Equality Mainstreaming "Making your Education Plan Work Better for You: New Tools for Embedding Equality into Education Plans“ May 2010 County Wicklow Vocational Education Committee Coiste Gairmoideachais Chontae Chill Mhantáin

FETAC Legislation VEC Education Plans Quality Assurance Agreement: Policy B2 Equal Status Acts Employment Equality Acts

Context Education Plan FETAC Quality Assurance Agreement 2006 Equality Awareness Training IVEA/Equality Authority Initiative

What we said we would do… Implement an equality mainstreaming perspective in the evaluation, planning, design and delivery of the wide range of vocational programmes offered through CWVEC’s Adult and Further Education Service

Develop and publish guidelines on implementing an equality mainstreaming perspective Develop and implement induction and on- going training for staff in Equality Mainstreaming

Assumptions Nine grounds Taking account of likelihood that learners and staff may at different times be affected by a number of the grounds. It is our vision to create a more equal society through education

Why? CWVEC LearnersCommunityStaff

What does equality mainstreaming mean for CWVEC? ‘A long term transformative strategy’(Witcher, 2005)

Programmes Funding strands Specific awards (or none)

Targetted and mainstream programmes Programmes planned, designed and delivered to ensure that learners have progression opportunities Learners can access programmes at appropriate levels Participation in the programme will not be a barrier to progression Specific outreach programmes

Planning Design Recruitment and access Delivery Evaluation

Point of access Application processes reviewed Improved needs identification Revision of promotional and application materials, methods and documentation to ensure accessibility Consideration of alternative suitable methods Consciousness and awareness of equality when designing, delivering and evaluating programmes Physical access

Planning and design Based on – Increased consultation – Evidence – Feedback Equality competency for staff Design of materials – representative of nine grounds

Delivery Teachers alert to diversity within class groups – use of differentiation Appropriate class materials and resources selected and used Modelling of tolerant and respectful behaviours Timely solutions to problems

Assessment Clearly information to learners Assessment – Appropriate assessment methods – Assessment for learning – Assessment of learning

Monitoring and evaluation Design of data collection instruments Data collection Evidence used to inform decisions

Staff development Personal Principles Policy Practice Competency

Immediate Tasks Equality mainstreaming checklist. Review of documentation, forms and processes Equality Training Programme Research into Outreach provision and progression of learners from outreach to mainstream programmes ‘Equipped to participate’ statements. Research and dissemination of good practice within the CWVEC promoting an evidence-based approach to the development of programmes. Monitoring plan.

Reflections More consultation, at shorter intervals Insist on deadlines Common understanding of what we mean by Equality Mainstreaming Working principle to underpin decision making and interactions rather than set of hard and fast rules Difficult to achieve, but worth working for...

Equality Mainstreaming WPIT Niamh Maguire (Adult Literacy Organiser) Maria Maguire (VTOS Co-ordinator) Irene Hayden (Adult Guidance Officer) Lisa Harvey (Youthreach Co-ordinator) Catherine Byrne (AEO) Angela Higgins (EDO)