Equality, Diversity and inclusion in work with children and young people. Essay

1.1 How does the equality Act 2010 promote equality and diversity? Obtain your schools Equality of opportunity policy. What is its aim? Identify references to action. The Equality Act protects individuals from unfair treatment and promotes a fair more equal society. Equality and diversity is now a ‘limiting judgement’ in Ofsted inspections. This means that if equality measures are not being implemented efficiently, this will restrict the overall inspection grade. As a school, you must not discriminate against a pupil or prospective pupil because of their disability, race, sex, gender reassignment, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. The objectives at Tutshill School are that all children in our school will learn in an environment free from the effects of and without discrimination, and that the working conditions and environment of our staff and volunteers will also be free from discrimination. Tutshill C of E Primary School strives to ensure that the culture and ethos of the school are such that, whatever the heritage and origins of members of the school community, everyone is equally valued and treats one another with respect. Pupils should be provided with the opportunity to experience, understand and celebrate diversity. Tutshill School will adhere to Gloucestershire LEA’s Racial Harassment in Schools – Guidelines and make all new teachers, student teachers and ancillary staff aware of the policy. 1.2 Why is it important to support the rights of all children and young people to participation and equality of access? All children have the right to access all the opportunities which are on offer in the school provision. Each and every pupil has the right to learn and should not be discriminated against for any reason. In order for us to  achieve this we must involve the children and parents in finding out what works well in school and what doesn’t. This should be supported by high quality teaching and learning experience. I believe that involving the children in this process would make the children more confident and feel more valued within school. 1.3 How is cultural diversity valued and promoted in your school? Discuss its importance. Within Tutshill School opportunities are provided for all children to experience others cultures and ethnic backgrounds. This is promoted through literacy lessons. Every term the children I work with have a new topic for example, Greece and The Romans. With each topic they learn about their cultures such as their religion, language and the different foods they eat. The children in year four studied the Romans and did a play for the other children in assembly and also designed a menu for the whole school to try. The Year five class studied Greece and designed and made holiday brochure for display in their class room and also designed a Greek menu for the school to try. This is to ensure that the children understand and value the social and cultural diversity that could be in their own community as well as around the world. Culture can cut across nationalities and faiths and by promoting cultural diversity and the differences of individuals and groups within school will enhance a child ’s learning and promote knowledge and understanding of all pupils. Diverse cultures in schools should be acknowledged and reflected throughout the curriculum. By supporting and encouraging children to understand and accept cultural diversity will also prevent stereotyping and reduce prejudice and discrimination within schools. Most importantly, it will prepare children and young people for numerous changes that will happen in their lives as adults where they will inevitably be involved in mixing with adults of different cultures and backgrounds. Having watched the Teachers’ TV programme ‘Pride and Prejudice’, about Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children, comment on the following. 2.1 What prejudices do these groups face? Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children face many prejudices throughout their lives. They are not considered part of the community that they live in and often come up against racism, stereotyping, discrimination and abuse not only from other children but adults as well. 2.2 What impact does this have on traveller C/YP? The impact that racism, stereotyping and discrimination have on the children is that they fall out of school or are taken out of school at an early age. Majority of traveller children tend to leave school or are taken out of school at the end of primary level as they find the transition into secondary school a difficult one due to other children and teachers bulling them and having little knowledge or understanding of their culture. The remainder of the children do not often make it past year 9. 2.3/2.4 How have schools tackled prejudice to raise attendance and attainment? Schools have tackled these prejudices by increasing other people’s knowledge about these minority groups. For Example: †¢Celebrate their culture. †¢Looking at the history of the travellers. †¢Increasing awareness of their heritage by having day trips to the Romany life centre. †¢Traveller children making a booklet to educate teachers and pupils, about their religion and how and where they live. †¢Showing the pupils a film about travellers about their skills and how they made a living. To raise attendance and attainment schools have been flexible with rules regarding attendance rates and given extra support especially just before SAT’s. The most important thing I feel is that they treated each and every child the same. 3.1 Explain what is meant by ‘inclusion’? Inclusion means to be fully included, to make people feel valued and respected irrespective of ethnicity, gender, disability, culture, age, religion and sexual orientation. It is about giving equal access and opportunities to everyone. 3.2/3.3 Provide 3 or 4 examples of inclusive practices in your classroom/school. During my time at Tutshill School I have witnessed and been part of several inclusive practices. Example 1. Within year 4 we have a student who is Chinese. During the Chinese New-year SL brought in sweets for everyone so we could celebrate the Chinese new-year with her. She then had time to talk to the class about what she did during their celebrations. Example 2. Throughout each classroom and the school there are displays of children’s work. All abilities are displayed, so the children can see and understand that just because their work may not be the neatest or always correct it will still get to be displayed. Example 3. During P.E all children will be included, whether they have a lower ability or any medical issues. The games that they are playing will be adapted if needed to so that every child has the opportunity to participate.