Discuss The Role Of Equality And Diversity In Education

Within the education and training sector my job specialism is as a Teacher of life skills to college aged learners with Special Education Needs (SEN). These learners are from various cultural backgrounds, and have all been assessed as having physical difficulties, as well as profound and multiple learning difficulties, or autism and other complex needs. All of these learners attend college in order to be able to access real life learning opportunities within a framework; which is safe and responsive to their individual needs, so that they can develop the independence they have at home and in their community. The learning opportunities include area's such as basic numeracy and literacy, communication, personal safety and practical living skills.

Due to all of my learners different need's and backgrounds; I have to ensure that my teaching style and resources support a variety of ways that learning opportunities can be made accessible, and will allow for equality and diversity amongst the learner group in line with the Equality act (2010). The equality act states that a person should not be discriminated against because they have an association with, or are a person with disabilities or any of the other protected characteristics. There are 9 protected characteristics which are; Age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. An example of equality in my organisation is a learner in my group who has a hearing impairment. This learner is not able to follow spoken instructions or explanations regarding a task or activity, so it is important that during preparation of the lesson plan; I put measures in place to enable this learner to gain the same understanding of the task as the rest of the group. This may be done by having objects of reference, pictures or a written explanation/handout relating to the task, or by making sure that myself or other staff working with this learner are able to use Makaton or British sign language (BSL) to communicate with the Learner. This also promotes inclusive

High priority is placed on the safety and welfare of these learners and others around the college; as these are vulnerable individuals who have a right to an education in a safe environment in line with the Children’s Act 2004 which is; underpinned by 'every child matters', emphasising the importance of safeguarding children and young people within an educational setting. The college also has a duty of care to all who work on or enter its premises in adherence to the Health and Safety at Work act 1974 which holds all staff in the organisation responsible for differing areas of safety dependent on their job role and responsibility. An example of safeguarding considerations would be to make sure that no sharp objects (i.e. knives, scissors), no poisonous liquids (i.e. cleaning products), no trip hazards, no scalding water or loose electrical wiring is within reach of a learner. Some learners may have food allergies so it is also important to make sure none of those allergy specific foods are present. The aforementioned can be detrimental as some (SEN) learners have very little awareness of the safety of themselves or