PTLLS – Bea Groves Level 3, Unit 002 'The Interview' Tutor's Example NOT TO BE DUPLICATED!!

Role Context: Inclusive Learning... ”Inclusive teaching means recognising, accommodating and meeting the learning needs of all your students. It means acknowledging that your students have a range of individual learning needs and are members of diverse communities: a student with a disabling medical condition may also have English as an additional language and be a single parent. Inclusive teaching avoids pigeonholing students into specific groups with predictable and fixed approaches to learning.” (OU, 2006)

Also... ”The Human Rights Act of 1998 states that ‘no person shall be denied the right to education’, while The learning age picks up the debate with the explicit aim of responding to ‘the learning divide between those who have benefited from education and training and those who have not’ (DfEE 1998:11). Similarly, the Disability Discrimination Act Part 4, known as the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 (SENDA), aims to combat exclusion from learning and provide equality and access to learning opportunities.” (LSDA, 2005)

And... ”...we want to avoid a viewpoint which locates the difficulty or deficit with the student and focus instead on the capacity of the educational institution to understand and respond to the individual learner’s requirement. This means we must move away from labelling the student and towards creating an appropriate educational environment; concentrate on understanding better how people learn so that they can better be helped to learn; and see people with disabilities and/or learning difficulties first and foremost as learners.” (Tomlinson Report, FEFC 1996:4)

Teaching ICT in the FE sector: 1 The college needs efficient pre-entry assessment systems in place so that new students have appropriate support arranged for then as they enrol. I would informally use diagnostic assessment with all my students, via observation of skills and discussing with them their needs on an individual basis. Requests for other physical aids would be made at this point – e.g. A trackball instead of mouse for those with dexterity issues.

Teaching ICT in the FE sector: 2 I would ensure that my handouts and other written resources are in typefaces and colours that are accessible to those with eyesight issues. My web- based materials will be 'W3C' compliant and usable with screen-readers. I would ensure that my teaching users non-gender specific language wherever practical, and that I use imagery that reflects the diverse society in which we live. I would teach using solely interactive methods – those that encourage involvment and communication.

Teaching ICT in the FE sector: 3 I will be mindful of religious obligations – not all students can attend at times defined by the curriculum! (Do we need prayer facilities for muslim students?) I would make sure that ground rules are agreed at the outset of each course, governing respect and expected behaviours. I would check literacy/numeracy issues as I go along, using opportunities to both assess and practice literacy (e.g. Word processing)

Teaching ICT in the FE sector: 4 Where I encounter difficulties beyond my capacity, I would refer these to college support teams via my line-manager. I would assess informally in a variety of ways that 'triangulate' the course learning outcomes, are easily accessible and understandable to the students, and that are robust and reliable (e.g. Observation of skills, self-assessment checklists, 'portfolio' building of materials, and discussion grid)

Teaching ICT in the FE sector: 5 I would take into account that not all students progress at the same rate, that age, communication skills, ability and personal background all make an impact – and that these are best supported by a warm, open, approachable and relaxed teaching style. Above all: I wish to develop 'Communities of Exploration' (Coffield & Williamson, 2011) in all my work, in which students and tutor work together and support each other!

References Coffield, F & Williamson, B (2011) From Exam Factories to Communities of Exploration. IOE, London OU Making your teaching inclusive. [ONLINE] Available at: ve-teaching/index.php. [Accessed 19 November 12]. Smith V, & Armstrong (2005) A Beyond prejudice: inclusive learning in practice. LSDA, London Tomlinson, M (2004) Final Report of the Working Group on Reform. FEFC, London

Thank You! Bea Groves DO NOT DUPLICATE!!