Transcript Embedding Inclusion for Disabled Students: The ICDS Project

Designing for inclusion and
the role of the disability
practitioner
Caroline Davies and Tina Elliott
IMPACT Associates
Eileen Laycock, Disability Manager
University of Westminster
June 2010
We will be looking at…
• What are competence standards?
• Setting inclusive learning outcomes
and assessment criteria
• University of Westminster ICDS project
– using project resources to support
inclusive practices
• How disability officers can work with
academic colleagues to promote
inclusion
Competence standards
• Pre-set ‘Competence Standards’
replace the ‘academic standards’
justification for discriminating against
disabled students (DDA, 2006)
• What are competence standards?
• Will this be changed by the Equality
Act?
Setting standards
In HE, standards are traditionally applied:
• for selecting applicants at admission
• when learning outcomes are set
• for assessment criteria and marking
• when ranking students for the
conferment of awards
How does this apply to setting competence
standards?
A competence standard is...
“an academic, medical or other standard
applied by or on behalf of an education
provider for the purpose of determining
whether a person has a particular level of
competence or ability”
(DDA, Part 4 Code of Practice, 2006)
5 key characteristics
1. They apply to individual courses, not whole
subject areas
2. They apply equally to all students not just
disabled students
3. They are set by the University/ individual
Schools, and sometimes by professional
bodies
4. They must not directly discriminate against
disabled people
5. They must be a “proportionate” way of
achieving a “legitimate aim”
Making reasonable
adjustments
There is no duty to make reasonable
adjustments to a standard which is
defined as a competence standard.
However...
Universities do have a duty to make
reasonable adjustments to the process of
demonstrating that a disabled student or
applicant is able to meet a CS.
Discrimination and
competence standards
• When might a discriminatory competence
standard be justifiable?
• Avoiding discrimination by
 systematic review – the University of
Edinburgh’s 5 step test
 transparency - publishing and
publicising key course competence
standards in major documents
Implications of the
Equality Act 2010
• Will competence standards still apply?
• ECU advice is that competence
standards are included in the Act and
the position remains consistent with the
DDA
• Discrimination provisions and the
‘content of the curriculum’ exemption
• Code of Practice due, January 2011
Three key elements of
course design
• Learning outcomes
• Teaching and learning methods and
• Assessment criteria
Learning outcomes
• What are learning outcomes?
• Learning outcomes – the core
elements
• Deciding what is core
Key questions for inclusive
learning outcomes
• What is the pedagogical purpose of a
requirement, how does it achieve that purpose
and are there other more accessible ways of
achieving this?
• Is there any negative impact of the learning
outcome on disabled students?
• Would the learning outcome be substantially
changed if a particular requirement were
removed or substituted?
• Have changing circumstances, practices or
technology made a previous requirement in a
learning outcome redundant?
Example learning outcomes
1. At the end of this module the successful
student will be expected to be able to make
a persuasive fluent oral presentation.
2. At the end of this module the successful
student will be expected to be able to
access major data sources including
published statistics, government surveys,
on-line and CD Rom databases, and the
Internet
Inclusive Curriculum for
Disabled Students project
The ICDS project was a three-year TQEF
funded programme at the University of
Westminster
Aim: to develop and embed universitywide approaches to inclusive curriculum
design and delivery to support disabled
students’ learning
Objectives
• Supporting staff to develop inclusive
curriculum design and learning and
teaching practices
• Involving staff and disabled students in
identifying good practice and barriers
• Reviewing approaches to inclusion
within curriculum validation and review
• Promoting inclusive approaches that are
embedded in mainstream processes
and practices
Key achievements
• A series of focus groups with staff and
disabled students
• A set of Learning & Teaching Guides
• Staff and student Case Studies
• Four key Briefings
• Dissemination activities
• Strategies for course validation & review
• A comprehensive website of resources
www.westminster.ac.uk/study/disabilityservices/inclusive-curriculum-for-disabled-students
Learning & Teaching Guides
• Good practice statements with quotes
from staff and disabled students
• 13 Learning & Teaching Guides covering:
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Barriers to learning for disabled students
Recruitment, admission and induction
Lectures, seminars and tutorials
Practical-based learning
Placements and off-campus learning
Learning and teaching resources
Assessment
Validation and review, monitoring and feedback
Research programmes
Personal tutoring
Case Studies
• 9 case studies – 7 from disabled
students and 2 from staff
• Covering different learning and teaching
scenarios and students with a range of
impairments
• Identifying barriers and looking at ways
of overcoming them
• Identifying transferable inclusive
practice
Briefings
4 Briefings produced to complement the
Learning & Teaching Guides covering the
following topics:
• Competence Standards
• Writing Inclusive Learning Outcomes
and Course Descriptions
• Inclusive Employability Curriculum: Key
Issues
• Guidance on Validation
Using project resources to
support inclusive design
Aim was to promote awareness of the
resources and how they could be used to
support inclusion
• High profile Launch event
• School-based meetings
• Seminars for key staff, e.g. Learning and
Teaching Coordinators, Disability Tutors
• For all academic staff: input at Learning &
Teaching Symposia at each project stage
Future ICDS plans
• Work with School Disability Tutors to
support validation panels on some
targeted courses that are coming up for
revalidation
• Set up a series of lunchtime “Question
Time” sessions
• Weave into all staff development
workshops the issues of inclusive design
and competence standards. This is often
at the root of many of the barriers faced by
disabled students
Benefits of Competence
Standards
If set and implemented appropriately they:
• help prevent discrimination
• clarify expectations and outcomes
related to specific courses
• help staff make consistent decisions
• help disabled applicants choose a
course where they can meet standards
• help all students to understand what is
expected of them
What disability officers
can do to promote inclusion
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informing, influencing, collaborating
finding allies and champions
opportunities and threats
identifying target audiences
using a variety of means
 validation and review activities
 learning and teaching events
 procedural documents
• keeping inclusion on the agenda
Useful resources
ICDS web site
Two articles ‘Designing for Inclusion’ from
the Skill Journal, vol 95 2009
www.impact-associates.co.uk/publications.html
University of Edinburgh - 5 step test
ECU Briefing on the Equality Act
www.ecu.ac.uk/publications/equality-act-2010