Inclusive classrooms make incredible schools By Heather Barker Vermeer Industry Reporter
Inclusive education fosters a culture of respect and belonging, accepts individual differences, and allows individual to work towards their own goals and pathways while being a valued part of a learning community. Schools and their environments, systems and processes need to adapt so they have adequate support for all learners, including learners with diverse or more complex leaning needs. No student should
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Schools are legally required to be inclusive under the Education and Training Act 2020, which is reinforced by the New Zealand Disability Strategy. feel their capacity to learn is limited by the need to fit in.
The New Zealand Curriculum and Te Marautanga o Aotearoa require all students’ identities, languages, cultures, abilities, and talents to be valued and recognised. By its very nature, it is an inclusive programme designed to create an educational environment in which all students are able to thrive.
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How schools represent, respond to, and recognise difference can have lifelong impacts on individuals. Enabling students of all abilities to be present, enjoy learning and achieve their potential is essential to provide an equitable environment for teaching and learning within the school setting. It requires careful, considered thought and ongoing action.
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While students on the Autism Spectrum require individually tailored support, teachers can use effective strategies to provide a rich learning environment by creating safe spaces in the classroom, for example, where students can take a break from social interaction, decompress, and process information in their own time. Dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia and ADHD, once professionally diagnosed, require collaborative input from staff and student, and ideally, whānau. When a student presents with a learning difficulty, the pathways taken by teachers can mean the difference between years of
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success and years of struggle, so providing staff with the right resources and insight is critical. Keen observation in a classroom setting can lead to a helpful diagnosis that sets students up with the support they need to learn. For instance, the Ministry of Education outlines early identification and practical support as central to a successful dyslexia programme in schools. As such, ensuring teaching staff and aides know how best to provide practical support, suitable tasks and activities, is key and PLD is widely provided across the motu by public and charity organisations, as well as private providers. Producing confident, empowered learners and teaching staff requires a holistic, schoolwide approach and a shift in attitudes of old. Being non-prescriptive, the NZ Curriculum allows for a flexible learning approach and schools/kura have a mandate to develop their curriculum in a personalised way which responds to the needs of all their learners. Term 3, 2022 | schoolnews.co.nz
