Walk into most classrooms and you’ll see a curriculum that has been carefully planned, structured, and sequenced. In most schools, this planning is grounded in research, designed to support the acquisition and retention of knowledge.

But there’s a deeper question we don’t ask often enough:

Who gets to see themselves in it, and who doesn’t?

This is where the concept of mirrors and windows becomes essential to inclusive education.

What do we mean by ‘mirrors and windows’?

The idea is simple, but powerful:

• Mirrors: Students see their own identities, experiences, and cultures reflected
• Windows: Students gain insight into lives and perspectives different from their own

A truly inclusive curriculum does both, consistently, not occasionally.

Because when students only experience windows, they may feel invisible.
And when they only experience mirrors, they miss the opportunity to understand others.

If we want genuinely engaging and inclusive classrooms, we need both.

The problem: representation is often surface, level

Many schools are already working to diversify their curriculum, but often in ways that don’t go far enough, or lack careful consideration of how content is framed.

You might see:

• A one-off lesson or assembly during Black History Month
• Efforts to diversify reading materials in the library
• Occasional references to global perspectives, often framed as “meanwhile, elsewhere…” and confined to specific subjects

These are well, intentioned, but they risk becoming add, ons rather than meaningful integration.

And students notice the difference.

Why this matters for belonging

Students can tell when inclusion is occasional, symbolic, or performative, and this can have the opposite effect to what is intended.

Instead of feeling seen, they can feel outside the main narrative.

Curriculum is not just about knowledge, it’s about belonging.

When students consistently see themselves reflected through the Mirrors of the curriculum:

• Their sense of legitimacy increases
• Engagement improves (with positive effects on attendance and behaviour)
• Confidence grows
• Equity becomes something that is lived, not just discussed

At the same time, windows help to build:

• Empathy
• Cultural understanding
• A broader view of the world

This isn’t an “extra” it’s foundational.

What this looks like in practice

Creating an inclusive curriculum doesn’t require starting from scratch. It’s about intentional, thoughtful adjustments over time.

To begin you could consider the following:

1. Audit what’s already there

Start by asking:

• Whose stories are centred?
• Whose voices are missing?
• Are certain groups only represented through struggle?

This process is often revealing.

Too often, diverse histories are framed primarily through oppression. A more balanced approach:

• Includes innovation, leadership, and cultural contributions
• Presents individuals as active agents, not just recipients of injustice

This doesn’t ignore difficult histories, it places them within a fuller, more accurate context.

2. Move beyond ‘add and stir’

Inclusion isn’t about inserting isolated examples, it’s about integration.

For example:

• Literature: diversify authors across the year, not just within one unit
• History: embed multiple perspectives within the same topic, rather than adding them at the end
• Science: highlight contributions from a wider range of scientists and challenge assumptions about who belongs in the field

Be intentional about what you mean by diversity, consider gender, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic background.

3. Avoid single stories

Be careful not to reduce groups to one narrative.

• Don’t present marginalised groups only through struggle
• Include stories of success, leadership, creativity, and everyday life

Students need multidimensional representations.

They should encounter people as fully human, complex, nuanced, and varied.
This leads to richer learning and a more honest curriculum.

4. Make it subject, specific

Inclusion is not just a humanities issue, it is a whole, curriculum responsibility.

• Maths: use real, world problems that reflect diverse contexts
• English: select texts that provide both mirrors and windows
• Geography: avoid deficit narratives and explore cultural diversity with depth
• Science: challenge narrow perceptions of who can be a scientist.

Every subject has a role to play.

5. Involve student voice

Ask students directly:

• Do you see yourself in what we learn?
• What would you like to see more of?

Their responses often highlight gaps that adults may overlook—and involving them builds both agency and belonging.

Common pitfalls to avoid

Even with strong intentions, there are common missteps:

• Tokenism: adding one example and considering the work done
• Over, correction: forcing representation in ways that feel inauthentic
• Stereotyping: simplifying identities rather than showing complexity
• Inconsistency: inclusion appearing in isolated moments rather than as a sustained approach

Inclusion works when it is planned, consistent, and authentic.

What you can do tomorrow

If you’re not sure where to start, begin small:

• Gather feedback from a class or year group (through a form or discussion)
• Review an upcoming scheme of work and ask: Where are the mirrors and windows?
• Identify one meaningful change that improves representation

You don’t need to do everything at once, but you do need to start intentionally.

Final thought

An inclusive curriculum isn’t about ticking boxes or meeting requirements.

It’s about answering a simple but powerful question:

“Does every student feel seen here—and are they being helped to see others?”

When the answer becomes consistently “yes,”
you’re not just delivering content, you’re building belonging.

Further Reading

Bishop, R. S. (1990) ‘Mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors’, Perspectives: Choosing and Using Books for the Classroom, 6(3). Available at: https://scenicregional.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Mirrors-Windows-and-Sliding-Glass-Doors.pdf

Geographical Association (n.d.) Cultural diversity in geography education. Available at: https://geography.org.uk/ite/initial-teacher-education/geography-support-for-trainees-and-ects/learning-to-teach-secondary-geography/geography-subject-teaching-and-curriculum/teaching-thematic-geography/cultural-diversity-in-geography-education/

Bhorkar, S., Campbell, R. and Claro, J. (2025) ‘Beyond the tick-box: diversity in the curriculum’, Impact: Journal of the Chartered College of Teaching. Available at: https://my.chartered.college/impact_article/beyond-the-tick-box-diversity-in-the-curriculum/

Pearson (2023) Pearson School Report: Diversity and Inclusion. Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20231204193347/https://www.pearson.com/en-gb/schools/insights-and-events/topics/diversity-inclusion/schools-report.html

Teach First (2020) STEMinism: How to encourage more girls to study STEM subjects. Available at: https://www.teachfirst.org.uk/sites/default/files/2020-02/teach_first_steminism_report.pdf