Everyone has different abilities; things they find easy and things they find more difficult to do. For example, some of us can’t read advertisements written in Cantonese. We might be able to guess the meaning by looking at the pictures but we can’t understand the words. In the UK, not being able to read Cantonese won’t be a barrier in most people’s lives because a lot of the adverts we see everyday are written in English. However, for some people, not being able to fully understand adverts, shop online or work out average monthly sales figures at work are barriers to getting on with their lives. Inclusive learning is about making sure that everyone gets the best possible chances to achieve their goals so they can do the things they want to do.
It is often the literacy, language, numeracy and/ or ICT elements of everyday practices that people find most challenging. This is why, in 2001, the government published a Skills for Life strategy following recommendations made in the Moser Report. In its strategy, which was updated in 2009, the government allocated public funding to help people get Skills for Life qualifications (such as Key Skills and, more recently, Functional Skills).
For some people, doing a course or taking on new responsibilities at work can be terrifying because they worry that someone will find out, for example, that they can’t write their address properly or that they don’t understand what people mean when they say ‘the bottle’s two-thirds full’. We live in a society where people can be stigmatised because they find some things difficult to do.
In July, we blogged about wellbeing and the impact that hidden disabilities like dyslexia can have on people’s lives and the opportunities they have. For people with dyslexia, dyspraxia and other learning difficulties, there can be additional barriers in life, especially when it comes to getting qualifications. At tpm, we do our best to make learning inclusive by delivering it in ways that lots of different people can relate to and learn from.
Many of us ‘code switch’ on a day-to-day basis. We use different varieties of language in different situations. For example, think about the language a rapper might use when performing on stage and compare it to the daily discussions between a market stall holder and her customers. There will be similarities and differences in the language that they use, depending also on their ages, their social/ ethnic backgrounds, where they are from, their personalities and many other individual factors. We could say, in the UK alone, there is not one type of English but many Englishes. We code switch between them (and other languages we use) depending on who we are talking to, where we are and what we’re doing.
Being inclusive means that we don’t take it for granted that everyone feels confident about doing everything. Activities that some of us do without thinking can be really challenging for some people. Think about catching a train, for example. You might look up the timetable and book a ticket online (reading words, looking at images and using numbers to choose the right time and the cheapest priced journey). You also might speak to the conductor, read adverts in the station and the carriage, skim through a free newspaper or text a friend and listen to music on your MP3 player. At tpm, we support learners to achieve Functional Skills which are qualifications to test how well you can use maths, English and ICT to solve problems and carry out tasks in real life contexts like these.
Although many people today use computers and mobile phones to access the internet, not everyone feels confident, for example, to shop, chat with friends or research their family tree on line. Also, not everyone has access to computers so that they can surf the net. We could say that there is a growing digital divide between people who can and can’t use ICT to do things they want to in their lives. Learners at tpm can use our Internet Lounge in the reception anytime they like. We are committed to providing safe access to the Internet for everyone we work with.
What do you think about inclusive learning? Do you think people should be stigmatised because they find it hard to do certain tasks? What works best for you when you’re learning how to do new things?
BBC Learning English – http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/
BBC Raw – http://www.bbc.co.uk/raw/
BBC Skillswise – http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/
Brain Games – http://www.braingames.org.uk/
British Council learning English – http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/
British Dyslexia Association – www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/
Dyslexia Action – http://www.dyslexiaaction.org.uk/
Dyslexia Foundation – http://www.dyslexia-help.org/
Dyspraxia Foundation – http://www.dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk/index.php
Move On (click on the learner routes) – http://www.move-on.org.uk/
My Guide – http://www.myguide.gov.uk/myguide/MyguideHome.do
Quick reads – http://www.quickreads.org.uk/
January 27, 2011 at 12:04 pm |
I’m really interested in the concept of “code switching”.
In our society, it strikes me that many of our problems stem from from a lack of positive, mutually beneficial communication between groups eg the young and the old, different social or ethnic groups. The existence of separate codes is undeniable, but their existence highlights difference and the potential for communciation breakdown. The proliferation and strenghtening of different codes indirectly and probably unintentionally encourage exclusion. Should we be simply recognising that different codes exist and working round them or trying to integrate them? I know celebration of difference is the order of the day but I do think we need to also have a shared perspective and a code that unifies us. I’m not sure there’s much focus on that today? Or perhaps as a whole, we do actually have a unifying code? I’d be interested to see what people think.
Sorry to take things off on a tangent.
February 2, 2011 at 8:53 am |
Hi Pavlina,
Yes, the differences in the ways people communicate can divide us from each other. I think that all people’s ways of communicating should be celebrated- who is to say, for example, that ‘Geordie’ or ‘Scouse’ varieties of English are more or less important than ‘Queen’s English’ (I wonder how many people speak ‘Queen’s English’ today??). I think that we need to recognise that we use different varieties of language in different contexts without adding value judgements to the varieties (i.e. we shouldn’t say that one variety is ‘better’ than another). Being able to communicate across language divides can open doors for us that might not otherwise be open.
March 11, 2011 at 3:32 pm |
I think it was intresting and had some good information but at times it could be boring but all the information in it is really intresting
March 11, 2011 at 3:34 pm |
i think it was interesting and had some good information but in other places it was quite boring and the information wasnt that good, but overall i think it covers what is needed but shouldnt be so long and should be broken down in to smaller chunks so you can take the information in more easily and remeber it quicker.
March 11, 2011 at 3:36 pm |
I agree with some of the things mentioned like when it says two-thirds full’ i wouldnt know how much that is and if i was told to fill a bottle two thirds of the way up i wouldnt know how much it is as i’m not good when it comes to maths and might be embarrased to ask for help with something so simple.
March 11, 2011 at 3:37 pm |
I think that this is very intresting and that it gives many examples of life. It shows that there are different ways people communicate or try to communicate, it was too much information all together which was boring to read after a while because it was that long, although it was a good statement and a good explantion to give me a understanding of the varieties of communcation across the world. After reading it i believe if this was shorter and got the point straight across instead of dragging it out then i would of understoon it more that getting a lot of information at once