at Queen Mary, University of London, his research focusing on postcolonial history.''West Indian Intellectuals in Britain'' Manchester University Press, 2003, p. 225. and was inaugurated in 1979, its first meeting — entitled "How to Teach Caribbean and African Literature in Schools" — being held at the
Africa Centre, London
The Africa Centre, London was founded in 1964 at 38 King Street, Covent Garden, where over the years it held many art exhibitions, conferences, lectures, and a variety of cultural events, as well as housing a gallery, meeting halls, restaurant, b ...
. The organization campaigned for greater diversification of the
English literature
English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...
traditionally taught in UK schools at that time, and sought to get writers such as
Derek Walcott
Sir Derek Alton Walcott (23 January 1930 – 17 March 2017) was a Saint Lucian poet and playwright. He received the 1992 Nobel Prize in Literature. His works include the Homeric epic poem ''Omeros'' (1990), which many critics view "as Walcot ...
,
Jean Rhys
Jean Rhys, ( ; born Ella Gwendolyn Rees Williams; 24 August 1890 – 14 May 1979) was a British novelist who was born and grew up in the Caribbean island of Dominica. From the age of 16, she mainly resided in England, where she was sent for her ...
and
V. S. Naipaul
Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul (; 17 August 1932 – 11 August 2018) was a Trinidadian-born British writer of works of fiction and nonfiction in English. He is known for his comic early novels set in Trinidad, his bleaker novels of alienati ...
included on the
A-level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...
The Times Higher Educational Supplement
''Times Higher Education'' (''THE''), formerly ''The Times Higher Education Supplement'' (''The Thes''), is a British magazine reporting specifically on news and issues related to higher education.
Ownership
TPG Capital acquired TSL Education ...
Wasafiri
''Wasafiri'' is a quarterly British literary magazine covering international contemporary writing. Founded in 1984, the magazine derives its name from a Swahili word meaning "travellers" that is etymologically linked with the Arabic word "safari" ...
'', which still continues, with
Susheila Nasta
Susheila Nasta, MBE, Hon. FRSL (born 1953), is a British critic, editor, academic and literary activist. She is Professor of Modern and Contemporary Literatures at Queen Mary University of London, and founding editor of ''Wasafiri'', the UK's lea ...