Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education: A Report

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DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
May 24
2019

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Table of Content
1. Introduction..................................................................................................................................3
1.1. Objectives of the assignments aligning to the learning outcomes focusing on a particular
group as mentioned......................................................................................................................3
1.2. The core themes based on a particular group of people....................................................4
2. Main body.................................................................................................................................4
2.1.................................................................................................................................................5
2.1.1. The definition of key terms............................................................................................5
2.1.2. Inclusion is a vast field which cannot be defined in a specific way...............................5
2.1.3. Inclusive education values and usefulness.....................................................................6
2.2. Complex nature on focusing to define the term emphasizing on a particular group........7
2.3. Importance of inclusion....................................................................................................8
2.4.................................................................................................................................................9
2.4.1. Framework on legislation on which early Years sector works..................................9
2.4.2. Effectiveness of practices and policies....................................................................11
2.5. Reasons for discrimination still prevalent in the society................................................12
2.6. Potential barriers and challenges faced by inclusion......................................................13
2.7...............................................................................................................................................14
2.7.1. Role of early years in reducing discrimination practices.........................................14
2.7.2. The effective practices with respect to inclusion.....................................................14
2.8. The transition from needs of young children and families to social justice and human
rights 15
3. Conclusion.................................................................................................................................15

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3.1. Learning outcomes about the diverse group of children and their families related to
inclusion.....................................................................................................................................15
3.2. The key literature................................................................................................................16
3.3. Recommendations for future practice.................................................................................16
Reference List................................................................................................................................17

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1. Introduction
The aim of this project is to build a respectful meaningful and enduring relationship between
various cultures. This objective cannot be achieved without a commitment to inclusion, diversity
and equality. This project will aim to build opportunities which will help to reduce the barriers
among for everyone especially for children and unrecognized people. This assignment will be
committed to the outcomes which will be against discrimination especially for young children
and their families.
1.1. Objectives of the assignments aligning to the learning outcomes focusing on a
particular group as mentioned
Diversity can be defined as the way people live as an individual or in a group in society; they
may differ in every way possible. Whereas, inclusion is defined as the process which involves
the educational or curriculum environment in which the young children are included to
participate under equal terms and can sense that where they actually belong and discover their
potential areas and develop themselves accordingly. Hence, aligning diversity and inclusion with
the needs of special rights for young children and their families on education are discussed
below:
 Children with disabilities have full right to participate in the regular classroom program
and have adequate accommodations for them which will be effective for their social,
cultural and academic development which will focus on the objective based on inclusion.
Including children with disabilities in the normal classroom, the program is not because
to maintain the moral values but because involving students with disabilities in the
mainstream program of the classroom will increase the quality of learning outcomes for
all the other students (Ambrose and Ashcroft, 2016).
 Research has stated that allowing a disabled child in the classroom will add diversity in
the classroom and thus the students can learn about the new possibilities related to culture
and other fields which will make the classroom program an interesting one.
 The special children provide strength to the classroom. Studies show that discoveries on
the strength of students with disabilities including dyslexia, Down's syndrome and autism
are being carried.

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 Disable students give a climatic variation in the classroom. Students with needs can
improve the environment on education and help to give meaningful messages which may
help the other students to pitch their life properly.
 Disable students perform better when they are put in the environment from where there is
more expectation. When the special students are excluded from the classroom they are
engulfed by negative thoughts, isolation etc, but in the inclusive form of a classroom, the
students are pushed to behave like the normal one which helps them to gather positive
vibes and give a better performance.
 By including disabled students in the classroom will make the authorities to arrange for
different arrangements for the students which will include diversity in learning and which
will be beneficial for all students in learning.
 Students with special needs have a strong neural capacity in an enriched environment of
learning. During the period of development, the young children are likely more sensitive
so they benefit a lot from the optimal environment of learning (Bovill et al., 2016).
1.2. The core themes based on a particular group of people
It has been discussed above that the studies in this project will focus on the group of disabled
students and the diversity and inclusion impact on them. The theme of this assignment will
mainly focus on the special rights needed for the students with disability and to argue against
discriminations. To succeed in the inclusion program a classroom must be enriched in a
social environment. The teachers play a vital role in encouraging disabled students with
adequate positive interactions and minimal pessimist interactions. Hence implementation of
the inclusive program on classroom will help the disabled as well as the other students to
learn in a different environment which will help them to shape out their lives according to
their potentials. It is in the childhood when the students are more open and sensitive towards
learning, if during that period of time they are told to respect the special children and fight
against the discrimination in the society they will likely to develop a better future (Chapman
et al., 2015).
2. Main body

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2.1.
2.1.1. The definition of key terms
Inclusion- this is defined as the power to embrace social ideologies. Inclusion related to
education for disabled students is offering them the opportunities to learn along with their
peers in the same classroom environment. Introducing an inclusive classroom can be
complex in nature which includes challenges for disabilities. This inclusive classroom
program can triumph if the teachers and the parents play a positive role in encouraging the
disable students as well as the normal students.
Diversity – Diversity is the way people live as an individual or in a group where they may
differ in various fields like culture, education etc. it has been seen that students with
disabilities are removed from the normal classroom program and placed in some special
challenged schools. Hence studies have been conducted to bring diversity in the classroom by
including the involvement of disabled students with the help of several effective designs and
policies of learning in a normal classroom program (Clark et al., 2018).
2.1.2. Inclusion is a vast field which cannot be defined in a specific way.
Here inclusion is based on the educational and special rights on the students who are disabled.
Here the inclusive education faces a number of challenges but provides the right to education for
all the children. The values with which the inclusion is linked are democratization, fellowship,
benefit, equal justice etc. inclusive education thus provides secure rights on education for all
person with various educational needs. Studies have concluded that inclusion can be an intention
and it can also be a practice. If we try to define inclusion in a narrow sense we can only say that
it is based on education. Analysts have conferred that inclusion was a dominant term used in
education and disabilities (Eales and Sheate, 2016).
 The intention of introducing inclusion is to eradicate marginalization, segregation,
discrimination.
 Whatever changes integration did not manage to bring was brought about by
inclusion by focusing on the learning processes and its possibilities.
 The definition of inclusion in this context referred to as providing special educational
opportunities to the children with special needs.

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 The theories of inclusion include inclusive education for disabled students in a regular
classroom with children belonging to the same locality.
 Hence the inclusive education includes the teaching of all students including specially
challenged students in the normal classroom settings which will help them to gather
knowledge on various interests and abilities.
 This theory emphasizes the perspective of the poor performance of children. Inclusion
also establishes the explanation that the poor performance of the children is due to the
weakness and other pathological issues.
Hence in narrow sense inclusion can be stated as the best place for learning by allowing the
specially challenged students to participate equally in the normal classroom program which
will enable the policymakers to arrange and introduce various designs of learning for all
students which will enrich them in several fields.
A broad definition may include that the inclusion does not only focuses on disabled students
but also on marginalized people and all students. In this perspective, it covers all the students
who are exposed to danger due to diversity at schools. Hence by providing the required needs
to the students in danger is another theory of inclusion, by incorporating very common
practices on learning (Edbrooke et al., 2016).
Therefore the definition of inclusion can’t be defined properly as it covers a vast area.
2.1.3. Inclusive education values and usefulness
Values of inclusion
 It allows all the students to learn
 All the young children are encouraged to attain the classroom programs which are
regular in nature at a proper age.
 Every child receives the right programs on education
 Children receive the curriculum which will be beneficial for them
 This kind of education provides extracurricular and co-curricular activities.
 This program allows all the students including the disabled students to collaborate
among their home and community.
Usefulness of inclusion

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 Young children are allowed to be a part of their respective community and hence they
will tend to grow as a better human being by shaping up their life properly.
 This term offers better ways of learning. The children with various abilities are motivated
when they are exposed to a class with diversity.
 The expectations are likely to be higher for the individual student. This will help to
identify the gifts and strength of an individual (Guillaume et al. 2017).
 Inclusion helps the young children to work on their desired goal by keeping themselves
among other students of different interests.
 This kind of educational program encourages the parents and the local schools to
participate in their programs.
 This program helps to learn about different cultures and work with individuals on varied
interest.
 Inclusion helps to establish a friendly relation with each other within the educational
environment.
2.2. Complex nature on focusing to define the term emphasizing on a particular group
The purpose of this project is to implement diversity and inclusion strategies for disabilities
in children during their early education. This inclusion process various complexities and
challenges are faced by the category. It has been noticed through various studies that during
the early education disabled students are often excluded from the normal classroom setting
programs. This results that the disabled students are being subjected to negative vibes and
faces difficulties in competing in the social aspects within society. Lack of studies and
training of teachers on how to behave with the disabled students within the same
environment of the classroom tends to seclude the specially challenged students from the
normal education system. When these students are segregated from the classroom program
they suffer from anxiety, isolation and various other weaknesses. Lack of implementation of
the new policies which can be beneficial for the classroom program including the disabled
students by the policymaker is another complexity (Hunt et al.2015). Thus inclusion provides
the opportunity for all the students to learn within the environment which can be beneficial to
develop them in various fields like, culture and social and learning in the most effective way
including diversity within the educational environment. Often the teachers behave in an odd

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way when disabled students are introduced in the normal classroom setting, which can be
termed as complexity which has a severe negative impact on the students which will, later
on, affect the society.
Hence we can conclude that in spite the complex nature the inclusive way of educating
children should be implemented in order to contribute to the better future as young children
are more open and sensitive towards learning during their early ages. If they are taught to
value and empathy the diversification and fight against the discrimination they can be the
founders of a better society in future.
2.3. Importance of inclusion
Inclusion is important for various reasons which are discussed below:
 It helps to mould the different values of the children of the next generation which
includes that students prioritize the person first and not the disability; it also allows
the students to work in a diverse environment and to value those.
 It helps to establish friendly relations
i. To develop a friendly relation requires proximity and experience which can be
obtained by keeping all the children together which help them to achieve their
desired goal.
ii. By involving the disabled students in the normal classroom setting will make
the other students active in participating with those special students which will
make them learn and value those disable students and they can argue against
discrimination in future.
iii. This will allow eradicating discrimination and encourages all the students to
work within the same environment (Piper et al. 2015).
 Inclusion helps to improve life in a community as an adult.
i. Community values do not allow discrimination
ii. Those who are classmates can work as employees tomorrow.
 Inclusion helps to maintain the structure of the family
i. Siblings can work on educating together within the same school
ii. Parents play a vital role in building up an individual
 The environment on learning is enriched

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i. Resources like therapist and educators can be beneficial for all the young
children
ii. Diverse strategies in teaching and several improvisations can be beneficial for
all students as they will be capable of adapting to the various environment of
learning.
iii. Students who are disabled can take help from their peers who can work as a
role model in their lives and thus they can develop proper communication and
social skills (Ross, 2015).
2.4.
2.4.1. Framework on legislation on which early Years sector works
Everyone related to the early years working must have deep knowledge about the
legislation in order to keep the children safe and secure. The legislation is the key
ingredient as it provides the setting on procedures and policies on how to provide
protection to the children. Moreover, legislation is the guideline which provides details
on the legal basis on how to protect children's rights. If there were no framework on
legislation which provides the details on how the children need to be protected then it
would not have been possible to safeguard the children properly.
Therefore, every human must need to understand the designs of legislation and policies to
keep the children secure by promoting them the required welfare.
Few legislation is being discussed in the tabular form which can give a clear idea on the
framework related to policies and procedures to safeguard the child's right (Svensson and
Hultkrantz, 2017).
Name of the legislation Purpose Chief features
Children act 1989 The purpose of this act was to
provide children well and safe
and help them to live a
peaceful life by providing the
necessary services to fulfil
their needs along with their
 The welfare of young
children is necessary
for proper upbringing.
 This acts sees that the
children are safe and
the roles played by the

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families. agencies in this
respect.
Children act 2004 The purpose of this act was to
provide a well-designed
framework in which the child
is the centre to make sure that
the necessary services are
working appropriately.
 The feature of this act
is to see that the
NSPCC and the police
work together to
support and meet the
needs of children.
 This act also provides
information on how
the authorities and
their subordinates will
work together.
Children and families act
2014, part 3
This act ensured that the
young children and the
students with disabilities are
provided with necessary
educational facilities.
This act provides help to the
children and their parents’
social and health care services
and supports them in
education.
UN convention on the rights
of child act 1989
This act recognizes the rights
that the children have and how
to respect them. The
framework which is legal
helps to provide care and
development for all the young
children.
The features of this act are as
follows:
 Protecting children
from violence, harm
and abuse
 Focuses on survival,
life and development
 A healthy relationship
between the children
and their parents
 Focuses on the
respective opinion.

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Childcare act 2006 The purpose of this act is to
provide the local authorities of
England to improve the life of
the young children and focus
on their wellbeing
 Duties performed by
the authorities mainly
local
 The system on the care
of the child in England
 The centres focusing
on children
EYFS 2017 This act deals with the
responsibilities of the setting
of early years to provide
health services to the children
and care about their wellbeing
Guidelines on the protection
of children and appointing
appropriate people to work
with children.
2.4.2. Effectiveness of practices and policies
The range which covers to safeguard the procedures and policies must be followed by everyone
on the legal grounds. This legislative framework is thus important to keep the young children
safe from violence and harm. The procedures and policies cover various aspects related to
children some of this is discussed below:
 Safeguarding and protection of children policies
 Camera and mobile phone safety
 Safety in work practices
 Dealing with suspicion or allegations of abuse
The practices are taking care of children in the most effective way. Some of the practices that
involve the protection of the child are discussed below:
 Reporting unsafe practices and concerns
 The role of NSPCC should be understood thoroughly
 Roles of all kinds of professional in protecting children (Wingate, 2015)