Policies: Equal Opportunities - May 2005
Equal opportunities for all
'An entitlement to learning must be an entitlement for all pupils'.
INTRODUCTION
All pupils at Highfield Primary have an equal right to develop and achieve their potential. Equality of opportunity underpins the school curriculum and the work of the school. Children at Highfield are treated as individuals with their own abilities, difficulties, attitudes, backgrounds and experiences.
The Education Reform Act entitles all pupils in school to a National Curriculum, which is balanced and broad based. The National Curriculum includes cross - curricular dimensions such as equal opportunities for boys / girls, multicultural education and special educational needs. Wherever possible the curriculum will develop children's knowledge and understanding of different beliefs, cultures and needs.
At Highfield we aim for an atmosphere of trust and respect among children as well as between teachers and children. Citizenship education programme is about how we treat each other and, more importantly, how we learn to respect one another and ourselves as citizens of the world. It also fosters an understanding of the diversity of cultures and needs that exist in school and in the wider community.
PARENTS:
We will introduce and communicate the equal opportunities policy to parents through the school prospectus, admissions meetings with parents and on parents evenings.
CHILDREN:
It is the right of every child irrespective of race, culture, class, gender, special needs or ability to achieve their full potential. Each child should have access to an education, which will enable him / her to utilise their talents to the full and achieve their potential. We must develop children to become sensitive to, and aware of ways in which equality of opportunity is denied and how this might affect them in society.
STAFF:
It is the responsibility of all staff to foster and facilitate this ideal by creating a welcoming environment for all children. They will endeavour to establish an atmosphere within school which effectively reduces prejudice and raises self esteem, so that all children can develop independence, freedom of choice and a knowledge of their right to take on whatever roles they choose, no matter what their cultural background, gender or ability.
As a staff we have to remember that we are role models. We must challenge the concept of discrimination based upon differences of race, gender and special needs.
AIMS:
To ensure that:
1. every individual within the school achieves their full potential and has the same opportunities
2. every child is given access to the best possible level of achievement appropriate to its age and ability through appropriately differentiated work
3. staff, parents and children are informed and educated, and reminded of the issues to ensure a continuity of approach throughout the school
4. prejudices are challenged and positive attitudes are built
5. understanding and mutual respect of all children, regardless of differences, is promoted
6. contributions from various cultures are included and acknowledged in the planning and teaching of the full range of National Curriculum subjects, resources and school displays
7. an awareness of the unfairness and injustice of stereotyping is raised
8. any form of bullying including verbal, physical and psychological bullying by any group or individuals is challenged and addressed
9. high levels of acceptable group and individual behaviour are promoted by ensuring that all the school community are informed of school expectations and procedures
10. there is a commitment to minimising all school exclusions by implementing agreed strategies and procedures ensuring that each child is given the opportunity to achieve and succeed
11. absences, racist incidents and bullying incidents are recorded and monitored.
EXAMPLES OF STRATEGIES used in school that will carry out these aims are:
- Planning activities of a non- stereotypical nature such as the home corner and apparatus.
- Giving children time to talk in class discussions to give everyone opportunity to voice opinion and discuss how they are feeling.
- Encouraging the sharing of experiences - encompassing all equality issues.
- Reviewing/updating resources so that appropriate messages are presented to the children.
- Planning role-play experiences to include addressing age, disability, race and gender.
- Providing a differentiated curriculum by developing classroom approaches that cater for individual differences but which do not make distinctions that have negative effects on children, their learning and development.
- Displays around school promoting positive equality issues.
- Providing an entitlement curriculum, which aims to offer the same balanced curriculum and learning experiences to all.
- Staff on playground duty to identify loners, the assertive group and negative physical contact.
- Children encouraged to think about the exclusion of others and the negative effect it can have.
- Involving children in rule making in the classroom and at a whole school level through the school council.
- Using assembly time and collective worship themes to reinforce equal opportunity issues.
- Using targets and rewards for children to reinforce acceptable behaviour and attitudes.
- Ensuring that all children will have equal access to all resources. Some children will need encouragement / direction in the use of resources.
- Subject leaders to address equality issues within their subject.
- Giving children a voice, through the school council.
- Sharing in various religious celebrations throughout the year.
THE CURRICULUM
All children will have equal access to all aspects of the curriculum and school life. We will need to monitor our practices to achieve this. Children should be given the opportunity:
- to make choices without rejecting any as being inappropriate, e.g. sport, monitor jobs
- to gain self-worth and self-confidence, freeing them to develop a sense of who they are and what they want
- to have equal educational experiences so that they can make appropriate choices from a base of common skills and knowledge.
RESOURCES
- Books, workcards, equipment and other resources will be checked to see that they are non-stereotyping.
- Children will be encouraged to learn to identify and question stereotypes if they are found in existing material.
- Resources such as computers, technology equipment and playground space will be allocated fairly.
HIDDEN CURRICULUM
- Displays will show positive role models.
- There is a need to discuss and counter prejudices and hidden beliefs.
- The development and sharing of common interests will be encouraged.
Children's individual characteristics and feelings need to be respected and valued.
STAFF TRAINING
Active participation of all school personnel is necessary for a successful policy. Staff meetings will take place as a means of monitoring / evaluating the policy. Also 'raising awareness sessions' will be planned.
All the staff has responsibility for promoting Equal Opportunities.
SUCCESS CRITERIA
Equal Opportunity will be recognised or highlighted in the following areas:
- SATs results
- Playground/classroom interaction
- Displays in school
- Perceptions of Governors and Parents
- Teaching styles
- Differentiated work on offer to parents
- Use of resources
- Teacher assessment
RACIAL EQUALITY (see also Race Equality policy)
HIGHFIELD STAFF WILL TACKLE ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION
The main objectives we are working towards are:
- to prepare all children to live and work together, with equality of opportunity as part of a multi-racial world
- to build on the strength of cultural and linguistic diversity
- to raise awareness and enable children to recognise and challenge inequality
- to meet effectively the particular educational needs of all children.
IN THE CLASSROOM TEACHERS WILL:
a) raise awareness of similarities and differences of individuals and groups
b) where appropriate encourage positive role models from the community to support work in the classroom and arrange relevant visits to religious buildings
c) have high expectations so all children achieve their full potential, as well as encourage a positive self-image
d) give opportunities for children to express and evaluate their own opinions and to respect the opinions of others
e) at all times encourage children to challenge stereotypes, prejudices and racism
f) carefully choose books and materials and create displays that reflect the diversity within school, community and the wider world
g) audit / monitor their subject ensuring equality issues are addressed
h) be made aware of the ethnic mix, different religions and home language of children
i) identify children for EAL support
j) as a subject leader, ensure there are appropriate equality links
IN SCHOOL ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT WE WILL:
- celebrate the success of individuals
- ensure all staff, teaching and non-teaching, are informed of the policy
- provide opportunity children to work with people from a variety of backgrounds and cultures in a wide variety of roles including work, domestic and recreational
- monitor extra curricular activities to ensure that children form all cultural groups are encouraged to take part
- carefully monitor data available to school, to ensure all children achieve their full potential
Gender Equality
IN THE CLASSROOM TEACHERS WILL:
(a) seek to organise the children to work together in mixed groups so they are less likely to develop antagonistic attitudes, e.g. encouraging them to line up in mixed pairs or by surname, keeping the register in alphabetical order
(b) ensure that areas in the classroom do not become a predominantly male or female domain, e.g. home corner, construction area
(c) enable children to work in single sex groups if need be, to develop enjoyment and confidence in particular subjects.
IN SCHOOL ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT WE WILL:
- celebrate the success of individuals
- avoid unnecessary separation of sexes, unless a specific educational purpose is being met
- ensure staff positions are not limited to one sex
- ensure all staff, teaching and non-teaching, are informed of the policy
- provide opportunity for girls and boys to see women and men in a wide variety of roles including work, domestic and recreational
- ensure that the discipline policy will be the same for both girls and boys
- make sure extra curricular activities will be available to all children and timetabled to avoid stereotyped classes.
DISABILITY
All children are given the opportunity to recognise and respect individual differences and abilities. We are all unique and therefore have the right to be treated as individuals.
We will endeavour to:
- raise awareness of the varying needs of others
- highlight and celebrate the differences between each other
- raise awareness of the need for appropriate facilities to be available for people with disabilities, e.g. wheel chair ramps.
This will be achieved through:
- appropriate discussions
- topic links, e.g. work on the body
- visiting speakers
- appropriate resources, e.g. positive images in books/stories/displays
- following the inclusion policy.